Hey friends! I wouldn't have guessed I'd be writing a "travel" blog so soon after the last, but this week 
I am not totally up to speed on all the history surrounding the area, so check out the park website if you are interested in learning more. For this particular visit we were more interested in a nice little workout and soaking in the scenery. The summit of the mountain is just shy of 2,000 feet above sea level, and the hike from the main visitor center on the West Trail is approximately a mile with somewhere near 700 feet of vertical gain, I believe. There are spots that are fairly strenuous while overall it is a fairly manageable hike for anyone with a basic level of fitness. There is also a paved road up to the summit where they often do shuttles or allow cars up at certain times for people who cannot make the hike on foot.
There are lots of connecting trails that run through the park and around the mountain, but we stuck to the main one since I only had a few hours between sessions. We got to the park just after 8am and set right off!
The trail going up was fairly quiet, though we passed a few people here and there coming back down. I had only looked at the weather so far as to know there wasn't a high chance of rain, but initially thought the fog would burn off by the time we reached the summit.
The trail is a popular one, so it is always well-kept. The wildlife is used to seeing people, as well. The two deer in the photo above were hardly bothered by us passing by.
Always look up!
As we continued the climb, the fog kept getting thicker. It created quite a lovely atmosphere, though. Very on theme for Halloween month. Quite peaceful for taking moments to just breathe in the forest, as well.
There are a few spots on the way up where you can stop and look out over the surrounding area, but most of the hike is just the beauty of the trees all around. There wasn't much to see past the fog that day anyway!
I almost lost
Finally, the "view" from the top. Atlanta is somewhere out there. Well, I should say technically this isn't the actual top, just the parking lot where the paved road stops. The actual summit is just a little bit further from here...
Past some of the cannons where they do reenactments on occasion, though probably not many this year. Crazy to think about how much work it was back in the 1800's to drag cannons up to the summit. Even more disturbing to think this machine probably killed multiple men during the heat of battle.
And now we really made it to the top. Obligatory selfie to commemorate the experience follows.
Still only a whisper of the city beyond from the slightly higher elevation.
I have to say I think the views we did get were pretty cool for an unplanned visit. Well, unplanned as far as my usual routine. I generally plan things out weeks in advance, so I think I decided Tuesday we'd go Thursday. For me that's spontaneous!
I think we will try to go back next week before all the leaves fall off the trees to try to get a slightly different experience of the park. That's the beautiful thing about nature, she provides so many diverse and unique experiences of the same place day to day. You just have to stop long enough to listen.
One more eerily beautiful shot before I sign off because I just couldn't miss sharing them all. I'm extremely grateful for having time here and there to take in the beauty that is not that far from my backdoor. Especially this year, those moments away even just a short ways from the house can make such a difference in your mental health and wellness. As my pal 
Sending some of this quiet forest energy to you all as we head into another weekend. May you find some adventures right outside your own backdoor!
