2020 Nov 11-14, Trip to Pigeon Forge, Tennessee (4 days) Dollywood Express Train Ride

Wednesday, November 11, Hubby and I stopped at Cracker Barrel in Spring Hill for breakfast. We stopped several times for restroom breaks on our way to Pigeon Forge. We checked into Park Grove Inn in Pigeon Forge. What a view we could see the ferry wheel on the Island from our room.

Ferries Wheel 

Hubby took a shower, lay down, and took a nap. His stomach was giving him a fit, and he said I think I have a fever. After his nap, we rode to Applewood Farm House Restaurant for dinner.

Apple Barn 

For an appetizer, they brought apple fritters along with apple sauce and jute. I ordered a bowl of vegetable soup with cornbread. Hubby did not order anything but did eat some of my soup. That night, Hubby ran a fever and had diarrhea all night.

The Incredible Christmas Store

Nov 12, Thursday:  The Incredible Christmas Store was just three blocks from our hotel, so I walked there while Hubby slept. I walked across the Little Pigeon River, stopping to take pictures along the way. I bought a chocolate pretzel at the Christmas Candy Shop. When I returned, Hubby was up, so we rode to the Old Mill, where I purchased some stone-ground cornmeal and some apple fritter mix. We visited the Disney Store, where I bought Christmas toys for the great-grandkids. We ate lunch at Firehouse Subs and stopped in front of the Dixie Stampede for a picture of the tall Christmas tree. We spent the rest of the day at Dollywood from 2 to 9 P.M. We rented a cart for my husband; he said he felt too weak to walk. We upgraded our tickets for the next year to $194.20. Our adventures began in the Wildwood Park area, specifically designed for children.

Santa @ Dollywood 

We meet Santa behind glass after we write him a letter and drop it into his mailbox. We watched a couple of shows outside, but all the inside shows were closed. We rode the Dollywood Express Train Ride up the mountain, and there were plastic shields between each seat. We had to get tickets for the last train ride because the virus seats were limited. We stopped at the ice cream shop for some Rockies Road ice cream in a chocolate waffle cone. We returned the cart and walked back to our car.

Eating catfish at Huck Finn

On Friday, Nov 13, I ate French toast for breakfast at the hotel. We rode to the Bass Pro Shop in Kodak and then to Katom Restaurant Supplies, where I bought two bottle openers and a thermometer. We stopped at Huck Finn's for lunch, where I ordered a two-piece catfish dinner with fixings. (Fixings include a bowl of white beans, onion, pickles, coleslaw, and hushpuppies) We took the bypass in Gatlinburg and drove over the Smoky Mountains. We rode through Cherokee, out to I-40, and back to Sevierville.

Hotel Pigeon Forge, TN

On Saturday, November 15, we began our travel home, stopping to fill up with gas at Flying J. I ate a bagel for breakfast before we left the hotel. We stopped at Five Guys in Spring Hill for a late lunch or early supper. There, we both ordered a fully-dressed hamburger and crispy fries. They have the best hamburgers in town. Our last stop was at Kroger's in Lawrenceburg to pick up a few groceries. After that long ride home, we were both exhausted.

🚙2017 March 27-29, Adventures in the Smoky Mts

Before we could get on the road, we had to take our Chrysler Van in for body repairs.
We stopped in Elgin to have the front end checked on the Honda Van and had to leave it for repairs, so we ended up driving the LS Saturn, an older car that got good gas mileage.
We stopped for our weekly B-12 shots and began our journey.
We took I-65 North to 840 West to 40 West, stopping at the Pilot in Knoxville to refuel.

We stopped at the Tennessee Rest Stop in Lancaster, where we saw a display about Tennessee during the Civil War, highlighting the tough men and the even more brutal war. 

We reached the Inn on the River around 5 P.M., checked in, and rested for a few minutes before riding to the Islands, where we saw the Ferris wheel, Dudley's Daiquiris, Mellow Mushroom Pizza, Margaritaville, and a carousel.
We were getting hungry, so we decided to eat at Paula Deen's, but it was way too much food, and since we were both watching our weight, we ended up eating at Long John Silver's instead.
I ordered a piece of Cod Fish (my favorite) and a Hubby seafood platter, which we shared.
We rode past the Old Mill and stopped at Patriots Park, which was nearby.

Liberty Bell
Home to a beautiful landscape and several significant events, Patriot Park is an ideal destination for relaxation and fun.

The park is located behind The Old Mill, off Middle Creek Road. A large expanse of lush green covers the park, but the highlight is undoubtedly the inspiring Veterans Memorial.

A large, cracked Liberty Bell was erected within the park to pay homage to all of the Sevier County war veterans. This act of Patriotism is part of the Patriotism Annual Celebrate Freedom event. This two-week celebration pays tribute to the millions of men and women who have courageously fought for America's freedoms. When visiting Sevier County, be sure to take some time to visit Pigeon Forge's Patriot Park.

Patriot Missile
Patriot utilizes advanced aerial interceptor missiles and high-performance radar systems. Patriot was developed at Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, Alabama, which had previously designed the Safeguard ABM system, along with its component Spartan and hypersonic speed Sprint missiles. The symbol for Patriot is a drawing of a Revolutionary War-era Minuteman.

Patriot Park City of Pigeon Forge
A patriot is someone who feels strong support for their country. (See also Patriotism.) It comes from the Hellenic (Greek) word Πατρίς (patris), meaning homeland. It is the female form of Πατέρας, which means Father.

Liberty Bell

We rode back to the hotel, watched some television, and fell asleep.

The next morning, we took the elevator from the fourth floor to the ground level and walked to the dining room to eat breakfast.
We then rode through Gatlinburg, taking in the sights where the fire had occurred earlier in the year.

We crossed the Tennessee State line into North Carolina.

It was a bit chilly, and I had left my jacket back at the hotel.

The Smoky Mountains

Our next stop is the Mountain Farm Museum & Visitor Center in Oconaluftee, NC. 
At the Mountain Farm Museum, we saw Corn Cribs, Broomcorn, a Sorghum Mill and Furnace, a Blacksmith Shop, Sorghum Cane, a fenced-in garden, an Apple House, hog pens, the meat house, and a springhouse.

Cabin

Mountain Farm Museum 

Most of the buildings on a mountain farm are related to the most basic of all needs: preserving food. The historic buildings at the Mountain Farm Museum were moved here from various locations within the national park in the early 1950s. These buildings reflect the challenges faced daily by every mountain farm family. John Davis spent two years building this house near Deep Creek, North Carolina. It was completed in about 1900. The log walls are "matched"; Davis split chestnut logs in half along their length and placed the halves in matching positions on opposite walls. 

Oconaluftee River Trail  

Hand-stitched quilts at Oconaluftee Visitor Center 

Inside the Oconaluftee Visitor Center 
We saw cultural-themed exhibits about the people who once lived in the area. 

Our next stop was Cherokee Veterans Park, where we saw markers honoring Native Americans who had served in the US Army, US Navy, U.S. Marines, and US Air Force.

A bear at the Cherokee Veterans Park represents our US Flag and the American Eagle. 

We enjoyed a Whopper, a Whopper Jr, onion rings, and a slice of chocolate cheesecake at Burger King in Clyde, NC.

Slice of  Oreo Cookie Cheesecake 

Whopper Jr, Onion Rings, and a drink
We took a different route (I-40s)back to the Inn on the River and stopped to tour the Bush Museum and Store. 

Come on down to the BUSH'S® Visitor Center in Chestnut Hill, Tennessee, where you can trace the values and events that have made BUSH'S BEST® what it is today. And it's all housed in the original A.J. Bush & Company general store, founded in 1897.

Bush's Truck 

Bush's Visitor Center

3901 US-411, Dandridge, TN 37725

A replica of a can of Bush's Baked Beans showing the beans' journey. 

Jay Bush and his dog Duke 

Bush's Factory 

We arrived in Pigeon Forge just in time for dinner at the Apple Farm Restaurant.
We enjoyed Applewood's Apple Fritters, juice, chicken, and vegetables.

Applewood Apple Fritters

Ingredients

1 cup milk
1 egg (beaten)
4 Tbsp margarine
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 orange, rind, and juice
1 cup apples (chopped but not too fine)
3 cups cake flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp vanilla

Directions

Beat the egg. In a mixing bowl, combine the milk, egg, and melted margarine. Add the orange juice, rind, chopped apples (with the skin left on), and vanilla. Sift together the flour, salt, and baking powder. Stir the mixture into the milk with a spoon until well blended. DO NOT OVERMIX. Preheat the oil in a skillet to 350 degrees. Drop the tablespoons into the hot oil. Fry to a golden brown. Turn so they brown evenly. Allow cooling. Makes about 30 fritters. 

Applewood Farm 

We had enough left over for the next day.
After enjoying a nice meal, we rode back to the hotel, took a shower, climbed into bed to watch some television, and fell asleep.

The next morning, we dressed and rode the elevator down to the first floor, where we walked into the dining room for breakfast.
We checked out and headed for home. 
We stopped to fill up with gas and visited the I-75 rest stop, where we saw a historic marker.

The Road to Chattanooga: The Tide Turns for the Union.
This interstate highway parallels the historic line of the East Tennessee & Georgia Railroad. Late in 1863, Union and Confederate armies followed the tracks during a series of battles in the fight for control of Chattanooga, a strategically vital rail center.
     Multiple Civil War-related sites are located in Charleston (Exit 33), near the location of a raid by Confederate Gen. Joseph Wheeler's cavalry. The Henegar House was the headquarters for Union Gen. William T. Sherman. Cumberland Presbyterian Church served as a Confederate hospital. The Hiwassee River Heritage Center interprets the story of the Union occupation of the area.
     In downtown Cleveland (Exit 25), late in 1863, Union forces built Fort Hill to protect the railroad. A cemetery was established nearby, with the dead of both sides interred there. In 1914, the Grand Army of the Republic erected a monument for the Union soldiers there, one of three such memorials in the state. Fighting occurred around the Masonic Female Institute in Cleveland.
     The site of a major Confederate hospital is located near Exit 7. Silverdale Confederate Cemetery contains the graves of about 155 of Gen. Braxton Bragg's soldiers. Most of them are unknowns who died in hospitals in 1862.
  Several units of Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park can be accessed from Exit 3, including Orchard Knob, 
Missionary Ridge and Lookout Mountain. Union Gen. Ulysses S. Grant's victory there late in November 1863 turned the tide against the Confederates. It resulted in the Federal occupation of most of East Tennessee for the rest of the war.

We ate lunch at Taco Bell in Athens and were home by 5:30 P.M.
My granddaughter brought over her daughter, and she stayed with us until 8:30 P.M.
We had a great time in the mountains, but were also glad to be home.