Loop Along Edge of the Park and to Dollywood

Tuesday, June 26, 2018.  A good day as it is my son Ian's Birthday and a good day for a bike ride.  Wendy and I left around 10:00 a.m.after having breakfast at a local cafe, Connie's, and took the back roads from Seymour down to Walland, Townsend, Gatlinburg, and onward to Dollywood in Pigeon Forge.  Wanted to catch a couple of shows today.

A shot over my shoulder at Wndy riding her Glidetrike down Boyds Creek Hwy. to Chapman.

A little overcast but suppose to be nothing to worry about, like rain.

High fog or low cloud but still nothing to worry about.

I'm riding Redbug today as Sweet Thang is in the shop getting some maintenance work.

Wendy trying to get off her trike while I'm making fun of who knows what.  Anyway, she did dismount and we whipped up on some pancakes and coffee.

Seymour First Baptist Church, where we go, looks like a cloud is laying on the roof.  And that is the direction we're heading.

Zipping along on one of the backroads heading toward Walland, TN.

It was nice and cool this morning.   Partly because we have had some rain lately that cooled things off a bit.

The University of TN Agricultural Center.  Lots of green things grown here.  However, today about all you see is the fence and the mountains.  But that's okay with me, still a nice view.

Left turn at the end of the fence and you're on the Old Walland Highway which follows alongside the Little Pigeon River.

A nice mountain and cloud view looking across the Ag Ctr. field.















We entered the Park at the Townsend entrance point.  The river was flowing rather well with all of the recent rains.

Still there were some nice pool areas where the water looked like a mirror it was so smooth.

You had to be careful of the damp or wet sections along the way.  Some of it was seepage from the mountainside along the edge of the road.

We did see a few Kayakers but not as many as I thought I would see.  Usually after a good rain they all run to the river to ride the rapids.

Very serene today.  Very few cars coming or going.  Lets you enjoy the views a bit better.

This particular area had some great changes to it a few days later as it did some major raining up in the mountains the the island in the middle of the river was more like a tree standing alone.

It's hard to believe that many years ago this winding narrow road was the bed for a narrow gauge railroad that hauled huge logs cut from the area to a sawmill located at what is now the Elkmont Campground.

If you drive along the river at low water you can get a better look at what you're going to hit if you tube or kayak it in high water.

Nothing extreme today but let a couple of days of heavy rains up in the mountains come and the little ripples become nice rapids.

Unfortunately I was facing into the sun and way off in the distance is a nice waterfall.  Today it was only a few feet wide.  I have seen it about 30' wide.  It all depends on the amount of rain.

Maneuvering around some of the huge boulders in the river can be a real task.

The drive is nice and easy and cool and quiet.  Just the whir of Redbug's engine.

A nice view of the mountains in the background.

In Gatlinburg we made a turn and went up the Orchard Park Rd.

They are rebuilding one of the houses that last year's fire destroyed.

There's still places that is evident the fire came through.  It is good to see how well Mother Nature makes a comeback.

Trees damaged by the fire but the scrub brush is holding the soil in place.  Time will tell on when the trees come back.

On the way to Dollywood we passed this nice pasture where two horses were grazing. No fighting, just eating. 

We went to Dollywood, caught a couple of shows and then headed back to Downtown Seymour.  It was a very good day, temps not to bad and no rain.  For me it was 122 miles door to door.

So until the next Adventure story, ride safe, visit your friends and neighbors and take a look at this USA.  Peace.