A thought for Easter

Today dawned beautifully where we live (in North Carolina). The Bradford Pear tree outside my office window is in full bloom. Further out into the yard, the forsythia is still bright yellow, as are the daffodils in the woods. We have a huge Japanese cherry tree back by the fence that's in full bloom, and another cherry tree just to its left that will be blooming by tomorrow. Off to the left, our two peach trees are loaded with blossoms.

Just to prove what I'm saying, here's a quick picture:


So what does this have to do with Easter? Or, for that matter, with Gatlinburg?

Just this. We've had a hard winter - more snow than I can remember in our 10 years of living here. And it's been even worse in Gatlinburg. We actually had two guests who had to hike in to Smoky Mountain Tower because their car couldn't get up the road!

But my yard - and pictures I've seen of Gatlinburg - are evidence that Spring is here. Those dead-looking trees are now a gorgeous splash of color. Life is returning.

I think that's God's way of showing us - again - the importance of resurrection. We know that Jesus died. We know He was buried. That's true of all men who have ever lived. But only One Man who has died is now alive forever, because God raised Him from the dead! Just as Spring follows Winter, Christ rose from the dead!

This morning in our Sunday School, we were listening to the boys and girls say their memory verses (we do this every week). One little 4-year-old boy, Isaiah, patiently waited his turn. When he was finally called on, he practically screamed his verse: "HE IS NOT HERE! HE IS RISEN!" (You can read it for yourself in Luke 24:6.)

Isaiah gets it! He was excited, as well we all should be. Spring is here! Jesus is risen!

Good News and Bad News about Roads

We've been monitoring the news on the I-4o rock slide ever since it happened on October 25, 2009. Here we are at the end of the month - and end of the quarter. I-40 has been closed for more than 5 months. But as of today, NCDOT is saying this:

"NCDOT estimates that it will reopen I-40 by late April when work at the October rockslide site should be completed. About one mile of the westbound lane closest to the mountain will be closed until this summer to allow crews to complete the work – including the installation of rock bolts and anchor mesh – at five additional sites."

If you want to monitor the daily news, go to http://www.ncdot.org/travel/i40_rockslide/.

That's the bad news. The good news is that the Cades Cove Loop is opening sooner than expected. My friend, Raymond Owens, reports that it's supposed to open by April 24. You can get more information about this - and about some other road openings and closings in the Smokies - at Raymond's "GoSmoky" blog - http://gosmoky.wordpress.com/.

One more piece of news. Tomorrow is April 1, and we have some April last-minute specials on our Web sites - www.SmokyMountainTower.com or www.SmokiesRentDirect.com/All-Decked-Out. No foolin'!

REALLY Last Minute Deal at Smoky Mountain Tower

Today is March 24 and Smoky Mountain Tower is booked through March 28. We only have three days open in March - the 29th, 30th and 31st. We would really like to have some folks enjoy Smoky Mountain Tower for those last three nights in March.

So we've made a special deal for the first person to book all three nights. The total price is only $370.89! That's 15% off our already-low price, so you can save $65.45. This works out to a rental rate of less than $110 a night - not bad, considering the price was $40 higher a year ago!

Here's all you have to do to get this rate:
-Go to our Web site - www.SmokyMountainTower.com
-Click on the "Book Online Now" button
-Enter these dates in the calendar - arriving on March 29, departing on April 1 (3 nights)
-Click the "Review and Book" button
-On the page that opens, scroll down to the section titled "Coupon Code." Enter this code: March15off - exactly as shown (coupon codes are case-sensitive), then click "Redeem." That will change the rate total to $370.89.

Then just enter all the required information, follow the directions and you'll be on your way.

Hurry! This deal goes away Saturday at noon. Somebody is going to get this deal - I hope it's you!

A Hot Time at All Decked Out

Oh, the joys of owning a rental cabin. A couple of weeks ago, we started hearing from our guests that they couldn't seem to get it warm enough on the main floor and lower level of All Decked Out. Because All Decked Out was booked up, it was impossible to get someone in to look at our heat pump system until yesterday.

Last night I got the bad news. After 16 faithful years, our heat pump had bitten the dust. So today, we had a new, bigger, better unit installed. In the process, we got a new thermostat that will be much easier to read - and to use. And the installers worked to better balance the air flow between the main floor and the lower level so both levels should be more evenly heated and cooled.

We're thankful for plastic! We don't have to pay for it until next month. But it's gonna really hurt then. I won't tell you what it cost, but the first number is a 5! So now we REALLY need to have more guests make reservations at All Decked Out, so we can pay for this new unit.

The good news is that we'll save a little on energy costs. Yeah, I calculated it. Based on the estimated savings, it will only take us 11 years to pay for the new unit. And by then, we'll probably need another new one!

On top of that, we also found we have to replace the hot tub cover. Our guests are so good! They took such good care of our hot tub cover that it has lasted for seven years - which Ingrid (our cleaner) thinks may be some kind of record. Thank you!

So head for All Decked Out, and enjoy the added comfort of new heat and air conditioning, as well as a new hot tub cover!

National Park Photos - Part 3

Okay, thanks for your patience in letting me post pictures of my new grandson here. I've figured out another way to share those pictures, so we'll get back to Gatlinburg. (If you're interested, pictures of Adam are now found at www.dbaseler.net.)

This is part 3 of my trip through the park a few weeks ago. Now we're on the Gatlinburg side, and I ran into pretty thick fog. Together with more "icefalls," it was a beautiful site. Take a look!

As I came down the mountain toward Gatlinburg, I went through several tunnels.

Coming out of one of the tunnels, I found this "icefall." This is usually a flowing waterfall in the summer.


About halfway from Newfound Gap to Gatlinburg, the fog rolled in.


As you can see, the farther down I went, the thicker the fog became.


But you know what - it wasn't fog. I was just going through the clouds, just like a plane descending to land. By the time I got to the Sugarlands Visitors Center, just before Gatlinburg, everything was just cloudy. I had driven from sunlight, through the clouds, and was finally below the clouds.

After all, these are the "smoky" mountains!

Pictures of Adam Jones

I know ... this blog is supposed to be about our Gatlinburg cabins. But you'll forgive me for sending along one more post with a photo slide show of our new grandson, Adam. We got to meet him today when we took his older brother, Drake, back home. Tim's parents, Dean and Betty Jones, came down from Boone, NC and went with us to Charlotte. The five of us (Drake, Dean, Betty, Phyllis and Dave) arrived about 2 minutes after Tim and Angie arrived home from the hospital - they were still in the car when we pulled up. This was the first time Tim and Angie had seen Drake in a week. It took only a few minutes before Drake was introduced to his baby brother - still in the car!

So here he is - all 9-pound-6-ounce-22-inches of him - Adam Hartley Jones!

Our Newest Grandson

(Edited Thursday noon, 2/25)

I know I promised you pictures of fog in the National Park, but we're interrupting that post to bring you special news.

Our daughter, Angie, and her husband, Tim, today welcomed our newest grandchild into the family. (This is kind of a business post, since Angie handles our reservations for Smoky Mountain Tower and All Decked Out.)

Adam Hartley Jones* was born February 24 at 4:03 pm. He is 22 inches long and weighed in at 9 pounds, 6 ounces. Both mother and baby are doing well, although the baby had a rough passage and may have dislocated his shoulder. So he's spending his first night in ICU, just to be safe.

Here's one picture.


You can find more at Angie's Facebook page. Here's the link (just copy the whole link and paste it into your browser):

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2055290&id=1150659988&l=f17e0cacbe

*Adam is for Tim's great-grandfather. Hartley is Phyllis' maiden name. We really like the way this all fits together - "Tim and Angie, Drake and Adam."