Category: Trips

Enchanted Rock – Introduction

MOST IMPORTANT ADVICE!! ARRIVE VERY EARLY!! When parking fills up, they close the park. Us locals all know, so we arrive at the crack of the Enchanted Rock visitor center opening to no later than 2 hours into the day. If you want to see this park, arrive early!

We have been to Enchanted Rock three separate times, for multiple days, each time. There is still more to see and do, down there. That is, without question, one of the most photogenic places I have ever been to. All of that granite, pinks and reds …. just begs to be the backdrop for something special. There are several theories about how enchanted rock got its name, but, I tend to believe it is because it glistens in the moonlight when it clears after a rainshower or it has an abundance of pools of water.

Enchanted Rock State Park straddles the County Line between Llano and Gillespie Counties almost centered between Llano, Texas and Fredericksburg, Texas on Ranch Road 965. Absolutely one of the prettiest drives in the State of Texas, especially in Bluebonnet season. This year, I was unable to capture the beauty of the bluebonnets on RR 965 … There are no pull off areas large enough to safely pull a truck/trailer over. The few that were even close were occupied.

All over the area around Llano and Fredericksburg pink granite is jifting out of the ground. It is literally everywhere. While a dome this size is very unusual, it is clear that the granite is just below the surface all over the place in this area.

Campgrounds/Camping

Inside the park there are campsites for tents. There are no developed campgrounds inside the park. We haven’t tent camped out there, yet. We do plan on doing so, one of these days. I really want to do some night photography of the dome. Enchanted Rock is a “dark skies” area, so, the milky way heart will be visible.

There are at least five developed campgrounds, close by, that are all nice in their own way; and plenty large enough to accommodate pretty much any size rig. My personal favorite has a golf course closeby to it …. nothing better than an early round of golf while the wife shops in town, about 5 miles up the road. …. 😉

We have stayed at three different campgrounds on our trips to the area, in no particular order:

The closest is Oxford Ranch with full hookups. We loved it. The sites are in an open field, not all are completely level, but, weren’t too bad to deal with. I highly recommend this location for anyone looking for a campground in the area. Lots of roads for walking, lots of nature and wildlife to look at. Owners are very, very nice and it is relatively inexpensive. Both RV and tent campsites are available. They are on facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/Oxford-Ranch-Campground-LLC-130040763766079/

In Fredericksburg there is Fredericksburg RV Park which is actually walking distance to the downtown area. About 3/4 mile. We like to stay there and walk into town, have dinner, watch some live bands, drink a few wines and beers and walk back to the camper. Makes for a great way to end the day. Their website: http://fbgrvpark.com/

My favorite RV Park in the area (partly because of the golf course) is a municipal property in Fredericksburg called Ladybird Johnson RV Park. Beautiful park with lots of amenities, hiking trails, gardens, and very quiet. Website: http://www.fbgtx.org/343/Lady-Bird-Johnson-RV-Park

Photographs of Enchanted Rock State Natural Area

MOST IMPORTANT ADVICE!! ARRIVE VERY EARLY!!

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Entry to the State Park

Enchanted Rock HDR West Face

Early Morning ... Foggy Day. Fantastic!!

Summit Trailhead

The View from the Summit

Approaching from the South

Small Waterfall from the runoff

Approaching from the East 1

Approaching from the East

West Face of the Dome

Rather Challenging Hiking Trail

Lizards are always Sunning on the surface

South Face across Frog Pond

Granite Fold ... Stunning Scale

Just one of many streams of water

Enchanted Rock Centennial Marker (1936)

The Road to nowhere …. another unfulfilled promise between the federal government and ordinary people.

In the 1930s and 40s people were displaced with the creation of Great Smoky Mountain National Park, and further with the building of Fontana Dam and Lake Fontana. People of many small communities lost their homes and the highway that once took them to their communities was buried under the new lake. The federal government promised to build a new road to connect these displaced people to their community cemeteries that remain, to this day along the north shore of lake fontana. Construction of the road stopped when an environmental issue was exposed. The issue was resolved, however, construction never resumed. Legal issues surrounding road building were finally resolved in 2010 with a settlement where the Federal Government paid swain county North Carolina 52 Million Dollars instead of building the road. The road to nowhere is now simply a hiking trail complete with a half mile tunnel ….

Webpage

Smoky Mountain Railroad Introduction

Riding the Great Smoky Mountain Railroad was absolutely one of the major highlights of a recent trip we made to Bryson City North Carolina. It is pricey to do the first class ride in a dining car, but, without question well worth it. We moved all over the train from front to back. Closed cars/Open cars we went through a lot of rail cars. Every different kind of car had its good points and bad points.

Great Smoky Mountain Railroad Video

Open Cars

Open cars are great! Feeling the wind (it wasn’t hot) hearing the clickety-clack and the horns. And the smells of the passing scenery. If it was a hot day, I am sure it wouldn’t have been great in an open car. One of the open cars was a food car … they asked us if we had eaten and we said “yes”.

Closed Cars

Closed cars are good too! Dinner in a fairly quiet, non windy, climate controlled space. Seats come with tables, so if you are toting stuff, there is space to put it. On a really hot or really cold day, I would much prefer to be in an enclosed car.

Links

Great Smoky Mountain Railroad

We had such a good time, we have to recommend the ride. Well worth the price and the effort! I am really glad we did the meal that’s a long way to go and not have food ….. carry a snack if you do a non meal excursion. Absolutely wonderful way to spend several hours!!

Railroad Turntable Introduction

Watching a steam train on a turntable, pure gold. We rode the train through the Nantahala gorge and back to Bryson City NC …. that’s about a 4 hour trip. Well worth the price of admission, in and of itself. More on that at a later date. We had the bonus of watching the steam engine turned using 1937 technology. Operators must achieve absolute balance of the table itself, with the engine perched, in order to just get the turning motion started. Watching everything and realizing what a feat it is, pure amazement. The realization of human power actually moving such a massive piece is awe inspiring.

Video of the event !

Photos

Here is a photo of Steam engine 1702, as well as, a photo of the turntable. The actual steel turntable is of manufacturing pedigree circa 1937. The pit is recent in construction technique. Construction according to the documents and specifications of the period is adhered to. Finally, I would very highly recommend witnessing this particular event, if possible. It is really something to witness the raw power of a steam engine juxtposed by the finesse of a human powered mechanism …. pure theater.

Links

Great Smoky Mountain Railroad

Introduction

The southernmost stretch of the Blue Ridge Parkway we visited on the 18th of October 2016. The stretch between Asheville and Cherokee in North Carolina we chose to see on this particular trip. On a prior trip we drove from Boone to Asheville, North Carolina. Subsequently, we have driven, now, most of the state of North Carolina. Next time we move into Virginia!! The views were absolutely stunning due to driving during peak week. Rust, Red, Yellow, Gold, Green along with the sheer rock faces, and all over the ground leaves, like a carlet … glorious sights!

We just loved driving the parkway, given that the views were sheer beauty … we have now done the drive two years in a row and will certainly do it again.

Here is our Ride Along video …. Enjoy!!

Pictures of The Blue Ridge Parkway

And here are a few of our favorite stills from the drive …. honestly it is all about those colors. We intend to go farther and farther up the east coast states in order to see the most vibrant colors.

The lower falls in the graveyard fields is pictured to the left. To the right – this panorama was taken at the pull off for the Graveyard Fields …. no wonder they are called the Smoky Mountains!! Below everything is a shot of one of the prettier pull offs showing the landscape carpet and ruggedness of the mountains. It is really difficult to put into words the beauty of the surrounding area of the parkway.

Here is a link to: The National Park Site