Nashville

Nashville is one of the cities we've driven through but never stopped. But, when our friends John and Sandy suggested a day trip to Music City from our campground an hour or so away, we decided to make the time. On this gorgeous fall afternoon, our mission was simple. See a couple of sights and get out of town before weekend rush hour. Our first stop: the historic Ryman Auditorium.

Growing up in a house that appreciated country and western, I've long known the Ryman as "The Mother Church of Country Music." What neither of us realized was that it actually was a church. Built by Thomas Ryman, this historic landmark opened in 1892 as the Union Gospel Tabernacle. The pews and stained glass windows remain as vestiges of the Ryman's religious beginnings.

From 1943 to 1974, the Ryman was the home of the Grand Ole Opry. For three decades, folks filled the pews and others tuned in on radio and television to hear the hits from Nashville. When the Opry moved to the Opryland Hotel in 1974, a six-foot diameter circle of the Ryman stage was removed and inlaid at the new Opryhouse behind the lead singer's microphone.

Standing where legends like Patsy Cline, Kitty Wells, Loretta Lynn, Johnny Cash and Willie Nelson have stood is really something. Imagine how it felt for a aspiring performer to step up to the microphone for the first time in this place.

Today the Ryman includes an exhibit of musical memorabilia. This display honors Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash. The Johnny Cash Show was filmed on the Ryman stage from 1969 to 1971. (I remember it well!) This ensemble was worn by Johnny and June on her first appearance on the show after the birth of their son John Carter Cash. (Check out Johnny's boots!)

As a drama student at a Nashville finishing school, Sarah Ophelia Colley dreamed of being a Broadway actress. Instead she developed a comedic character based on a woman she met in Alabama. This gossipy character hailed from the fictional town of Grinder's Switch and hollered an unforgettable greeting: "Howww-dEEEEEEEEEE! I'm jes' so proud to be here!" Sarah's alter ego, Minnie Pearl, was a fixture at the Grand Ole Opry for more than 50 years. Her simple dress and trademark straw hat with the tag attached is on display at the Ryman.

The Grand Ole Opry had one singer who I knew simply as "The guy with the sparkly suits". One of Porter Wagoner's famed suits caught my eye at the Ryman. It's still really sparkly!

Though the Grand Ole Opry moved on to its new home, the Ryman continues to attract performers from all genres. Signed performance posters from Coldplay, The Pretenders and others grace the walls of this historic venue.

From the Ryman, we walked across downtown Nashville toward the Capitol. Along the way we stopped at the Tennessee War Memorial Plaza, which was built in 1925 to honor soldiers who died in World War I. A quote from President Woodrow Wilson is engraved above the pilars.

America is privileged to spend her blood and her might for the principles that gave her birth and happiness and the peace which she has treasured.

From the War Memorial Plaza, we headed for the Capitol. When John and Sandy offered to take our picture, this was Paul's idea of a pose!

The Capitol is dark and chilly. We wandered around its dark halls and admired the portraits of Tennessee's past Governors. I found myself attracted to the warm glow of this chandelier.

The three U.S. presidents from Tennessee are commemorated on the capitol grounds. James Polk and his wife Sarah are buried here. One statue honors Andrew Johnson, and this equestrian statue of Andrew Jackson is impossible to miss. This is one of four identical statues honoring our seventh president. The other three are in Washington, DC, New Orleans and Jacksonville, FL.

With that, we enjoyed a tasty late lunch and gave a tip of the hat to downtown Nashville. Thanks to John and Sandy for a great day. We're so glad we finally stopped here.

And, yes, we made it out of town before evening rush hour!

Two Sides of the Smokies

When we booked our stay here in Townsend, one of the things that attracted us to this area was that it billed itself as "the peaceful side" of the Smokies. And, it is! Over the weekend, we decided to venture over to "the other side" and explore the towns of Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge and Sevierville. We took advantage of a gorgeous Saturday and took Rocky for a "topless" drive.

Any visions of we had of Gatlinburg being a quaint little town were dashed as we pulled into this very touristy - and crowded - town. We didn't even stop.

And, this is what greeted us in Pigeon Forge! We had heard this place was crowded, but we couldn't believe the traffic. This is definitely the crazy side!

Do not adjust your screen. This is just one of the zillions of tourist attractions along the strip in Pigeon Forge.

And, did you know the Titanic hit the iceberg right here in Pigeon Forge? Apparently this young couple was compelled to document that fact.

But, wait. There's more! With places like Magic Beyond Belief, this side of the Smokies reminded us of Branson, but on steroids.

The only stop we made was the Walmart in Sevierville. (That's pronounced Se-VEER-vul.) While we were shopping I thought I saw a bride and groom, but told myself I had imagined it. As we made our way out to the Jeep we saw them ahead of us. I had to snap a picture. We've been in a bunch of Walmarts, but that's a first! What a way to start your married life: Stopping by the Walmart on the way home from the wedding.

This is the kind of stuff you see on this side of the Smokies!

We ventured back to Pigeon Forge yesterday to enjoy a tasty brunch with our friends Craig and Anne. We met them in Niagara Falls, caught up with them in Gaffney and finally had a chance to enjoy a meal together here in Tennessee. That was, without a doubt, the best part of our visit to the other side.

Back at our quiet campsite, we're ready to kick back and enjoy our last couple of days on the peaceful side of the Smokies.

Cades Cove

With a perfect day for sightseeing, we ventured into Great Smoky Mountains National Park. We made our way to a lush valley known as Cades Cove, which is one of the park's most popular destinations. Once home to the Cherokee Nation, Cades Cove attracted settlers from Virginia, North Carolina and upper east Tennessee in the 1800's. The National Park Service has preserved Cades Cove as a large open air museum.

An 11-mile one way loop takes visitors on a trip back in time, passing by three churches, several cabins and outbuildings and a grist mill.

The first church on the tour is Primitive Baptist Church, a simple white frame church built in 1887 - some 60 years after early settlers established the congregation.

In the cemetery lie many of the early settlers of Cades Cove, and their descendants.

At this and other cemeteries in the cove we noticed many headstones with a name of one of our family members. This would be a very interesting spot for some genealogy research.

Just down the road is the Methodist Church. The Cades Cove congregation was organized in 1820 and held services in a log cabin until 1902. We were most curious about why this church has two front doors. We learned that women and children entered through the left door, and men entered through the door on the right. Unlike some churches of the time, which had a divider in the middle for separate seating, Cades Cove Methodists were allowed to sit wherever they pleased.

John and Lurany Oliver were the first white settler in Cades Cove. The bought their land in 1826. This is the honeymoon cabin they built for their son to use when he was married. The original Oliver cabin, approximately 50 yards away, is no longer standing.

While we were taking this shot of the Oliver cabin, we were greeted by a black bear that happily passed by some 50 yards to the left of where we were standing. Did we get a picture? Uh, no. I was too busy walking swiftly toward the cabin to take cover!

Dan Lawson's place was built around 1856. The brick chimney is unusual for the period and place.

One thing we know about Dan Lawson is he and his family were probably not very tall. Paul had to remember to duck while we explored this place.

The low ceilings, hewn logs, small windows and large fireplace make this pre-Civil War place quite rustic.

The Lawson's enjoyed a very peaceful view from their front porch. Who wouldn't?

Colonel Hamp Tipton had this house built in 1878 for his two daughters who taught school in the cove.

Tipton Place is a collection of buildings. Across the street from the house stands this cantilever barn, which was produced as a replica in 1968.

Another interesting collection of buildings in Cades Cove is the Cable Mill Historic Area. Here the Park Service has brought together an interesting sample of life in the cove. Becky Cable's home was a busy place back in the day. In this house she raised her brother's children, ran a boarding house and her brother's farm. In her spare time she raised gardens, cattle to provide food for her family and borders.

This interesting barn has a "drive-through" in the center that provided a protective place for farm equipment and animals.

This cantilever barn was used frequently in east Tennessee. It features a large overhang that was used to shelter animals and equipment without posts to get in the way.

This top-heavy structure is a corn crib. Each year's supply of corn was dumped in through a high hatch, then small portions were accessed through the little front door.

The John P. Cable Mill harnessed the power of water to grind grain. A sawmill often operated off of the same power unit, which made this a doubly important service to the community.

When John P. Cable's son James inherited the mill and farm, he decided to become a blacksmith. He had an instant customer base because of the many people bringing grain and logs to the mill by wagons drawn by horses and mules. The open spaces between the logs of the blacksmith shop allowed provided natural ventilation.

The hinges on the blacksmith shop are a real match!

On our short drive back to Townsend, we enjoyed the scenic late afternoon views in this beautiful valley. We just scratched the surface of America's most popular National Park.

We're already thinking about our return trip!

Gaffney

If you're looking for something to see in Gaffney, this giant peach is probably it. "Peachoid" is a 150-foot tall water tower that holds one million gallons of water and welcomes motorists along I-85 to South Carolina. This upstate landmark was built in 1981 to promote the fact that South Carolina produces almost as many, as many, or more (depending on who you ask) peaches than that "other" state. Upon learning that we were headed this way, our friend Margie told us, "Just look for the giant peach." Now we know what she meant!

Just around the corner from the giant peach is the Freightliner Custom Chassis Training and Service Center. With a service appointment scheduled for last Thursday, we arrived in the heat of Wednesday afternoon and were assigned to our spot: lucky number 13. It wasn't much, but it was free. (If you don't include the cost of the service to come!)

During Bullwinkle's stay in the Freightliner hospital, our tech spotted a leak in the oil pan gasket. Because our engine is under warranty, we had to make an early morning trip on Friday to complete the work at Cummins in Spartanburg, some 20 miles away. Here's Bullwinkle getting reading for his early morning ride to Spartanburg. That's the moon up there in the sky!

With the gasket replaced and oil change complete, we traveled back to Gaffney and checked into the KOA. After spending a couple of days in service center waiting rooms, we were ready to kick back and relax for the weekend before we headed to chassis school.

That's right, we went back to school! Monday and Tuesday we attended "Camp Freightliner", a two-day class designed for owners of motorhomes with a Freightliner chassis. That's Mike, our instructor, pointing out something vitally important on a demo chassis. It is fascinating to see the "innards" of our moose. Everything is so much easier to see, reach and understand without a motorhome sitting on top.

After two days of learning about everything from alternators to zerks, we have a much better idea of what goes on behind the scenes when we turn the key and run down the road. Let's see, up front there are a couple of air tanks. Behind that is the fuel tank. The batteries are behind that. And, way back there in the back is a big ol' Cummins engine, an air cleaner and a radiator. Miles and miles (That might be a bit of an exaggeration,) of wires and lines get strung through after the chassis arrives at the motorhome factory. We learned lots!

With our chassis and engine service work complete, Bullwinkle is ready to run trouble-free for the next year. With our new-found knowledge, we have a good idea of how to help make that so. Yep. After our week in Gaffney, everything is just peachy!

Return to Crossville

After spending a quick overnight in Paducah, we have spent the last two nights in Crossville enjoying this charming spot in one of our favorite campgrounds.

We're planning a return visit to Paducah in about a month, so we'll share more about that town then. The most noteworthy sights during our drive from Monett across southern Missouri were a couple of bridges. First up was this skinny little thing that crosses the Mississippi River. Two lanes and no shoulders made it an extra challenging crossing.

Minutes later we made a right turn and faced another bridge! This one crosses the Ohio River. We breathed a sigh of relief at the sight of that itty bitty bit of shoulder which, compared to the previous bridge, seemed huge! Thankfully there was very little traffic on both, and we didn't meet a single semi on the way. Paul did an awesome job!

Just off the bridges, tucked away in the bushes, was this sign welcoming us to Kentucky. It's almost as if, after the two scary crossings it took to get here, the state didn't want us to know where we were!

After resting up in Paducah, we didn't have to cross any bridges to get into Tennessee. Although our friends who live here joked that we might have to check our shoes at the state line. (Of course, we didn't!) Our days here have been as wonderful and restful as they were when we were here last year.

Tomorrow we're heading on to South Carolina. But, it won't be long and we'll be back here in Tennessee!

Monett Revisited

Our unexpected trip to Kansas City brought with it some pleasant surprises. We spent some quality time with our family, including relatives from Monett. As we planned a new route for our travels, we decided to swing through this friendly little town in Southwest Missouri on our way to South Carolina. When we pulled into the same park we stayed in when we came through nearly a year ago, we smiled when they assigned us the same site.

That sent us flipping through our photo files to find this shot from our first visit. Parked here in the same site with our new moose we can really tell a difference in how big it is. Last year we had plenty of room to spare. This year, we're using every inch of our site in this nice little park.

Since our last visit, a couple of family members have launched new businesses here. We checked in on Cousin John, who is busy supplying Southwest Missourians with pellet fuel for the winter. If you're driving around these parts and see "Big Red", that's John making a delivery!

John's wife Melissa is hard at work at her very specialized printing firm in Springfield. We stopped by for a quick tour and were very impressed. Melissa and her team work very hard to keep their customers happy.

The timing of our visit was a real treat. We arrived just in time for Aunt Martha's 89th birthday. She chose the spot for her birthday dinner and enjoyed some fried ice cream for the very first time. We think she liked it!

The western sky looked dramatic as we left the restaurant after Aunt Martha's birthday dinner. How does that saying go? "Red sky at night, sailor's delight?" Well, not so tonight. Not long after this peaceful shot was taken, we tucked Bullwinkle in, packed the cats in the Jeep and headed to John and Melissa's as some severe weather passed through.

Last night's storms brought welcome cooler weather and clear skies today. Tomorrow we'll point the moose toward Kentucky. But, we look forward to visiting this fun little corner of Missouri again.