Appalachian Mountains

After leaving DC we headed west to Shenandoah National Park. We only had time to drive the northern portion of the park because we were trying to get to Charlotte, North Carolina in time for a punk show we already had tickets for. Ironically we ran into more haze or “smoke” here then we did a few days later in Smoky Mountain National Park. This made it tough to get any real good photos but the scenery was spectacular and we were glad to see some of the park.

Entrance to the Park

Shenandoah Scenery

In Charlotte we caught a Leftover Crack show. dave has been listening to this band since 1999 and never thought he would get an opportunity to see them live. The guys in the band lead a pretty interesting life. Even with the fame their music has brought them, they still choose to live outside the box of normal society. They sleep in vacant building, eat out of dumpsters and are basically able to live off the waste of others. Here is a clip from their web site: “We are ANTI-RACIST, ANTI-SEXIST, ANTI-HOMOPHOBIC, and ANTI-BREEDING but PRO-CHOICE.” All four bands we saw that night put on a great show and the audience was returning the vibe. To top off the night we were able to spend the night right there in the parking lot.

Leftover Crack Band Members

From Charlotte we moved into the Pisgah and Nantahala National Forests in western North Carolina. We did our best to stay off the scenic highway because believe it or not it was crowded with people. I guess we are getting further south and the tourist season is still active. It was strange for us to be bombarded with folks at all the attractions after all the months of having things to ourselves. The National Forests in this part of the country get a lot of use throughout the year. As a result they have created a bunch of dispersed, free camp spots across the forest to minimize the amount of the damage to the land. Even with hunting season in full swing we were able to find these gems. Following are a few of the better photos we took.

Looking Glass Falls

Slide Rock (During the summer months thousands of people a day come here to slide down this rock into the chilly water.)

Appalachian Scenery

Dry Falls (You could walk behind this waterfall.)

Throughout this area we frequently saw evidence of people damming rivers to control the water flow for energy production and in the process created a series of lakes for recreation.