August 17-19, 2018
About 25 cars and 45 Club Members jaunted to the Mountains of North Carolina, spending the weekend in Highlands. It was a two night overnight trip, spending most of Friday traveling the Tail of the Dragon, Lunch at Tapoco Lodge, then a Social hour with hors d’oeuvres and Bar-B-Que dinner on Friday evening at the Highlands Inn Lodge, our hotel. Saturday was on our own: some went shopping, some went driving, some went hiking, or just plain old sight seeing. There was another social hour with hors d’oeuvres late Saturday afternoon, then we split off into small groups for dinner, since we found no place large enough to accommodate the whole crowd!
We returned on Sunday morning via the Cherohala Skyway and ended the drive out in Tellico Plains. Many thanks to Vaughn and Louise (and all their Little Helpers) for setting this up: there was obviously a lot of effort and skill that went into making this a great weekend. They were even able to beat back the forecasted nasty weather!!
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- We congregated in Maryville…
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- Someone even brought The Scooby Van!
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- And we’re off!
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- The view before The Dragon!
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- HANG ON!
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- LUNCH STOP!
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- Dining outside
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- Our view!
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- We filled the lot nicely!!
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- Back on the road, and being followed
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- Fontana Dam Pit stop, the spillway gates
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- …the spillway
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- Tallest dam in TVA system
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- The lake!
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- “Line ’em up!”
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- Move ’em out!
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- GEOLOGY!
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- Setting up Social hour
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- Socializing on the patio.
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- Local Pan Handler
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- And off for an evening stroll
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- Saturday was a little wet and foggy
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- Tour the falls!
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- GEOLOGY!
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- Garnets
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- Dry Falls… Yeah, we don’t get it either.
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- The other side of the water
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- Cullasaja Falls, as close as we could get…
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- Vaughn was avenged… We drove slow on purpose.
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- Visiting Bascom Center for the Visual Arts
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- Rock Art, merging geology and aesthetics!
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- Then off to hike Whiteside Mountain
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- Last ascent, nicely done!
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- The first view!!
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- Before the fog rolled in…
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- It starts…
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- And the rains!
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- Altitude check
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- Annnnnd… the rest of the hike’s view.
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- The trail along cliff-side
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- One last break in the clouds
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- Back to Highlands, to hike around town
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- Yard art!
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- Ducks at Lakeside
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- Lakeside Restaurant!
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- Quite a few of us ended up here at Lakeside!
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- Sundy Morning: “Get in car”
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- We’re off!
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- Some windy rooads? Coming up!
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- But first, some highway.
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- Heading up to Cherahola
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- Annnnnd… More fog!!
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- Pit stop!!
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- With a view!
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- At the end of Cherahola Skyway, on the flat lands
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- The end of the drive out
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- Saying our goodbyes…
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- Collecting the radios.
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- Even saw a sibling on the way home.
