As promised,  here’s some pics of Mary, Dave and my adventures here. So much to do and they were going all out for Halloween! Too many scary things to post. Highlight was the Ziplining!!

This was the first time at this park and a suggestion from my sister Mary to meet up and camp together.  I arrived a day earlier and was able to do the Museum and House tour with Miss Melanie. What a fantastic history and  Miss Melanie was full of information. She’s a life long resident of  Crawfordville and knows inside information you don’t normally get from signage. As we did so much this trip there’s 2 posts. This first one is all about the man A.H. Stephens and the Civil War. Next post will be filled with Mary, Dave and my exploration here in the campground.

This was a spur of the moment find thanks to Dave’s sharp eyes spying the roadside marker on our way to Washington, Georgia. What a fantastic place and we learned a lot about this historic battle. Our only regret was there was no indication of how long each trail was and we were not prepared to hike multiple miles. Next time.

At the Museum, we had a history lesson about the battle as well as history of Washington County and the family that once lived in this house. I believe she mentioned the house was 7000 square feet. It seemed like it as we were going thru it. I only added a couple pics of objects in the home. It’s worth checking out if you’re in the area.

I’ve stayed here before and truly enjoyed the trails and water. This time I lucked out getting a site on the water. But unknown to me, there was a huge drop off to the water. It was still beautiful and trails were just as nice. They had an early Halloween so that was fun seeing so many kids dressed up. I did have to make an emergency trip to the store for candy. Lol! Otherwise,  it was College football,  sunsets and reading.

All I can say is wow! This was a fantastic site! End of the road, pull thru and glorious sunsets each evening.  Wood available to pick up around the campground with sunny skies each day. There were a few drawbacks however. No trails, just walking the campground. No access to the water from my site as there was a rock embankment that was pretty steep. Would have loved to paddle board but no way to get there without endangering myself. So that left reading and catching up on this blog. If you saw the 2 from Smokey Mountains you’ll understand that took some time. Lol!

This is a mix of the hiking we did in both Cherokee and Deep Creek areas. Oh and a few at the highest point! The pictures really don’t do justice to the incredible beauty here. Even though it was busy given the fall colors, everyone was polite and willing to help with pictures.

Views from the top!

We were treated to a little concert at the visitor center. It started of with just a few people,  then grew! We all agreed after about the 4th song, it started to sound the same. But we still enjoyed it!

First days of exploring the Bryson City,Cherokee and Gatlinburg areas.

I have way to many things to share about this trip as there’s going to be a couple of posts. Mary, Dave and I spent 3 days/4 nights at a private campground north of Bryson City, North Carolina. It was about a 2 mile drive up to get to Smokey Mountain Meadows campground. Once there and set up, we went into Bryson City to explore and get dinner. Native Brews was disappointing, thank goodness we shared a flight.

Next morning we were on the road early to explore Gatlinburg. Taking a drive through the National Park. Stopped at some overlooks along the way. I’m pretty sure I’ve driven this in Pearl, but was happy to leave the driving to Dave. 35 miles of winding/ steep roads. Once there, we were blown away with how busy it was. Luckily found a parking spot somewhere near the center of the main street. We walked one side meeting some new friends,  stopped for lunch and finished the other side of the street. Needless to say, we prefer the woods.

Driving back, we hit a slowdown due to some big Elk very close to the road. Everyone slowed down to gawk and take pictures. I zoomed in from the car. I didn’t need to get that close and hold up traffic anymore then needed.

As we drove home, we detoured into  Cherokee. Our driver needed ice cream. As they went to indulge, I popped into a store. Walking out, the town had 3 Elk in the town square eating and drinking. Some people got much too close to these huge animals.  And did I mention,  it’s mating season so they were not liking the attention.

I’ll post tomorrow morning of our hiking experiences.

I thought I hadn’t been here before because it wasn’t highlighted on my map but as I drove in, I kept thinking this place looks familiar. Yep! After searching my blog posts (*search box is in Desktop mode on homepage) there it was! I did reach out to friends who live nearby but their schedule was packed so we didn’t meet up this time. It was fun 4 years ago when I was here. I have no idea how the time goes by so quickly. 

I did a lot of hiking both on the ridge overlooking the lake and along the creek. Met some super interesting people, two solo women (one was in her 80s!) and a couple who had a 2021 Travato. Campers are great people, just saying! I do think I’m a little ahead of the fall colors though.

It was quite the winding road to get here but signage was good,  roads a little narrow but in good condition, so it was just taking my time rolling in. Once here, there was a little concern no one was at the gate and no maps but I did find my site. I can say the campground is laid out very well. Large sites and all very secluded and spaced apart. Katie, the camp host in this loop stopped by to sell firewood or ice. We had a great chat and she brought me a map. Thank goodness. The trails are very well maintained and I enjoyed 1 day of dry weather to do some hiking. The rest of my time here was rain from Hurricane Isaias that moved through both Saturday and Sunday. Luckily for me, I had a strong enough signal to stream some football games! There’s a few campgrounds in this area of Daniel Boone National Forest. If they are all as well maintained as this one,  I recommend stopping.

This was my first camping stop heading south for the winter. After almost 2 months helping my sister out, I left beautiful northern Michigan and began traveling again. I had a brief overnight at my sister Kathy’s and caught up with her. Next day I drove south into Kentucky. I would have liked to stay at an Indiana state park but costs were up towards $60 with camp fees and out of state entrance fees. So Kentucky was the place. This is a big place but smaller loops and great trails were the draw. I was able to piece together 3 different trails to get in a nice hike. It also allowed me to see different areas of the park without having to drive it. Totally recommend this place if you have the opportunity.