From the Niagara of the South to the Smokey Mountains....

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On our way back from Wisconsin, we stopped to see family in Illinois (Hey, Pam and Wanda) and Kentucky (Hey Deb) before heading to Tennessee.  We did make a stop at the Niagara of the South - also known as Cumberland Falls in southern Kentucky.

Stayed in Knoxville, TN for a couple of days.  Did you know that the 1982 World's Fair was held there?  Here are photos of the Sunsphere and the largest Rubik's cube in the world - at least until 1982!

We stayed in a cabin outside Pigeon Forge, TN for a week.  Don had fun shooting pool when we were not out sightseeing.


We went to Dollywood two days in a row.  The nice thing about being a senior is they offered a good discount for a two day pass.  :-)  We could only handle a couple of roller coasters (well, Donna could only do one) but the entertainment and decorations were good.






Moved down the road a whoppin' seven miles and stayed in Gatlinburg for a week.  The downtown Gatlinburg area on the weekend was a total zoo with people and cars everywhere!  We're glad our Airbnb was in town so we could walk everywhere rather than drive.
Saw a bear one day in the downtown area - on a side street.  Didn't get too close.

Took the chairlift up the mountain to walk the longest pedestrian cable suspension bridge in North America - 780 feet long with a glass floor in the middle and 140 feet up from the ground beneath it.
The views were spectacular!


We also took the gondola and chairlift up to the top of Mt Harrison (elevation 3590 feet).  Once again the views were spectacular.  We sat for a while enjoying the view.  Don rode the mountain coaster and went on the ice bumper cars.  Gotta live like a kid for as long as possible.


Drove through parts of the Smokey Mountain National Park.  At the risk of sounding like a broken record, the views were spectacular.  We stopped at Newfound Gap (5046 feet elevation) on the Tennessee North Carolina border.  One could also pick up the Appalachian trail there too.





We'll end this post with our traditional food photos.  Crockett's Breakfast Camp has wonderful breakfasts.  Don had the two inch thick pancakes with two big scoops of butter and syrup.  Donna had the healthier buckwheat pancakes with pecans and fresh strawberries.


Visited with son Kalen and family and Don's 95 year old mom too.  We're on the road again headed back to Alabama and then Texas.

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