Another great fall weekend...

It was quite a rainy night in Georgia this past Friday. I was really wondering if the weather would clear at all this weekend and I was beginning to feel disappointed before the weekend ever began. I had hoped to go on a nice hike in the northwest mountains and to have some Halloween fun somewhere along the way.

On Saturday morning, I woke up to a beautiful surprise of blue skies and an itching to do something fun. After a little shopping spree with Best Friend in which I bought some really nice clothes and totally hot boots, we met up with another friend of ours, just after dark, at the gates of the historic Oakland Cemetery in Atlanta for one of the Halloween tours. I am planning on posting more on this and other awesome cemeteries on Halloween, so I will just sum this up for now.

I had gone to a twilight Halloween tour at Oakland a couple of years ago and was totally disappointed. This time I was not. There were no ghastly ghost stories of any hauntings in Oakland Cemetery again this year (which was the reason for disappointment on the previous tour). Since Oakland is still an active cemetery with burials, the ghost stories were kept quiet out of respect, though is reputed to be haunted. However, this year’s tour was really awesome because as you walked along the brick paths in total darkness with your own flashlights as your only light source, you came upon family mausoleums that had been opened up and waiting to greet you were actors with candle lanterns dressed and acting in character of one of the family members entombed in the crypts. They told you the story of their lives and deaths. It was very interesting for me, being such a history lover, to learn the stories of the prominent Atlantans that changed and made our city what it is today. It wasn’t scary, but I have to admit that the opened mausoleums were a little creepy to me, as this type of burial and any other above-ground burials (especially those like in New Orleans) freak me out. Ewww.

After our tour, we left the cemetery to eat at the restaurant right across the street appropriately named Six Feet Under. It doesn’t look like much from the outside, but it’s nice inside and is very popular. The crab cakes are phenomenal, by the way.

I came home late and tried to get some sleep. Best Friend and I had planned on taking our hike the next day and we did. And lucky us, we had the most beautiful, cloudless day for our hike.

We started out bright and early for Cloudland Canyon, which isn’t far from either the Tennessee or Alabama state lines. The drive was scenic along the winding mountain roads to the canyon. I knew this was the peak weekend for fall color, but the colors were so vivid that I was actually surprised. Some of the reds and oranges were so bright that it looked unreal against the deep blue sky.

This is a view from the west rim of the canyon. I love the exposed rock and steep cliffs here. If you descend many steep stairs, you can reach the canyon floor. It can be murder on your thighs and calves, but the two spectacular waterfalls waiting at the bottom for you is well worth it. Coming back up the stairs will again make you question whether or not the falls were worth it. Then you take a look on your digital camera screen and answer yes.


This is the first of the waterfalls, which is my favorite. The water was not flowing as much as I have seen it in the past, but it was still beautiful. The deep, cold pool of water at the base of the falls is a greenish-blue hue. I also like all of the boulders around the pool and in the stream. At least I like them right now in the cooler weather as I am not as worried about them harboring nasty little slithery reptiles. Last summer, I had an encounter here with one. By the scream I released from the top of my lungs, you would have thought I found an Anaconda rather than the six inch long water snake that was almost as afraid of me as I was of it...almost.

This tree was the reddest, brightest tree I have ever seen in my life! It clung to the cliff of the east rim of the canyon. Every person that came by this tree on the trail, stopped and stared at it in wonder. One little girl pulled on her dad's arm and exclaimed, "Look Daddy! That tree is like fire!" Just as I was thinking of how awesome it would be to have a romantic picnic in this spot a cutesy couple plopped down in front of the tree and cuddled up and posed for a picture. I rolled my eyes at Best Friend and let out a sigh. Next year it will be me with my man, damn it!




More fiery color in a Maple. I think my favorite fall leaves are the Maples. They stand out among the more dominant yellow Poplars. I also love the orange of the Sassafrass.









This is another view taken along the east rim as we headed back down into the canyon to cross the creek and the ascend the west rim. We hiked a total of just under 7 miles today. Sure, we've hiked much farther than that in the past, but there was a lot of up and down on this trail. We worked up quite an appetite. After we returned to Atlanta, we fed our appetite at where else than the Vortex!?!

Hey, cast ye no stones! I earned that burger! Did I happen to mention that those stairs were very strenuous?






So here Best Friend and I are, relaxing in the perfect picnic spot. She's not a romantic man, but I guess her company will do until I find my man and bring him here next year. (sigh)