Spring Break 2023 - Last Full Day

Michael and Valerie left for home this morning so he could make RiverCon on Saturday.  We hated to see them go.

After a quick breakfast we set out for Cherokee, NC, to see some waterfalls on the Deep Creek Trail hike.  They are among the prettiest in the park.

To get there we crossed Newfound Gap, and then stopped at the Onacoluffte Visitor Center.

The first was Tom Branch Falls.

Then Indian Creek Falls.

Then Juney Wank.  These are all on the same Three Falls Loop.  

After that, on our way home we detoured to Mingo Falls.  This one is not in the NP, but rather is on the Cherokee reservation.  It is the most impressive of the falls I have seen here.

It was a short hike up some steep stairs but worth it!

Then back for a supper of leftovers and to start packing for the trip home.  The weather was cooler but we had a great time.  

Smokies!  Cannot wait to come back!

Spring Break 2023, Day 5 - Great Smoky Mountains National Park

The thing we had not yet done was visit the national park and hike a bit.  So we did that today.

After breakfast, we lit out through Gatlinburg past the Sugarland Visitor Center, and on to the Metcalf Bottoms.  From the Metcalf picnic area, we hiked 0.6 miles to the Greenbriar Schoolhouse and then another 1.1 miles to the Walker Sisters' Cabin.  They were working on the cabin with a new roof and foundation repair.  We couldn't go inside, but it was good to see them repairing it.  Apparently, the Friends of the Smokies have raised money to repair the 100+ historic structures in the park.

The first time we visited this trail and cabin was on our honeymoon.  This is a special hike for us, and it was good to be able to do it again.  Overall, it was a 4.3-mile roundtrip. 

Then back for a dip in the hot tub, then supper, and Brandon and I went to Gatlinburg.  I bought whiskey at the Bottle Shop and came back up by 10 pm.

Michael and Valerie head out tomorrow.  We hate to see them go!

We plan to hit a few more trails tomorrow before we have to start getting ready for the return trip as well. 

Spring Break, Day 4 - Apple Barn and Peace.

It was cold this morning at 29, and that was well after the sun rose.  It was around 27 degrees for the overnight low.

Rather than go to Gatlinburg we went back to Pigeon Forge visit the Christmas Place and have apple dumplings at the Apple Barn.

Then, back to the cabin.  Steph took a nap and I started making the chili planned for supper.  While it cooked we walked a trail above our place.

It was a peaceful day.  Tomorrow our plan is to hike some trails in the park.  Not sure which one just yet.

Spring Break, Day 3 - Pigeon Forge

The mountains of East Tennessee are like home to me.  I have never lived here, but over the years we have visitedany times.

It was a cool morning, and we fixed breakfast at the cabin and set on the porch with it's mountain views.  We took Fergus for a brief walk as well, as the sun warmed the air and lit the snow on the peaks.

Then to Pigeon Forge.  The traffic was heavy since the tunnel on the highway was down to one lane for repairs.  Google found us another way to avoid most of the backup.

Lunch was at the Old Mill, and it was awesome as always!  Our waitress was from the Czech Republic, and her name was Jitka.  She was also awesome and very kind!  I told her I came all the way from Texas for their fried pork chops.

A bit more shopping (a game store, Sketchers, and the Apple Barn). We got our favorite coffee (apple pie) and several bottles of hard cider.  Then our parking tag for a week in the national park, then home.

The beauty of renting a cabin is that it is a comfortable place to rest.  

Spring Break 2023, Day 1

Spring Break has many traditions for us.  Sometimes we take the camper out, but more times than not we head to Tennessee.  

And that is what we did this year.  

It turned out to be a four car caravan spread over 120 miles.  

We left at 6 am, and were the last of our group to hit the road.  We had our first fill up at Little Rock and made picnic lunches out of the back of the car at Forrest City.

Interstate 30 and then I-40 we're busy with truck traffic.  There were a few pleasant spots but it was a stressful drive.  It is pretty though!  There is something about the decent into the Tennessee River Valley!

They have also had a lot of rain up here with a lot of flooding.

It was a gray and cloudy travel day, and it got colder the farther we went.  At home it was in the upper 50s and in the mid-to-lower 40s by the time we got to Cookeville.  The rains started on us between Memphis and Jackson (right after Stephanie took over driving).

Traffic was heavy and rains made it stressful, but we made it through Nashville, and we were in Cookeville by 7 pm.  

We got food from Zaxby's, and got settled in 8 pm.

And tomorrow, off to the Smokies!