Blue Ridge Parkway – Gfpacificbee’s Insights & photography

2025 CFFC: 28 July —Time of day_Morning …

Hike in the Mountains

Dan Antion is the host for Cee’s Fun Foto Challenge. This week he is continuing with a perspective theme of Time of Day focusing on Morning.

We have had several thunderstorms this week, so therefore we haven’t been out and about much. Instead I’m reminiscing about a trip I took a few years ago with my oldest son for his birthday adventure. Since he wanted to drive the Blue Ridge Parkway, I was more than happy to ride along with him.

My entries for this week’s challenge are views from just one of our stops we sidetracked on during his Mountain adventure.

*Taken at 10:54 am*
*(late morning) in 2017*

Bluff Mountain Overlook is located at Milepost 243.4 on the Blue Ridge Parkway. It is a popular destination along the Blue Ridge Parkway. Bluff Mountain is visible from the Bluff Mountain Overlook. It offers breathtakingly spectacular views.

On a clear day, Bluff Mountain’s visibility is remarkably satisfying and amazingly delightful to gaze upon from the Overlook. At this point in our adventure clear visibility was not to be had, but that did not deter ills from looking around or venturing on a short hike along the Bluff Mountain Trail which is easily accessible from the Bluff Mountain Overlook.

Bluff Mountain Trail passes through grassy meadows and includes a challenging switchback ascent called Alligator Back. Alligator Back is a short twenty (20) minute walk from Bluff Overlook.

Until recently Predatory Birds and Mammals, those which preyed on other animals or were in conflict with humans, were termed “Varmints” and killed on sight. Fortunately, modern Ecology proves the vital interdependency of all wild plants and animals. Today Hawks and Owls, Black Bears, Bobcats, Foxes and Snakes continue to roam Parklands like this and help preserve the delicate balance of nature. [Informational notice on sign.]

*Panoramic View from*
*Bluff Mountain Overlook*

We hiked all around the overlook investigating the Predator area scenic views. To the right in the photo above and in the picture below is my eldest son, John. He is not normally into hiking, but he accommodated me in my thrill to explore the sights and perspective landscapes available to observe, explore, and admire.

As we drove further along the Blue Ridge Parkway our visibility improved dramatically unlike when we parked here at this location and the Air Bellows Overlook.

Air Bellows Overlook
Parkway Milepost 236.9

Looking forward to checking out all your Morning Scenes. Hope to see y’all on Friday for the Which Way Challenge. This week we’ll be including Shadows in our Which Ways. Interested in finding more details about the Which Way challenge click here.

Dan’s Fun Foto Challenge (CFFC)-Morning

Camera: Apple iPhone 7 Plus Wide and Telephoto Cameras

Location: Bluff Mountain Overlook; Blue Ridge Parkway, North Carolina, USA

God Bless. Have a wonderful week. Thank you for visiting and sharing your time and thoughts with us. I appreciate y’all very much.

2024 The Numbers Game #42” — #163

To play along, go to your photos file and type that number into the search bar. Then post a selection of the photos you find under that number and include a link to your blog in my Numbers Game blog of the day. If instead of numbers, you have changed the identifiers of all your photos into words, pick a word or words to use instead, and show us a variety of photos that contain that word in the title.

This week’s number is 163. My 163 photos happen to come from a few trips I have taken and a few lakes I’ve visited over the years.

From our trip along the Blue Ridge Parkway and the Blue Ridge Mountains:

From my trip to Cozumel, Mexico:

From New Braunfels, Texas:

*The New Braunfels Railroad Museum*
*New Braunfels, Texas*

From Lakes we enjoy visiting:

Judy’s Numbers Game 42 – 163

Jez’s Water Water Everywhere

Cee’s Flower of the Day

God Bless. Have a fabulous rest of your week. Thank you for visiting and sharing your time and thoughts with us. I appreciate y’all very much.

Flashback Seven Years to 2017 —- A Fun Drive

Destination Fun

Blue Ridge Parkway

Driving the Blue Ridge Parkway from South Carolina to the Virginia Border and back down to Pisgah National Forest and then on into South Carolina once again was a trip I’ll always remember.

It has been seven years since I made that trip with my eldest son. We took the drive on his birthday weekend in October 2017. We stopped at various milestones along the Blue Ridge Parkway to see the beautiful views and tour a few different places along the route. We stopped at Stone Mountain State Park in Roaring Gap, North Carolina and hiked the Stone Mountain Loop Trail beginning at the Upper Trailhead. We continued driving the Blue Ridge Parkway once we left Stone Mountain State Park; we drove to Wilson, North Carolina (Wilson was my married name & the surname of my children.)

On the adventure South on the Parkway, we took a detour to my Cousin Jim’s Produce Market for some fresh produce & a break to stretch our legs. Before we arrived at Jim’s Produce, we stopped for a photo by the Doc and Merle Watson Highway sign ( Doc & Merle Watson are my fourth cousin & fourth cousin once removed respectively).

Venturing further south, we stopped at several more milestones to enjoy the beautiful scenery and views overlooking the valley. We stopped for supper at The Pisgah Inn’s restaurant. The food was delicious and the views were spectacular. The Pisgah Inn is located in the Pisgah National Forest amongst the southern end of the Blue Ridge Parkway (Blue Ridge Pkwy Milepost 408.6, Waynesville, NC).

It was a lovely and enjoyable trip, not just for the scenery, but always for the quality time spent with my son. Click on each photo for enhanced viewing. Have a wonderful day!

Lens-Artists Challenge #316 – Destination: Fun

Becky’s Squares

Debbie’s One Word Sunday-Memories

Throwback Thursday

Camera: Apple iPhone 7 Plus

Location: Various locations along the Blue Ridge Parkway; North Carolina

God Bless. Thank you for visiting and sharing in our adventure memories. If you have the opportunity I’d recommend driving the Blue Ridge Parkway. You’ll enjoy the scenery as much as we did. I appreciate y’all very much.