Tennessee

I've been to Tennessee countless times and the beauty of the land along with the entertainment never cease to amaze me.The Smokey Mountains are probably one of the most beautiful things I have seen in my life. During the fall the sight is even more spectacular. The mountainside resembles a sea of red, orange, yellow and brown.

There are many different parks and trails to visit and hike. The parks offer a lot of insight about various animals that can be seen throughout the hills, such as lions, tigers, and bears! OH MY! Well okay, Tennessee doesn’t really have lions and tigers, but there are bears. My family and I were driving and ran into a backup of cars and people with cameras. We looked to the right off the side of the road and saw about three brown bears. My heart raced in both fear and excitement. It was a little frightening since I’d never seen any bears in the wild before, and for that same reason it was thrilling.

My family and I hiked a path to see a waterfall, and I didn’t know what I was getting into. I can’t remember how far the trail was exactly, but I do remember thinking it wouldn’t take too long. Well....the thing is, the path was very long, or so it seemed. It was an extremely hot day out, and the time of year when bugs were everywhere. Hiking uphill on a hot fall day was horrible, and it made the distance feel twice as long. It was all well worth it when we FINALLY arrived at the waterfall. It was beautiful. The waterfall was a lot bigger than I had imagined it would be, and it had a few levels to it that people were climbing to. That was one hike I definitely do again, but maybe when it’s not so hot out.

Whenever we visit the Smokey Mountains we go on a helicopter ride over the mountains and specific areas. It’s a great opportunity to ride a helicopter for the first time, or see the beauty of Tennessee from the sky. If anyone has ever seen the show "Christie" that used to be on (back in the early 90's I believe), with the school teacher, that was set back in the hills of Tennessee. My family and I actually went there (well trespassed) and walked through the school and church in the show. Learn more about it. Read about the show. It was a very cool experience, and I thank God we didn’t go to jail.

I love Tennessee and wouldn’t mind returning there sometime soon, nor would I mind possible living there someday. The beauty of the mountains and wildlife always captivates me, and takes my breath away.