Scroll down to view Steve Madden’s featured photos for October through December 2023.
All photos in this collection are copyright 2023 Steven L Madden.
SFPD31 December 31 2023
Snow Capped Smokies
You had to be out early on New Year’s Eve to see snow-capped peaks in Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
By early afternoon, as I continued my long walk beside Cades Cove Loop Road, bright sun had melted most of the snow.
SFPD27 December 27 2023
Since Daylight
Instead of the sunrise I hoped to see at Ijams Nature Center, a pair of fishermen floated on the Tennessee River.
“I’m curious. How long have you been at it?” “Since daylight,” the standing man replied. “Without catching any,” his companion added.
Cumulous clouds obscured the sun until midday when a brilliant blue sky overcame morning rain. Perhaps for the determined sportsmen, luck improved with the weather.
SFPD12 December 12 2023
Frosty Morn
The temperature was 25 Fahrenheit when we began our hike at Seven Islands State Birding Park. The French Broad River intensified the cold and frost.
Frost covered trees, shrubs and grasses, appearing somewhat like new fallen snow. Had we approached them more closely, I suppose the nineteen deer we counted were frosted also.
Frosty hills and meadows paint wonderful Winter images.
SFP124 December 4 2023
Fortuitous Night Hike
The first night I camped at Cumberland Mountain State Park in Crossville Tennessee, I enjoyed a night hike along Byrd Creek Trail.
I thought the yellow-blazed trail would return me to its trailhead near the park office. When I came to a trail junction in the pitch-dark woods, I used my Avenza GPS map to walk a nature trail to the famous multi-arch dam.
How fortuitous to see the back side of the CCC-built dam at night during the holiday season!
SFPN24 November 24 2023
Fly Me To The Moon
My grandson’s first visit to Cincinnati Zoo was perfectly timed during the Festival of Lights.
Among four million LEDs illuminating the night sky, I was most fascinated by glowing Jellyfish that danced in the winter breeze.
SFP116b November 16 2023
Sand Cave
Sand Cave, in Cumberland Gap National Historic Park, is unlike any sandstone rock house I know. Its deep and shifting sand floor is as fascinating as its weathered ceiling.
I suppose countless animals and humans took shelter there down through the eons.
SFP111b November 11 2023
Center Hill Lake
This view of Center Hill Lake was at the furthest point along Merritt Ridge Trail from the Edgar Evins State Park trailhead.
Four miles remained to finish my eight mile trek, made quite difficult today by numerous fallen trees.
I caution against hiking Merritt Ridge Trail unless a park ranger tells you blow downs have been cleared from the trail.
SFP116 November 6 2023
Decorated Blue Spruce
I visited Racheff Gardens and Arboretum hoping to see fall colors among more than 75 tree species.
Nature anticipated my arrival and decorated this Blue Spruce with red leaves.
SFP116a November 6 2023
Mellow Yellow
This Eastern Redbud has mellowed since Autumn arrived at Racheff Gardens and Arboretum in Knoxville Tennessee.
Its leaves are now a pretty pastel yellow.
SFP111 November 1 2023
Young Anne Frank
This quote is attributed to Anne Frank, a German girl whose Jewish family hid from and eventually were arrested by Nazi occupiers in Amsterdam in the 1940s.
Anne was thirteen years old when she began to keep a diary. Her private writings were published by her father after Anne’s death, at age fifteen.
Anne Frank was wise beyond her years.
I found this quote at Goodreads.
SFP028 October 28 2023
South Arch
Three church friends joined me for a short hike to Twin Arches in Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area near Jamestown Tennessee.
SFP028a October 28 2023
North Arch
Fall colors made the mammoth sandstone arches even more marvelous.
SFP016 October 16 2023
A River Runs Through It
Big South Fork River runs through the Cumberland Plateau in Southern Kentucky and Northern Tennessee.
We enjoyed this splendid view from Devil’s Jump Overlook in Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area during our seven-mile hike along Blue Heron Loop.
SFP109a October 9 2023
Across the River
I ventured across the Cumberland River from the Kentucky state park to capture this view of Cumberland Falls.
Hike a short distance along Eagle Falls Trail, and turn right at the loop trail sign, to see a similar view when you visit Cumberland Falls State Resort Park.
SFP105 October 5 2023