I was driving down Hwy 321 this morning and the sun was rising over the mountains so I decided to try to get a couple of pictures and post them.

I have always loved Fall here, the feeling in Gatlinburg just seems to change to a more cheerful , light hearted one. The community starts getting ready for Harvest Fest by placing pumpkins and cornstalks throughout town with scarecrows atop perfectly placed hay bales and everything is picturesque.

As I was driving down Hwy 321 I saw a display that made me pull the car over it was so fantastic! A local artisan Brandon Messex has taken a 200 year old sycamore stump that was pulled from the river and carved it. It ended up being a 3 month project as this is no ordinary carved bear, it is so intricate and beautiful I can hardly believe it was started with a chainsaw. If you are in the area I definitely recommend you stop by. Heartwood Galleries is at 1450 E. Parkway and is owned by Brandon & Brandi Messex. You can visit their website at www.heartwoodgalleries.com and I have posted the photos from this morning below.

A big thanks to Charlie for letting me poke around the shop this morning!