Monday, September 12, 2016

Sunday September 11 (Pigeon Forge to Ayden)

On a day that no-one will ever forget, it was time to farewell Tennessee.

I had a good night's sleep and was woken up at 7.20 as we were to leave at 8 am. We went to the Red Rooster for breakfast before filling up the vehicles. It was a cloudy day and there had been quite a bit of rain overnight. We were to follow Chris and the family as we they knew the spots to stop for some good photo ops.

We took the scenic route out of  Pigeon Forge and it was a beautiful drive in spite of the low cloud. 

We stopped to take photos overlooking Gatlinburg and later of the cloud over the mountains with the sun trying to break through. All through the Smokies it is evident Fall is not far away as some leaves are beginning to change colour.

We travelled on until we reached Newfound Gap where we crossed back into NC. By this time the sun was breaking through and the cloud was lifting. 

There were some beautiful views on the one side and the cloud was lifting rapidly, the other side of the road was still covered in low cloud. My ears popped eight times in total on the way up a down through the Smoky Mountains.

We passed through Cherokee Town, it is very well named as obviously it is a centre for Cherokee Indians. No surprise that there is also a Harrahs Casino in the town, lol! My ears popped three more times as we drove along the foothills, definitely an ear-popping day, lol!.

We stopped at Soco Falls, a very pretty waterfall alongside the road. We climbed down a steep path and I stopped at the landing before the base of the falls where there were some very good views of it. The rain the night before would have certainly helped the water flow. 

We then stopped at a Burger King car park in Canton, on the way to Asheville, so Sonya could collect her new puppy. She is a Teacup Chihuahua and her name will be Luna. She is eight weeks old and a real sweetheart, she was very calm and relaxed about all the new people and the travel. This was evident each time we stopped.

We stopped for some food and then again when I needed a toilet stop. It was a large truck stop, The Flying J, and it stocked just about everything, lol!. 

As I walked into the restroom this loud make voice came over the Intercom, "Would person shower number 62 please go to the showers now, your shower is ready for you, please use number 8"! Lol, this gave me such a fright but I imagine this is really useful for truck drivers especially.

We all grabbed some nibbles and drinks and headed back to our vehicles. Terry suddenly took off saying "Accident!", I looked and it appeared Chris had backed into a large RV. When we got there he had not but the RV driver had pulled right across the back of him as he was reversing and Chris looked to be blocked in. The RV driver had just left his truck and walked away, I just cannot understand people like this. They are selfish idiots in my book!!! If Chris had been in his old truck the RV might have suffered somewhat, lol!! Fortunately, Chris had the help of a man from the service centre to help guide him out!!

We travelled on and then pulled off the express way and stopped at a Starbucks, it was very welcome, thanks to Sonya's app that paid for it. Also, Chris had to switch the fuel from his backup tank as the gas tank was almost empty. At that point we handed back some items that they had put in our vehicle to give them more space inside theirs. It was time to  say farewell to the family and Luna and head off. We would still follow them for a while but we took an earlier turnoff!

There was an interesting evening sky, with lots of pink streaks and some wild looking clouds. It was after 8 pm when we arrived home, I think we were all tired, Sarah was there to welcome us of course. The car was unpacked and I then unpacked my bag, sorted out my dirty clothes and gave Sarah a souvenir small rug and magnet. I enjoyed a nice hot cup of tea while the others showered and then showered before hitting the sack with Matty in attendance, lol! I thoroughly enjoyed the trip but, as always, it was good to get home!

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