Mast General Store

Mast General Store is located in Valle Crucis, North Carolina. It is off the beaten path but well worth the drive to get there. It has a mix of the things you would find in an old timey country store along with plenty of modern things you won't find at Walmart. They have just about everthing to meet everyday needs living in a quaint mountain community. Even if you don't buy anything, it is worth the drive thru the mountains to get here, plus, you will see some beautiful scenery along the way.

Sugar Maple

             Trees
I think that I shall never see
A poem as lovely as a tree.
A tree whose hungry mouth is prest
Against the earth's sweet flowing breast;
A tree that looks at God all day,
And lifts her leafy arms to pray;
A tree that may in Summer wear
A nest of robins in her hair;
Upon whose bosom snow has lain
Who intimately lives with rain.
Poems are made by fools like me,
But only God can make a tree.
Joyce Kilmer (1886-1918) American Journalist, Poet

A sugar maple has to be one of the most beautiful trees in the fall. It often turns multiple colors with parts of the tree showing various shades of green, gold, orange and red all at the same time. This shot was taken at the farmstead in the back of the Cades Cove Loop Road, one of my favorite places in the Smoky Mountain National Park.

Shinning Rock Wilderness