Rally Ends - Boondocking Begins

We've been off line and out of sight since last Tuesday April 19 so I'm going to try to get caught up on the blog a little at a time.  I wrote the posts while we were there, in order fake out my faulty memory, but couldn't post them until we got back to "civilization".  Getting the hundreds of pictures we took organized and just a few for each post was the real challenge. 

Hope you'll enjoy our adventure.

Great Smoky Mountains National Park

Elkmont Campground Site A14

Tuesday April 19

We rolled out of River Plantation Park about 11AM after saying good bye to our good friends who were still there and either moving on or going back home on Wednesday.  We stopped for gas which now

$3.659 per gallon.  $210 for a fill up.YIKES!!

We made a mistake by not filling up our fresh water at the RV park thinking we would do it at the station outside of Sugarland.  That took nearly an hour as the water spigot is about 25’ from the dump station and we had to wait for two folks to dump which took amazingly nearly an hour by the time we filled up our 86 gallon water tank.

And then on to Elkmont Campground which,

like all the campgrounds in the National Park, has no hook ups. 

They have bath houses with flush toilets and sinks but no showers.  

So you have to be willing to boondock when you come.

There are 3 campgrounds that will take larger RVs,

Smokemont in NC,

Elkmont

(about 6.5 miles outside of Gatlinburg)

and Cades Cove

(about 25 miles from Gatlinburg). 

I believe only Smokemont will take any RV over 35’

and I know that you

DO NOT want to take even a 35’ on the road

between Elkmont and Cades Cove. 

There is a way into Cades Cove from Pigeon Forge

that skips the worst part of Little River Road. 

But it is still a windy climbing trip.

Surprisingly on this Tuesday in April
all the river front sites

into which Winnona would fit were taken

but I managed to find us a GREAT stream front site, A14,

which I ended up liking better than the more closely

spaced river front sites in loops C, D & F.

 

We got set up

almost IN the stream.

Whoo Hoo!!

Water Lovers Eat Your Hearts Out!!

I totally LOVE this site.

  

Duckie went in for a swim.

He isn't much of a seminar lover so

he wasn't out and about at the rally

but was glad we were back by the water

  

(I favored the scenery picture but he thought he deserved a close up)

I went for a run

up, up, up the Little River Trail

which runs right UP along the

(you guessed it)

Little River

which this time of year is not so little

but is simply gorgeous. 

Cascades, waterfalls, rocks, tree covered, wide path…….

pictures on another day when I can hike with a camera

Our Elkmont diner had great ambiance, delicious food

and a campfire.

The stream/brook/creek

sings to me all day

and all night. 

Boondocking for the bibliophile complete

with great night sounds.

It's all just

WONDERFUL!!

J