Weekend Trip Suggestions

[OleTomCat]

Originally Posted by Silversides

There were alligators in the Ashley river when we went on the kayak trip. I think they're everywhere... including our back yard. I'm still not sure how to think about that

Think heavy line, big hook and a rotten hunk of chicken, now get your .22......

May want to get a gator tag first though....

[Silversides]

Originally Posted by OleTomCat

Think heavy line, big hook and a rotten hunk of chicken, now get your .22......

May want to get a gator tag first though....

Now that's a conversation to have over a couple of beers while you look out over the river

[roxanneself]

If you go to Pigeon Forge you should stop by the Biltmore Estate Vacations at America's Largest Home in Asheville, NC| Biltmore . You're kids will be bored so maybe skip the tours, but even the grounds are pretty amazing.

When we went to Pigeon Forge we rented a KOA Cabin at Cherokee, NC up in the Smokey Mountains Photos of the Cherokee / Great Smokies KOA Campground in North Carolina. I know it sounds cheesy, but the one we stayed in had two bedrooms plus a separate kitchen/dining area AND they didn't mind that I brought my giant dogs with me. Although most everything was closed in Cherokee since we went for Christmas it seems like a neat place to spend a day exploring Cherokee, NC. There is a park in the middle of the river running through town with this massive stand of bamboo. I guess it's not so uncommon for bamboo to grow that large, but it was certainly something I've never seen. It was about an hour drive down to Pigeon Forge from there. The boys and my husband also went snowboarding while we were there, but I don't do snow (AT ALL, won't even look at it) so I spent a nice quiet day snuggling with the dogs and pretending that I wasn't freaking out about my youngest on a snowboard.

We didn't spend a lot of time as a family at Pigeon Forge because we had the dogs with us, so we dropped the boys off with a wad of cash and then the husband and I found parks to hike in. Maybe the reason the boys had so much fun was because they were teen boys with money in their pockets in a town with a whole lot of teen girls running around also unsupervised??
I usually find places like that too tacky for my tastes, but I will definitely go back minus the four legged passengers so I can explore more. I bet it's not too terribly crowded now that school has started. We will probably go back again and this time we will all visit Dollywood Dollywood and Dollywood's Splash Country | Dolly Parton's Smoky Mountain Vacation Destination. I haven't been, but the boys say it's fun. We only drove through Gatlinburg, but it looks really neat too.

[OleTomCat]

yeah I forgot about Dollywood...

[klysik]

Great! Thanks..i think I'll make a vacation to-do list. I love a 4 day jaunt exploring!

[Silversides]

I really despise amusement park type areas, but Pidgeon Forge does an amazing car show.

[ProudPatriot07]

Pigeon Forge is really great! I always loved going there as a kid and I still love it as an adult. Like others said, costs can add up fast though. But you're in the mountains and if you're into more outdoorsy activities, it's pretty nice. I would go before the Fall though, as it gets packed up there when the leaves change!