It was very interesting to see Highlands through the eyes of a "flatlander." Having lived here for 27 years, it is hard for me to imagine feeling the way you did. Sometimes while I drive up the "gorge road" from Franklin I try to see the beautiful scenery and river through the eyes of someone who has never been here before, and it is an amazing experience. You must have been blown away by it, and that was in very early spring. I would suggest that you come back in the summer and again at the end of October and get blown away all over again.