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Erik & Misty's Smoky Mountain Adventures


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Middle Creek was widened, redirected, and renamed "Veteran's Parkway." It connects Dollywood Lane (traffic light #8 in Pigeon Forge) to Dolly Parton Parkway in Sevierville, and Dollywood's (new) main entrance is located off of it.

 

I assume you mean Nightmare Golf. It's SBNO, and doesn't look too good at this point. I never go to play it either.

 

 

Oh, I know all about it (except for the name change). My first year at TDOT, I actually rotated in the Construction department and that was the project I worked on. Maybe, you confused what I said, I meant I hadn't been down the strip since they opened up the new road. I always bypass it now.

 

That is probably the name of the place. I remember it had a haunted house and actually it didn't look to good back then either.

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Maybe, you confused what I said, I meant I hadn't been down the strip since they opened up the new road. I always bypass it now.

 

Yes. Yes, I did. Sorry about that.

 

The one I'm thinking of is behind the River Chase Motel at traffic light #8. It apparently used to be Bunny Golf back in the day, but was rethemed to Nightmare Golf after a horrific bunny apocalypse.

 

Not too sure about a haunted house, though. Perhaps we're thinking of different places after all...?

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^ I recall signage to that effect--which would be enough to prevent me from posting any photos on TPR, even if an employee told me that taking them was okay--but I'll have to recheck. I could simply be misremembering.

 

Obviously, I'd love to take and post some photos from there--if they don't have a problem with it. Most places like any exposure, but my impression is that WonderWorks likes to maintain some mystery.

 

But, again, I could be wrong.

 

[EDIT: And, in fact, I was wrong. There will be a WonderWorks photo TR later in this thread.]

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Down at traffic light #2 here in Pigeon Forge lies the mini-empire of The Incredible Christmas Place. If you're really, really into Christmas, you've probably heard of it--but I'm going to assume that you're not.

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It's a beautiful hotel, no matter how you look at it.

 

So long from The Christmas Place. Thanks for putting up with a slightly different sort of update. :)

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Indoor and outdoor pools are a given.

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...and magical bellmen who bring you cookies.

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...a gigantic glockenspiel...

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Featuring lots and lots of Christmas decorations...

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Across the street from The Incredible Christmas Place is their (relatively new) hotel, The Inn at Christmas Place.

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I just really like this shot.

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The dude on the left is the one who built it, Mark W. Fuhrman. (I guess the "W" is so you know he didn't beat Rodney King.)

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A few of the train cars are actually mini-aquariums, complete with live fish.

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Much of the decor is Christmas-themed, appropriately enough.

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It's pretty cool. But, again, I doubt it would be worth $5.00 to see it for most people.

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It's a "garden railroad" (meaning it's outside, really). But this one is in a tent.

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It's an upcharge: $5.00. Probably not worth it unless you're really into model trains--but I have connections. ;)

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For the month of July, they have a special display set up in the parking lot: Santa's Summer Express.

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Another model train. This one is out front. Speaking of which....

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The store in the back used to be the train and toy shop, but now houses Vera Bradley stuff. There's still a toy section in the main store, though.

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There's also a candy store, among other specialty shops.

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The check out area.

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Crap. Where's the human bathroom?

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Slightly retro photo from last winter: Me, Smisty, Santa, and my friend Seth (who's made other cameos in this thread, previously).

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Speaking of Santa: Yes, there's a Santa meet and greet--but this one sings.

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I are Serious Santa.

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A model train chugs along above the displays.

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Mr. Snowman is happy to live in a big Christmas store--so please don't buy him and take him to your sad little house.

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Full disclosure time: I know someone who works here.

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A "Department 56" figurine display (there are several).

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The light room, featuring Christmas tree lights shaped like beer mugs, RVs, fishing lures, and just about any other insane redneck items you can think of.

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I'm still convinced that, in 500 years, Jesus and Santa will have become the same person. This is just the first step.

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I just had to insert myself.

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Not simply a warehouse full of decorations, the inside features many different Christmas displays.

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The main entrance hearkens.

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While they no longer have a proper train store, there are still lots of nods to model railroads.

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Thanks for posting these pics. When I was a kid we use to go to the Christmas Place just to look at all the model trains they had running around. Haven't been in there in years.

 

I remember they use to have a BIG indoor model train layout set up in the main building (it went through tunnels in the walls to other rooms and everything), but then around '95 or so when they expanded the train store was moved out to the small shop and the big layout was removed.

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I really am enjoying your thread. I am trying to convince the wife we need to go to Tennessee in 2010, and this is helping. We are campers (RV not tent) and I have seen some great campgrounds in the area.

 

We did Lancaster this year and she wants to go Myrtle Beach next year, but I am pulling for TN. Its about the same distance.

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Cades Cove is the most visited area of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, and is renowned both for its beauty and for the relative ease with which one can see the park's native wildlife.

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Misty made fun of me for this shot ("You got a picture of nothing") when I took it out the window of a moving car. So now I'll show her by ending with it. :p

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Cades Cove Loop Road.

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...you'd be all blurry.

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If you were a bear...

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Misty, you're not a bear.

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The visitor's center proper (converted from a butter churn repair building, I believe).

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And this where you dropped stuff into your wagon. Or something.

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This where they milled old stuff.

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The main house and...um, a really big dog house.

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The road to the left leads to a visitor's center and several old (settler) buildings.

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You know what would look good here? A boat ride! :p

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Those damned North Carolinians! (They can't drive, either.)

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Oh, deer.

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Cades Cove Primitive Baptist Church and Cemetery.

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These folks can't be from too far away: They've got Appalachia written all over them.

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Cades Cove is a wide, flat valley.

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Yeah, I know. I'm a buzzkill. :p

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Luckily, the sweat of his brow helps fat tourists visualize life without cars and TV.

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A man named John Oliver built this place, but only got to live in it a year or two before he got the boot.

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Like much of the GSMNP, Cades Cove was already partially settled when the government suddenly decided that no one was allowed to live there.

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I like bridges.

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I like how this warning sign keeps piling on the hypotheticals: "If you don't buy your wife flowers, she COULD leave you, which MIGHT cause you to drink, which MAY weaken your immune system enough that you COULD get hepatitis. We're just saying."

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Cades Cove was supposedly named after an Indian chief's wife, "Kate." (Yeah, I know that makes no sense.)

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Still not there, but getting closer.

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A nice view on the drive there.

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National Parks are big. Cades Cove lies about an hour from the Gatlinburg entrance to the GSMNP.

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I'm loving these reports. It's fun to check out the touristy spots from one's home town.

 

One thing I wanted to ask you--have you ever been to Kilwin's? It's a chocolate, fudge and ice cream store and there's one in Pigeon Forge and one in Gatlinburg. Before I moved, I worked at the Kilwin's in Gettysburg, PA and I must say, at the risk of sounding like I'm shamelessly promoting the place (okay, so maybe I am!), it's worth a visit. I know you're an ice cream fan, and their franchise honestly has some of the best ice cream I've ever eaten (it's their own brand). If you have the time, I'd recommend going (and it sure would make a delicious-looking TR, too!).

 

~Megan

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Ever since I passed through the Gatlinburg area for the first time in 2007 (and had no idea it was there), I've wanted to go back and actually see what it was all about. It's these little attractions, some cheesy, some grand, all adding up to be a great draw in one area that I'd LOVE to experience one of these days. Thanks very much for doing these reports!

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Ober had probably the best deal ever this past ski season.

 

For TN College Students, you could ski for free on the Wednesday Night session. It's probably the worst ski resort in North America, all told, but 5 hours of free skiing is hard to beat (and there were three or four spots to do tricks off of, better than some NC resorts). I went three times, it's funny to see the Waterslide covered in snow.

 

Things you need to cover in this series, IMO:

 

Some sort of walk on the AT.

Pancake Pantry.

Nascar SpeedPark.

Wonderworks if you can take pictures.

Stuff in Knoxville Maybe (UT football game? World's Fair Park? Zuma Fun Center?)

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Quality Blue Ridge Report as always!

 

You know what would be nice... An Alpine Slide POV report! Think you can work that in sometime this summer?

 

I would love that too! I'm sure if you ask the employees there, they just may let you. I seen too many signs when I was there that said no cameras allowed, so I obeyed the rules.

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Thanks for the compliments, guys. I really appreciate them.

 

I may do some ice cream places or a restaurant or two, if they're interesting enough. In general, I just do what interests me and what I can actually get decent photos of.

 

Now then, did I hear somebody say World's Fair Park...?

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Goodbye from World's Fair Park in Knoxville. And, as always, thanks for reading!

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It's pretty and it's free. What more could you want?

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See? We were really there.

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Free outdoor showers.

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Another view of the observation deck.

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Downtown Knoxville, as seen from The Sunsphere.

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A display of how things looked way back in 1982. (Feeling old yet? Or is that just me?)

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At the top.

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Floor, please.

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The building with the eyes is a science museum.

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A view from the base level.

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The base of the tower. The Sunsphere is a completely free and unmanned observation tower.

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For many years, this sat vacant. But after the shame of The Simpsons episode, "Bart and the Sunsphere," the city of Knoxville decided to fix it up and reopen it.

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As city parks go, Knoxville's got a doozy: World's Fair Park, home of the 1982 World's Fair and The Sunsphere.

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I had no clue that the Sunsphere was free! We will definitely have to check that out when Dylan gets older. Plus, I could use a good wig.

 

Oh, and it was great to meet you guys on Monday. Thanks again for the shrinky-dink, although my creativity seemed to fail me on that one.

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The Christmas place looks exactly like the one at Yankee Candle in So. Deerfield, MA! I wonder if there's a connection, or if Yankee Candle blatently ripped them off!

 

Those places kind of creep me out, for some reason, though.

 

 

ETA - Yeah for bonus Shrinky Dink photos!

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