We set off on our Maiden Voyage with the Airstream on Wednesday, May 26th at 7:55am (note the time as we were 5 minutes ahead of schedule, no small feat). Locked and loaded, first things first, we activated Wifi in the truck, which turned into a lifesaver move. We headed south and only required one roadside stop before lunch at a rest area and a fill up, and then off to Muscatine, Iowa where we set up show and explored Wildcat Den State Park and all of its caves. We ventured home and picked up bugels, icees, doughnuts, and finally found the firewood we were looking for at a roadside and had to phone a friend(?). We saw an incredible sunset over the Mississippi River and had dinner camp side, the kids rode bikes with new friends and we hit the road the following morning.
After another full day of driving, we landed in Muncie, Indiana at a KOA. The set up was actually pretty good, but we had an agenda which ended up curbing good plans and our final plan turned sour. After a good meal, we had a family melt down and a lost (but eventually found) backpack and a lost wallet (which was never found). Driving through towns at all speeds late into the night, bedtime was after 1am. The morning brought another failed search attempt before we decided to just get on the road to Tennessee, which took twice as long as we had hoped. We had a late but safe arrival.
We took a day off of driving on Saturday, stayed at Norris Dam State Park, what an incredible spot to spend 4 days. The scenery is top notch, we hiked and biked (against the rules) all day, it was great to stay out of the car. Sunday brought us to Gatlinburg for a chairlift tour and then lunch with the Zepedas. What a treat. We wandered into The Smoky Mountains just as the clouds cleared, it was more incredible than I could have ever imagine. We toured, hiked, and hit the road just in time to hit a traffic jam. We ended up getting roadside pizza at 8:30pm and finally back to the camper around 9:30, we were all so exhausted. But what an incredible day.
Sunday was Sully's 9th birthday and what a day it was! He chose mini golf, the candy shop, and bumper boats at Pigeon Forge and the kids all had so much fun, the sun was out and spirits were high. We followed that up with a picnic in the Smoky Mountains and then a waterfall hike where we spotted 3 black bears. What a treat. I can't think of a better birthday. We came home early for a laundromat stop and then dinner at a floating restaurant on Lake Norris, then a failed campfire cookie, and finally, he got to sleep in Dave's spot that night, all in all, a great day.
To be continued...
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| All ready to go! |
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| A lunch stop near Des Moines, IA. |
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| Wildcat Den State Park |
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| The coolest caves. |
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| take 245 |
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| A lovely sunset. |
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| Unwinding at our campsite in Muncie, IN. |
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| Smoke (clouds) in the Smoky Mountain terrain. |
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| Friday morning hike in Norris Dam State Park, TN. |
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| I couldn't get enough of the greenery everywhere. |
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Learning to bike ride along Songbird Trail.
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| See mom, this is where it says 'no biking allowed!' |
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| Norris Dam |
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| Gatlinburg, TN |
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| Foreshadowing |
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| More foreshadowing... |
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| Exploring with the Zepedas. |
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| Reunited after 6 years, always a pleasure, Piper loved Tyler ;). |
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| Greta and Daddy at Clingman's Dome. |
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| The visrticle hike to Clingman's Dome. |
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| Bumper Boats, hilariously fun. |
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| Sweet message we found on our hike. |
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| Mama bear. |
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| Laurel Falls Hike. |
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| The freedom of exploring. |
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| An amazing photo op. |
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| All done! |
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| Reality |
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| Look who's 9! |
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A perfect birthday party, with all of the stufty
friends in the audience. |
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