Sittin' and pickin'...

 

We went back to the Fall Festival at the North Georgia Fair Grounds today. It was raining in Hiawassee, terribly so, and we ducked into an exhibition hall for over 30 minutes to wait it out. Went out later and had to duck back into a covered dining hall for a piece of pizza to wait out another downpour. All in all, though, it was another day in the mountains and I wouldn't trade it for anything.

All along the walkway around the fair grounds, there would be "groups" of people sitting around in a circle with guitar, bass, fiddle and mandolin. This group also had a dobro player. Since the rain had pretty much kept attendance to the festival today to a handful, it was easy to get right up to them and listen. It was pure mountain music, no amplified instruments, though these guys had a PA for the vocals and to pick up the istruments...others had no amplification at all. At one time down the walkway there was a trio, bass, guitar and banjo, playing good old mountain music so good that a couple in the group listening started clogging...what a show! I think that when I retire I'll just come up here during the festivals and sit in with some of these guys...;-)!

New hat...

 

What you don't have to put up with when you're only 1 year old...

Beautiful foliage...

 

Right over the wrap around porch railing...

Rainy day in Blue Ridge

 

But a rainy day in the mountains is still a better day than a sunny day at work...;-)! This is the third or fourth day that it has rained throughout the day. Still, can't beat the view, and it made for a very relaxing day.

 

Mt. Yonah

 

Mt. Yonah is the highest point on the Georgia Piedmont...it leads you to Helen, an "Alpine" themed village in North central Georgia. I took this shot while driving the Richard B. Russell Scenic Highway (GA 348) that cuts from Helen, up towards Brasstown Bald (the tallest mountain in Georgia at 4,800'), and then onto Tesnatee Gap on the back side of Blood Mountain. The next shot is of the color on the back side of Blood Mountain...it has noticeably turned somewhat while up here these past several days...

Smith Lake

 

Went for a ride yesterday to just enjoy the area. Drove by Unicoi State Park and Smith Lake. I like this shot of the tree-lined shore, the hills behind and the reflection on the water. We decided to take a short walk around the lake to a vantage point to take some pictures...didn't look at the trail map. So, 2.5 miles later we were pretty pooped, as was Petey who won't trust to take a short walk again...

Close-up of the rapids

 

Soque River at a Potter's Gallery

 

This little "Mark of the Potter" business is hidden right on the Soque River, down a two-lane road in the middle of nowhere, really. I've got a better and close-up shot to follow...nice to live over your business with the "rushing" of the river rapids to lull you to sleep.

Overflowing...

 

You can see the water in the lake at the top, and looking to get released. The releases take place the first weekend in November and April...it's a really, really beautiful, almost spiritual, place...

Talullah Gorge

 

The deepest gorge East of the Mississippi...nearly 1000' deep. The "Great Wallenda" walked across it in 1974 in 18 minutes, stopping twice to do a headstand, the first as a nod to those of his family who had fallen to their death over the years and the second for "the boys in Viet Nam." It's actually managed by Georgia Power, though it's a State Park. It has a dam (next pic) that was built for power purposes, but twice each year Georgia Power releases the water over the dam, and it draws all the "daredevil" white water kayakers, canoeists, rafters, etc to the gorge for two days of action.

Big punkins...

 

This is Brian at Burt's Farm, where the focus is on Halloween. The pumpkin he's behind is NOT the biggest ones they have. This past week we have been in the mountains on vacation, and drove to Burt's to show BDs sister and brother in law the place. While there there was a couple with two young kids that bought one of the bigger pumpkins...overheard them say that the bigger ones weighed nearly 300 pounds. It took two of the workers to pick it up with a sling and get it into a wheelbarrow...BD and I were going to buy one a couple years ago until we asked each other how we would get it out of the truck and onto the porch...bought a much smaller one...;-)!

Sunrise

 

This is why I love where I live...sunrise on a cool morning a couple weeks ago. The picture doesn't do justice to the colors...deep oranges under the clouds...beautiful!

New handlebars and a new fork bag

 

Bought a set of chrome touring bars for "The Beastess" as well as a new fork bag. The bag came from BossBags, an American firm that makes beautiful bags for motorcycles. The posture brought by the bars is one of real "laying back and in the wind," making longer trips much more comfortable.

Two of the nicest Harley-Davidson motorcycles in Georgia

My friend Brian, a fellow motorcycle rider from Los Angeles, and a fellow Airman in Southeast Asia and Germany during the Viet Nam war, came to visit for two days prior to his duaghter's wedding in Savannah, Georgia. He rented a Harley for the time he was here and we put 460 miles on the bikes on those two days. We went to the Northeast part of Georgia the first day, visiting Amicalola Falls, and Burt's Farm where Halloween is the focus. While on the way, we stopped at a spot on GA 136 that has a beautiful overlook to the South and Southwest. We parked the bikes together and they had to be the two best looking Harleys in Georgia!