The Great Smoky Mountains – Day 1, Day 2

We rolled out bright and early on Sunday morning – the back of the Jeep loaded down with all our trip necessities: tent, sleeping bags, guitars, chocolate covered almond caramel clusters, etc. etc. Brilliant sunshine, rolling hills, and a million and one hilarious inside jokes; nothing could stop us now. Our 2013 USA Tour was finally happening! The eight-hour drive went by rather smoothly* and by 6:30 that evening we were rolling through the home of a thousand dinner theaters: the one and only Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. Never have I asked myself the questions “why? who? what is going on??” more than when rolling through this charming & bizarre town(?) including – but not limited to – a full-sized Titanic replica, an upside-down haunted mansion, and 8 billion larger-than-life mini-golf courses. Gatlinburg provided a similar array of entertainment and dining options. Needless to say, we were thankful to finally make it to campsite A13 in Cosby, Great Smoky Mountains.

* When Melody “new to manual transmission” Boyleston took the wheel, the weather turned immediately into a torrential downpour followed by a slow, up-hill crawl in first gear. Rookie did great though!

The ride ^^^

The rain held off while we set up our tent (like pros), fixed & ate dinner, and nestled into our canvas home for the night. It was fun to hold a little band practice for a while & I’m sure our neighbors appreciated the evening serenade. We finished DAY 1 with some fun brainteasers before falling asleep to the sound of quiet rain & the flowing Cosby Creek in the distance. It was peaceful and quiet and cozy.

Prepping the homestead ^^^

So quick and easy! Look how happy we are!

Dinner time/Favorite time!

Pretty sure the number one thing to drink while camping is milk.

Seriously.

Our little marshmallow!

We woke around 8 the next morning and immediately decided we should buy pillows before we try this again.

DAY 2 began with a beautiful 3-mile hike to Sutton Overlook and some fun experimentation with Melody’s new camera. Seeing the bright mossy trees and delicate sunlit foliage along the trail was breathtaking and wading through the rushing waters of a small creek on the return route was icy and refreshing. The Great Smoky Mountains were an inspiring beginning to our little adventure and instilled in us even further an excitement for the views ahead!

Mapping out the hike.

Conquering the raging river fearlessly.

The Smoky Mountains living up to their name.

Rolling on to Atlanta!!