Early Color of Fall

The horses from Cataloochee Ranch are grazing in the pasture.

It has been raining for the last six days and is supposed to rain for several more days, so I had to take advantage of a break in the precipitation to get outside and take a few pictures around the house. As much as anything, I just wanted to get out of the house and…

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Elk in Cataloochee Valley

Large Bull Elk Bugling

Last Monday morning (Sept 14) was our coldest morning of the fall, so I thought it would be a great morning to drive over at sunrise to Cataloochee Valley in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park for some elk viewing. September and October are rut season for the Elk, so the bulls are busy gathering and defending…

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A Beautiful Fall Day

Loved the brilliant red of the berries against the fading leaves and blue sky.

We had an absolutely beautiful fall day with crisp, cool weather. Big fluffy clouds and bright blue skies are perfect for hiking and photography. The clouds added to the images, but never threatened any precipitation. Despite the clouds, it was one of the better long-range view days in months. The last of the blooms are…

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Turkeys and Sunsets

A thunderstorm had rattled our ridges, but the clouds over Soco Gap began dissipating just before sunset.

Turkeys and sunsets have nothing in common, unless you find both while wandering through Cataloochee Ranch on a Friday evening. Wild turkeys are very abundant in the Western North Carolina mountains and the flocks can be quite large.Turkeys will assemble large flocks to enter the winter months but then break into smaller flocks in the spring…

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