tennessee – Page 4 – Smokies Guide

Roan Mountain State Park

Roan Mountain State Park (RMSP) sits at the base of Roan Mountain. Roan Mountain rises 6,285 feet above sea level and there is no better way to see all of Roan Mountain then by sending a weekend at Roan Mountain State Park. Swimming, hiking, fishing, camping or staying in a cabin, all of this and more await you in one of the most beautiful state park on the Tennessee side of the Smoky Mountains.

Roan Mountain is the big draw for this state park. The twisting mountain road that gets you to the top are only part of the fun. The hiking trails at the top of Roan Mountain offer spectacular views of the mountains to the east and the valleys to the west. Also at the top of the mountain, in the spring, visitors are welcomed by a covering of pink from the blooming of the catawaba rhododendron that inhabit the rhododendron garden. This garden has one of the best collections of rhododendrons you will find in the Smoky Mountains. People come from all over the country to see the rhododendrons that bloom in this garden above 3,000 feet.

Roan Mountain State Park gives you plenty of options if you would like to stay overnight. Many people choose to stay in the campground that includes 107 camp sites. Or if you want a few more amenities, they also have 30 cabins in the park. These cabins sleep up to 4 people, have a fully outfitted kitchen, full bath, a wood burner stove and a heater. You can stay out in the wilderness without having to break out the tent or pull in an RV.

While you are at the RMSP you can fish, hike or swim (during season). Or you can take part in one of their many special events:

Winter Naturalist Rally
Easter Egg Hunt
Spring Naturalist’s Rally
Jr. Trout Tournament
Memorial Day Celebration
Diamond Jubilee
Rhododendron Festival
Independance Day Celebration
Jr. Ranger Camp
Xtreme Roan Adventures Youth Rally
Fall Naturalist’s Rally
Chili Cook-off
Autumn Harvest
Halloween in the Campground
Old Time Yule

Make sure that you visit Roan Mountain State Park, the next time you are in the Smoky Mountain area. Depending on your visit, you may want to take the time to drive to the top of Roan Mountain and check out the rhododendrons when they are in bloom. Spend some time at the base of the mountain exploring the many activities that RMSP has to offer people that visit the area.

Sweet Fanny Adams Theatre

Quicksilver Nonsense!

Are you looking for the oldest live show on the Tennessee side of the Smokies? Look no further than Sweet Fanny Adams Theatre (SFAT)! Since 1977, they have been producing and staging brand new works of musical comedy, year after year after year. They are located in one of the most intimate venues in the Smokies and if you are looking for that something that is completely out of the norm, you are looking for SFAT, you may just not know it yet.

Don and Pat MacPherson opened the Sweet Fanny Adams Theatre, still at its original location, in 1977. They had been in the movies and on stage as writers, actors and entertainers for years and when their family began to grow they fled to the Smokies to have a haven in which to raise their children. And now, those same children that grew up in and around the theater are running this madhouse and making people laugh and roll in the aisles. In fact, sometimes you can catch three generations of MacPherson in the theater. This wonderful history and the family environment shine through in all their performances. And if you go more than once, you will find that even the audience has become part of the family.

Something that sets the shows at Sweet Fanny Adams Theatre apart from the rest of the shows in town is the fact that each year, SFAT brings a new show to stage each season. They write, produce and mount a new show each spring that brings in the funny and the bawdy humor that people have come to expect each season. Usually they run two shows a week. One is a brand new production while the second show is a follies-style show. The original show lasts through the first half of the night. The follies show is a collection of short pieces that are all tied together, however loosely that may be. Each season at SFAT gives you the opportunity to experience brand new , live entertainment in a music hall atmosphere.

If you are looking for Sweet Fanny Adams Theatre, you don’t have to search very hard. They are located in the middle of Gatlinburg at traffic light #3. Also at traffic light #3 is a parking garage, so finding parking for SFAT is not very difficult either. Look for the smiling faces of the people welcoming their guests into a vaudeville theatre, barking to fill the house and you have found Sweet fanny Adams.

Experience tradition in Gatlinburg. Experience the wonder of a turn of the century music hall right in the heart of Gatlinburg. Make sure that Sweet Fanny Adams is on your list ‘to do’ while you are in the Smokies.

Sweet Fanny Adams Theatre
461 Parkway
Gatlinburg, TN
(865) 436-4038

Riverstone Family Restuaurant

Looking for a great place to grab a bite just outside the National Park, but close enough to still feel like you’re amongst the trees, try the Riverstone Family Restaurant in Townsend. It still has that country feel as if you’ve stumbled across some off the beaten path eatery in a wooded clearing.

It’s also one of the few Townsend restaurants serving breakfast, lunch, and dinner, meaning there’s always something for everyone on the menu. Whether it’s eggs sunny side up you’re craving, or just a sandwich to get you back on the trail, Riverstone is a great place to eat on the “Peaceful Side of the Smokies”.

Townsend makes its hay at maintaining its small town charm, but sometimes your culinary options can be pretty limited. That’s one reason why there is only one fast food restaurant in Townsend. There are really only a handful of places to eat. Finding a breakfast locale can be especially hard on the first time visitor to Townsend and the Cades Cove portion of the National Park. Riverstone Family Restaurant’s breakfast choices are quite sumptuous. Whatever your heart desires, whether it is bacon to omelets to a la carte, there’s something for even the pickiest of breakfast connoisseurs on the menu. A personal favorite is the delicious country ham breakfast – eggs, grits and hashbrowns are gathered up snuggly with a thick cut of country ham perfectly aged. For those who grew up outside the South, country ham is salt-cured ham traditionally served on most Southern breakfast tables.

And don’t forget to stop back by for lunch or supper. Take a look at the appetizers first, the fried green tomatoes at the Riverstone Family Restaurant take a back seat to no one. Breaded, thick cut tomatoes are a great start to any meal. Let Riverstone Family Restaurant introduce you to fried green tomatoes. The sandwiches are some of the best in the area as well. The Riverstone Burger is simply gigantic and will leave anyone full. The menu even has a new section for vegetarian selections, including a garden burger. Still, don’t look past the entrees. Actually, aim right for it if you’re hungry. The menu consists of Southern staples like steaks, grilled chicken, country fried steak, and the like. A few of their specialties include country ham, rainbow trout, beef liver and onions, and frog legs. Sample a few of their Southern specialties; it will do your taste buds a world of good.

The Riverstone Family Restaurant’s down-home atmosphere is one of the other reasons people keep coming back, even out-of-towners on numerous occasions. The restaurant’s oil tablecloths and the numerous knick-knacks adorning the wall will take you back to your grandmother’s kitchen. Check out all the Townsend history on the walls of the dining room, you’re sure find a few memories if you’re from around here. During the colder months, Riverstone’s fireplace crackles in one corner of the restaurant as everyone gets that warm cozy feeling while enjoying their meal – a touch home that you won’t find anywhere else.

Combine the food with the atmosphere and it’s a memory you’ll want to revisit time and again, literally. Come for breakfast and dinner, or breakfast and lunch, or all three at Riverstone Family Restaurant, it’s sure to be one of your favorite Townsend restaurants. We dare you to find a better breakfast anywhere near the Great Smoky Mountain National Park. Been hiking all day and need a meal that is going to stick to your ribs? Well, I think you’ve found your destination.

State Parks

Around the Great Smoky Mountain area there are numerous state parks that offer hours of recreational activities and educational opportunities. Whether the state parks are dedicated to a natural wonder in the park itself or attached to a historic event that took place, the state parks on both sides of the Smokies are remarkable.

Tennessee State Parks

From Roan Mountain at the top of one of the highest points in Tennessee to the birthplace of Davy Crockett, the Tennessee state parks cover lots of history and lots of territory, from the northern part of east Tennessee to the area near Chattanooga. The parks also range in size and activities that are offered – camping, historical monuments, hiking, swimming, fishing and much more.

North Carolina State Parks

Celebrating both the wonders of nature and historic people from Western North Carolina, the state parks on the eastern side of the Smokies are spectacular. New River State Park celebrates the New River area which was labeled as one of the National Scenic Rivers during the country’s bicentennial. Great mountain scenery and plenty of wildlife make this a gorgeous park. Mount Mitchell celebrates something else all together. Mount Mitchell, at 6,684 feet is the tallest point east of the Mississippi River. Majestic and beautiful this is the best way to enjoy the wonder that is Mount Mitchell.

Spend some time at one of the state parks, either in North Carolina or Tennessee. Learn more about the area you are visiting, appreciate the natural resources that the government has set aside and protected for future generations and of course enjoy the activities and services that are added by these state parks.

Hatfield & McCoy’s Dinner Feud

Everyone loves a dinner show. You get to see world class entertainment and you get to eat a great meal at the same time. One of the most successful dinner show locations in the Smokies is the Hatfield & McCoy’s Dinner Feud. Taking its story from the mountain families of the Hatfields and McCoys, there is lots of comedy, lots of music, lots of dancing and lots of food. This is the perfect evening in the Smokies – good family fun in the Smokies with great people and great food.

Most people know the story of the Hatfields and McCoys. Two mountain families that found themselves embroiled in a feud that lasted generations. The show takes a tongue in cheek look at this feud and add a competition between the families to see who can entertain the people at the show more. Singing, dancing, clogging and lots of comedy are brought to you by one of the best casts in Pigeon Forge. This multi-million dollar production brings the fun and the glitz of a live show to thousands of families each season.

It is a dinner show so, of course, we have to talk about the food. Here is what they bring each and every person that comes to show each night:

Feudin’ Fried Chicken
Open Pit Pulled-to-Pieces Pork Barbeque
Southern Style Creamy Soup
Smashed Mashed Taters
Bust Y’er Jeans Pinto Beans
Keep It Comin’ Cornbread
No Tellin’ What’s In It Coleslaw
Granny’s Famous Specialty Dessert

You will have a table full of food. You will find that you are full by the time you are halfway through with your chicken. Arrive hungry and prepared to eat because there is no shortage of food at the Hatfields and McCoys Dinner Feud.

And talk about easy to find. When you first pull into town at traffic light ‘0,’ you can see the Hatfield and McCoys theater at the top of the next hill. Look for the Titanic and turn before you get to it and you are at the Hatfields and McCoys Dinner Feud. Call and make reservations so that you get the best seats possible. Let the courteous staff help you plan your evening and get you prepared for a great night out in the Smokies. If you have been coming to the area for a number of years, you will know this location and theater as the old home of the Black Bear Jamboree. The same folks still own the theater and they are still bringing the funny and the talent to the stage each and every show. Come feud, come eat, come enjoy!

Hatfield & McCoy’s Dinner Feud
119 Music Rod
Pigeon Forge, TN
865-908-7469
http://www.hatfieldmccoydinnerfeud.com/
https://www.facebook.com/hatfieldmccoy

Great Smoky Mountain Heritage Center

Want to learn more about life in the Smoky Mountains before the turn of the 20th century? Then you need to pay a visit to the Great Smoky Mountain Heritage Center (GSMHC).

This museum and living history location teaches visitors about the people that settled the area and made their homes in the Smokies during the 1800s. The GSMHC has three separate exhibits: Native Americans of East Tennessee Museum, Pioneer and Mountain Culture & Tennessee on the Move.

Native Americans of East Tennessee

Before the first European settlers came to the area, native people like the Cherokee dwelled in the mists of the Smoky Mountains. These people had more then just a hunting and gathering culture. They had a society that had trade and infrastructure, they had political meetings and communities that stretched from the valleys to the hillsides. This museum celebrates those people and their way of life before they were moved on by the European settlers that found this area to be so similar to the homes they left in Europe.

Pioneer & Mountain Culture

As the pioneer moved into the Southern Appalachians, they founded farms and homesteads. They developed small communities that traded with each other and helped each other make it through the good times and the bad. This part of the museum picks up the story of these mountains after the Native Americans had moved out of the mountains and the settlers and pioneers had made this land their own. From the type of farming they did to the commerce they practiced. Included in this part of the GSMHC is a living history farming display. During the warmer months of the year and the harvest you can go see how these people lived, farmed and harvested their crops. Included in the living history section are:

The Caldwell Log Cabin
Granary
The Montvale Station
Sawmill
Set-Off House from the Little River Lumber Company
Smokehouse
Two Cantilever Barns
Underground Still / Shed
Wheelwright Shop
Wilder Chapel

Tennessee on the Move

This is a collection of various forms of transportation that have gotten Tennesseans on the move since the 1800s. Included in this exhibit is a freight wagon, a postal wagon, farming vehicles and turn of the century road construction equipment.

Spend a day in Townsend next time you visit the Smokies. Learn more about the people that inhabited this region before the establishment of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Get your kids into history by letting them experience it first hand. And be sure to check with the GSMHC before you arrive and see what special events they have going on. You might find that this becomes a place you visit on every visit to the area.

Great Smoky Mountain Heritage Center
3/4 miles east of the traffic light
at the intersection of Hwy 321 and Hwy 73
Townsend, TN
865-448-0044

Cheese Cupboard & Hofbrauhaus

If you blink, you’ll miss one of the town’s best kept secrets – the Cheese Cupboard nestled in The Village shopping area in Gatlinburg. It’s your classic Bavarian cheese shop with a wide selection of every kind of cheese from Brie to Gouda. Combined with the restaurant located upstairs and you’ve found a hidden gem in Gatlinburg that even the most detailed foodie might pass by. The Hofbrauhaus Restaurant is known around town for its famous Reuben sandwich, which you must try to believe.

The Cheese Cupboard opened its doors in 1969 downtown. For the small scale of the store, the variety of cheeses, imported chocolates and imported beers on hand is surprising. It’s hard to find any empty shelf space in here. From Brie to Blue, and cheddar to Camembert, the Cheese Cupboard is a turophile’s (cheese lover) dream come true in Tennessee. Maybe you’re looking for something specific or you just want to shop for a new kind of cheese, the selection at the Cheese Cupboard will leave you satisfied.

Upstairs is where the real hidden treasure lies. Literally, the back staircase goes straight up to a German connoisseurs buffet. The narrow staircase leads you to a small dining area with an even smaller kitchen on the left hand side. This is the Hofbrauhaus, a German restaurant the likes of which you read about travel diaries and children’s tales. It’s a modest menu, but not lacking in delicious German fare. Sandwiches, bratwurst, and cheese all align one side of the menu but the main reason for a visit is their Reuben. They are renowned for this specialty, called the “The Super Reuben.” Stacked high with corned beef, sauerkraut, Swiss cheese and homemade sauce, this incredible German sandwich is worth the trek up the stairs alone. Melted cheese and tangy sauerkraut emerge out of every bite and tell your senses why it really is the best Reuben in the Smokies. Coarse ground mustard, horseradish and relish can be found on each table so that you can condiment till your heart’s content.

The Hofbrauhaus dining area is also a large part of the appeal. Cozy and quaint, with seating for no more than 12 or 16, this is one of those places where if you have a big enough group; you just might be dining alone, something hard to find in Gatlinburg. The interior looks like a small, turn-of-the-century German gastro pub. Dark wood and furnishings highlight the dining area. A little reminder, your waiter will also be cooking for you and bringing your drinks. They will also be the person working the register downstairs in the cheese shop. Patience is a virtue; good things come to those who wait.

During the week try something different in Gatlinburg for lunch, rather than going to a fast food restaurant, take time to seek out and stop by the Hofbrauhaus restaurant. Our recommendation, get the Reuben, or one of the other fantastic sandwiches. Butter it up with some fresh horseradish or mustard sauce and enjoy a great meal in one of those places that seems off the beaten but really isn’t. Purchase some fine cheese from the Cheese Cupboard as a tasty souvenir. People will ask you where you ate and won’t believe you when you tell them.

Lumberjack Feud Dinner Show

Lumberjack Feud is now Dolly Parton’s Smoky Mountain Adventures. Information is maintained below for historical purposes.

One of the newest entertainment venues in Pigeon Forge, TN is the Lumberjack Feud. The Lumberjack Feud is one of the first non-musical shows in Pigeon Forge and it’s a dinner show to boot. Their state of the art theater is located right off the parkway between traffic lights 3 and 4. The theater is divided into seats for the dinner and show and seats that are just for the show. As you enter the theater, you get your picture taken with your entire party and then you are escorted to your seats. You will find that the cast you will see in the show later is helping to seat the audience. There of course is an opportunity to get plenty of snacks at the concession stand, if you chose not to do the dinner and show, as you make your way to your seats.

As the lights go down and the show starts, you are entertained by Danny Black – the ‘world famous lumberjack of the Smokies.’ Danny is the host for the show and helps move the action along and make sure that everyone is following the plot. Besides that he is extraordinarily funny, a talented juggler and physical comedian and he masterfully works the crowd. The crowd interaction starts immediately as well, with people in the crowd being brought onto the stage and made part of the show.

The plot is a feud between two logging families in the Smokies. The show takes place right around the time that the Great Smoky Mountain National Park has been created by President Roosevelt. The time of logging in the Smokies is almost over and the two families can see that they are not going to be logging in the Smokies anymore so there is a competition to decide which family has the best lumberjacks and lumberjills in the Smokies.

The competition portion is great. These are professional lumberjacks that are participating in traditional lumberjack sports. The events that are featured include: the standing shop, cross-cut saw pull, log rolling and much more. The hot saw is a crowd favorite. They fire up the saws, let the engines warm up and then make two of the fastest cuts you will ever see made at a dinner show. Of course, seeing lumberjack games at a dinner show is a little odd anyway. They even get their family pets into the action with a series of dog games including a long jump into the pool that is the center of the stage.

The main action in that pool is the log rolling event that ends the evening and decides the winner of the nights show. As you cheer on your family (the audience is divided in two halves to cheer on the different families) two of the lumberjacks take to the log and began to roll against each other. The feet are flying and the water is splashing and you are waiting for someone to go into the drink. They do a best out-of-three competition and it really is the highlight of the show.

Make sure that you check out the Lumberjack Feud in Pigeon Forge. It is brand new, it is completely different and it will make memories for your family that you will never forget. The facility is amazing; there is a great cast and something completely different from the traditional variety show that you usually see in Pigeon Forge.

International Friendship Bell

During World War II Oak Ridge, TN was known as the Secret City. It was and still is the host city for a government lab that is dedicated to researching all things atomic. During the war, this research was designed to create the nuclear bombs that helped to end the war. The bombs that they helped create were dropped on two Japanese cities: Hiroshima and Nagasaki. In the early 90s, in celebration to the 50th anniversary of the founding of Oak Ridge and its part in the Manhattan Project.

Why the International Friendship Bell:

The bell was designed to fit into the theme of the City’s Celebration – Born of war, living for peace, growing through science.
The bell incorporates dates that reflect the workers in Oak Ridge with the Manhattan Project. The role they played in helping to end WWII and the Cold War.
The bell, due to its traditional Japanese design is designed in a hope to focus on the peace between nations and promote understanding between the nation of Japan and the United States.

After a community wide exploration of what to do to celebrate the 50 year anniversary, it was decided to tie in the destruction to the two cities in Japan to the monument and the International Friendship Bell was commissioned. The bell itself is a traditional Japanese bell. It measures almost 5 feet wide at the base and is over 6 feet tall. This impressive item is housed in a Japanese style enclosure and is made of bronze. The outside of the bell is decorated with Japanese characters and is a work of art. The two main panels on the bell were designed by Oak Ridge citizen Suzanna Harris. The panels are covered in the natural characteristics of both Tennessee and Oak Ridge. The official flowers, birds, and trees of each of these locations are etched into the bronze itself. The basic goal is to extend that hand of peace to the people over the years that will see the bell and remind them of the past and to look to the future.

Next time you are in Oak Ridge, look for Bissell Park. The bell itself is hard to miss. It is a very large structure and a focal point in the park. Stroll around the park and spend sometime with the International Friendship Bell. Run your hands over the bronze figures and reliefs. Grab the ringer and give it a go and listen to the tone that the bell makes. Take your children and let them learn some history. Let them learn about Oak Ridge and its connection to World War II and the world.

Davy Crockett Birthplace State Park

Tennessee has some great historic sites. Being a territory during the Revolutionary War, becoming a state soon after left Tennessee as a border state of a burgeoning country and many American heroes passed through the area. From Sam Houston to Daniel Boone, these early American’s left there touch on the Tennessee side of the Smokies. Another of those people that passed through the area was Davy Crockett. In fact, he was born in the area that would become the town of Limestone, TN. His birthplace has become the site of a great state park: Davy Crockett Birthplace State Park.

The state of Tennessee has preserved this area and the cabin that sits in its heart as a legacy to the past and to the personage of Davy Crockett. Limestone, TN is the closest town to the state park. As you travel through East Tennessee along I-81 you will see an exit for 11E. Take that exit and you are going to wind through beautiful landscape back to the state park. Follow the signs, it is easy to find and the drive to this state park is only part of the fun.

Davy Crockett was born August 17, 1786 in the Limestone community of Tennessee. The cabin that is sitting on the site is not the original cabin but it is a replica of what the Crockett cabin might have looked like. It is the same size and shape of the cabins that were customary during that time. Crockett grew up in this area and of course would eventually go on to become a representative of the state of Tennessee and would even be touted in popular culture on the 1950s TV show that bore his name.

Part of the fun of coming to the Davy Crockett Birthplace State Park is being in the setting, on the site where Davy Crockett grew up. The Nolichucky River that he fished in when he was young is a stone’s throw from the cabin. The gentle roll of the landscape is probably the same as what he helped his family farm on and part of the reason that his parents choose this piece of land to settle on. When you are done exploring the cabin, go to the Crockett Monument located in front of the cabin. Find the natural stone from your state of origin. Go to the Davy Crockett museum and learn not only about Davy Crockett the man but Davy Crockett the legend.

Or maybe you are looking for a great place to camp for the night or the weekend. The Davy Crockett Birthplace State Park has a great, full service campground. The have a swimming pool complex that is open during the season. A pavilion by the river and a boat ramp offer plenty of opportunities to play in the water or do some serious fishing. Get out and explore the state parks of the great state of Tennessee, spend some time analyzing the past of our nation and the state. Visit the Davy Crockett Birthplace State Park.