Be sure to check out the 32^nd annual “Festival of Christmas Past” which will take place at the Sugarlands Visitor Center on December 8^th. This popular event celebrates the culture of Great Smoky Mountains National Park, especially the Christmas traditions.

 Visitors at this event can expect a full day of activities. There will be old time bluegrass music, demonstrations of basket weaving, quilting, and soap making, storytelling, a visit from Santa, short walks led by costumed guides, basket weaving workshops presented by the Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts, and more.   The event is free, but there is a fee to participate in the basket weaving workshop. For more information about this fun event, contact the Sugarlands Visitor Center at 865-436-1291.

One of the things that has become apparent to me since starting this blog about Great Smoky Mountains National Park is my appalling lack of talent when it comes to photography. I’ve started searching through my pictures to add to this site, and realized that I’m from the thumb over the lens school of photography, and using a digital camera makes things only minimally better.

 With this in mind, I’ve started surfing the web for the best images of Great Smoky Mountains National Park and the areas surrounding it. Today I came across Tellagalleria.com. Here there are a number of phenomenal pictures of scenes in the park. I especially like this one which gives you an idea of the beauty of the park in winter. I recommend taking some time to look through the pics.  I’ll continue to share sites where I come across great pics that highlight the park, and if you find some or have some you would like to show off, please feel free to share them!