On Top of Old Smokey (part 5)

Day 3 Sunday (part 1)

1st waterfall of the day was. Whitewater falls.

The kids were super excited.

Falls # 2  Silver Run

a little something we came across in between falls 

 # 3 Upper Cullasaja Falls

 #4 Dry Falls

Everybody staying dry underneath Dry Falls

#5 Lower Cullasaja Falls

# 6 Bridal Veil Falls

Perfect Day for waterfall viewing. There was a lot of time spent in the car between viewings, but the kids didn't seem to mind too much... that is until we were finally on our way back to meet their parents. Our little gray map was missing a few roads that we needed to know the names of in order to get back. Our Phones were out of service, and we were at least an 1 1/2 hours away from our campsite. It was at the moment that we realized we could be truly lost that Sunny informed us that she had to tinkle. Perfect...  There were no marked streets, let alone roadside markets with public bathrooms. I've never in my life felt so helplessly lost. Worried that we would not find our way back before dark, worried that Sunny would end up tinkling in the back seat. Worried because we were all hungry and no one knew how long it would be until dinner. Worried because the road that we had chosen as the one we needed to be on turned into a gravel  after about 10 miles. and then...

 We had coverage...we found a bathroom...and Shiloh decided that she probably wasn't going to throw up after all.  

WHEW! ! ! 

On Top of Old Smokey (part 6)

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Day 3 Sunday (part 2)


We managed to make it back before dark. Miracle!
We said good buy to the kids and to their parents, and sat down to relax, just the two of us and a cozy fire.
As it was Sunday night there were hardly any campers left and the night was very quiet. It wasn't nearly as cold as it had been the night before either.
For our dinner on this, our last, night. We brought along frozen chicken breast tenders. (which had thawed out in the cooler over the past two days) and corn on the cob with Jalapeño butter, and queso fresco. The chicken tenders we just salted and peppered and stuck on our skewers. ( much like the bacon we enjoyed for breakfast) The corn was cooked much the same then slathered with the butter and sprinkled with cheese. This was such a simple and satisfying meal that it may become a Matta camping staple. Add a (perfect for camping) sippy cup of 3 buck Chuck and its a meal thats hard to beat even in the comfort of home.

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 More about this Jalapeño butter... this recipe is a ***** (five star) must try! Phil has actually announced that, if given the option, he will never eat corn again without it. But its deliciousness does not have to be limited to corn, we recently tossed it into a quick pasta dish with shrimp, roasted squash, and broccoli. If you have more of a simplistic approach to food at home, this stuff is great on toast.
Here's the recipe:

2 jalapeño chiles
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
1 garlic clove, minced
2 teaspoons minced fresh parsley leaves
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 ears fresh corn, husks and silks removed
1 cup crumbled queso fresco cheese*
*Queso fresco is a fresh cheese found at Latin markets. A mild feta could be substituted.
Directions


Prepare a grill or grill pan to high heat.


Grill the jalapeños, turning them occasionally, until charred on all sides, about 10 minutes. Transfer them to a cutting board and let cool for 5 minutes. Keep the grill on high heat.


Using a small paring knife, peel the jalapeños. Scrape out and discard the seeds and veins. Coarsely chop the chiles and transfer them to a medium bowl. Add the butter, garlic, and parsley and mash together. Season the jalapeño butter with salt and pepper, to taste. Put a square piece of plastic wrap on a work surface. Spoon the jalapeño butter onto the center and roll it up into a 1-inch-diameter log. Refrigerate it until firm, at least 30 minutes, or up to 1 week.


Grill the corn on the hot grill or grill pan, turning occasionally, until it is browned in spots and the kernels are tender, about 10 minutes. Transfer the ears to a platter. Top each ear with a pat of the jalapeño butter, sprinkle with queso fresco, and serve.
 *use rubber gloves when handling the Jalapeños... trust me, its worth it

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  Nutella Smores were the finishing touch to our lovely evening. We fell asleep with visions of  hiking trails and breathtaking views, dancing in our heads. We both woke up Monday morning at around 4 am to POURING Rain. The good news is that the rain had brought the temperature up by about 20 degrees. The bad news is that it was POURING Rain. 2 hours later. The rain had subsided somewhat and we decided to pack up quickly and get on the road; hoping that the weather would clear up and we would still be able to do some exploring before we had to head back home. Wouldn't you know it, the very moment we began to disassemble our tent, the heavens re-opened. And so there we were, driving through the mountains in the dark once again, only this time there was also the rain. Driving, once again aimlessly toward a spot on our little gray map with no known roads to follow, and no GPS signal, the higher we climbed, the more ominous the fog became. We found ourselves at the Blue Ridge Parkway on top of some mountain, not able to see more than 10 yards in any direction. Perfect place to stop and have some breakfast, pray for safety, and wait out the weather a bit.
here are some pictures from later that day, as we made our way home along the Blue Ridge Mountain Pkwy.

On Top Of Old Smokey (Part 4)

Day 2 Saturday (Part 3)

3 pm we made it down the mountain. I still hadn't gotten any messages from my sister in law to say that they had arrived and so we went to take a few pictures of a nearby waterfall. Little did we know that my phone was out of service and the entire time we were photo shooting. Shane Beki and the kids were in the Wal-Mart parking lot for nearly an hour, calling nearby campgrounds trying to find out where we were. We did finally meet up with them, after we randomly passed their van on the road.
The 1st thing the kids wanted to do was go climb a mountain... We decided to have dinner instead of hiking in the dark. Hot dogs, apples, peanut butter filled pretzels, hot chocolate, and s-mores. The only injury of the night was Josiah cutting his finger with a pocket knife trying to open Sunny's trail mix, which incidentally didn't require a knife to open it in the first place. It was a mere flesh wound and we were able to proceed with dinner and the rest of the evening. Josiah and Shiloh, (the two oldest) insisted that we tell scary stories as we sat by the fire. Its funny how some things never change. Josiah told a story that had been circulated among my friends 13 years ago at least. Sunny (the 4 year old) told a story too. It didn't make a whole lot of sense, I think it was actually a story about her and her doll. Adorable. I think its pretty safe to say that the stories were unsuccessful as far as making anyone really afraid. What was genuinely creepy though, was the sounds of Frankenstein that permeated the campground, as the community movie played from the amphitheater not 300 yards away from where we were situated. Then there were the wild animal noises in the middle of the night. Owls, raccoon fights, other unexplained noises. Honestly I think those noises concerned Phil and I more than they did the kids. They took the cold unfamiliar night like champs.
For breakfast I had found a recipe for bacon and eggs in a paper bag. According to this recipe, you line the bottom of a paper lunch bag with bacon, and crack an egg on top. Then you hang your bag on a skewer over the fire to cook. ... sounds sketchy right? but I honestly couldn't pass up the opportunity to try it. The whole ordeal took about 20 minutes. It really wasn't cooking hanging on the skewer and so I sat the bag on some coals. It actually started cooking! For 10 minutes or so a slow but steady cooking process was occurring. Then in an instant, just like that, the entire bag went up in flames. ...surprise, but not really, cause what would you expect a paper bag to do in a bonfire? I would really like to know how this actually worked for someone well enough for them to recommend it to someone else. (note to self: not everything you find online is worth your time)
While all of this was going on, the kids were enjoying roasting individual pieces of bacon over the fire on their skewers.
After all the bacons had been individually roasted and consumed, and i had cooked eggs for everyone in a real non-flammable pan. We set out on a mountain waterfall safari.