The Tower at Big Hill Pond State Park

Before we visited Big Hill Pond State Park in Tennessee, we had seen that there was an observation tower there, so we made sure we hiked out to find the tower and climb it. And of course get a photo or two in the process.

As you can see, the tower is really nothing fancy, but rather just a simple metal frame with stairs going up to the top. Probably not the best thing for those who have a fear of heights, because it is all open, although there are plenty of handrails to keep you where you need to be. As you can also see, it was a pretty high climb with lots of stairs. By the time we reached the top, my heart was letting me know that I either should not be doing that or should be doing that much more often. But in the end it was worth the climb.

When we reached the top, this was the view that we saw. Of course, this was only one direction, but the view was about the same no matter which way you looked. Laura said she was a little disappointed, because all you could see were the tops of the trees. However, we all agreed that it was pretty cool to be up above the tops of the trees like that. And besides, you could see the tops of trees for miles and miles and miles. It was a little confusing as to which way was which, but I am fairly certain that whenever we turned to the south we could see well into Mississippi as well as Tennessee. So it was pretty cool. Once our hearts stopped beating so hard.

Also, in the photo above you can see a small speck in the sky just to the right of the center of the photo. That speck was actually a wasp or some similar flying insect. But he was not alone. There were lots and lots of them, and they were quite interested in some nuts that were growing in on of the nearby trees. They did not bother us at all, but they definitely had us outnumbered. Another group of three people was up there at the same time as us. I don’t believe the others had any problems with the bugs, either, although they were not that happy that there were so many bugs there.

While we did not spend hours at the top of the tower, we did stay up there long enough to enjoy the view and to catch our breath before going back down all of those stairs. And of course we got a group photo while we were there, too. Just us and thousands of our friendly trees.

The Observation Tower at Big Hill Pond State Park is only accessible by hiking a trail to the tower, so you can’t just park your car and run right up it. We had walked almost a mile by the time we reached the tower, and then we still had all of the tower stairs to climb. In several places the trail was pretty steep, while at other times it was narrow and on the side of a steep hill. Probably not the best for those who have issues walking long distances or are not very sure-footed. So bear that in mind in case you go looking for the tower. Because we had gone there to hike the trails anyway, we did not mind it at all. But it might not be for everyone.

Lead me to a rock that is high above me, for You have been a refuge for me, a strong tower in the face of the enemy. - Psalm 61:2-3

About the photo:

Even though we could already see for miles and miles, I still used the fisheye lens for these photos. I wanted to try to capture even more just how much you could see from up there. Because of that, the horizon has a bit of a curve. While that does not actually prove that the world is round and not flat, it still looks pretty cool to me.

I liked the sun through the trees in the first photo, and I made sure to frame the photo to get that in there. I made sure to close down my aperture setting to get some good points on the sun for the starlight effect. The trees helped to diffuse the sun a bit, too.

For the last photo, I decided to give it an old film camera kind of look, just for something different. Because where is the fun of having all of your photos always look the same? I always like that with digital photos there are so many different things you can do. You might as well take advantage of that, right?

Photo: A single Raw exposure, processed in Photoshop. Read more about photography tips, photo software, camera gear, and more at Steve’s Photography Tips.
Camera: Olympus OM-D E-M10
Lens: Rokinon 7.5mm f/3.5 Fisheye Lens
Date: October 13, 2017
Location: Big Hill Pond State Park, Pocahontas, Tennessee