Torrey Pines Gliderport

A few weeks ago, I took a friend to the Torrey Pines Gliderport. After watching the paragliders takeoff, circle around and land a few times, we climbed the cliffs down to Black's Beach where there were extra bodies due to the 4th of July weekend. Sorry, no pics (wink, wink)!

The Great Smoky Mountains: Rainbow Falls Trail

Here are the pics I took on the trail to Rainbow Falls. Since I stopped so many times to take pictures, I threw off the "hiking groove" and didn't make the final destination. There was only one more mile to go!

Click on the slideshow to gain access to full sized pics.

The Great Smoky Mountains: Clingmans Dome

For the 4th of July holiday, I took a trip to see the Great Smoky Mountains with my family. We took up residence in Sevierville, Tennessee and Dollywood was only a few miles away. Besides the rollercoasters, dinner shows, go carts and mini golf courses, etc., the best attractions were the hiking trails available in the national park (map). It rained just about anytime we decided to drive through the park.

It was cloudy on the way to Clingmans Dome Bypass Trail. The steep and 0.5 mile paved trail lead up to a concrete structure.

It was a cloudy and misty day at Clingmans Dome.

Here's a pic looking up from under the structure.

A spiral walkway rose in elevation on the way to the lookout point. Birds could be heard in the trees.

Unfortunately, the trees in the Smoky Mountains are suffering from acid rain pollution.

On the way back to the car, the rain poured down hard and some thunder could be heard. It wasn't ice-cold rain, though.