J and B and Lady Blue: Tennessee and Great Smoky Mountains National Park

We always enjoy our visits through Tennessee. There are so many beautiful, interesting, and new places to see. We found a nice city campground in Bristol about one mile from the Bristol Motor Speedway, a Nascar short track. Luckily, no races today. Otherwise there would be no available camping.

A bonus is a very quick rainbow.

How nice of those dark clouds to be in the right spot!

Sp glad we stopped at Jonesborough, Tennessee's oldest town.

The town has made an effort to keep the main street in historic condition.

The accommodations are looking quite comfortable.

We had a great lunch in town at JJ's. But there were many choices.

A young Andrew Jackson practiced law in town and lived for a while here.

The town is know for its National Storytelling Festival , held the first weekend in October..
The festival began in 1973. On the weekend , there are five large tents that will hold up to a thousand or more each. Storytellers are performing all day long and attendees can plan to visit their favorites from children's stories to adult stories. Schools bus thousands of children to the children's tent .
Imagine a Garrison Keiler or such spinning stories .
Storytelling Festival
Click on the link above to see some of the storytellers and the schedule for this year.

On to Davy Crockett Brithplace State park in Limestone.

There are many Davy Crockett memorial places in Tennessee. As a frontiersman, he moved west a number of times for different reasons. He excelled at hunting and trails. An admitted terrible shot, he still knew how to get his target. One time he killed over 100 bears in one day---according to tales that he told. The park is beside the Nolichucky River.

A U.S. Congressman for three terms , you can imagine the reactions to the above speech.

No matter, how they reacted, everyone listened. He differed from President Jackson on the Indian Relocation act. This was Jackson's law to move native Indians from their homeland in Tennessee to Oklahoma along the Trail of Tears. Crockett thought it wrong and he lost his election because of his beliefs. Most of us remember the Disney TV series and movie with Fess Parker, ending with his ill fated stand with others at the Alamo in San Antonio, Texas.

Nice hike in the park.

Looking back at the park from the Nolichucky River.

On to The Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
A very quiet road until we hit Gatlinburg---Busy!

Jan and I move right on through to Elkmont Campground.
No reservations, but we luck out and find a very nice one for 2 nights.
$10 per night with Senior Pass

We talked with this gentleman. It's a 1960's GMC which is in perfect shape. It has been modified.

The trailers from the era do have a lot of class.

Many hikes begin or cross through Elkmont.

This hike took us up to an old settlement form the early 1900's.

20 or more cabins--some large houses--are still standing from when the

park claimed the land in the 1920's.

This is Daisy Town. Daisy Town ghost town

Twenty miles of park road takes us over to Cades Cove Campground.

This campground is the most popular one and we have to move each night.

But we are happy to have a site .

"Cove" in this area refers to a flat valley between mountains--nothing to do with water.

Typical of the road between Elkmont and Cades Cove

Plenty of room for Lady Blue!

Some days the traffic stretches for miles and miles to come to Cades Cove for the

11 mile loop. No wait this time but well worth the travel.

Many views are spectacular. Some visitors park at a spot, take out their folding chairs, sit down in the fields, and just look at the view and wait for wildlife to happen by.

This was a successful community in the 1800's.
This property was the Cable grist mill and saw mill.

The grist mill still works and a docent is on hand most days to grind corn flour and more.

A mixed construction, including bricks made on site.

Jan is ready to move in !!!
A porch and a fireplace--Good to go!

As we said on the last post, we promised Madison to add the rest of our pictures from
the performance of Firebird by Maine Dance Theater.
This is Alianah as The Firebird