Elkmont, revisited: a tale of history and ruin

Last weekend I was able to revisit another of my favorite places, Elkmont, in the Great Smoky Mountain National Park. Elkmont was a resort town way back and the vacation cabins sit empty there still. Over the years since I first discovered this treasure spot, the Wonderland Hotel burned two times and was finally torn down. The remaining outbuilding was also finally torn down, and this trip was the first time I've been since. It was sad to see the hill where these majestic old buildings sat. The entire area feels empty of their memories.

I also love the old vacation cabins and have taken many photographs of them over the years. This visit I was very disheartened to see a number of them in total shambles. They likely won't be there by the time I get back to Elkmont. 

One of the cabins was such a magical place it figures in and forms, as does Elkmont, a central theme in my Claire Quartet novels. Elkmont represents the dream of what could have been for Bingham Wade, and later on, the place where the dream is realized, though differently than he envisioned it.

This cabin is sadly nearly gone at this point. Since my last visit the roof has fallen in along with several main walls. It was sad to see it but no matter how tattered it is, it still holds magic for me, as does Elkmont as a whole. If you ever end up in the park, make the time to go to Elkmont and walk through all the sections. What I show here is only a small portion of what's there. I've seen nothing else like it, even now that it's really starting to deteriorate.

The front door and porch to my favorite cabin are completely gone now, but the gorgeous stone fireplace still remains inside.

Another view.

The back of the cabin is more intact, and shows what the entire cabin looked like only a few years ago. When I first saw this cabin it was in good enough condition to be restored. This looks back to the Little River that runs behind this particular row of cabins.

And here is the little back area that Bingham imagines taking Claire to. It was in much better condition but although it's run down now it still feels magical to me. The foliage front and center is new - last time I was here the view to the rushing water was clear. 

The view from the other side shows just how much has fallen in.

It really breaks my heart that there hasn't been funding to restore these little gems and preserve this amazing glimpse into the past.

The most intact side:

Next door is another cabin. The path between the cabins still remains - it's clear the people who lived in them visited back and forth regularly. This one too is succumbing to the elements and time and neglect. The front side is the most intact.

I was shocked to walk around to the side and see this:

This room was very compelling. Something about the light and the way it's decaying kept me there for a long time.

I kept taking photos. Almost as if by documenting the state of ruin I could halt it. This looks to the other side of the cabin.

When I got to the back I saw this. The chains hanging down look ominous and spooky but I think they were actually part of an attempt to hold the structure of this cabin together. 

That hanging chain was eerie though.

The entire back of the cabin is open to the elements and the river rushing by.

A shot of the river.

Another cabin.

This gaping hole was also very ominous. These cabins used to make me feel the life that had lived in them; now the energy is darker.

This cabin is on the other side of the old lane, away from the riverfront. There's a creek that runs behind these cabins and a little stone bridge that the owners used to visit one another.

When I walked up on the porch and looked in, a giant rock was lying there, where it had been thrown through, still sitting in the glass it broke. This kind of violence makes me sad. The two windows through that doorway feel like the eye of the cabin to me. Old and sad.

On our way out, I had to find something uplifting after the ruin. This spot felt peaceful and eternal. A tree and a big boulder, both planted in the earth. Hopefully they will stand there a very long time.

Sister Corita Kent's rules for students of life

I saw this today on Maria Popova's wonderful site Brainpickings. If you don't already get her weekly curated newsletters full of wonderful readings, go sign up now!

Today is the first day of class for many university students locally. I'm making it my first day of class too - working on my PhD as a student of "flow" and finding the time to do all the many things I want to do while also being in and celebrating the present moment. 

This list of rules will help. 

Colleen Kelly steps up for Parzival

Last week I saw an article about Parzival and his Olympic rider, Netherland's Adelinde Cornelissen, and her decision to pull Parzival from Olympic competition. The story at that time was that he had suffered an insect bite, had experienced severe swelling and fever, and had then been cleared by veterinarians for competition. But AC decided at the beginning of the ride that he was just not quite right - so she pulled up.  I immediately shared the article and praised her for being a gold medal rider - for doing the right thing for her horse.

Sadly what appeared to be a loving rider and partner standing up for her horse wasn't the entire story. As the drama unfolded photographs from the warm-up just prior to that short Olympic ride began to appear. In the photos Parzival had spur marks, nose pulled into chest, a wild pained eye, and a mouth so foamy white it looked like someone had fed him soap.

I continued reading and learned that AC is the rider who has repeatedly ridden horses in competition with bloody mouths. Her use of rollkur is well established and documented. 

Yes, I still think she did the right thing by stopping the Olympic ride. But to do so after a horse suffered a fever 24 hours earlier and after tacking up and warming up to compete (and the warm-up photos revealed how very hard she pushed him, not to mention the outright abuse he suffered from spurs and hyperflexion) is not the mark of a good rider. I had to post a retraction of my own words!

Since then the story has continued to unfold. Now it is being said that the Olympic veterinary record says he was examined and found to have a hairline fracture of the jaw. This is one of the things that can happen when using rollkur due to extreme hyperflexion of the head and neck. 

Questions began to be asked. Was there ever even an insect bite? A round of responses came out - the hairline fracture story was said to be a vicious rumor. 

I don't know what exactly went on with Parzival. It is clear he has been ridden harshly and with cruel methods for years. That AC rode him hard after either an insect bite or a hairline fracture or both to see what he could do in warm-up before pulling him from competition speaks in my mind to the worst kind of horsemanship. Treating him as a machine instead of a living, sentient being. 

Today, Colleen Kelly posted that she is tapping into her retirement income to personally sue AC for animal cruelty. You can read more here:

https://colleenkellyriderbiomechanics.com/2016/08/15/netherlands-adelinde-cornelissen-in-lawsuit-over-alleged-animal-cruelty-to-parzival-in-rio/

Her willingness to stand up for Parzival in what is sure to be a complicated, costly lawsuit is a reminder to us all. When we see cruelty to animals, even in the Olympics, where one would hope the utmost integrity would prevail, we have to stand up and speak out. Colleen Kelly has taken on this fight. Let's all vow to take on the fights for horses we see in our own communities. When we speak up for cruelty to animals, we're shining light on a dark shadow. Whether or not we fix things for that horse, we are educating everyone who sees. And eventually that will make a difference. 

Early morning, Cades Cove

We got up at 5:45 to get to Cades Cove by opening of the gate. (we were in the cove last night until dark!) The first thing we saw was the huge herd gallop in from the far pasture for breakfast. Seeing close to 50 horses gallop in, in small waves, was stunning and such a gift. We were able to identify the same small groups within the larger herd and we had to smile when the last straggler, a chestnut with a white stripe, meandered in until he realized he was truly the last one in sight and then he picked up a gallop and caught up with his herd.

There were bears, deer, crows, a few goldfinches, and one very sad dead coyote who we think had been hit by a car.

Cades Cove is such a wonderful place. It's been years since I was here and it's so nice going multiple times this trip. Mid-day, sunset, sunrise, and tonight we'll go again. 

feet in the river

Dear daughter and I are taking a long weekend pre-fall semester getaway in the Great Smokies. We're going to ground ourselves with rock, center ourselves with rushing water, and enjoy two of our favorite places on the planet, Cades Cove and Elkmont.

First thing we did upon arrival was stop and put feet in the river. See you on the other side.