Blue Ridge Parkway and Great Smokies

How does a born and bred "flatlander" describe the Smokies? Mountains, trees, or views that go on forever? Or is it the constant "popping" of my ears that tells me I'm not in Texas anymore??

Flowering shrubs growing wild. Starting on left, rhododendron, mountain laurel, and flame azalea.

Thanks to all those trees and shrubs and the moisture they "exhale," the Smokys are smoky.

There are a number of knobs in the Smokys. Those knobs denote the top of a mountain or a mountain ridge.