Our friends like to use restaurant.com to get coupons for restaurants in cities they visit. They had gotten coupons for two restaurants in Gatlinburg, so we used one of those on Friday night and the other on Saturday night.
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| Doug, Linda, K, and D |
During the day on Saturday, we took a drive up the Roaring Forks Motor Nature Trail, just outside of Gatlinburg. It's a good way to see a little bit of the mountains and the national park, even if you don't have time to really get out and do some exploring. It's very scenic, and there are a few old home sites where you can stop and take a walk back in time.
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| D, K, Doug, and Linda at Cabin Site on Roaring Forks Motor Nature Trail |
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| The same cabin from a different angle |
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| The Place of a Thousand Drips on Roaring Forks Motor Nature Trail |
I have a confession to make about the above photo of the Place of a Thousand Drips: it wasn't taken this week. It was actually taken in April of 2006. The water was flowing much better that year, and it just made a prettier picture than Saturday's photo.
Since it doesn't appear that there's going to be a break in the weather in the next couple of days, and since our friends are going home on Monday, we've decided to do the same, cutting our trip a little shorter than planned. I do have a few more photos from our vacation that I'll probably share later, though.
I'm glad you got to spend time with friends.I like that unique waterfall.
ReplyDeleteIt is fun to see your pics from another angle, it brings back a bit of my vacation there.
ReplyDeleteOnce Eddie and I took a tour of water falls in the smokies, it was so beautiful. Sounds like you had a great time with friends.
ReplyDeleteWe did have a good time with our friends, Ruth; and that waterfall IS beautiful. There's not a lot of water that flows over it, but it looks like something you'd find a smaller version of in someone's garden.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you're enjoying the pictures, Steve. It's a great vacation get-away. We never tire of it.
Elizabeth, Doug and I have walked to many of the waterfalls in the Smokies. Those are our favorite hikes. We like to have a reward for our effort. :)
Too bad the weather wasn't more cooperative but you sure seem to have had a nice time with your friends. Love that cabin. And of course, the waterfall.
ReplyDeleteI love the cabin! Never walked any but the tamest trails and the one up to Mt LeConte, which absolutely exhausted me. (I was pregnant and didn't know it yet.)
ReplyDeleteThe last time we were in the Smokies, I spied a bear meandering up the trail. Cades Cove, I think. "Stop the car!" I shouted and jumped out, camera in hand, running uphill to get close enough for a good shot. Having finally gotten one, I paused for a second, then said, "Oh, my God, I'm chasing a bear!"
(I'm telling that little story in a post coming very soon, so just pretend you haven't heard it before!)
Too bad the weather hasn't cooperated for you. We actually had snow and sleet here in middle Tennessee last night, so I can just imagine how yucky things must be up in the mountains. At least you good off-season rates, I hope!
The picture of "A Thousand Drips" was so beautiful, and at first I was thinking, boy, that is prettier than I remember. Linda sure has a knack for taking pictures! After I read what you said I realized why. The past few days are memories implanted in our minds with dear friends close to our hearts. Thanks to both of you for helping us to capture the beauty of God's creation in places we had not seen before. How could anyone not know there is a greater power when you are in such a place as The Great Smokey Mountains!
ReplyDeleteHilary - We did have a good time. It helped to have our friends there to distract us from the weather. But we ate too much and walked too little.
ReplyDeleteWhen we look at pictures of those old cabins, we imagine them with pretty furnishings and a soft chair in front of a warm fire in the fireplace. We don't think about the hard life the original occupants had, with only the barest of necessities. But they surely did have lovely views from their porches. :)
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ethelmaepotter! - I can't imagine hiking up to Mt. Leconte while pregnant. I think my cousin did it once with pneumonia, which was diagnosed after the hike.
I'll be waiting eagerly for your telling of the bear story. You have a way of weaving such fun and drama into your stories. :)
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KD - At least, the photo I posted gives you an idea of how pretty the Place of a Thousand Drops can be when the water is running well.
We were glad to have you two share those few days with us. With the weather, I think we might have been bored enough to just turn around and come home if you hadn't been there with your restaurant coupons to entertain us. :)
It's great that K and D could join you for the weekend. I'll be interested to hear what restaurants they found coupons for.
ReplyDeleteIs the cabin one of the ones we saw when we were there with you? It is fascinating to think of the lives lived by the people who built those places isn't it.
Great photos, as always. Now, welcome back to even colder Indiana!
That cabin is like a visit to an earlier time, isn't it? Love the waterfall, too. You certainly do live in a gorgeous part of the USA!
ReplyDeleteSandra - We did enjoy having K and D spend the weekend with us. On Restaurant.com, you can purchase discount coupons for a variety of restaurants. K and D just went online and looked for restaurants in Gatlinburg and found a couple that they thought looked interesting.
ReplyDeleteI don't think we went to that cabin with you two. In fact, I think this was the first time we'd been to that particular one.
At least the sun is shining in Indiana! :)
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Cheryl - It IS kind of fun to visit those cabins and imagine what life must have been like in that different time. The Smokies are actually about 450 miles from where I live, but we visit that area frequently.