A true classic, this 55 Chevy sedan was my favorite of the show. This was the ride of choice when I was growing up way, way back in the 60s.

Ralph Nader, eat'cher heart out! To heck with safety - this ride had soul!

Suhweeeet!!!

"Hey, how many miles do ya get to the gallon with this baby?"

Tweety Bird's Ride. My buddy had one of these back in 1967 - a 327 with a four speed, it rocked.

Heading further west, I stopped above Fontana Lake to stretch and enjoy the view up the Hazel Creek arm of the lake, looking towards the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

And then.... the Dragon!

And this is why I called this series "The Bee Weekend". After leaving Deals Gap, I headed on across the Dragon to Maryville to see my hiking buddy Paul. Paul keeps bees, with about 20 hives in his collection. I tagged along with him and another hiking buddy Chris on a scorching hot day to watch them treat a couple of hives for mites. Tracheal mites are a huge problem to beekeepers and can destroy a hive if left untreated. Wild bees have almost disappeared all around America and without domestic beekeepers, a lot of the nation's food production would come to a quick halt. Nearly every agricultural crop in America depends on bees for pollination

Hives have personalities - some are mild-mannered while others are hell to deal with. Most of Paul's hives are so easy going that we don't bother with gloves and on cooler days, even the suit isn't needed.
You can see the 'baskets' of golden pollen on the legs of the bees returning to the hive in the photo below.

Below, Paul brushes powdered sugar onto the top of the frames and down into the super. The sugar will coat the bees bodies and as they clean themselves, they will also get rid of the mites. Beekeeping is one of the most fascinating pastimes that I've become involved with.