At 6643 feet, Clingmans Dome is the highest point in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Located in the northernmost part of Swain County along the North Carolina–Tennessee border, the temperatures at Clingmans Dome are often 10 to 20 degrees cooler than Bryson City’s. On a clear day, take the (steep) half-mile walk from the parking lot to the observation tower, and you’ll be rewarded with a stunning 360-degree view of the Smokies and beyond. The seven-mile road from US 441 to Clingmans Dome is open Aprll thru November. Photo by J.R. vanLienden, Masterpiece Portraits.

Of all the ways to enjoy the Great Smokies, nothing is more relaxing than a pontoon boat outing on beautiful Fontana Lake. With the entire north shore of the 35-mile-long lake protected by the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, wildlife sightings are common, including black bears and bald eagles. Several marinas rent the covered boats for full-day or half-day outings. Photo by J.R. vanLienden, Masterpiece Portraits.

The Nantahala is one of the most scenic and popular rivers in the North Carolina Smokies. Best-known for whitewater rafting, the river is also popular for kayaking, trout fishing and the Great Smoky Mountains Railroad’s scenic excursion which runs alongside the Nantahala’s eight-mile whitewater rafting venue. Photo by Jennifer Wilson.

Kim Wildcat is one of the “Cherokee Friends” who greet visitors to the Cherokee Indian Reservation each summer. Authentically dressed like her 18th century ancestors, Kim and her fellow goodwill ambassadors offer directions, advice and a bit of history to visitors, often speaking in the native Cherokee language.

Did Lizzie Borden kill her father and stepmother with an axe? Judge for yourself when the Smoky Mountain Community Theater presents the play “Lizzie Borden of Fall River”  July 25-28.

Upcoming performances this year include Neil Simon’s “I Oughta Be In Pictures” in October, and a holiday play “Three Wise Men and a Baby” in December. The Bryson City theatre group was organized in 1981 and moved into the town’s old Gem Theatre building in 1989.

It’s blueberry time in the Smokies. And several “You Pick’em” berry farms — like the one above in the Whittier community — should have plump, sweet berries from now through late summer.

Want to make something special with your berries? Try this Blueberry Buttermilk Pancake recipe provided by the Folkestone Inn Bed & Breakfast.

Blueberry Buttermilk Pancakes
Makes twelve 1/4 cup pancakes, four servings

1-1/2 cups flour
1/2 tsp. salt
2 Tbs. granulated sugar
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder

1 egg, beaten
1-3/4 cups buttermilk
2 Tbs. vegetable oil
1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries

Sift together flour, salt, sugar, baking soda and baking powder. In a separate bowl, combine the egg, buttermilk and oil. Add liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients, stirring as little as possible (only until combined). Stir in 1 cup blueberries.

Heat griddle to 375 degrees F. Brush with oil or melted butter. Pour 1/4 cup of batter to make each pancake. Cook until edge of each pancake loses its gloss, then flip. Uncooked batter can be placed in the refrigerator for the next day. (Recipe can be doubled)

The Smokies are where mountain music was born and our homegrown music is very much alive today. On Saturday evenings throughout the Summer, you can hear area artists perform at the Bryson City train depot. On Thursday evenings, there’s music on the lawn at the Bryson City library. Also on Saturdays, there’s the Stecoah Valley Cultural Arts Center’s summer concert series, An Appalachian Evening. Above, Adam Masters (left) and Roger Howell perform at Stecoah’s 2008 Mountain Music Championship.

Motorcyclists from all over the world come to the Smokies to “slay the Dragon”, the infamous stretch of US Highway 129 at Deal’s Gap in western Swain County, NC. With 318 curves in just eleven miles, the Dragon is considered by many as one of the best motorcycling and sports car roads in the world.

At the Deal’s Gap Motorcycle Resort, the “Tree of Shame” is covered with broken parts and pieces of the bikes that crashed on the Dragon — a makeshift shrine to those who faced the beast …and lost.

Floating down Deep Creek on an inner tube is not just a thrill, it’s a cheap thrill. For less than $5, you can rent a tube for the entire day. Then try your best to stay in the tube as it bounces over Deep Creek’s whitewater rapids.

The Deep Creek Recreation area is just inside the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, two miles north of Bryson City. There’s camping, picnicking, hiking trails, trout fishing and three beautiful waterfalls. Tubes (with protective seats) can be rented from several vendors near the park entrance.

For years, Bryson City’s Fourth of July fireworks show has been one of the best in the Western North Carolina mountains, the culmination of “Freedom Fest“, the town’s old fashioned Independence Day celebration. The day begins with a 5K race, includes music, food and crafts before ending with the fireworks. Above, the dome of Bryson City’s century-old courthouse building is silhouetted against last year’s pyrotechnics.

Visitors to Bryson City and the Smokies often want to experience some authentic Southern Cookin’ …like the Fryemont Inn’s Lemon Chess Pie. The Fryemont’s Sue Brown graciously shares the recipe —

Lemon Chess Pie
2 c. sugar
4 large eggs
1 tbsp. each, flour and corn meal
1/4 c. milk
1/4 c. butter, melted and slightly cooled
1/4 c. freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 tbsp. grated lemon rind
1 unbaked pastry pie crust

Combine the sugar and eggs and beat well. Toss together the flour and corn meal and add to the egg mixture. Gradually add the milk, butter, lemon juice and rind. Pour into the crust. Bake in the center of a preheated 375 degree oven for 40 minutes or until the filling is set and the top is lightly browned.

Located on the Oconaluftee River in Ela, about five miles east of town, the Bryson City hydroelectric plant was constructed for the town in 1924-25.

It was purchased from the Town of Bryson City by Nantahala Power and Light (now Duke Energy) in 1942. The sale was approved by the town board and then by the majority of the registered voters. The town had been trying to sell the hydro plant since the late 1930s. It includes a multiple-arch type concrete dam, originally known as Oconaluftee Dam, and a power house with two turbines and generators. The 36 feet high and 341 feet long dam still generates electricity for the Duke Energy system.

With eleven fish on his stringer, four-year-old Gaige Jones walked away with top honors at the Sixth Annual Kids Fishing Tournament, sponsored by the Fontana Lake Users Association. The tournament was held June 7 at the public boat ramp at the Old 288 Riverside Park, two miles west of downtown Bryson City, NC.

A visit to Bryson City will take you back to simpler, less complicated times… especially when you step into Soda Pops, the old fashioned ice cream emporium on Everett Street. Owner and chief soda jerk Paul Crawley serves all the old favorites, including floats, shakes, and banana splits. Visitors Paul and Mary Dameron dropped in to share a chocolate malt …just like the good old days.

A hundred years ago, Proctor, NC was a bustling lumber town on Hazel Creek with more than 1,000 residents. Except for the ruins of the Ritter Lumber Company’s kiln (above), the cemetery and one house used by the Park Service, nature has reclaimed Proctor and left few visible reminders of its fascinating history. And with the building of Fontana Dam and Lake in 1944, the remote Hazel Creek area became virtually isolated and only accessible by boat.

This summer, there’s a unique opportunity to visit Proctor when historian and author Lance Holland conducts guided tours of the abandoned lumber town.

On a recent visit to the Smokies, Susan Murphy spent the morning photographing daughters Alana (left) and Mary Caitlin with each of the sixteen colorfully painted bears that now grace Cherokee’s streets and plazas. Each bear was created by a local tribal artist as part of a public art program sponsored by the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians.

Do you like model airplanes? On any given Saturday, you’re likely to find members of the Kituwah RC Club flying their radio-controlled model airplanes over the old Governors Island airfield (US 19 east of Bryson City). RC enthusiast Mark Ramsey (above) travels all the way from Morristown, Tennessee to use “one of the smoothest fields in the region.”

It’s a free show and club members enjoy an audience.

Since the Great Smoky Mountains National Park’s earliest days, visitors have shared the wonder and beauty of the Smokies with their friends via postcards. And now that the internet has made “snail mail” somewhat passe, we’ve decided to publish a whole new collection of Smoky Mountains postcards via this blog.

Our ePostcards will illustrate all the great things that contribute to the Smoky Mountains experience. And like the traditional postcard, our “Postcards From The Smokies” will be mostly photographic, with just a few words. A quick read. We plan on publishing a new postcard every week or so.

We hope you’ll add Postcards From The Smokies to your RSS reader. Or better yet subscribe to receive Postcards From The Smokies by Email.