The dozen bravehearts accomodated ourselves in 2 dodge caravans, and left on Friday a'noon around 3 o'clock. I was quickly into my act - a few minutes into the trip, and I was happily catching up on my post lunch siesta, as soon as we hit the interstate I-75. The journey was going to take us through the states of Florida, Georgia, North Carolina and finally Tennessee. Our destination was a small town called Pigeon Forge nestled amongst the Smoky Mountains in Tennessee.
The journey till dinner time was pretty easy - Google & Yahoo maps were indeed quite kind to us, and the road was also quite good with 355 miles coming straight out on I-75. People took turns at driving, navigating, listening to music, chatting, catching up on sleep or simply lazing around - I showed more zeal in accomplishing the latter two activities. ;-)
The real fun began when we missed a turn thanks to Yahoo maps at midnight, and then drove more than 50 miles east, when we were just 150 miles south from the destination. Thanks to the fellow at one of the gas stations near Nantahala, who gave us the right directions that we were back on track. The last 30-35 mile part of the journey was through the mountains on the US 441 North. Trying to locate the Park Way (since we were unaware that the US 441 was the Park Way itself), our van took the Blueridge Park Way that took us east again! But as they say, everything happens for the good - the moonlit night gave an absolutely stunning view of the mountain ranges that could be distinguished in different shades of black across the horizon. Little did we know then that these mountains would look even more beautiful during the day.
We finally reached our destination close to 4 in the morning, a good 2-3 hours later than our expected time. But, the chalet which we had booked for our stay made every effort worth in coming all the way from Florida.
A nice wooden cottage perched on the hills furnished with jacuzzi, pool table and fireplace was an ideal holiday home for twelve souls in search for nirvaana. A few of us freshened up with a few games of pool, while some retreated to the cosy beds. At 6.30 in the morning, 6 adventurous guys left to explore the mountains a little bit to have a look at the sunrise. Pigeon Forge is located a few miles off the town of Gatlinburg, an entry point to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, that sits astride the Tennessee–North Carolina border amid the majestic southern climax of the Appalachian Highlands.
I had read a description of the Smokies that goes -
"Worm your way into these rugged, convoluted mountains and you'll find 900 miles of superlative trails, tracts of old-growth forest, views of undulating mountain ridges draped in hazy-blue, "smoky" tendrils of fog, and vivid reminders of the folkways of the Appalachians' early pioneers."
And that morning, I couldnt agree with a more apt description of the place.
Later in the day, we went hiking to Laurel Falls that let us explore the mountains on foot. The trees had begun showing signs of fall colors; the birds were busy with their evening chirpings oblivious to us. The cascades had hidden themselves so beautifully within the neighbours provided by Mother Nature that we had to traverse quite a few turns before we could actually set our eyes on the 60-feet falls. The shadows cast by moonlight on our way back from the falls had an enchanting effect on all of us.
The next morning we set out early again to catch glimpses of what can simply be termed as God's poetry in motion. The sun rose on the eastern skies behind the mountains, the rays of the sun made their way through the morning mist reaching out to the small cottages and barns in the valleys below and all this while, we were rubbing our hands and somewhere in the mind a small thought just passed by,
"Oh God! I am indeed quite lucky to view yet another of your beautiful creations!"
A visit to Ober Gatlinburg, the skiiing resort & amusement park, using America's largest aerial tramway gave us another opportunity to have an aerial look at the Smokies. This visit also let me have a try at ice skating - another first in my life. :-)
The return journey was quite remarkable - all of us werent quite as energetic as a couple of days before, but definitely there was no lesser fun involved - we played guess games to identify who was the biggest Amitabh fan by recognising AB's songs being played from the iPod. The last stretch of the journey was a non-stop 4 hour drive that helped us reach Tampa at 3.30 in the morning.
Looking back - everything seems to have been like a dream come true - the mountains towering over us, the valleys alluring everyone to come down, the fog covering the "Smokies", the chirpings of the birds, the autumn leaves rustling on the road, the gurgling of the little brooks finding their own way - all of these seem to be a distant dream, which I perhaps lived a few days ago...
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