Hiking and Waterfall in NW South Carolina

We vowed that we would take a day off from computer work, get some exercise, and take in the sights.  And we did!  First I have to tell you how we found out about the hiking around here.  Did you know there is another way to find out information besides googling it on our computer ... or smartphone?  We noticed a sign for South Carolina Welcome Center when we first arrived and decided to check it out.  One simple question to the friendly woman behind the counter and we were loaded with booklets and pamphlets, maps and pictures of exactly what we were looking for ... hikes and waterfalls nearby.

A visit to the Welcome center, can be even more informative than Google!

We watched the weather carefully, and picked Wednesday May 30 as the day for our hike.  And, I took along my brand new digital SLR camera - along with lenses from our friend Glenn - looking forward to trying it out on nature.

Wish we could hike in beautiful places like this every week.

It was a beautiful hike thru the woods for nearly 6 miles with only slight ups and downs - called the Big Bend trail.  There was a pretty stream as part of the hike, but we had heard so much about waterfalls in the area, we had to go in search of them.  What we found is called Whitewater Falls and it's right on the North Carolina/South Carolina border.  In fact, the literature says that the top is in the north and the bottom is in the south.  I think it's one of the most beautiful waterfalls I've ever seen.  I was entranced.

My new Canon even takes video!

From 201205

And, here's the surrounding scenery:

And, I have to play around with Picasa to create some special pictures.

Just to prove we were there, we handed our cellphone to someone else.

And, then I also made a collage using Picasa.  I'm working on a series of tutorial videos on how to use Picasa's Collage feature.  This will be one of the lessons:

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A Thing of Beauty

In amongst all the doctor checkup visits, end of year bookkeeping, and general holiday hustle and bustle, I believe it is important to make time for peaceful contemplation amongst natural beauty.

 

 

I’ve been meaning to go with Mom to Morikami Gardens ever since we arrived in Fort Lauderdale a couple months ago.  This Sunday was the day.  I’ve been there many times in the past – and it didn’t disappoint.  We met up with our old friend, Gary and had a great day.

 

 

 

Japanese Rock Garden

 

 

 

 

 

Japanese gardens apparently are nature designed by people.  Every tree, flower and bush is manicured and trained to be pleasing to the eye.

 

 

 

How *do* they use the hedge trimmers at the top of this 12 foot hedge?

 

 

 

Even more pictures on our December Picasa Web Album.

Fallingwater

We left Hershey and headed west to another membership park, Roaring Run … it’s a Resorts of Distinction park.  I’ve marked it with a red pushpin in the map below.  It’s the upper pushpin.  the lower one is Fallingwater – the famous house designed by Frank Lloyd Wright.  It is now a tourist attraction run by the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy.

We had to go!  It was a bit pricey – we paid $20 each – but we got a guided tour, and the guide was really good. We learned about the fact that the whole house is cantilevered – like a diving board.  We learned, and experienced, the architecture that blurs the distinction between indoors and out.  We learned that Frank Lloyd Wright hated that standard rooms were just 4-wall boxes.  His goal was to ‘destroy the box.’  He did it with glass walls - especially glass corners - as well as round edges and extra ‘cubbyhole’ corners with windows that open wide.

I especially liked the flooring.  Rock.  But not flat slate all even smooth.  It was uneven and felt like you were walking outside.  And, Wright made the furniture all built in … so it fit with everything else.  Like a yacht … or an RV!

They didn’t let you take any photos on the tour :-(  But there are quite a few on the website.
Here’s a few from outside at different vantage points.

Bushkill Falls

We're here in the Poconos area of Pennsylvania - it's an Outdoor World park called Timothy Lakes. Or, it *was* an Outdoor World. Not too long ago Thousand TRails bought them out. Now Equity Lifestyles (ELS) bought Thousand Trails. It's tough to keep track.

Got here on Friday, just in time to present a couple of seminars to a few - very few - guests. I think we need a better advance team! We're also scheduled to present again next Saturday, maybe we'll be able to drum up a few more!

I'm using this week to get some serious website development done. Here I am in my work outfit (bathrobe) after my long commute to work (about 10 feet from bed.)

About 3 o'clock it's time to take a break. What do we do? Chat around the water cooler? Get a snack at the cafeteria? Oooh - how about a walk? Ok, says Jim, I know where we can go ... Bushkill Falls - about 10 minutes away. What a life! Got some good exercise too. Lots more photos on the web album. Just click on any of the pictures above, then you can browse forward and backward.

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