
Grandfather Mountain
The Blue Ridge Parkway yields panoramic views
Rising and falling through majestic hues
Turnoffs, overlooks, tunnels, and bridges
Orchards of apples and long gorgeous ridges

Grandfather Mountain towers ahead
Drawing us up to its jaw-dropping ledge
Serpentine backbone a scoliated spine
Split Rock lay open and wrapped in vines
The bald rocks the twisted trees
Bask carefree in the summer breeze
Hurricane-force winds cannot rip them loose
Deformed over time by Nature’s abuse
Excited to be at the top of the world
Here where branches and trunks are curled
Blooming flowers defy the wind
Smiling sweetly until the very end
Feeling the sway of the long steel bridge
Looking up in the distance at the neighboring ridge
A rocky pathway draws some to his face
The old man of the mountain stays fixed in his place
Undaunted by storms or gray fog rolling in
He’ll still be there when our vision grows dim
Creating the mystique that continues to draw
Young and old from near and far
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Photo: Dwight L. Roth