"Off the Beaten Path"

Some of you know that we're part of a group of about 50 cabin owners in the Gatlinburg/Pigeon Forge area who communicate virtually every day through a Yahoo Board. Recently, this message was sent to the Board.

I have a guest coming in about two weeks. They have never been to the area and are not opposed to doing some of the touristy things, yet they would really prefer to do some things off the beaten path. They are not really into the crowds and I thought maybe some of you might have ideas on what to do around Pigeon Forge/Gatlinburg/Park that might have less crowds and be fun for a family of three (couple with a 12 year old son).

Here's what I wrote back (along with some photos to illustrate what I reported.

Hmmmmm. Something off the beaten path? With 10-15 million people showing up every year, I think the path is pretty "beaten." But here are a couple of things we recommend that the 12-year-old might like:

-There are tons of miniature golf courses in Pigeon Forge, of course. But there's one in Gatlinburg that's a little different - Hillbilly Golf. Here's a link: http://gatlinburg-attractions.com/hillbilly_golf_.html. It's on the parkway, north of town, kinda "off the beaten path." You ride a little tram up the mountain, then "play down." Our 11 and 14-year-old grandsons loved it last September.

-If they're into dinosaurs, the Dinosaur Museum, on the parkway north of Pigeon Forge, is fun (it's on the east side of the parkway, kinda near Tennessee State Bank, I think). Here's a link: http://www.dinowalk.com/tn/index.html. Be sure to watch the movie when you first go in. It's long - about 30 minutes - but worth it, even though it's just on a little TV screen. Our boys loved that, too.

-The other thing they liked was Wonder Works - the upside down building. It was lots of fun for us, too. Here's the link: http://www.wonderworkstn.com/.

All these things are expensive, but watch for coupons at the Visitors Center or at the entrance to Wal-Mart.

Oh - another one that's way out Dolly Parton Parkway, east of Sevierville. It's called Deer Farm (http://www.deerfarmzoo.com/). It's like a small zoo. Our kids have enjoyed that and asked to go back.

Other than that, just tell them to drive the parkway and see what they find. Oh yeah, I hear there's a national park in the area, too. And for really good scenery, there's nothing like the Roaring Forks Motor Trail. Here's a link: http://www.nps.gov/grsm/planyourvisit/roaringfork.htm.

Hope they have a good time - and I hope you do, too.

A very cool panoramic photo of Gatlinburg

Just got this link to a beautiful panoramic photo of Gatlinburg. It's too big to post here (it's 19 mb). But here's the link:

http://www.spwhite.com/archives/653

After the picture loads, you can click on it to enlarge it - then scroll around. It looks like it was taken from the top of the "Space Needle" tower in downtown Gatlinburg.

Enjoy!