Escorted by our host to the top of Rich Mountain
we are speechless at the cathedral opulence.
With a wisp of a toy-loving terrier at his feet,
our travel guide/storyteller
prepares breakfast and says on a clear day
we can see North Carolina and Tennessee.

The rhododendrons are lush.
Bella, the three-legged lab,
swims lustily at Long Creek Falls.
We rush to see the setting sun,
greet the moon and two dippers
and the next morning
hike to meet the dawn.