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Thank you for sharing the stories! And on the subject of mountain lions I know without a doubt we have them here around Smith Lake and Bankhead Forest in North Alabama! The first time I heard one was late one night scared the living daylights out of me b/c I didn't know what it was! Their scream reminds me of all the folklore around banshees

No they didn't wanna leave but I-75 from ky to Detroit is hillbilly highway.Any haunted places you been too ,well ny good man i have one next door.love ur videos n may god be with you and your family.mill h

Donnie you have a fantastic voice your wife is lucky to have you to listen to . I love in Massachusetts take care

I love that you pronounced Maryville the right way. The only way. The way locals pronounce it. I've seen skin walkers/cryptids down in the valley, no telling what is up there in the mtns. Some of my old old past relatives were Cherokees and some of us do not believe in killing things. I know it was different maybe back in the day , you had to eat to survive but it is a thing that has some karma attached to it. Don't kill it unless you really have to. Listen, this stuff is real, whatever is out there is real, and the gifts are sent down from the mtn people, I got that gift of knowing things before they happen. I don't know where, to who or why but I get a warning several times over, and I know to be on alert cause something is going down and it usually does within 2 weeks. It's something passed down the maternal line. Don't know about this guy but in my family it's the maternal line that comes out of the mtns. Heck old John is about my age. lol

Back in the late 1970's and early 80's I used to bike that loop road on a regular bike, no speed gears, hand brakes, etc. Just a plain bike you could rent at store nearby and did the 11 mile loop. It was hard even at age 18 in great shape it was hard, ran across several bears around the mill and pedaled like crazy to get away. I would get a chocolate milk to revive myself after that trip. It was fun, saw deer, bears, loved it. There was not much traffic back then, just a few cars here and there. The park was very nice back then. Now I don't even go it's too crazy anymore. I hate crowds, the park has parking regulations and trails have to be scheduled in advance and it's just not fun now. I stay away , but my family lived there long long ago way before the park was a thing, probably in the 1700's and early 1800's. The Fox family and , the Burchfield/Birchfields. Some are buried in a cemetery running up to Cosby. Some are probably buried in the park. My mother would have known, she did genealogy. As a kid, I remember Pigeon Forge being a 2 lane road with nothing much on it. Trotters family buffet. Remack??? drive in for food, some pink building that was like fairyland at the end going up to Gatlinburg. There was nothing in Pigeon Forge , you could drive it with no traffic lights an be thru it in 10 minutes or less. Times have changed.

Hey Mr Donnie, I hope you're doing well, and feeling a little better. Thank you for all that you do. And Thank you for having Mr John, to be on your channel. I really enjoyed listening to both of y'all. God Bless and keep y'all, always.🙏❤️☮️✨

Hello Donnie love you video brighten up my day or night thank you very much ❤

Ya know Donnie I just love your channel. I miss my kin that has gone home to the lord. However when you and your wide variety of friends are talking about the days of old I’m right there with my elders as a child Grandfather whittling on a stick and other family members chewing the fat. Listening to their bygone days. I believe them too they were worth their salt and cause to lie. We lived up in the High Sierra Mountains. Momma once said the mountain folks are different cause the word says man looks to the top of the mountain because God is there. We gotta be made of tougher stuff on account the mountain is a tougher place to live. So the good lord is sparing with his gifts upon us. I know it’s true. Bless you and Mr. John. I sure do love the visiting. Brooks, Oregon ❤

Thank you Donnie, I enjoyed it very much! I've heard similar stories from my kin folks, it's always nice to hear them whenever I can.

Thank you very much, brother Donnie. I love these stories even though I’ve never stepped foot in your mountains or the states. I’ve lived my 60 years on the eastern shores of Massachusetts. Which has its own kind of rugged beauty. Until next time, Michelle

My Mother was born and raised in that Gap, but she always called it Pennington Gap. Would you mind explaining the difference for me? She was an Engle, daughter of Ambers Willis Engle.

A red fox can make a awful creepy screaming noise. You always hear about the bobcat making noise, but the ol' fox will do it too! And open their mouth scary wide

Great video. I like them all but i love the mysteries and spooky ones.

I heard a mountain lion in the middle of the night one night. I live in N. Georgia and it was the awfulest thing I ever heard. It made the hair stand up on the back of my neck.

The white light floating above the ground . . . reminds me of an encounter we had on Beaver Creek, north of Fairplay Colorado around 1995. Camping in a 6 man tent two of us woke up around 1 am and noticed an orangish ball of light floating above the dirt road several yards from the tent. It came up from the south and slowly floated 10 feet or so above the road as it moved north. After several minutes it passed from view as it was hidden by the pine trees. We couldn't explain or figure out what it could be but we stayed up till daylight and packed up and went home. I've spent 40 years in the back country of the Colorado Mountains and I've seen and heard many things that I can't explain what they were. Don't have evidence but I know what I've experienced !!!! Thanks for the great stories from the past.

Everything about this IS APPALACHIA!! We are losing an entire culture. The younger generation just aren’t invested in this way of life.

Love the stories.Your voice is the perfect voice for the story telling.I have my mom hooked on your stories aswell.Thank you so much for the history.GOD BLESS.

Great 👍 stories Donnie.❤ I could listen everyday. God bless you ✝️

Wonderful stories.

Great interview!!

Thanks Donnie, blessings from Georgia 🪶✨ I once lived in Panther Creek, (Painter Creek as the locals called it) in Haywood County NC. It was a beautiful area there. I now live in my home county of Marion County GA, years ago while riding the firebreaks in the Oakland Community area with a couple of uncles of mine, we saw a large Black Panther as we were coming out of the woods onto the main highway, highway 41. I've heard them many times over the years deep in the woods. They're there! Where I'm currently living I've seen tracks of a very large cat. Love the Mockingbird and wind chimes 😅 I've got a mockingbird that stays around the property here every day. Thanks to Mr John for sharing his stories. I really enjoyed them all.

Excellent video. I have a cabin in the mountains of West Virginia My place is insulated. How ever I heat with Wood and a Propane back up heater when it gets really cold. The cabin is about 900 square feet. Yes it takes a lot of work cutting and splitting fire wood. The good news is I get my water from 2 springs that are much higher than my cabin. The water pressure is about 30 pounds per square inch and they have never dried up. I need to install a root cellar. There is something to be said about old ways.

Good stories! Keep ‘em coming! 🥰

Just found your channel & truly enjoying it . When I was a child , my daddy brought the family on vacation to the mountains . Loved the Smokies . As I got older & married , my husband would take me to the mountains & we'd camp . We would go back to the Cove & surrounding areas along the way whenever we could . I sure miss those days . Glad I found this channel 😊. ✌️💞🙏

Great interview with this nice man enjoyed the stories wonderful job Donnie ❤️and God bless you Shelby

During a drought in the 1980s, my friend looked out her bathroom window and a panther was looking right back at her through the window! It was on the roof because it smelled the water. That was in WV. I think the authorities say there aren't any panthers because they don't want people hunting them. I dunno. But they are out there. You only see them if they let you.

Thank you. I really like these stories. I am a firm believer that this folk lore needs to be preserved for our future generations. I appreciate so much the time and effort you put forth to do this. God bless you!

Watching from Ohio 👋 great to hear you again, Smitty out 👋👋👋

Thanks for sharing your stories of Caves Cove.🌈😎

good video you never know i herd of houses where no one would live in because of ghost. take care, be safe and well.

Hi Donnie glad to see you better last I saw you were down with your legs or something told us to be patient and you would be back when you were better And here you are Well, I loved this video I,m from Cave Cove my great Uncle wrote a book about up there but my book got stolen I was a Sands at one of the churches up there there is grave of some of my kin and some of the shields were kin also Keep up the good work I watch every time you come on .

I see DONNIE LAWS, I click. Thank you, sir.

Awesome 1st video for me. Good one too. I just got my 1st detector

Another good one Donnie!, Thanks for Sharing these with us!

I live in the Appalachian mountains and would never live anywhere else,These mountains have some of the best people in the world and the most loyal,i am 65 years old and yes i saw a mountain lion here TWICE in my life,,yes they are in these mountains

Yes. I enjoy listening to John. I'm like yall when you know the person,, or their character..a d they tell you strange things I can tell they believe what they saw was real you know they're not pulling your leg. And I agree that there are some out there who. Have been given a gift.

OH I spotted the potatoe Chip tin 😊. They're good chips.

Great video as usual Mr. Donnie! We enjoy hearing these stories! Thanks for sharing!

Enjoyed the stories, but did not enjoy watching the constant spitting, (sorry)

Well Donnie, another fine video. Let me tell ya. I live about 40miles north of Louisville KY. Southern Indiana. Washington county. We've got hills and hollers just like youall, just not as tall. Anyways my daughter and neighbor have seen mountain lion. A friend of mine lost a calf to one. I've walked these ridges up here in early mornings hunting turkey and several times the hair on the back of my neck has raised up. Never crossed paths with a panther or big foot, but we've got stories like that to. Some old timers I know went coon hunting one night and directly there was a big commotion out in the woods and their dogs came back a squalling,went back to the truck into their boxes and wouldn't come out again. Anyways, God bless Donnie and keepn coming.

Donnie,I love your stories,they take me to a better place.dont ever stop telling your stories.some of the best on youtube.

Always enjoy your channel..keep digging 👍

Thank you and John. I even like the pictures that you match up to go with his stories. They remind me of family in Kentucky, and North Carolina. We have a little Cherokee in our family too on my Mother’s side. Oh my dad’s mother’s side there was Uncle Ott’s house and we would explore the caves behind it. The appellations are so vast that there’s no way anyone has visited every part of it.

Don't know anything about mining, not even from Appalachia, but this story hurt my heart. So tragic and terrible. May these poor souls rest in peace. 😢

Priceless stories! Appreciate y'all sharing. Much respect.

14:10 - the white thing. It’s been seen by me and others around here for years. Some have seen two together, like headlights, and they don’t move for hours. Some bob up and down, side to side.... What are they? Orbs. Spirits.

Hi you’ll , I’m from NC & I been listening to you’ll & I appreciate these old stories so much & yes sirrie they need to be preserved. Thanks I’m subscribing today ! 🙏🏻✝️❤️

My cousin lives up on Pisgah Mtn NC.She walked out her back door ( steep elevation surrounded by woods ) straight at a large panther. She was able to snap a picture. Amazing.

Those were some neat stories of encounters for sure Donnie....the Appalachias are so vast there could be any number of things roaming those woods...known and unknown..... Thanks again for the video Brother.

7:08 aint no bug thats a skinwalker or an angel