Story and image by Don McGowan
As you stand high above the West Prong of the Little Pigeon River running through Sugarlands Valley and look across the thickly forested slope beyond it, you’ll see the rocky prominence known as Bullhead. A careful visual examination along the lithic line tracing the ridge reveals the likely presence of a
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Story and image by Don McGowan
It is so tempting, given the amazing literal beauty of the geography of Great Smoky Mountains National Park, to become a photographic documentarian of these wonderful mountains and valleys, complete with their complex, diverse array of life forms and habitats. To do this, however, would be, in my humble opinion,
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Story and image by Don McGowan
There are many folks I know who readily assert that their favorite season in the Smokies is winter. They claim this not because there are relatively fewer tourists streaming into Sevier and Blount counties, or back and forth over Newfound Gap from Cherokee and Bryson City. They make this assertion for the very
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Story and image by Don McGowan
There is a great mountain in the heart of the Smokies. It is called Kuwahi. It has this name because it is a place where mulberry trees were found; in Tsalagi—the language of the Cherokee—Kuwahi means “Mulberry Place.”
To the Cherokee people it is sacred; and to the European settlers who
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Story and image by Don McGowan
I have been a professional nature and travel photographer for nearly 27 years, and the first word that comes readily to mind to describe my experience of those years is “gratitude.” The worst day I’ve ever had doing photography was infinitely better than the best day I ever had in an office&
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