Last colors of Autumn-- a hike in the woods

Winter is soon to be upon us -- although these last few days  have been unseasonably warm --- the cold is coming and Autumn will be just a memory. A few weeks ago we took off on a little last minute hiking trip to McCloud's Mountain in Duff, TN. On top of the mountain, 2700 ft in the clouds,... our walks in the woods were filled with color and brisk fresh air.  There are no words to describe the beauty that we found on top of that mountain. Come along with us on an incredible walk in the woods... 

 starting out early in the morning,

the air was brisk and clear..

there were no marked trails,

so we followed the paths

that led along the

ridge...

we followed the ridge

for hours,

the views of the valley below

were incredible...

the drive up the mountain 

is quite an experience!!

A little nerve wracking to say

the least!

~

this beautiful fence is

located at one of the overlooks

as you drive up the

mountain..

we spent two nights 

at the lodge on top of the mountain...

this is a sunset view

from the balcony...

  view of the valley below

as the late evening sun began

to set..

the day we arrived to the mountain

was rainy and overcast,

the clouds hung low...

~

this photo was taken from 

the restaurant near the lodge..

  I was a little disappointed 

that it was rainy the evening we arrived,

but when I say the low hanging clouds,

I could not stop taking photos!!

this photo was taken

from inside the lodge restaurant...

I snapped the picture just at that moment

when the sun peeked out

between the clouds and cast

an incredible glow over everything...

beginning our second day

of early morning

hiking...

 we took off

 on some of the old logging roads

that criss crossed the top of

the mountain...

we tried to drive down one of the roads,

in search of a rumored trail that led to 

an old stone chimney..

but the road got pretty rough,

so we parked and took off

from there...

we never found the stone chimney,

but we had a wonderful

hike through the woods...

(we will find it next time!!)

the sunlight made the colors

so bright..

it almost did not look 

real...

early morning sunrise

from our balcony at the lodge...

~

I posted this photo on my Instagram

page and it was featured by the

Official Tennessee Instagram page

on their site...

it had almost 5000 hits!

~

If you have an Instagram account,

I would love for you to follow me

there...

sunrise glow across the valley...

 a wonderful place to sip

an early morning coffee...

an amazing sky walk is located at the

top of the mountain...

over 32 stone chimney outcroppings

are located here on this property--

a beautiful sky walk traverses the 

stone chimneys and allows for

incredible views of the valley and mountains 

in the distance..

and then we heard this rumor

about a natural stone arch

that was located someplace on the mountain...

no maps, no trails,

just some scattered info that we

learned from a few folks that we talked to....

we didn't hold out much hope..

but.... we found it!!

down some rickety rusty old steps

and into a crevice between the mountains...

a beautiful natural arch...

a perfect way to end our

last day on the 

mountain!

 I wanted to share this photo

of this quaint little church

at the foot of the mountain...

one tiny little room..

there were 3 outhouse in the

backyard of the church!

Like a step back in time...

Notes from me...

Happy and Blessed Thanksgiving to you all.  I had to work on the holiday, those babies still have to have someone to take care of them, and this year it was my turn.  Our family and friends have given us tons of left overs and we will be eating turkey for days to come!  I am thankful for my family and friends,and for numerous blessings in my life.  My blogging friends are one of those wonderful blessings...thank you for being here for me and for allowing me to share with you as I do here on my blog.

For those of you who have followed along on the "Josephine's Children project".... Josephine has shared photos of the children using their craft items and making wonderful creations with the treasures that you donated for them.  I will be sharing those photos with  you in my next blog post.  

We are beginning to decorate for Christmas around here... 

xoxo,

Vicki

Our Cruise day in Tortola... a visit to the Baths at Virgin Gorda

Over the past few years, I've taken you to places all over the Caribbean... but this time, I'm taking you someplace new.  A picturesque, tranquil setting that words cannot describe. A place that seems almost too beautiful to be real...

 the Virgin Gorda Bath's

are a geological wonder comprised of

awe-inspiring granite boulders,...

 we traveled to this amazing place

on a cruise day

when our ship was docked at the

neighboring island of

Tortola..

~

(getting to Virgin Gorda required a 45 minute

ferry ride across the ocean)

follow me to the beautiful beach

and the area known as

 the Bath's...

~

getting there will be a bit of an adventure..

we will need to hike a rocky path

and maneuver our way around and over

some large boulders~

 follow me...

as we start down the path~

 the path,

(and I use that term loosely!)

is covered with tangled roots,

and rocks of all sizes..

the space between these two boulders

 was very narrow--

I could only get one of my legs

through the narrow crevice..

getting down this "path"

was definitely a bit challenging..

and then,...

there was this lovely space!!

some places had a narrow 

wooden walk and some steps...

that was the easy part!

and then you come to this...

the most beautiful turquoise waters

surrounded by these amazing boulders~

and all you can say is,

Wow!

the boulders form

little sheltered sea pools

at the edge of the beach,

the crystal clear waters are as  warm

as...

a bath.

(but then you already guessed that, didn't you!)

 some of these folks were part of our group

 that hiked the path to the beach,

but others arrived

by swimming in from boats 

that were  anchored out away

from the rocks...

in a word...

how can you describe this place?

the Gardener was in

"snorkel" heaven at this amazing place...

 me...

I just sort of 

floated around...

 the boats anchored

out from the rocks must have

had an amazing view of this

beautiful place...

 but wait...

there's more!!

on the other side of the boulders

is a secret little beach

known as "Devil's Bay"

~

in order to get to that beach,

we will need to make our way 

through this cave!

~

to start...

we will need to crawl through 

this narrow entrance

behind us to get into the cave!

the water inside

the cave is about knee deep

and is very warm...

 (are you following me on Instagram?)

some of these photos

were taken from my Instagram

collection...

~

please do stop by and say Hi to me

if you are an Instagram user..

you can find me

@2BagsFull

xoxo

 some places are dry

and we will need to climb up and down

some stairs to navigate around

 the boulders...

and in some places...

we will need to hold our breath

and pretend to be "skinny"!

 and finally,...

the cave opens up

 and once again, 

you say, 

"Wow"!

exiting the cave...

(one of my most favorite pictures

from our entire collection of cruise photos..)

grabbing a quick photo

just outside the 

cave... 

one of the views

 from Devil's Bay Beach

~

(the Gardener says that the snorkeling

around these rocks was amazing!)

 another beautiful view of 

Devil's Bay Beach 

 doesn't everybody take

"silly selfies" ?

 last photo of the day..

right before we started up

another tangled and rocky path

that would lead us to the top of the hill.

~

a ferry ride back to Tortola

and then back to our cruise ship~

our day in Virgin Gorda

was nothing short of

amazing..

~

thanks so much for coming

along with us..

xoxo 

A note from me...

well, you probably thought I was never coming back to my blog..I've had computer woes. Ugh!  There is nothing more frustrating to me that having to deal with computer issues..I feel totally helpless because heaven knows that I know NOTHING about how to fix a computer.  Fortunately, my husband is pretty good at fixing most things, and he is very patient as well, because he has to listen to me bemoan the fact that my computer is broken.  (Yet another reason why he is such a great guy! )

Hopefully, we are all fixed now and I will be back much SOONER with another post.  We are just back from a glorious Autumn trip to the mountains and an incredible hiking adventure.  Keep your hiking shoes handy.... we are hitting the mountain tops next!

Love,

Vicki