It's not often My Better Half and I get the opportunity to actually take a REAL vacation.
The problem is that her "busy" season is my "not-so-busy" season.
And vice versa.
But this summer we were determined to make it work.
A friend of mine has a vacation home in The Great Smoky Mountains.
About 2,500 feet up the mountain!
Karen's sister and our brother-in-law from Houston drove over from Houston and we then made the 12 hour drive through Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, a small tip of Georgia, and then into Tennessee.
We were treated to some of the most fantastic views of The Smoky Mountains you can imagine!
And these were just some of the views from the balcony of the home we stayed in for 6 days!!
We also made a day trip into the Great Smoky Mountains National Park - which happens to be THE most visited national park in the United States.
In addition to "getting away from it all" for nearly a week and enjoying some of the most beautiful scenery we've seen in a very long time, it was nice to spend some family time with Barbie and Guy.
The plan was not to have a plan! We didn't want to feel like we had to be anywhere at any given time.
The only "planned" activity we had was a trip down the Upper Pigeon River - a white water rafting trip that literally took our breath away!
We also enjoyed a half-day trip along a mountain route that included arts and crafts shops of all shapes and sizes, and included shops featuring glass-blowing, woodworking, pottery, jewlery, quilts, clothing, and more.
We even stumbled upon a traditional British pub, which somehow seemed a bit out of place in the Smoky Mountains, and lacked a lot when it came to service. But we enjoyed a LONG lunch there before heading back up the mountain to the cabin.
Of course, all good things eventually come to an end and, as much as we hated to, we locked up the cabin and made the long drive back to The Swamp at the end of the week.
But the trip was an awesome "getaway" for all of us and we brought back lasting memories of an awesome vacation in the mountains of Tennessee!
Until next time....
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