Smokies in the Autumn - A Hackberry Farm Nature Photography Workshop field report
The small traffic jam attests to what’s just ahead of us. Although I can’t see it, I know what’s just ahead: a bear.
Over the past few years, I’ve noticed an uptick in the number of bears in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. They are a common sight, but I never tire of looking for them.
“When we stop again, y’all get out,” I tell the group, preparing them to exit the van we travel in for this nature photography workshop. I spend the next couple of minutes reminding them about bear etiquette and safety and coach them on how far to stay away from the bear. I have to park first, but I want to give the group a head start to photograph the black bear that’s feeding out in the field.
I park and then walk over to the group. They are actively taking pictures of the beautiful young male. For about ten minutes, the bear feeds nearby in nearly perfect light and at eye level with us. He’s in an open area with a faraway background, so it’s a photographic situation I couldn’t have drawn up any better.
Soon, the bear climbs a tree, and while we can still photograph him, we opt to leave him be and move along in the late evening light. There’s still some ground to cover.
On the way out, we see some wild turkeys and whitetail deer. It’s a great way to round out our Smoky Mountain wildlife experience, since earlier in the week we photographed post-rut elk. It’s been a great trip so far.
There’s something about the Smokies in the fall. Maybe it’s the color, maybe it’s the quietness and serenity of the woods, or perhaps it’s the tranquility of the omnipresent water that flows through these ancient mountains. Either way, this place is beautiful, and I never tire of coming here.
When we arrived a few days ago, the autumn colors on the mountain tops were on full display. That’s the way nature works: at higher elevations, the weather gets colder earlier, and the fall colors start there. As time and weather advance, the colors unfold over the mountains from top to bottom. While we are there, we can see the transition plainly happen in front of us.
One morning, we photograph cabins and streams draped in verdant moss, contrasted with autumn’s splendor. The water spills over the rocks, creating a pleasing blur that photographers everywhere seek. Right next to the stream, fall colors drape the trees and frame the cabins once home to pioneers who lived in these hollers.
Here, the photographic opportunities abound.
In addition to the photographic opportunities, we spend an ample amount of time exploring the culture of the Smokies. We visit moonshine distilleries, old, historic country stores, and dine at restaurants serving locally sourced, award-winning, delicious food.
On the last morning of this excursion, we stand on the Foothills Parkway and look east across the mountains as we await sunrise. The air is crisp, and the skies are clear. As the color unfolds above the horizon, light starts to envelop the hollers below. I look around, and everyone is engrossed in the photographic process. It’s a good thing to see.
I look across these mountains and think of all the songs written about the area. Just a few miles from where we stand, the legendary Dolly Parton was born and raised. This place has a lyrical feel.
As I stand here, I think of the old country song "Smoky Mountain Memories" by the late Earl Thomas Conley.
“Mountains rising in my soul higher than the dreams I've known.
Misty eyes they cling to me, my Smoky Mountain memories…”
It’s such a fitting song.
ADDITIONAL IMAGES
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