Synchronous Fireflies, Elkmont Campground, Great Smoky Mountains – Travel Vignette

Synchronous Fireflies - Acrylic on Wood by: Oreon R. Williams

Synchronous Fireflies, Elkmont Campground, Great Smoky Mountains – Travel Vignette

Camping at Elkmont

It was late and all the campfires were dim.  Everyone had gone to bed, except for me and dad.  We all had a busy day of hiking.  It was quiet and past time for bed, but I didn’t want the trip to be over.  We were leaving the next day.  So I suggested a walk, to get away from camp, so as to not wake the sleepers.  It was very peaceful.  We headed toward the old graveyard and ruinous buildings of Elkmont.  When we got into complete darkness from the dimly lit campground, we saw them!  To start, it was one or two little flickers of light here and there in the blackness.  Then the whole forest illuminated in a greenish hue of quick flashes.  They all flashed together a couple times, then went dark, only to start the sequence over a bit later.  It’s was a sparkling symphony of thousands of composed flashes, like magical dancing.  We continued into the darkness, toward more and more blinking.  It was all surrounding and airy, like pixie dust floating just above an enchanted forest floor.  I was so glad we didn’t go to bed with everyone else.

 

Elkmont Campground, Great Smoky Mountains visit May 25, 2015

Hiking near Elkmont

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