Artist-in-Residence Journal Great Smoky Mountain Nat'l Park
Updated: 7 hours ago
Follow me as I proceed through my journey as Artist-in-Residence at Smoky Mountain National Park. The most recent updates will be posted here at the top of the blog. Some posts will be elaborated upon after the publish date. Please bookmark this blog to see frequent updates.
Due to intermittent internet connectivity at resident housing at the park, please follow me on Instagram for more frequent updates. Click here for my Instagram page.
September 19, 2026
Today I held my first of two visitor engagement events during the residency. Held at the Sugarlands Visitor Center, we created souvenirs of the park that represented flora, fauna and sunsets typical of the Smokies. A pretty steady flow of patrons, from toddlers to a bachelorette party, partook in the festivities.
Wrapping up at 2:00, we headed off to our next waterfall visit. This one was located near the Great Smoky Mountains Institute at Tremont, which connects people with nature through in-depth educational and research experiences in the park.
Spruce Flats Falls is located near the Institute. As with many water features in the park, visitors can be found wading in the waters and hopping across the rocks. Not me.
Afterward, we dined in Townsend, then traveled the Foothills Parkway for commanding views of the mountains near sunset.
Today we plan to hike to Andrews Bald, starting off at Kuwohi.
I plan to wrap up today, a painting inspired by our hike to Chimney Tops. I never thought that an "Artist-in-Residence" would be too busy to paint!
September 18, 2026
6:30 AM is pitch black dark at our residence at Great Smoky Mountain National Park. Headlamps were needed to reach our car to head out on the 50-minute drive to Cades Cove. We reached Cades Cove as the sky began to lighten, exposing a thick swath of fog across the valley.
Cades Cove is a scenic valley known for its abundant wildlife, historic buildings, impressive mountain views, and, of course, Abrams Creek and its waterfall! We arrived just after the gates opened to the one-way, 11-mile loop road, trailing behind eager photographers hoping to catch a glimpse of bear or elk. A young bear sauntered across the road before us, and wild turkeys feasted along the roadway. It was a pleasure to visit the historic churches and homesteads of Cades Cove.
The Abrams Creek trail is a 5 mile round-trip venture. At the parking lot, we met up with Tina. Tina resides near our park residence and is a wildlife ranger. We talked about bears, her specialty (she also mentioned that salamanders are her forte, working well down the food chain). Abrams Creek trail was recently off-limits due to a bear attack. The bear's victim survived but was subject to rabies shots as the bear was not captured. There are several bear activity warnings on the trail.
The 2.5 mile hike to the falls is easy-to-moderate and the waterfalls is a grand experience! Below is may pastel painting of Abrams Creek, paintings following our family trip in 2013.
Abrams Falls is a powerful 25-foot waterfall. Climbing the rocks is definitely discouraged, as nine deaths have occurred so far in 2026.
Throughout most of the hike, you can hear the rapids along the creek and the roar of the falls within a half-mile of their torrent.
On September 26th, we will be conducting out visitor engagement at the Oconaluftee Visitor Center. This is one portion of the park that we have not visited. Left to explore is the red encircled area on the map below. The blue circles represent where we have been during the past two weeks. We have covered a lot of ground, and more to come through the end of the month!
September 17, 2026
On Thursday, much of the day was spent planning for the visitor engagement at the Sugarlands Visitor Center at the park. We will be creating wood cookie souvenirs, representing animals of Great Smoky Mountains National Park. There's something to be said about hosting a visitor engagement at this particular visitor center. We learned that the Sugarlands Visitor Center is the most visited visitor center in all of the national parks. We expect quite a crowd of children at our event on September 19th! Tune in for updates!
To assist with our preparation, we spent time at the Arrowmont Art School library to create images of the souvenir animals. Arrowmont has a couple of fantastic art galleries and rotating art displays.
No hiking today, as we are wrapping up for Saturday's event. But Friday the 18th, we are set to visit Cades Cove and hike Abrams Falls!
September 16, 2026
Today we headed out to hike the Metcalf Bottoms trail and visit the Little Greenbrier School and the cabin of the Walker Sisters. The trail is an easy 2.8 miles round trip.
The one room schoolhouse was built in 1882 and was attended by nearby children for 50 years, with formal classes ending in 1935. The school still serves local children and park visitors.
After visiting the school, we continued on the Metcalf Bottoms Trail to visit the former home (cabin) of the Walker sisters. John and Margaret Walker raised 11 children. John Walker fought for the Union in the Civil War, and was imprisoned by the Confederacy. Eventually, two daughters were living in the cabin when the national park was formed. The park service granted a lifetime lease, and the final Walker sister dies in 1964. The cabin since has been a part of the park.
The Walker sisters lived off the land for almost all of their needs. They raised vegetables, fruit, livestock, harvested plants for medicine, and grew flax and cotton to create textiles. The sisters once said "Our land produces everything we need except sugar, soda, coffee, and salt." Throughout the Smokies, there are similar homesteads and stories of families that lived simple lives. The land was their foundation for survival.
September 15, 2026
Today we headed back to the Elkmont section of Great Smoky Mountain National Park, and hiked the 7.4 mile Jakes Creek Trail to Jakes Gap. I don't quite know what a "gap" means in hiking, but Jake's "gap" had much to be desired. After the 3.7 mile one-way, we reached a clearing where a few trails crossed, including a sign pointing to the Appalachian Trail.
The many switchbacks and the narrow path as we headed toward the 3.7 mile mark, became quite monotonous, while anticipation of reaching the goal (Jake's Gap) was at top of mind. "Was it worth it?" We tend to ask this of hikers returning from the goal. It must be the hikers resilience and confidence that, in the end, even if the goal was not that impressive, we feel satisfied to complete the hike, and can often site nuggets of the hike that were very pleasing.
I would still recommend this trail, as there are three lovely waterfalls, a cabin, as well as a collection of old building ruins and renovated historic homes that are open for exploring.
Daisy Town was a vacation spot in the 1920's. before the park was established. The homes on this street have been restored to their original character. The homes are open to explore.
September 14, 2026
Today I participated in a plein air event for park staff, at the Newfound Gap parking lot, with a grand view of the Smokies. The parking lot sits at the border of Tennessee and North Carolina, at 5,056 in altitude. Newfound Gap was the site where President Franklin D. Roosevelt formerly dedicated the park in 1940.
Following this event, we hiked to Charlies Bunion, an 8-mile round trip adventure that climbed an additional 1,876 feet, including a portion of the Appalachian Trail.
In 2013, our family hiked to Charlies Bunion. Here are the brave Palmerton children perched upon the 6,500 foot precipice at Charlies Bunion. Caution to those who visit the bunion, as deaths have occurred from falls.
Scanning through my photos, I came across this landscapa shot that will become a reference photo for a larger-format painting.
Driving back from our hike, on Newfound Gap Road, we spotted two Elk chomping on the grass, then deciding to get playful.
September 13, 2026
A dense fog alert kept us from heading to the Cades Cove area this morning. We chose instead to head to the Greenbrier area of the park to explore Porter's Creek Trail. The 4.0 mile round-trip trail included a fine collection of roots and slick rocks. Our Trail Buddy hiking poles saved the day! We arrived at Hen Wallow Falls, and were impressed by the three tiers of cascading water. A rainfall yesterday helped to enhance the experience amidst this dry spell in the Smokies. These falls can be quite watery in the Spring!
Afterward, we spent time in Cosby, TN, entering the park at the Cosby entrance. Here we summitted Sutton Ridge Overlook, about 25 miles north of Gatlinburg.
I'm currently working on a 12x18 pastel inspired from the views from Mt. LaConte. I plan to exhibit that at my visitor engagement session on the 19th.
September 12, 2026
Today I completed my pastel painting of Grotto Falls, begun as part of my demo at the Arrowmont School of Art.
After hiking 13.4 miles yesterday, it is time to take a break from hiking. The weather has also turned for the worse, with intermittent rain and thunderstorms.
We are currently planning a trip to Cades Cove tomorrow, and hike to Abrams Falls as well as visit the various historic sites in this region of the park.
September 11, 2026
Today was our longest hike yet in the Smokies. We took the Alum Cave Bluffs trail to the top of Mount LeConte. The total hike was 13.5 miles, including a detour to Myrtle Point and The Cliffs, offering panaromic views of the Smokies. We started at 7:45 this morning, and arrived at our car at 5:10 PM. This hike included a visit to LeConte Lodge, a rather rustic setting of cabins, a dining hall, and a place to park the llamas that deliver food and supplies a few times a week.
After shooting over 400 photos so far as the Artist-in-Residence here at the park, there is much culling to do in this collection, to identify the next series of pastel paintings. There are many compositional opportunities, including expansive vistas, trails with dappled light sneaking in from the tree canopy above, waterfalls, rocks, and so many textures in the trees, rock strata, lush rainforest vegetation, and tree roots. Lots of tree roots! This digital content can last a lifetime in paintings.
Wherever you go in the Smoky Mountains, you are very likely to encounter the sound of water. The popular trails typically start off with roaring rivers cascading across polished rocks and decaying pine trunks. The sounds of the Smokies from the hiker's perspective include water, rustling leaves, the footsteps of the hiker, birds, and silence. Ignoring the human-made footsteps, the top two sounds are water and silence. Stop and listen, and you will often experience complete silence. It's amazing that so much of the goings-on behind the scenes in the forest, can generate no sound. The noisiest moments are those of the thoughts within the hiker's head. If you are hiking and cannot stop thinking about whatever concerns you, stop and listen to the forest.
September 10. 2026
Today we headed to the Greenbrier section of Great Smoky Mountain National Park to hike Baskins Creek Trail. This 3.75 round-trip trek sported a gem of a waterfall. The trail was rather quiet with only a handful of hikers. Word of a bear with two cubs at the waterfalls was a bit disconcerting, but no bear sitings in the area once we arrived.
Following this hike, we visited a series of historic cabins along Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail. Here is a plein air pastel painting of the Noah "Bud" Ogle cabin, near Gatlinburg.
I've been busier hiking rather than painting! The weather has been ideal for hiking, but rain in the forecast nezt week should send me back to my easel!
On Monday, I plan to return to Kuwohi where I will participate in a plein air lesson for artistically-minded park employees.
September 9, 2026
Today I presented the art of pastel landscape painting to the Arrowmont School of Art, in Gatlinburg. Turnout was fantastic and the audience was quite engaged with my demo of Grotto Falls. Arrowmont was founded before the national park, in 1912, gathering the many artists and crafters in the region to build their skills and awareness of the potential to expand art in the area.
My landscape painting of our Meigs Mountain hike is completed. See below. I'll call it "It's a Jungle Out There."
September 8, 2026
Today we hiked to Grotto Falls. This is a rather easy hike, about 1.5 miles one-way on the Trillium Gap trail, climbing an elevation of about 500 feet. Click here for a short video of the falls.
Here's the reference photo that will be the subject of a pastel painting. I started the painting on September 9th as part of my presentation to the Arrowmont School of Arts. More about that tomorrow!
After Grotto Falls, we visited Twin Creeks Science Center. where Sheridan, the Park Volunteer Coordinator, is located. We took a tour of the art work donated by previous Artists-in-Residence and prepared for the Arrowmont presentation on the 9th.
As promised, we returned to the Ben Morton Overlook and saw a sunset! As the sun set, it was interesting to note how the "smokiness" of the Smoky Mountains began to emerge. The "smoke" of the Smokies is caused by volatile organic compounds (VOC's) released by the region's dense vegetation. Call it "plant sweat!"
September 7, 2026
Introducing "Kuwohi," a 9x12 pastel inspired by a visit to the highest point in the Smokies.
Formerly known as Clingman's Dome, Kuwohi is the highest point in the park, at 6,643 feet. The observation tower offers a 360 degree view encompassing the Smokies and beyond.
Today's hike took us to Meigs Mountain Trail, near the Elkmont section of the park. The trail features 18 water crossings at peak water flow in the Spring. Today, we hopped across five picturesque water crossings. I did not lug my plein air supplies along the 3.75 mile hike, choosing instead to capture reference photos. Below is a photo of one of the crossings, which has earned to privilege of becoming a painting!
"The Sinks" is located at the start of the Meigs Mountain Trail, a popular swimming hole where the young and adventurous can dive off the rocks into 20 feet of frigid water.
Yellow Jackets are hiding in the bushes. They are prevalent in the park at this time of the year. One caught me on the left leg and what a sting! I guess it can be considered as an entry fee to pay to enjoy the park! National Parks typically have entry fees, but GSMNP does not, given that Route 441 traverses the entire park, into North Carolina. Fees are raised by charging for parking passes.
We attempted to see the sunset at the Ben Morton Overlook, however, clouds and rain got in the way. Ben was the Mayor of Knoxville and a proponent of building Route 441 through the Smokies. We'll make another attempt at the sunset soon. On our way to Ben's overlook, we stopped by one of the "Quiet Walks" along Newfound Gap (Route 441) Road. Beware the quiet walk. Yes, it was quiet. But we must have wandered off-trail, and found ourselves climbing over a multitude of tree trunks that had fallen across the path. We ultimately turned around to retrace our steps. Out theory is that federal budget cuts have compromised trail maintenance on these secondary trails.
Check back tomorrow for more happenings today!
September 6, 2026
Today, I completed two more paintings, so that's three done and two in progress. The two completed paintings depict views of Fighting Creek, near the visitor center.
Near Cataract Falls, Fighting Creek traverses along the Sugarlands Visitor Center, and is a popular spot for children to frolic in the frigid waters.
Today we hiked the Old Sugarland Trail, 3.9 miles one way to Cherokee Orchard. Saw two bears, the first of which we frightened, so we were on high alert for the next ½ mile or so. The second bear looked pretty young. It was standing on the trail and looking at us. A whistle and some singing scared it off.
"Bear Fear" is a real feeling on the trail, especially when you have the trail to yourself. The feeling is worse when it's near dawn or dusk. We protect ourselves by making noise while we approach a bend in the trail, just in case a bear is around the corner. They don't like to be surprised. And we carry whistles. But it's easy to develop a sense of being stalked, even when there is nothing behind you. In the next couple of weeks, bears start to prepare for their denning. That means that they are more aggressive in seeking food. "Be Bear Aware," are warning signs you can find throughout the park.
Have you ever heard of a Water Strider? It is a fascinating, spider-like bug that sits atop the water and darts back and forth. Several were seen near Cherokee Orchard at the falls near the Rainbow Falls parking are. Here's some detail (more than you would probably care to know about the Water Strider), and a YouTube video.
Following this 8-mle round trip hike, we headed back to the cabin and I wrapped up "Fighting Creek II," my third pastel.
Next, I will wrap up "Kuwohi Viewpoint," a location formerly knows as Clingmans's Dome, the highest point in the park.
September 5, 2026
It's 9pm and Mary and I just returned from Gatlinburg on the Gatlinburg Trail. A thunderstorm met us half-way home and we're soaked.
Today we summited Chimney Tops trail, as far as you can go, since the fires of 2016 closed down the peaks that our son Matthew perched atop 13 years ago. This trail is a classic at the park, despite the fenced-off peaks.
Today's painting included refining a view of the Noah "Bud" Ogle cabin just outside of Gatlinburg. The finished pastel will be available in a couple of days. I spent an hour painting along the Fighting Creek outside of the Sugarland Visitor Center today.
My goal is to complete 25 paintings during my 30-day residency. I have one completed and four in progress after four days of availability. Let's see if I can make that goal!
September 4, 2026
My housing here at GRSM comprises 6 attached cabins which share a satellite internet service. Since it is Labor Day weekend, the other inhabitants, volunteers and hired staff of the park, have left. That improved the Internet connectivity, so this blog is back in business for now.
Today, my wife Mary and I hiked the 5.4 mile round trip Rainbow Falls hike. This is a moderate hike with an uphill battle with rocks and roots. Plenty of photos taken on the route will serve up paintings in the future.
If you follow my Instagram page, I just about wrapped up the 9x12 pastel "Fighting Creek." Yesterday, I completed "Cataract Falls," seen below. Cataract Falls is about 800 feet from my residence. I finished this painting while a couple had their wedding ceremony! It sold to a member of the wedding party, to gift to the newlyweds at Christmas.
Tomorrow I expect to wrap up "Fighting Creek." Today I started "Kuwohi," a 9x12 pastel inspired by a visit to the highest points in the park, formerly known as Clingman's Dome. Also on September 5, I plan to visit the farmstead of Noah "Bud" Ogle for my first landscape and architecture combo painting.
September 2, 2026
I settled into resident housing at Great Smoky Mountain National Park (hereby abbreviated as GRSM). The 8.5 hour drive from Ann Arbor was straightforward and uneventful, except for the Oversize Loads attempting to climb the hills of Northern Tennessee.
While the housing is very accommodating, the wifi is not, so blog updates here will be a bit more sporadic than originally planned.
Near Sugardlands Visitor Center, where my apartment is located, there's a short but beautiful hike along Fighting Creek that heads to Cataract Falls. This is ths first painting I will do, started as a sketch in the studio I setup in the kitchen of the apartment.
Sheridan Roberts, Parkwide Volunteer Coordinator at GRSM, was kind enough to take me along for a four hour tour of the park's environs, including Gatlinburg. One of the highlights of the tour was a trip through the Greenbrier entrance of the part, where the Little Pigeon River traverses throughout the landscape. This less-visited area of the park is dotted with with several unique hiking trails, as well as access points to the river, providing plenty of painting opportunities.
Another highlight was our visit to Arrowmont School of Arts. I will be presenting at the school on September 9th. Engaging art galleries and a variety of crafts, including glass, metals, fiber, sculpture and more, as well as its history, founded in 1912, are key features of this institution.
I sorely owe you some pastel paintings! Look for painting updates here and on Instagram. My goal is to complete 15-20 paintings during my September residency (and beyond at my home studio), having chosen sizes ranging from 9x12 (typically plein air size) to 18x24.
Thanks, and stay tuned for more updates!
August 31, 2026
Today is August 31, 2026 As my Artist-in-Residency begins on September 1, much planning has been completed. After rescheduling my work as a CFO with FocusCFO, and having wrapped up a family vacation at the beach for much of August (visit my beach landscapes here), it's time to finish packing up my studio and prepare for my Smokies adventure.
Onsite Painting Locations
I've worked up an onsite painting list of the iconic locations to paint en plen air, including a variety of water falls and mountain vistas, as well as the vintage architecture in Cades Cove. Soon I will be setting dates to those locations for further engagement with park visitors. Return to this blog to see updates and a link to videos of my painting locales.
Here's the initial list of painting locations. If you have visited the park in the past, look for an original pastel to bring back memories!
Cades Cove
Clingman's Dome - renamed Kuwohi, restored to its traditional Cherokee name.
The Deep Creek area near Bryce City, NC.
Andrews Bald
Gregory Bald
Alum Cave Bluffs
Waterfalls: Ramsey Cascades, Laurel Falls, Grotto Falls, Abrams Falls
Charlies Bunion (If I can make it out that far with my painting gear)!
For my residency, much of my time has been focused on preparing my visitor engagement activities. Here is a link to one of my events scheduled in September. I chose to organize an arts and crafts event to create holiday ornaments with wood slices, depicting flora and fauna of Great Smoky Mountain National Park. During these events, I will also demonstrate the essence of landscape painting in pastel.
Here are a few images of my plans for creating art work with my visitors. Key concepts of art will be taught during these sessions, including contrast of hue, values, and composition. Something to learn for all!
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Here is a recap of the Artist-in-Residence program and expectations and what it means to be an "AIR."
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