Original - I Know a Spot

Acrylic, graphite, charcoal

20x24 inches

There’s a trail on the side of a mountain that gives you the best view of all of south Holston lake. Now, the road to the trailhead is its own adventure, riddled with potholes big and wide enough to be used as a baby pool after a good rain, so if you don’t have 4 wheel drive, you’ll wanna go with someone who does. There’s no sign marking the trailhead to let you know you’re in the right spot, but you’ll know it when you see a small pull off big enough for a couple cars and a fire pit just off the road. When you find the trail, just follow the blue blazes. If you go during the warm season, the stinging nettles are about waist-high, so keep an eye out for jewelweed to help with the sting. 

The first half mile of the trail is serene - a walk alongside a densely wooded creek, but it’s over quick. The trail abruptly turns into the most punishing and brutal hike for the next mile. There are parts of the trail where you have to scramble, climbing on all fours over rocks and roots, but if you take breaks, which you’ll need to, and peek out through the trees as you go, you’ll start to see it - to see why you’re doing it, I mean. My husband actually took me on this hike for our second date, if you can believe it. It was July 3rd. I was so sweaty and my face was beet-red. The trail leaves no room for pretense. I remember stopping at one point and looking through the trees and getting the first glimpse of how high up we were. That’s where we had our first kiss. 

If you make it to the top, there’s a giant rock and if you sit on top of it, you’ll see it all - the whole of South Holston lake and surrounding mountains, the beauty and wild of Appalachia that makes people fall in love with this place.