Page 26 Volume 11, Issue 12Bloomingdale/FishHawk Edition

Sitting by a warm, crackling fire with

two enormous puppies curled up at my

feet, the snow falling gently on the porch

rails, the chickadees and finches hopping

around in the soft white snow. This may

sound like the intro to the great American

novel, but it's actually just a sample from

my most recent trip to the beautiful state of

North Carolina. Now, every year for the

past few years I've gone out-of-state for a

couple weeks, mostly just to get out of

Florida. I have to admit, this past trip was

the best I ever had.

We awoke well before dawn on a

slightly chilly October morning and headed

out on our adventure. We arrived in Black

Mountain, North Carolina just before the

sun set and set up temporary residence in

a small, but adequate, hotel room. While in

Black Mountain we visited Chimney Rock

State Park, home to one of the best climbs

and prettiest views

in the Appalachian mountains. Later we

ventured down in to the town below

Chimney Rock and wandered to our

heart's content. We also drove to the

Great Smoky Mountains National Park

and visited Clingman's Dome, the highest

point in the park, Cade's Cove, which was

on the Tennessee side of the park and

featured a long, one-lane loop in which

you could routinely see deer, turkey and

occasionally bear. We also visited Linville

Falls off of the Blue Ridge Parkway.

After several days in Black Mountain

we braved the growing winds of Hurricane

Sandy and ventured north to the town of

Valle Crucis, just outside of Boone. There

we stayed at the Lazy Bear Lodge, a bed

and breakfast that will forever hold a small

place in my heart. The night we arrived at

the Lazy Bear it began to snow, and con-

By Alicia Squillante

tinued snowing until

we left two days later. Let me tell you, for

as beautiful as snow is, it's down right

terrifying to drive in when all you're

accustomed to is the flat lands of Florida.

It was at the Lazy Bear where I sat by

the fire, watching the snow fall, eating

chocolate chip cookies as I watched the

birds fight for bird seed. Our hostess,

Anne Winkleman, was even gracious

enough to cook us dinner because we

were nervous about driving the snowy

roads after dark.

Coming home after so much fun

and adventure was a bit hard. It's alright

though, I have an even bigger trip

planned for September!

If you were interested in staying at

the Lazy Bear Lodge, please visit

http://www.lazy-bear-lodge.com.

The bull elk amongst his herd at theOconaluftee Visitor Center at the entrance

to the Great Smoky MountainsNational Park.

Chimney Rock at Chimney Rock State Park inall it’s fall finery.

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The view as we ascended Clingman’s Dome off the Blue Ridge Parkway.

The Lazy Bear Lodge covered in snow in Valle Crucis, NC. Westayed here for two nights and it snowed each night.

Into The Land Of B lue Mountains