Lots of Driving and then... The Ocean - Day 5

We got up, packed and ready to hit the road by 10:30 this morning.  As we planned the trip, the website said today's leg would be 6.5 hours - our longest day.  But when we typed it into the motorhome's GPS, it came up as 8 hours... Uh oh!

Well, the GPS was right!  PLUS we added an hour for fuel and lunch (I made a chicken, veggie and rice dish at a rest stop... Totally worth it). 

The route took us right up and over the mountains of the Great Smokey National Park. Absolutely beautiful views.  Again, Scott did well with narrow lanes, no shoulders and tight turns.  

So after 9 hrs in the motor home, we arrived at the Myrtle Beach Travel Park.  It was almost dark so we got right to work as the kids asked to do two very important things: 1) stand in the ocean (necessity on every trip) and 2) go see Uncle Roger and Aunt Gretchen.

It was probably our record set up time and we headed out to the water... The kids giggled and laughed as they skipped in and out of the waves as they crashed up on shore.  It's only a short walk to the Margate so he headed that way in hopes of burning some pent up energy!

Gretchen met us on the beach and brought us up to the condo to see everyone!  With luck, we even ran into Dean (he was working) in the lobby!

It was a loud and busy visit with so much excitement to finally be here!  But it was wonderful to see everyone even if only for a quick hello.  Gretchen drove us back to the campground since it was getting late.  

We gave the kids something to eat since we had missed supper and then whisked them off to bed.

It was a long day and we are tired but it feels good to be at the beach!

Zip Lines - Day 4

We decided to go zip lining this evening with Climb Works in Gatlinburg.  We weren't sure what to expect other than we would not touch the ground for 2.5 hrs.  The advertising said children 7 years and up could zip but our kids didn't quite make the weight minimums.  Some of the lines were 1000 ft long!  And being so high, I wasn't sure if the kids would be too scared to do it.

We were joined by a family of 5 from Indiana and our two guides.  Sammy was the youngest rider, and Ray was the oldest at 85!  I hope I'm still zip-lining at 85!

We started off with a very exciting ride up the mountain.  Our driver was great... He sang, he swerved, everything to make the ride fun!

(Sammy was laughing the whole way... Despite how it looks in the picture)

Once we got to the top, we climbed across a rope bridge and were ready to go.  We asked if the kids could each ride tandem with a guide for the first line.  So Tyler was up first.  Once they were tied in, Branden told him to walk off the edge of the platform.  He did immediately.  Seriously, didn't bat an eye!  

Sammy rode with Kylee on that first line.  Both kids LOVED it and begged to go alone.  So we agreed.  

There were nine lines total.  Each had different challenges but all had the gorgeous views as we worked our way down the mountain. 

On one line, they taught us to hang upside down as we zipped.  Both kiddos and mom and dad did it well!  I have videos to prove it!

When we reached the longest line (over 1000 feet), there was some concern that the kids didn't weigh enough and would not make it across, so they went together... They screamed and giggled the whole way.  I think it was almost more fun than apart!

Sammy did get stuck in the middle of the line at one point.  She came so close to making it but came to a stop 20 feet from the platform, and slowly slid back away.  The look in her eyes was heart-breaking!  But we reassured her that help was coming and Brandon got to her in no time.  "She's still smiling" he shouted back!  She got quite a kick out of it as he towed her back hand over hand.  Later another rider got stuck and Sammy jumped into action "I know what to do!"  It was so funny!

The sun was setting as we finished the course, changing the shadows and views of the mountain... just so beautiful! 

To finish, we climbed across a bridge to do a vertical 50' drop.  All in the dark!

What an awesome experience!  So proud of both these kids and their willingness to try new things.  

Today we've explored caves deep underground and flew above the mountain trees.  Absolutely Amazing!

Hidden Caverns - day 4

We took a drive north out of town to the Hidden Caverns.  I never knew that Tennessee has more underground caves than any other state.  There was around a 20 minute wait before the tour began.  I started to reconsider our decision to come as we almost lost Sammy.  But as soon as the tour guide announced it was time, she snapped back and we were ready to go.

The tour lasted a little over an hour and brought us 600' below the surface.  It was beautiful!  The tour guide shared stories of how the Cherokee Indians and moon shiners used the caves during their respective times.  Tyler loved the science aspect of it all.  This was so up his alley... That is until they turned all the lights off!  That was not his favorite!  The underground river was fascinating and we ran into it several times throughout the tour.

The whole family really enjoyed it!  We appreciated having sweatshirts along for the cool 60* temps inside!

LumberJacks - Day 3

We wanted to do a dinner show tonight but had so many options.  After much consideration, we decided on the Lumberjack Feud!

The meal was served almost immediately after we were seated.  The two feuding families started their 18 event competition to see who would win rights to log the mountain ;)

Tyler giggled so much!  He screamed so loud to cheer on our team, I thought he'd go hoarse.  Sammy made it through the whole show too!  She especially loved the dog tricks.

After the show, we headed home and took the kids on a quiet walk / scooter ride of the RV park.

Its been a very busy day for us all.  The kids took showers and are settled in for bed.  As I pick out our favorite pics to share, my heart is full... knowing what a great time we had and the many memories we made.  

Smokey Mountain National Park - Day 3

As we left Ober Gatlinburg, we decided to find a new route home and followed "main" roads down the mountain to Gatlinburg and the start of the Smokey Mountain National Park.


We pulled off along the road to see a little creek that was well-flooded from last night's rain.  We stayed quite some time throwing stones into the water!

The drive was almost as much fun as the stops!  It was 71* on the mountain (80* back in town).  We drove with the windows down and absolutely beautiful views of the mountain.

A little ways up the road we found the Welcome Center and took a nature walk to see a waterfall.  There was lots to see and explore in the half mile hike!

Next we headed to the Chimney Tops Picnic Area on the recommendation of a friend.  We intended to let the kids play in the water for a bit but the current was just too strong!  The roar of the river was so loud and yet so mesmerizing to watch.  We all enjoyed climbing the rocks along the shore and seeing the rapids pass us by.

We did find one calm area in the water where we let the kids go into their knees.  It was FRIGID water but they were enjoying it... that is until Sammy slipped and went in up to her chest.  After that,
Tyler played in the water while Sammy and I climbed the rocks "to China".  After we finished up, we stripped her down to her underwear and drove back to the RV.  (She thought this was quite funny!)

Ober Gatlinburg - Day 3

We started off the morning in search of adventure!  So we headed up to Ober Gatlinburg, a local ski resort.  It was a 14 mile drive but took 56 minutes up the winding mountain road.  There were beautiful views along with wash out and debris from last nights storm.

This was a great attraction!  Not too crowded and lots of fun things to do!  We headed for the alpine sledding!  First we took a chair lift to the top of the ski slope... This was a test for Mom to keep tabs on squirmy Sammy as we hung suspended on the lift.

Then we took wheeled "sleds" 1.4 miles back down!  It was a riot!

We had lunch in the lodge, rode the swings and then headed for the Smokey Mountain National Park.

Made it to the mountains! - Day 2

We got on the road a bit before 9:00 am. It was still raining so we were glad we left the dinghy attached.  Motorhoming - like camping but without the set up and tear down!

Boy, we appreciated the highway driving now that we have the GPS working correctly!

The kids and I did our homeschool Bible curriculum since we missed church.  Then did some activities to learn more about the states we are driving through.  

We made a fuel stop and then later stopped at a rest stop to eat lunch.  After we ate, we hit the vending machines for dessert.  Sammy purchased a fudgesicle for $1 (even tho I had them in the freezer). But the crazy machine dispensed 6 instead!!  Sweet Tyler felt terrible about this so we looked for an employee to give extra money to... And found no one.  So, we took the address and the state of Kentucky should be expecting repayment soon :)

Around 3:00 pm, we pulled in to The Dell at Sevierville, TN very near Pigeon Forge.  Our lot is beautiful!  Great view of the Smokies in the distance.  

After we got settled, we headed into town for dinner at Red Lobster, picked up some groceries and then drove around to get acquainted with things.  There is so much to do here!  Excited to get started!

We headed back for a quiet movie night but noticed some ominous clouds building to the north east.  We battened down the hatches, went inside as it started to rain.

I'll save you all the details but let's just say there was cloud rotation, tornado warnings, evacuated to a nearby building, three families of strangers in one small room, a dog, Buzz Lightyear with a bloody nose and a sweet Snow White  who had had enough.  :)

The first round of storms have past and we are back in our coach...  Phew!  What an evening!  We are ready for tomorrow and all the fun that's in store!

Today's stats: 304.1 miles - avg 7.6 mpg

Day one complete!

Our camp ground for the night is in Rising Sun, Indiana.  We are very close to Kentucky to the south and Ohio to the east (both across this river).  

We pulled in the Little Farm on the River Campground a little after 7:00 pm.  It's pretty much a field of trailers next to a river, but it works for what we needed.

We quickly settled in and took the kids for a walk to see the river and playground.  Had some grilled cheese sandwiches for a bedtime snack and got the kids to bed.

Today's trip should have been 379 miles and taken us appx 6:45 hrs.  BUT instead the GPS routed us the shortest (not fastest) route and it took much longer.  On the plus side, it was a very scenic route and Scott got lots of practice with turns and narrow lanes :). Despite all that, everyone did great and we filled the time with movies, and card games.  It really was a great day!  

We opted for a pull thru lot so we wouldn't have to disconnect our dinghy.  Hopefully this will help us make a speedy exit in the morning.

The plan for tomorrow is to drive 303 miles (appx 5:10 hrs) and stay the next three nights at the Dell in Sevierville, TN.  Looking forward to the views as we get into the Smokies! 

On the Road... - Day 1

Sammy was up already at 3:00 am coughing up a storm.  After about an hour I got her back to sleep.  Needless to say it wasn't quite the restful nights sleep I was hoping for.

We let the kids sleep in and then got on the road a little after 10:00 am.  Scott and my bikes had to ride in the main part of the coach since the bike rack was on the dinghy down in Wayland.  

It was just about noon when we finally got back on the road, dinghy in tow, bikes mounted on back.

Sammy watched a movie while Tyler and I played cards for a while.  We had just crossed the Indiana border when we realized our GPS settings were wrong and we were getting the back country tour!  It wasn't til 3:00, when we hit Fort Wayne that we got back on a major highway.  

We are having a wonderful time.  Enjoying the ride and scenery!  

We ran into some rain this afternoon so it was a good validation that we made the right decision in taking the motorhome instead of the boat trip.

I have been giving the kids each a turn to ride shotgun... It's a much better view up there.  It's cute to hear all their comments and questions as Scott drives.  I'm sure he appreciates the extra "help".

A Change of Plans...

Well it has been a crazy day of making and canceling travel plans.  Looking at the rainy forecast, we decided to cancel our 12-day boat trip to Mackinac Island and take our new motorhome on a 12-day road trip instead.

I spent the day planning routes and making reservations.  It is by no means carved in stone, but we are excited about the plan!

Tonight we will wrap things up here at home and get packed up.  Tomorrow will be a long drive and  we need to pick up our tow vehicle (dinghy) on the way out of town.  Better get to bed at a decent time.

The kids are excited and we are too!  Looking forward to our first family road trip!