Seems a whopping one person missed our blog over the past few days - we're alive, Laura...not to worry. Turns out living in the lap of luxury comes with the price of no internet access...but we would trade it all to stay in that condo a few more nights. More on that later. We're going to break this post up between the days, to make each one a little shorter.
We arrived at the North Carolinian entrance to the Great Smoky Mountain Park and picked up some trail maps at the Visitor's Center before driving through the crazy, winding roads through the mountain (never again, Gnatty Branch Road.) We booked a fancy pants condo for a steal and had to pick up our keys in Seveirville, so we did that first (we've gotten into the habit of dropping off our luggage if possible before heading out for the day with our car full of almost everything we own.) We stayed in Pigeon Forge, TN and not to dwell on it, but this place was ridiculously nice and had a lovely deck with views of the mountain range. Considering Pigeon Forge is otherwise what Andy likes to call "redneck bonanza" (no offense to anyone?), it was good know we had a nice place to relax in after our hikes.
We set out for a short 2-mile hike, since it was already around 3:30 or so. This was around the time we were introduced to the reality of Pigeon Forge, TN...turns out we were just in time for the Hot Rod Run weekend, where lovely people from all over Tennessee and beyond arrive with their lawn chairs and/or Hot Rod's to ogle at other people doing the same...on that picturesque patch of grass that lies between the sidewalks and curbs...a sight to see, really. But don't try to see it for yourselves...just trust us. Needless to say, traffic was a nightmare. Finally, we arrived at Alum Cave Trail (apparently there are no actual caves on the trail), which was pretty low-key and exactly what we needed after a long drive and an impending sunset. It was amazing to think we had just been in crowded Atlanta five hours earlier. And we saw a bear!
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