On a wink and a prayer

Fireflies can only be seen for a couple of weeks in June and we learned that a group is called "a wink of fireflies" which is about as charming as the experience. Even the backyard variety at Laura's house delighted us with their "J-low" show. Thank you, tour director Laura, for the southern hospitality and all your designated driving. I can't wait until our next "Out of this World" tour!

Genealogy study club

Carol & Laura have done a lot of ancestry research and found that two of our third cousins (Madeleine and Sherry) live about 15 minutes away from Laura! We knew we were related when we walked into the house to find a giant chocolate cake waiting for us.

Appalachia

While in the area we visited the Museum of Appalachia and learned about ham can banjos and commode seat guitars. I guess with enough moonshine, you'll strum anything!

Fireflies: The Fab Four

The Great Smoky Mountains are home to 19 species of firefly and we saw four different species. The "backyard variety" come out first and make a "J" pattern when they fly. They fly close to the ground. At around 10 pm the synchronous fireflies warm up. The males fly above and synchronize their blinks in order to attract the females that nestle on the forest floor. They blink for 6 seconds and then all stop at the same time. The forest goes black for 6 seconds. We noticed that they got more in sync as the night wore on. The predator fireflies fly high overhead and try to emulate the synchronous ones in order to fool the females. Another theory about why the synchronous fireflies synchronize is so that the females are not fooled by other species that just can't seem to get their timing right. The blue ghost fireflies then emerge and, instead of blinking, stay lit for about 6 seconds. They emit a bluish light and, because they stay lit, also leave a long ghostly trail. We also saw a rare wave pattern in which the fireflies perform a pattern of blinks similar to a stadium wave. The lights start blinking from one direction and then move in a wave toward the other direction.

Meet the beetles

With lottery ticket in hand we boarded the trolley into the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and hiked up a trail to find a spot to best view the fireflies (actually flying beetles) when it got dark. Soon a party of others joined us (bears were spotted further down the trail) and volunteers passed out red cellophane to cover our flashlights and iPhone screens so as not to distract the fireflies or firefly fan club. The volunteer rangers kept bringing others to our spot because they said we were the most fun. Plus we had donuts.

Road trip to the Smokies

Having never been to Tennessee I needed to experience a little of the culture (aka food) so we tasted catfish, fried pickles, and visited a Rexall drug store soda fountain/cafe that served "meat and three" (you pick three side dishes from a list of collard greens, mac & cheese, potato salad, cornbread, coleslaw, grits, green beans, etc) and all for $7. Gatlinburg tip: Do not miss the "Donut Friar" which not only wins my award for best donuts but also my award for most brilliant donut shop name.

Cousins take the cake

Cousin Carol won the lottery for a spot to see the rare synchronous fireflies in the Great Smoky Mountains and invited me and my mom to join her and cousin Laura on the adventure. I had never heard of synchronous fireflies but all of a sudden I needed to see them. Even if the fireflies didn't perform, I knew we'd all have a grand time together.

Laura and Carol greeted us in Tennessee with a homemade coconut cake. We realized that one of the many things we have in common is our love of baking...and eating. Our great, great grandfather comes from a line of German master bakers. It's in our DNA.