Find out what the Smokies are all about. We'll keep you informed of all the fun activities like hiking, shopping, fishing, or scenic mountain drives. Learn about all the Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge attractions, restaurants, and shopping.
Sunday, August 27, 2006
Crafting the future on Gatlinburg’s East Parkway
With nary a billboard to its name, the Great Smoky Mountains Arts and Crafts Community has been called Gatlinburg’s best-kept secret. But the eight-mile “crafts loop” also is one of the area’s oldest and largest attractions – and keeps growing every year. Read the full story- click here.
“Really, what we have out here is the future of Gatlinburg,” said Kevin Tierney, president of the crafts community. “People who come out to Glades Road are a little more adventurous, a little more willing to go off the beaten track to find something unique.”
Easily accessible from Stoplight #3-A on Gatlinburg’s East Parkway [the main turn-off to get to the Bear's Den], the crafts loop adds new artists and craftspeople every season alongside local institutions like Tierney’s own Lorelei Candles, which opened a quarter-century ago.
Visitors come to the crafts loop for a kind of intimacy – as well as the lure of unique artwork and crafts. Members of the arts and crafts community agree to keep at least part of their production process out in the open, which lets people see skills from pottery to Lucite carving to making the perfect cappuccino. “Basically, we’re a craft show going on 365 days a year,” Tierney said, adding that the area’s mountain folkways was a major draw for tourists even in the early days of the national park.
For details about the community’s craftspeople, directions to the crafts loop and other information on the Great Smoky Mountains Arts and Crafts Community, visit www.artsandcraftscommunity.com.
Tennessee is a great destination for the avid vacationer and the couple or family looking to get away to a more rural lifestyle. Of course if you are into the big city life, Tennessee can accommodate you for that as well.
Eastern Tennessee is one of the foremost vacation destinations in the Southeastern United States with cities such as Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge and of course the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The Smoky Mountain National Park is the most visited National Park in the United States with more than 9 million visitors every year and Cades Cove is the most popular destination within the park. Cades Cove offers a look back to what life was like for the early settlers during the 19th century. A 10 mile loop road around the Cove is the highlight of a visit here.
The park also includes more than 800 miles of hiking trails for everyone from a casual nature walk to backcountry rock climbing.
Gatlinburg is the main town that services the National Park and if you aren't camping in the park you are probably staying in Gatlinburg. An interesting little known fact about Gatlinburg is that ten times as many people lodge in Gatlinburg every night as live there. Gatlinburg and the surrounding area boasts accommodations for more than 30,000 people. Some of the more popular places to stay are in log cabins with incredible mountain views or in a secluded wooded cabin away from everything. There isn't anything that will give you more of a sense of the rural and relaxing lifestyle than to vacation in a log cabin.
Gatlinburg's sister city, Pigeon Forge, offers many attractions and hotels on the main road through town. Go-karts and the Dollywood theme park are the more popular attractions. Pigeon Forge also boasts one of the largest outlet malls in the south for the person that can never get enough shopping.
Tennessee has a rich history that includes many major battles fought in the Civil War. If you are a civil war buff you can visit such historic sites as Chattanooga National Military Park, Fort Donelson National Military Park, Shiloh National Military Park, Stones River National Military Park and the Andrew Johnson National Historic Site as well as others.
If you would like to live in Tennessee and still be close to the mountains, but away from the tourist areas, then Knoxville is your city. With a population of 180,000 and great home prices you can be within 45 minutes of the Smokies and enjoy everything the city has to offer.
And if you do enjoy the amenities of the big city life then Memphis will surely accommodate you. The Memphis metropolitan area has a population over 1.2 million and offers everything you could want in a big city. It is famous for music and has produced several genres of well know music such as the blues, rock n roll and gospel. Some of the more famous Memphis musicians are B.B. King, Johnny Cash and of course the King of Rock n Roll, Elvis Presley.
Tennessee offers a little bit of everything for almost every one. Come and enjoy a great vacation or choose Tennessee as your permanent address.
New Internet Forum For Smoky Mountain Cabin Owners
Ever wonder what OTHER cabin owner's are doing and thinking? For those of us that fell in love with the Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg areas, and then bought a vacation cabin, that can be a real problem. Many do not live near their cabins and have them managed by a rental management company. The only news we get about the over-night rental market is from their newsletters or the occasional news story. That's about to CHANGE!
Thanks to Lisa Faust of the PigeonForge - Gatlinburg OwnersYahoo! Groups forum, cabin owners can now share tips and get questions answered from other cabin owners that have "been there - done that"!
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