John and I went away together to camp at Cades Cove, a place that we have experienced together for several years. It's John's favorite place on earth, something that I can see now. Settled among rolling green mountains, it's a huge cove where a community lived before they were pushed out to create the park. We always wonder about what their days looked like there. It offers a beauty and quiet that pushes peace down into our bones.
Without our children, we were able to do things that we aren't normally able to do. We found a covered porch on an old house and sat there with our camping chairs and books as a storm rolled through.
We had slow, involved meals and only had to run our food in our tent once because of rain. It was enough of a mild adventure for our simpleton selves that made us laugh. We have no edge, but we pretend to.
Our favorite experience was hiking 5 1/2 miles up a mountain to Gregory Bald. It offers big views on either side, to which we didn't see. We were hoping to catch good weather, but when we reached the top, clouds were quickly moving over the bald. We watched them come in while we enjoyed salami, cheeses, and a baguette. We both agreed that it was better than the good view. It was a very unique experience, and probably goes into my top ten things that I've done in my life. When we got down the mountain, we sprinted the last mile, jumped in the creek, and celebrated a good day.
We finished our trip by heading to the highest point in the Great Smokies Park for great views. That proved to be breathtaking.
We pulled back to our house after three days gone, and the kids were having the time of their lives. They said we should have stayed away longer (so next time we just might). It's always great to get away together and invest in our relationship, but it's such a treat to get to experience such amazing moments together.
