Great Smokey Mountains

Up. up, up, we climbed on our ascent to Balsam State Park in the Great Smoky Mountains of North Carolina. Here we are at 5020 feet.


The vistas were as breathtaking as the air was rare . . .


200 years ago, German immigrants to this land developed a strong breed of bear-hunting dog, famous for its fierce tenacity against beasts that could tear a man to shreds.
In fact, here's one of those fierce fighing dogs right now, just daring any bear to scuffle with him! Presenting . . . "OSCAR THE BRAVE"


The great thing about grilling out is you can always bring a bit of Texas with you. Here we have an example of a jalapeno-burger on the grill, coming to perfection high in the Great Smoky Mountains. :)