At the bottom was the famous mile-high (literally) swinging bridge.  I walked across it
amused at how insecure people seemed to be with so much air beneath them.  Virtually
every person was holding onto the rail.  For me the best part of the venture was complete
after fewer than just six miles from my start.  But the day was less than half over.

  

  

It seems the park does not allow pedestrians to stroll down the three mile road to the
bottom of the mountain where I aimed to continue back to my car on the Tanawha Trail
which parallels, more or less, the blue Ridge Parkway.  And it seems there are no trails
connecting where I was to where I wanted to be.  So.......... it was bushwhacking time.

Following the Black Rock Trail for a mile to the lower parking area, I immediately headed
straight down hill through what some might think is an unimaginable thicket of
rhododendrons and underbrush.  For me, I've done this before.  There is generally a way
to run through any jungle without breaking a leg or losing too much blood.  After a few
bouts with briars and blackberries I managed to head for the sound of the headwaters of
a babbling brook.  Figuring that any steep stream would clear most of the obstacles in my
way, I finally found nature's surest path, bounding from dry rock to dry rock straight down,
only getting cliffed out one time in my half-mile effort before reaching the Parkway at
the bottom.   The flowers along the creek were worth the bushwhack in and of themselves.

  

Not knowing whether pedestrians were allowed to run along the Parkway, I ran north for
about a mile, figuring someone would tell me if I was breaking some law.  When I got
to a very long viaduct on the Parkway I diverted underneath back into the woods to find 
the Tanawha Trail which would take me back to my start after another seven miles of
technical, undulating singletrack.  Temps were heating up at lower elevation under a mid-
day sun.  While the trail was beautiful with abundant flowers and bright green spring
growth, my enthusiasm for photography waned.

  

  

My fourteen-mile journey took me about six hours and fifteen minutes.  While I wasn't
exhausted or even sore, I had an overwhelming sense of satisfaction in having experienced
Grandfather Mountain on this perfect day.  This is a place I want to return to... and bring
friends who I know will love it just as much.