Cumberland Gap National Park Is a Must-Visit for Anyone Who Truly Loves the Majesty and History of the Appalachians Where do we start? Well, in a literal sense we start in a massive tunnel that runs under the mountain at the Tennessee-Kentucky Border. The Cumberland Gap Tunnel is a two-bore, four-lane work that carries U.S. 25E under Cumberland Gap National
A Local Offers Tips for Creating the Perfect Smoky Mountain Picnic While I appreciate the value of a good walk through the woods or a scenic drive through Cades Cove or along the Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail, my favorite thing to do in the mountains is a good family picnic. When I was kid, my stepfather’s family would come
A Local’s Guide to Finding Bugs Whose Butts Light Up in the Great Smoky Mountains I was an adult man, young but fully adult, before I found out there were parts of the United States without lightning bugs. I suppose I’d just never really thought about it. Lightning bugs were just a part of summer. I remember being a youngster
Many Smoky Mountain Attractions Sell Themselves As Historic or Use Historic Theming, but the Old Mill Is the Real Deal In the Smoky Mountains, history sells. Countless attractions try to grab visitors’ attention by overplaying their connections to history. They may borrow the history of someone or something local or create a theme around a historic figure or place that
A Smoky Mountain Expert Weighs In on Which Mountain Park Is Most Deserving of Your Money The best views in the Smokies remain free. You can drive up to Kuwohi – formerly Clingmans Dome – and soak in the natural wonder that made our ancestors see the mountains as something worth preserving. A drive along Newfound Gap Road offers several
A Local Explains the Allure of Blount County’s Somewhat Secret Tourist Attraction When we moved to Blount County in the summer of 1990, we got a lot of advice from locals. The best places to visit in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and the secret spots where you can enjoy the mountains away from the throngs. We were told
You Can Visit This Once Abandoned Notorious Prison in East Tennessee In Morgan County, near the tiny community of Petros – right in the shadow of the Cumberland Plateau- they’ve taken hell on Earth, shined it up and used it to market a peculiar concoction of horrid history, fabricated ghosts, mountain likker and classic Southern café dining. For more than
A Local Shares Details About Middle Prong Trail a Hidden Gem in the Smoky Mountains Every so often, I completely lose my faith in Hollywood. Oh sure, I like a good superhero movie as much as anyone. But why in the world are we making the 15th Batman movie while nobody has gotten around to turning the life of William
Pirates Voyage Dinner & Show preparing to debut its South Pacific Celebration It seems unbelievable now since decades of dust have piled around the memories and obscured our vision. But for 12 years, a magical, mystical, improbably and fiscally irresponsible place lived in the Smokies. Porpoise Island, it was called. And it brought – quite literally – Polynesian culture and
A List of the Most Iconic Things To Do in Knoxville, According to a Local For as long as I’ve lived in East Tennessee – more than three decades – Knoxville has been the forgotten middle child of Tennessee municipalities. Knoxville lacks the amenities common in larger cities like Nashville and Memphis. And it trails Chattanooga in charm. People go