Tennessee Capitol Building

Sunday - 9 May 2004 - Gatlinburg, Tennessee: This was a Big Day for us. We drove OVER 400 miles! Who knew Tennessee was so wide? We woke up, hitched up the Honda, pointed the camper east on I-40 and didn't stop until we hit Nashville, where we only paused long enough to visit the Tennessee Capitol Building.

Tennessee State Capitol


Andrew Jackson (Old Hickory) guards the east side of the building

Nashville is crazy for all things Greek. The Tennessee Capitol Building is in the Greek style and they actually have an exact replica of the Parthenon downtown. We bypassed The Grand Old Opry, and continued on our Quest. We stopped once more for diesel (93 gallons, $148), missed our chance to visit the Fork Lift Museum and the World's Largest Fireworks Shop to continue on to our destination - Gatlinburg... just up the road from Pigeon Forge. Pigeon Forge is, of course, the Home of Dollywood!
 
After leaving the freeway, we had to travel about 25 miles south to Gatlinburg. On this road we passed a Tanger Factory Outlet, Dollywood, Dolly Splash Country, Dolly's Dixie Stampede Dinner Show, Chinese Acrobat Theater, Ripley's Believe It or Don't Aquarium of the Smoky Mountains (it is filled with sharks... I guess sharks are a native species of Great Smoky Mountain National Park?)... The Louise Mandril Theater, Black Bear Jamboree, Country Tonight Theatre, Wedding Chapels, an Old Mill, a Car Museum, Motels, Mini golf, a Police Museum, Hotels, fast food, Laser Tag, several amusement parks, The Super The Wal-Mart and a Krispie Kreme. And that was just the first mile.

We found a wonderful campsite at the Twin Creek RV Resort in Gatlinburg. Our site under a ridge, with a lot of trees. There is a pleasant stream running through the campground and it is well-shaded. Ridges and trees are awful, of course, for satellite reception, so no satellite internet OR television for us. Expect spotty updates, as I have to actually take my laptop to the laundry room at the campground and use a thing called a telephone to connect to you all!

RV Park: Twin Creek RV Resort