On day 7 of our trip to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, we set out to hike to Andrews Bald. We detoured up the Newfound Gap Parkway to see Mingo Falls too. We made several unplanned stops along the way that were also fun including Mingus Mill and the Oconaluftee Visitor Center. 8/7/2020
Author Archives: deanorolls
Edgar Evins State Park – Hiking Merritt Ridge and Millennium Trails
We spent Halloween at Edgar Evins State Park to hike the 7+-mile Merritt Ridge and Millennium Trails. This was a pretty hard hike and also one of the less-traveled trails we’ve ever been on. At times it felt like we were just wandering along in the open forest. The views of Center Hill Lake hiking …
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Abrams Falls + Elijah Oliver Place + The Sinks + Tuckaleechee Caverns (Great Smoky Mtns. – Day 6)
The goal on our 6th day in the Great Smoky Mountains was to do the hike to Abrams Falls (our final waterfall hike of the trip). We hit the road early with Emily helping with filming (after some quick training). We made a quick pitstop at The Sinks. Then we got to the hike via …
Deano’s 2020 Movie Award
Each year I select my favorite movie of the year. When I’m done with a year the winner is crowned with the highly coveted “Deano’s First Place, Far Out, Fantastic, Favorite, Fine Film Award”. I watched 24 of the films released in 2020 (of those I really enjoyed 7). The “Deano’s First Place, Far Out, …
Memories of Maw Maw
Frances Sterry Jeannette (May 4, 1923 – December 5, 2020) Maw Maw lived 97 years. I got to know her for the last 25 or so (after marrying her granddaughter). I’m glad I did too, this woman was a treasure! I’m so thankful that I have adult children (her great-grandchildren) that got to know her …
1 Year Lifting Weights: My Progress And What I’ve Learned
A year ago, I decided to start lifting weights. I’m assessing where I’m at right now, what I’ve learned this year, and what my goals are for the coming year. This is where I’m at now: Start (12/6/19) Now (12/12/20) Workouts 0 73 Body Weight 173 (@ 5’ 9”) 190 (@ 5’ 9”) Squat …
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Hiking Cades Cove – Full Time-lapse (Great Smoky Mountains – Day 5)
14 miles…hiking…not driving…not biking (although we tried). I time-lapsed this very peaceful hike (all 14 miles in 12 minutes). Every time I’ve ever been on the Cades Cove Loop (in the Great Smoky Mountains) it has been a bumper to bumper traffic jam. They close it to auto traffic on Wednesdays during some parts of …
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Cedars of Lebanon State Park
We took our 5th RV trip to Cedars of Lebanon State Park in September. We hiked almost all the trails in this state park (6 trails in 2 days). There are so many things to see along the way. There are caves, sinkholes, rock formations, and more cedar trees growing in the thin, rocky soil …
I’m Uncomfortably Long Assets!
A person I follow on Twitter recently noted that he was ‘irresponsibly long’ Bitcoin. This concept stuck with me because it reminded me of how I currently feel about my investment portfolio. I do not believe I am irresponsibly long anything but I definitely feel like I am uncomfortably long everything. I believe that the …
Hiking To Rainbow Falls + Laurel Falls + Foothills Parkway (Great Smoky Mountains – Day 4)
We spent the 4th day of our Great Smoky Mountain National Park trip hiking to Rainbow Falls! I cannot say enough good things about this hike. We hiked six waterfalls on our 8 days in the park and this one was, by far, my favorite. Later in the afternoon, we hiked to Laurel Falls (which …
DeanoRolls (@deanoroll5) 