Snow and Caves

I met up with a few friends (former labmates) in Knoxville, TN this past weekend. We took a quick trip to the Smokies and were lucky enough to catch the first snowfall of the season and fall color at the same time. So purdy! We took a short hike in the snow with beautiful blue skies and warm sun. (I won't go into detail about how pathetically hungover I was from the night before -- but this hike was the perfect cure).

Here are two of Tara's (hope you don't mind I stole them) photos from the hike...me, Melissa and Tara. Followed by one of Melissa, Chris, and myself on a log bridge.

After Knoxville, Melissa and I visited Mammoth Cave National Park for a quick tour.  It was pretty awesome, although I think I liked Carlsbad better. I'm not sure if it was the goofy guide or the 30 people on the tour that turned me off a bit.  The path we took was pretty cool though--very tight in spots and very low in spots.  But not a lot of formations. I'm sure there are other parts of the cave that are more impressive.  Mammoth Cave is the longest cave system known in the world and it was National Park #35 on my list. The best part about caves is when you turn off all the lights and sit in darkness and utter silence except for maybe a drip of water.  Its awesome!