Smoky Mountain Getaway

This morning we made a trip north, heading up to Dollywood finally to take advantage of the season passes we got back in December.  Of course, given there's a pandemic going on, we've been somewhat on hold with actually going back to Tennessee or anywhere for that matter.  But this morning we took the trip north after a small bit of packing, and had a nice drive over the Great Smoky Mountains.

This crow seems to be enjoying the view as well.  We were up there over the state line between Tennessee and North Carolina, and the Great Smoky Mountains lived up to their name.  There were a few heavy rain clouds moving through the tops of the mountains, covering the highest parts and creating some beautiful scenery.  

Madison took a few pictures with her cellphone along the way, and from this point on, that might be something you'll be seeing more often on this blog.  Here's one photo she took at a stop on the Tennessee side, and here's another similar shot from the same vantage point:

The temperature was about 68 up there, which was very pleasant.  And it was super quiet up there, which was nice as well.  The ride was easy for us, the rain only temporary and clearing out just as we got up to the ridge there where the Appalachian Trail is.

Joey the Porg seemed to like the view as well.  Yes, he came along for the trip.  Everyone needs a little time away.  Apparently, he has his own social media account, and he uploaded this picture to let everyone know where he is.

This is a picture that I took, one from the same point.  We usually get out of the car about here, just as a break, but also to enjoy the cooler air and of course the nice views.

And yes, Baby Yoda was with us.  He's been sitting in the back seat with Madison and Joey the Porg, all of them listening to music and looking out the window on the way up.  We saw some elk, and of course all the dancing Cherokee just before heading into the mountains.  Lots to see.

Baby Yoda and Joey the Porg thought so as well.  It was a nice journey, one that ended with us arriving at the Creekstone Inn, which is usually not too bad of a place to stay.  It's not that far from Dollywood, and the price is very good considering the location and the updated rooms.  The downfall is the lack of elevators.  But we'll be fine.  We checked in and the room is nice.  And then we were out the door for a very, very quick visit at Dollywood.

What a difference seven months makes.  We got these season passes, and this place was packed.  Today, we parked in Apple Jack.  That's the letter "A."  That's the first parking lot, the one that you never get to park in because there are so many people here.  We got out of the car, and walked up to the gates - no need to ride a trolley today because we parked so closely.  There, we got our temperatures checked, and our bags too.  All clear, we walked right into the park.  There was hardly anyone there.

You could just about walk on any ride you wanted to here, except the train perhaps.  The train only had enough room for one family per row, and that would be every third row.  So it filled up fast.  But the car ride?  No line at all. 

Madison took this picture of the cars.  She and Mommy rode the blue one there, while I rode in that Ghost Rider car behind them.  Sadly, my head didn't turn into a flaming skull during this journey. 

The line was so short though, that we rode a second time, or at least the girls did.  This is a nice little ride, with some old school music playing as you cruise around the track.

There's minimal steering involved, as there's a guiding track there to keep everyone on course.  It's still fun though, and it reminds us that it won't be long until she'll be learning to drive a real car soon.  Yikes!

Maybe we'll start off with one of these beauties.  You can see a few of them for sale here, so perhaps we can buy one of these fancy cars and that can be her first real ride!  We'll have to install a track just like this one that goes from our house to the school, and then back again.  It's not that long of a distance, so I think it might work!  We can even have that car set up to play nothing but oldies all the time.  She'll love that!

Okay, moving right along, and speaking of oldies, we sat and listened to the Gem Tones for a while.  Dollywood has no inside concerts right now, this due to the pandemic concerns.  But there are a few outdoor productions, including this one here, a group that does a lot of old school Doo-Wop songs.  You might have to look up what that is, Madison.

Here's a picture that she took of the group as they performed.  It was nice, and they were very talented.  We heard about five songs or so, and of course Mommy and I were singing along with some of them.  Then we were on our way to the carousel.

It had all these red banners hanging from various horses, telling people not to sit on this row for social distancing purposes.  We walked right on the thing, of course, but doesn't look as nice with all that red tape.  

Still, we nevertheless enjoyed the ride.  I was sad to see the Magic Shop there was not open, and of course the Heartsongs production nearby is temporarily closed.  Ugh.  We waited to see if we could hop on the train, but again, the restrictions were such that we'll have to try that again later.  Not too many people can ride at a time on this one.

One ride we did go on - or at least Madison and I did - was the Raging River Rapids.  Again, we walked right on.  And we had a boat all to ourselves too!  We took a guess as to who would get more wet by the end of this ride, and Madison clearly won this round, getting soaked with a late wave that crashed over her side of the boat.  It was super fun, and we'll be doing this one again this weekend for sure.

Mommy and Madison were shopping in Dolly's store over there by the museum, but after a bit, we decided it was time to get something to eat.  So back to the Front Porch Cafe we went!

It was empty too!  But after the meal we ate there, our tummies were clearly not empty.  Madison was snapping a few pictures on her phone while we were there, including one out the window from where we sat:

She even took a picture of her sweet tea when it arrived at the table.  This, my friends, is high art.  She calls this photograph "Southern Sweet Tea."

She would drink about two of these, mainly because of all the hot sauce she got with her fries and chicken.  Seriously, they had to go looking for a new bottle of hot sauce, and that they poured into a container and gave her that on top of the hot sauce that she already went through.  It was like some sort of Princess of Hot Sauce, all these waiters doing what they can to keep her hot sauce appetite appeased!  

And look at this mountain of fries!  She actually was unable to finish this.  Mommy ordered a delicious vegetarian burger, and I got this potato and corn soup that was super delicious.  We always enjoy eating here.

So while at Dollywood, the policy is to wear masks around the place.  We didn't have to on the river ride, or obviously when we were eating.  But the masks stay on everywhere else, and of course that gets old super quick, especially with the heat.  But we managed to make it work this time.

We made our way to the exit and the souvenir store at the end.  Madison took this picture of the ceiling there, and I honestly didn't know that's what it looked like!  We'll be walking through here a few more times this weekend, and we might pick up something along the way as a souvenir.

Madison took this picture on the way back to the hotel, a beautiful sunset over the mountains.  It was a super quick trip to Dollywood, but with season passes, we can do this sort of thing.  It was pretty empty today, and we don't know what we'll see tomorrow in the park.  But we'll find out soon enough!