A POPULAR
PLACE
We really
did not do our research about this area. For whatever reason we thought visiting
a National Park would be all about wilderness and solitude. Turns out the Great
Smoky Mountains National Park, which straddles Tennessee and North Carolina, is
the most visited NP in the US at 12.5 million visitors in 2019. The Grand
Canyon is second with 6 million yearly visitors, but it is a more remote location.
The Great Smoky Mountains National Park’s popularity is due to its accessibility.
Several major cities are nearby, like Nashville, Knoxville, Asheville, Charlotte
and Atlanta, but it is also a reasonable drive from such varied places like
Louisville, Cincinnati, Washington, D.C. and Jacksonville, Florida.
Pigeon
Forge and Gatlinburg are on the very edge of the National Park and they are
very very heavily touristed. On a stretch of road several miles through the
home of Dollywood there are several other amusement parks, arcades, fast food
restaurants, miniature golf courses, pancake houses, motels and shopping
outlets in a seemingly unending expanse of family fun. Traffic is horrific
despite three lanes in either direction. It was shocking to see this for first time;
we did not expect this at all. There is an area called “The Island” that is
incredibly busy with people being shuttled to this area of restaurants, bars
and attractions from a massive parking lot. We drove through this area and were
shocked to see people elbow-to-elbow and no one wearing masks. We did not stay
at all.
 |
| GATLINBURG, TN |
Gatlinburg is about five miles south of Pigeon Forge and it was much more of the same,
only this time traffic was pinched into two lanes and people shuffled along the
narrow sidewalks that had the feel of a New Jersey shore boardwalk, but without
the ocean. We could count on one hand the number of people we saw wearing masks
as we crept through Gatlinburg. We decided very quickly we were not going to
stop for a round of Hillbilly Miniature Golf.
No, we
had not expected this level of frenetic tourism at all. We thought the area
would be sleepy mountain towns, and the National Park would be a woodland
dream. The Great Smoky Mountains National Park does have 800 miles of trails
from easy to difficult, day hikes to overnights. The park has a number of historic structures to visit and it is a great place to see wildlife like black bears, deer and woodpeckers. So, instead of mingling with
Cov-idiots, we have decided early on to pick out a new hike every day. There are plenty,
and when we’re.finished hiking we’ve lingered on our deck to watch the sunsets,
drink happy hour libations and soak in the hot tub. Hiking has proved to be a fun alternative way to vacation.
Perhaps
in another time with no virus and with grandkids in tow Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg
would be viable destinations, but Janet and I were wondering if we would ever
return to this area. If not for the solitude of our hilltop cabin our
experiences would be decidedly different. I will tell you about all the hikes in the next entry.
Thanks for reading... find your happy hour.
Love, Janet and greg
© 2020 by
GREG DUNAJ.
.
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