Hey Crew,
Me and Barb are back in South Florida. We had a great time in Gatlinburg, and of course "Getting There" (and back) was half the fun. Maybe you've been there, maybe you haven't... This will give you a taste...



The above pic was taken from the Pigeon Forge bypass road, overlooking Gatlinburg down below. To get there from the South, we rode through Cherokee NC, followed 441 North through the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.









The Great Smoky Mountains National Park is a nice scenic ride. There are sweeping turns, plenty of elevation changes, and miles and miles of beauty in every direction. Traffic in the park flows fairly smooth, even though the "leaf-lookers" are out in full swing. But then... SCREEEECH... EVERYBODY'S OUT OF THEIR CARS! THEY ARE CROSSING THE MEDIAN, SNAPPING PICS LIKE CRAZY. I THOUGHT JUSTIN BIEBER SHOWED UP!!!



Oh, it's the ELK FAMILY! So now our 30 minute ride through the park just became a major event.





We were finally able to resume forward progress, once the ELK FEVER wore off...

So this is the view as you emerge from the forest into Gatlinburg. I think the frenzy in the park was just preparing me for the next phase of our journey...



WELCOME TO GATLINBURG!!!












Gatlinburg has more Hotels, Resturants, Attractions per-square-inch than anywhere I've ever been! And as much traffic as Ft. Lauderdale during Spring Break!
But once we got off the bike and started walking around, I Loved it!
So much to see and do, (and EAT!). It was really cool. I have thousands of pics to go through, I'll be posting more later. But for now, this is my preliminary report. -Steevo-

 

Nice pics, thanks! We skipped Sturgis one year and went to Gatlinburg instead. I still think that was one of my favorite trips! Great, scenic rides and no Sturgis crowds! A lot of people on here bum-rap Gatlinburg as being too "crowded", or "touristy", and granted, downtown was pretty crowded and a slow ride, but we were willing to deal with it in order to get to those great restaurants and activities! And once you got out of "downtown" the traffic was at a minimum. We didn't see Elk, but we saw the bear which was cool too. I'd go back there in a heartbeat! And I miss being able to go to "Bubba Gumps"!

 

Great photos, was just near that area a few weeks ago. Great riding and nice to ride in some hills!!! BTW, isn't it an unwritten rule not to mention ''The Beebs" on a motorcycle site???

 

Not sure which is worse... Mentioning him in the first place, or knowing to call him "the beebs".... 😉 I had to go back and review the thread to figure out what you were referring to. Lol

 

Here we are at the top of "Clingman's Dome", the highest point in Tennessee. You can't tell from this pic, but by comparison, it is only 40ft shorter than Mt. Mitchell. It was a very clear day, you could see forever...



On another day, this was the view of the approach to Clingman's Dome. Keep in mind that from this location, you still have a 7mile ride to climb to the summit. Luckily we were in the area for 5 days...

 

The fifth one down (the tunnel looking up) in this group is Awesome!!!! Thats a great pic.

 

Awesome pics Steve!

 

Awesome Steevo, hope to see you soon man.

 

Dood, You caught me by surprise when you mentioned the "dome"....

Other than that the vid was cool..!!!

Dang.....I got to admit.... I miss riding with Eddy on his fatboy....

 

glad you had fun Steeve