i need more mountains in my life (photo journal)

Last week we took advantage of my three days off leading up to the 4th of July holiday to go camping. I needed some deep immersion in the mountains (as deep as you can get with two small children) and unfortunately our trip only left me yearning for more. I did come home with a bit of clarity though... that I need more mountains and trees and campfires and long late night whiskey fueled talks with my man around said campfires. I can't wait until we go back in September. I am not going to say much about this trip because there are about seventy photos here for you to feast your eyes upon. All I want to do is put my baby on my back and get deeper into the woods with my man (and other babies) by my side. All is right in my world and in my mind in those times. 

We camped at Mile High Campground on the top of Balsam Mountain on the Cherokee Indian Reservation. The elevation was 5400 feet and the view from our site was epic. Beyond anything I have ever seen from any campsite I've ever camped at. And that's a lot of them. 

We didn't get a chance to do much of a hike on Tuesday... after camping with the babies for the first time, of course the first night, Shiloh woke up a bit early and I had a hard time going back to sleep, and we stayed up late the night before, so I was really tired... but we drove around the far eastern border of the Great Smokey Mountains Nat'l Park and to our surprise barely a few miles from our friends' in Waynesville into the Cataloochee Valley. All I can say is, OMG. What a beautiful, peaceful, idyllic place. So sad to think that folks were basically forced from that place via eminent domain upon the establishment of the park. But nature has reclaimed the places man had stripped bare and elk, wild turkey and other game/fowl roam freely. We were literally six feet from a bull elk at one point (in our truck)! We plan to go back in September and hopefully stay in Cataloochee for several nights and hike the many long trails in the vicinity. This time we walked through a good stretch of road, explored some historic buildings, let the babies play in the creek and enjoyed the scenery. Later that night we ate in Maggie Valley, came back and enjoyed some whiskey 'round the fire after the babies went to bed. They slept peacefully all night on Tuesday night. :)

We did nothing patriotic on Wednesday except pack up and drive home, visit with some of my family back near our home and listened to the boom of fireworks later that night from the comfort of our bed whilst attempting to watch Last of the Mohicans before passing out... 

Enjoy the photos. 

bath before bed :)

Noah was in bed and we had a special time with Shiloh around the fire. 

and then she had a bath :)

going in to Cataloochee Valley

ELK!

patches of butterflies everywhere!

picnic in front of the school house... totally beautiful and idyllic

DADA!!!!

schoolhouse

butterflies everywhere!!!

in front of the Caldwell House, `1906 - very strange to be able to go inside

sunset from our campsite!!