GSMNP - Kuwohi and Double Spring Shelter
p.1 #1GSMNP - Kuwohi and Double Spring Shelter
Spent the day in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park at Kuwohi and Double Spring Shelter along the Appalachian Trail. Was socked in by clouds and heavy wind all day with rain creeping in toward lunchtime when I finished up - but it was gorgeous the whole time! Had the place to myself for a good bit and saw a handful of people on the trail including 2 southbound thru hikers. Thankful for these protected lands!
See individual captions for some thoughts on each. I'm not great at photos of sweeping vistas and landscapes mostly because I don't have the patience or knowhow, but I am always fascinated by what I call "forest details". Sometimes those make 8-mile hikes take a lot longer than they should!
Stopped by the tower at Kuwohi where it was extremely windy this morning. Had the place to myself for a bit. The cloud floor was well below this location so the wind had it whipping through pretty quick.
Some forest details
Loved the texture on this
Swirly bark - I'm always drawn to
Always drawn to these standalone dead / broken / damaged trees. I don't know enough about them to know if they're old hemlocks that suffered the wooly adelgid invasion that killed a bunch of them off but somehow this one died at some point.
Gnarled tree - assuming it was hit by lightning at some point based on the burn marks. Reminds me of Gandalf's staff...
Felt chaotic
Some thru hikers placed this marking the 2000 mile mark on their southbound journey from Maine to Springer Mountain in Georgia. At this milestone, they only have 200 miles left to finish the AT. I passed at least 2 SOBO (southbound) thru hikers today.
See individual captions for some thoughts on each. I'm not great at photos of sweeping vistas and landscapes mostly because I don't have the patience or knowhow, but I am always fascinated by what I call "forest details". Sometimes those make 8-mile hikes take a lot longer than they should!
Stopped by the tower at Kuwohi where it was extremely windy this morning. Had the place to myself for a bit. The cloud floor was well below this location so the wind had it whipping through pretty quick.
LEICA Q2 MONO SUMMILUX 1:1.7/28 ASPH. lens 28mm f/8.0 1/125s 3200 ISO -0.3 EV
Some forest details
LEICA Q2 MONO SUMMILUX 1:1.7/28 ASPH. lens 28mm f/8.0 1/125s 6400 ISO -0.3 EV
Loved the texture on this
LEICA Q2 MONO SUMMILUX 1:1.7/28 ASPH. lens 28mm f/5.0 1/125s 1600 ISO -0.3 EV
Swirly bark - I'm always drawn to
LEICA Q2 MONO SUMMILUX 1:1.7/28 ASPH. lens 28mm f/2.8 1/500s 1600 ISO -0.3 EV
Always drawn to these standalone dead / broken / damaged trees. I don't know enough about them to know if they're old hemlocks that suffered the wooly adelgid invasion that killed a bunch of them off but somehow this one died at some point.
LEICA SL2 LUMIX S 50/F1.8 lens 50mm f/4.0 1/250s 1600 ISO 0.0 EV
Gnarled tree - assuming it was hit by lightning at some point based on the burn marks. Reminds me of Gandalf's staff...
LEICA SL2 LUMIX S 50/F1.8 lens 50mm f/7.1 1/100s 1600 ISO 0.0 EV
Felt chaotic
LEICA SL2 Unknown Lens lens f/6.8 1/160s 1600 ISO -0.3 EV
Some thru hikers placed this marking the 2000 mile mark on their southbound journey from Maine to Springer Mountain in Georgia. At this milestone, they only have 200 miles left to finish the AT. I passed at least 2 SOBO (southbound) thru hikers today.
LEICA SL2 Unknown Lens lens f/6.8 1/60s 1600 ISO -0.3 EV
Nov 04, 2026 at 05:26 PM
p.1 #2GSMNP - Kuwohi and Double Spring Shelter
First photo is my favorite, I dig the curve and how it's consumed by the forest. Great foggy atmosphere too!
Nov 05, 2026 at 05:27 PM
p.1 #3GSMNP - Kuwohi and Double Spring Shelter
jgurbisz wrote:
First photo is my favorite, I dig the curve and how it's consumed by the forest. Great foggy atmosphere too!
Thank you! Was definitely in a cloud. That structure is the Kuwohi observation tower which is almost Brutalist in design.
First photo is my favorite, I dig the curve and how it's consumed by the forest. Great foggy atmosphere too!
Thank you! Was definitely in a cloud. That structure is the Kuwohi observation tower which is almost Brutalist in design.
Nov 05, 2026 at 05:39 PM