Ok, its all in the ground. Three red tomatoes two yellow and cherry tomatoes. Sweet pea starts and a few sunflower seeds fill out the other end of the bed. Kent has the sprinkler system installed so everything ought to survive our occasional absences through the summer. Strawberries look great too. They and the peach trees have set a lot of fruit.
We are up early, 5:00AM, heading to the National Park Cades Cove area for a Spring visit: black bear mamas and their cubs, wildflowers, and roaring waterfalls. We are in the park by 7:30 and traffic is petty light. Nice
Wildflowers dot the open meadows and offer splashes of color along forested edges. We catch our first glimpse of a bear, a large solitary fellow, through the partially leaved out understory. There are lots of turkeys. The males alone or sometimes in pairs strut and fan their tails while the ladies busy themselves pecking yummy morsels among the new growth. That’s it for wildlife our first pass of the loop.
We make a 
stopover to hike to Abrams Falls. The trail is wide and obviously well-traveled but we are early enough that we meet only a few other hikers. It is a great walk (2.5 mi each way) with some rocky areas and seeps making for a little mud but nothing serious. All the moisture makes for a nice smattering of wildflowers. The falls are beautiful. 
We get a little excitement on the return trip. A yearling black bear is just 10 feet downslope of the trail. He eyes us warily as he waits for human traffic to take our pictures and clear the trail then climbs the slope and heads on back the trail toward the falls…opposite our direction of travel! Great sighting. We never saw his mama (that would probably have been too exciting). She must have already run him off to focus on new cubs.
It’s still pretty early when we get back to the car. We decide to make another pass on the drive. Maybe bears will be out in the meadows? About half way across the upper loop we hit paydirt, a bear jamb. Momma bear and two yearlings have been sighted. One youngster is in the nearby tree line. We find a place to pull over and watch a while. He keeps one eye on all the watchers but stays focused on foraging.
Nostalgic for our travel days, we decide to retrace the Forge Creek/Parsons Ridge back route out from Cades Cove. It is a beautiful forest drive; steep, windy, gravel, with many creek ford. It is recommended 4-wheel drive high clearance -of course, we took the Miata out that way. The turn off is back by the mill so we turn back across Sparks Lane to follow the one way loop. Half way across the cut-off the road is completely blocked. People are out of their cars and at least half are carrying cameras with huge lens. A mama black bear
with three very small cubs is moving among fallen trees right along the road. They are foraging but she is getting a little anxious and has decided she wants to move them across the road and on their way. She tests several possible crossings as people move to clear the way. Finally, she finds a suitable path between cars and leads her little family on to more peaceful surrounds. Hopefully it wasn’t too traumatic for her. It was a great watching moment for us – I saw it all through the windshield. Kent grabbed a couple pics outside the truck timed to minimize any intrusion.
Ok, back on our way. We take the more adventurous route to US129 aka Tail of the Dragon. Oh yeah, we remember this drive. It is beautiful and a challenge for the driver. I spot a few brilliant orange flame azaleas and splotches of pale blue mountain laurel. Rhododendron are just budding out. US 129 is as twisty and turny as we remember. We close out the day with BBQ from Smoke -n-Bonz in Vonore. The brisket and baby backs are both delicious.
It is a spring thing! Apparently ramps grow is hardwood forests all around this area. They are a mild onion/garlic flavored bulb. I’m sure we have tread upon them in our exploring but today we are going to taste them. We split a dinner of scrambled eggs with ramps, fried potatoes with ramps, sauteed ramps, pintos, cornbread. The eggs are my favorite but all is pretty tasty. We will need to be on the watch for them as we are out and about. The couple we sat with while eating filled us in on the where and how to find them.
Gospel and bluegrass music filled the air as we dined. A very Tennessee afternoon. Love it.
Roadtrip to Tennessee . Lots of miles but fun stops along the way.
We gather up the girls right after school and we are off! First stop, York PA. Its Aunt Molly’s birthday, Great Aunt LouAnn and Uncle Bob’s 50th plus some early Easter festivities. We hang out, catch up, and enjoy great food. Two cakes! Willa and Hazel join in their first organized Easter egg hunt. Lots of doggy time. It is a fun visit.
Next destination, Johnson City, TN. Willa’s kindergarten teacher retired to Tennessee and she has been looking forward to seeing her again. We breakup the drive with an overnight at a hotel with a pool. Definitely a big hit. There is a playground stop that includes dandelion picking before we make the stop at Sherry’s. It is a lovely sweet visit that both Willa and Sherry seemed to very much enjoy. Mid-afternoon we head for Dollywood.
The next two nights, Heartsong Lodge. It is a beautiful place with large pool and other fun outdoor spaces. We explore and stop in for sweet treats: ice cream in a teddy bear cone for Hazel and a giant lollipop for Willa. Nana and Granpa get a scoop too, of course. Time to turn in. We have a big day in the park tomorrow.
It is raining as we gather gear and snacks and head down for breakfast. The sky clears and rain stops just as we head for the trolly into the park. Perfect. We deal with a few puddles throughout the day but no biggie. 10 til 6 we are pretty much non-stop. We ride nearly every kiddie ride. Several of them a couple times. The flying elephants are a favorite. Black Bear Trail -you ride a bear- and Mad Mocking Bird – a rider-controlled swing – are the most unique. Despite a lot of coaxing, I can’t get Willa into a roller coaster. I have to try one, the FireChaser Express. Love it. Especially the part where it runs the track backwards. Willa tries her hand at a carnival game and comes away with a stuffy. She is ecstatic. We have funnel cakes, of course, and have to hit the gift shop.
We pile into the trolley around 6:30 all giddy and exhausted. Hazel falls fast asleep on the ride home but pops back to life when she hits the bed back in the room. Both girls are wound and both adults ready to crash. We unwind and have dinner in the room. It has been a fantastic day. Willa and I discover a tiny balcony off the second floor to hang while Granpa and Hazel head for bed. We are not far behind.
Moving on. Next stop, GSMNP. Our destination, Roaring Forks Nature Drive and a walk behind Grotto Falls. The plan is scrapped though as parking is full near the trail head. Instead, we spend some time at the visitor center exploring their wildlife exhibits. Willa and Hazel ran between the exhibits flinching with ‘fear’ at the snakes, grossed out by birds of prey with their prey, impressed by the size of wild boar, and fawning over cute racoons and fox. It is a great stop. Another gift shop…Hazel chooses a puzzle and Willa a cute bear bag. Ok, time to head to our house.
There is much planned for around home and we do it all. Build a teepee, and trolls, and bird houses. Help Granpa build the garden shelter. Color Easter eggs, scavenger/egg hunt for each of them, a bit of sewing, fashion shows, campout in the teepee. Willa tries her hand at target shooting with bow and arrow with impressive results. Add baseball, playing in the wading pool, shoveling rocks, blowing bubbles and enjoying the outdoor shower. More than enough to keep everyone busy. Mike and Tracy stop by one evening for dinner and a campfire, with smores! We squeeze in some target practice while they are here – bow and arrow plus 22 rifle and 410 shotgun for the grown-ups. We all enjoy lunch in the teepee before they head back to Chattanooga for a couple get-away days.
Monday we are all off to Chattanooga to meet Mom and Dad. Our route, a hilly, curvy, back woods road across the mountains. It’s like a roller coaster and the kids love it, until they don’t. Willa’s throat gets tight. She needs air. She needs to stop, NOW. Kent darts for a wide spot just in time. We fling the door open and feed some roadside weeds. Another story for the “What did you do over break” assignment. We are soon on to smoother straighter roads and feeling much better. Very mature handling of an icky situation. We spend the afternoon at Rock City. Walks wind through amazing rock formations across bridges and through tunnels. There are gnomes and fairies and fairy tale characters scattered throughout and some nice long views to the mountains.Try the local ice cream, Clumpies Ice Cream Co.(you can taste as many flavors as you want before you buy) and dinner at a great place Mike and Tracy found during their no-kids get away. On to the airport as the NY Sayres are off to Kingston.
Whew, Willa and Hazel head home. When can we do it again?
We are off to Chattanooga to the Sealight Festival, “a traditional Chinese Lantern Festival”.
Ducks. Oh, so many ducks. They are not in ranks, mor
e like a random mob but somehow make me think of the terracotta warriors of China. The walking path winds on past giant snails and insects, cats, deer and as we come up over a rise, we see 
Mother Nature (30 feet tall or more) surveying her creations. Very cool. Add dragons of many sizes and fantastical creatures from myth and legend. I particularly like the elephant/wooly mammoth (check out the fur Cossack hats).
We sample steamed dumplings and wait for darker skies then make a second round through the display. Creations are even more fantastic in the lower light. 
It is spring break in Houston. Brian has a week off and is coming to hang out with us a few days to hike and decompress. Hooray.
Day one we are off to Blue Ridge. Carol joins us for some nephew time before she heads back home.
Our stroll around historic downtown includes a search for a number of brightly painted trout….fishing is big around here. Our first adventure, rail bikes. We check in and sign the requisite waivers then the four of us fill up the lead quad rail.
We leave from downtown on an 11-mile round trip. We pedal, of course, but have electric motor assist which we particularly appreciate on the uphill return trip! This is just season 2 and their trailside views still need a bit of work but it is a fun way to spend a few hours outdoors.
We have some daylight and energy remaining so we head off to check out the Swinging Bridge over the Toccoa River. At 270 feet long, it is claimed to be the longest
swinging bridge east of the Mississippi River. The final three-mile drive on a bumpy forest route takes longer than the hiking portion of this excursion, ½ mile each way. 
There are a couple steep sections but they have included a nice forest seat to rest a spell. The bridge is impressive and it does/will really swing. It is well worth the walk.
That’ll do it for today. We in for a quiet evening and a bit of crazy 8s. Carol heads back to PA in the morning and the rest of us plan to just putter around home.
We are ready to venture out again for another day in the National Forest. We twist and wind our way out the Cherohala Skyway heading for a trek up Huckelberry Bald. 
Mike and Hazel made this hike with us last summer. It is lovely today as well. We think we have another few miles in us. Just a few miles further out the Skyway is the trail to Joyce Kilmer Memorial Forest. It is one of a few remaining tracts of old-growth hardwood forest in this area. The trail winds along a quick moving creek with rhododendrons blanketing the banks. It is beautiful today but will be spectacular is the next few weeks when it is all in bloom. We just reach the first of the giant tulip poplars mid-way on the figure 8 hike. Lucky the terrain is so rugged; else, these giants would have long ago been felled. Time to head back.
Today we take in a bit of history with a visit to the Sequoyah Birthplace Museum and Ft. Loudoun State Historic Park. Much of the museum content is focused on Sequoyah and the development of the written Cherokee language and its importance to their culture. Other exhibits depict way of life, customs, and interactions with white men and other tribes. Amazingly, there is little mention of the Trail of Tears and abject mistreatment afforded the Cherokee during displacement. This seems a place to celebrate who the Cherokee were and not to tell of what others did to them.
We trapsed around in the reconstructed Ft. Loudoun. The original was built in 1756 as a British fortification on what was then the western frontier in hopes of strengthening the relationship with the Overhill Cherokee. There are numerous living history programs here throughout the summer. Hope to return for one this year.
We close out the visit with a hike to overlook Tellico Lake.
Carol and Lynn road trip to New Orleans. 2/26 – 3/5
We are off to an early start with 500+ miles ahead of us; Tellico Plains to Biloxi.
Hotel Legends is home for the night with fun Hollywood décor and a great view over Biloxi Bay and the Gulf. 
Set for our first Gulf Coast Seafood dinner we head for Shaggy’s Biloxi Beach. Red, deep water shrimp cocktail is super flavorful and as promised, a bit saltier than typical shrimp – delicious. We have to go for the seafood platter: flounder, shrimp and crab cakes…fried of course. A waitstaff mix-up leads to a bonus second platter. We need a to-go box! Bellies full, 
we head out the water side of the restaurant for a sunset stroll on the beach.
We close out the evening with live piano entertainment at Sapphire Supper Club, Hotel Legends. No luck getting our first Sazeracs but there are other tasty choices for cocktails and it’s a lovely spot to unwind.
Another couple hours to New Orleans today. First, we explore here.
After a lazy, easy yogurt breakfast in the room we are off to walk the beach. Pic We have a long stretch of sand pretty much to ourselves and make it as far as the Biloxi Schooners Maritime and Seafood Museum and learn a little about those “White Winged Queens” that were built and sailed here throughout the 1800s
Next, we are off to the Coastal Mississippi Mardi Gras Museum. It is filled with costumes and stories of krewes based in towns all along the coast. An enthusiastic greeter encourages their scavenger hunt and scurries about to set up videos and the movie. She is a great ambassador for the place. We watch the movie and stroll through every display (and complete the scavenger hunt with just one hint). We have to try on costume of course. It is a fun morning and well worth a couple hours if you are in the area. 
On to New Orleans with a plan for Gumbo at Liuzza’s by the Tracks. All our navigation devices fail us and we are misdirected to the Original Liuzza’s (billed as a Culinary Landmark of Mid-City New Orleans). It is a small “dine off the kitchen” place that is pretty hectic with unorganized rather blunt waitstaff (reviews unflatteringly referred to them as feral) forewarning of long wait for a backed-up kitchen. We take a seat anyway and the wait is actually not so long. First Sazerac! There will be more.
Carol goes for the gumbo, actually Cajun Gumbo. Tasty and very seafood forward with spices other 
than the classic Creole flavors we both expected. For me it is Eggplant Napolean, a great looking layered dish over pasta. It is fantastic.
A short drive and we arrive at our base of operations for the next 5 days, The Barnett on Carondelet St, New Orleans. Kudos to Carol for finding this location. It is easy walking to parade viewing, to Canal to catch the trolley, and to lots of restaurants. The comfy room even has a bit of a view of the St. Charles parade route. Perfect to monitor for viewing times.
We drop our stuff and relax a bit then dive right into the parades. There are three this evening – Babylon, Chaos, Muses (shoes). Just a block from our hotel we claim a great viewing spot just off Lafayette Square one row back from the barrier. Awesome. The locals in front of us are old hands at this parade thing and kind enough to teach us the ropes AND collect a big bag of throws for us…perfect partners for getting into the spirit of Mardi Gras. They introduced us to a parade App Carol loaded on her phone. It tracks the exact location of each parade’s lead car helping reduce the stand and wait time before and during parades…there is a lot of that!
We wave and cheer for throws with everyone else as fun dance troupes (esp 610 stompers), bands (Many great sounding. All very enthusiastic), and floats (fancy lighted themed creations to repurposed wagons and truck floats) pass by. Some floats are even pulled by mules. Our feet and backs gave out before the last parade finished. What a fun day!
Today we head to the waterfront for a cruise on the Natchez. Our timing is perfect. We find a dockside bench to chill for a bit and catch the pre-sail calliope concert while taking in the view. We loved it. We muse about how much Mom enjoyed it too, back in the day.
We are in the early lunch seating. It works out perfectly leaving us lots of time to explore and gaze at views later. Bloody Marys toast to our trip and Mom.
Nicely spicy, she would have liked it. Lunch is delicious and the jazz band a great addition. Out on deck we watch the sights and take in the history talk then tour the engine room, 
check out the gift shop, and finish out our sail with Sazeracs and more music. Another fine adventure.
Dinner at Luke on St. Charles Ave. It is a busy evening but even without reservations we manage to get seated. Awesome. We start with a smokey raspberry craft cocktail and local beer. Next, smoked trout dip with bacon fat saltines. Oh, so yummy. Then it is Louisianna Shrimp and grits for me and Gumbo for Carol (she’s on a mission to sample as many gumbo versions as possible). It is all delicious.
Beignets and coffee
We are off to explore the
Quarter. It’s a walk to Canal then the Trolley to French Market. First stop,
Café Du Monde. There is a line of course but it moves quickly as waitstaff and greeters coordinate to keep folks moving. We go for the classic, three beignets heaped with powdered sugar and coffee to balance out the sweet. The bustle, the flavors, the tiny table for two; just like I anticipated. Perfect.
We stroll Jackson Square along the seemingly endless row of tarot card readers and fortune tellers. Next, we make a loop out Royal and back Bourbon St. taking time to window shop and enjoy the street corner musicians. Check out the extra security barriers and armed reservists all prompted by the New Years attack. 
We dally a moment too long and find ourselves captured by very slick cosmetic sales guy. He even manages to entice us to come in for a demo of his wrinkle defying potion. It actually does get rid of many fine wrinkles around the eyes; but you’d have to be willing to tolerate the weird tight feeling on your face and willing to part with $300 (even after discount and his own special 35% off). Sorry guy, not for us!
We enjoy a street-side cocktail at Café Lafitte in Exile on
Bourbon and a bit more people watching then it’s off to Central Grocery for a Muffaletta to go.
We catch the trolley to Canal then on foot back to the hotel. Enroute, we come across the IRIS parade and just have to watch a bit as we walk. More throws are added to our collection.
Can’t resist! We 
head back down to watch the Endymion parade. Lynn caught a lighted cowboy hat and together still more beads and plunder.
We crash for the night. Dinner is leftovers and cheese and crackers in the room.
Happy Birthday Carol
Our big plan for the day, dinner at Commanders Palace out in the Garden District.
We get a lazy start with breakfast in the room then morning shows and a bit of Food Network Tournament of Champions.
Time for lunch with a hankering for a shrimp
po’boy. There are cafes not far on Girod. We choose Luzianne Café and the shrimp po’boy does not disappoint. It’s not far to Bittersweet Confections, the bakery of choice for our must have king cake. We check it out. Sweets all look amazing and we actually place our order for pick-up…we are taking it home to share with Kent and Brian (he’s coming to TN for a few days of break).
We chill back at the room for a bit then get dressed up for the big Birthday dinner out. Commanders Palace has a dress code. We know the trolley isn’t running on St. Charles Ave (it is the actual parade route) but have been assured that a bus is running its route. No problem but we leave early just in case there are related delays plus for us to walk to the trolley stop we have to go around the parade route. No problem, we head out by 4. There at Magazine and Canal where the supposed trolley to bus transfer is to happen. We chat up the trolley driver who is very helpful but full of disappointing news. No, the bus transfer isn’t going to happen here it is way back Canal and no the bus won’t stop at or even near any of the actual stops of the St. Charles trolley. It would add many blocks of walking to get to Commanders Palace. Taxis and uber would have difficulty getting any closer because of the parade route and related traffic. 
We take a seat in the shade and consider our options. New plan. Carol cancels at CP (they completely understand the issue with access) and we opt for dinner here on Canal. The place? Zesty Creole. But it’s early. We stroll a bit and find the Ritz, time for celebratory Sazeracs. It is a cool relaxing space separate from the press of boisterous crowds. A perfect place for Happy Birthday cheers.
Now it is on to Zesty Creole. They 
have pretty good Sazeracs as well! Dinner includes boudin balls,
Etouffee, and Gumbo. Service is great and even though they have diners waiting on the street no pressure to move us on. We make a dessert stop at 
Kilwin’s. Great ice cream in a perfect crunchy waffle cone. We even grab a seat for a few to enjoy it and watch the world go by. They are pretty proud of that ice cream but it is still a perfect way to end the day.
Our last full day
We pick up our king cake from Bittersweet on Magazine. Or course we have to try a breakfast swee
t and a cup of coffee. We deliver the cake back to the hotel then it’s off to Sazerac House, home of Sazerac rye and herbsaint (essential sazerac ingredients) plus a number of other tasty sips. We tour, read and taste our way through. We are heading on to Lundi Gras
on the riverfront so we resist buying all manner of fun cocktail ingredients!
It is Fat Monday and time for the Zulu Lundi Gras Festival along the Mississippi River. The park is jamb-packed when we get there with folks in lawn chairs all around a half dozen or so performance stages and snaked through by a long line for food vender tents. We make a big loop through the crowd scoping out possible lunch options. Lines are pretty long but we find a possible option. Some 15 minutes later the line has barely moved and a woman leaving informs us they are out of food. Bummers. We stroll a bit more but conclude that lunch would be easier found elsewhere and wander on our way. That meant we missed the big events, the arrivals of King Zulu and King Rex by boat. Guess we need to save something for another year.
Back on Carondelet we find Daisy Dukes for one more taste of N.O. creole. It’s been a pretty full day already but there is a parade tonight, Orpheus. It is scheduled for 6PM but around 9 before it reaches us. The theme is music and the floats are certainly the most beautiful we have seen so far.
Crowds are bigger than previous nights and we pooh out before the parade finishes. Still, we drag home too many new throws to add to our collection.
Mardi Gras final day – threatening weather
There has been a mad scurry as organizers frantically work to get the two big parades in before high winds hit the area. Zulu and Rex are THE Mardi Gras Parades. Both Krewes modify their routes and look to drop marching and walking units and what they call truck floats to shorten their respective parades. Step off for both is moved from 9:00AM to 6:30AM. Rex will no longer pass our viewing area but Zulu still plans to do so. Here they come. Crowds are huge and loud. Floats are significantly less ornate (kind of look repurposed). 
Riders are a bit more obviously inebriated (it’s 8AM). Throws come nearly continuously and by the handful. That is what it must take to get rid of that much stuff on the shortened route. It is a fun raucous end to our New Orleans Mardi Gras vacation. We have a bit of Memorabilia
Homeward bound
Check out is at 11AM and it is another hour or so until the valet gets the car to us. We are back in Biloxi by mid-afternoon just in time to catch the end of their parade. That’s good and bad. It is fun to see one more parade but the town is grid locked. It takes some creative alley maneuvering to make a required wine stop and even more to get to the hotel. We watch the end of the parade and unwinding of the post-parade traffic from our window. Parade barriers are still up so we opt to walk to dinner, pizza at Pie Five at Hard Rock. It is a short but challenging walk. The blustery winds we left in NO have now reached Biloxi. It is pizza and TV at the hotel before we turn in for the night.
Back in TN.
9 hours and we are home. It rained the last hour or so else pretty smooth travels.
Time to start planning the next get away!
Lynn started the planning for this July get away back in November and we found a Air B n B in WV that would be a reasonable trip for the majority. Brian being the exception. But he agreed to visit with us in TN and travel to the reunion with us making it reasonable for him as well. As the date approached scheduling conflicts arose for some of the participants. We agreed to forge forward with a reduced attendance. It may even have been good since the weather turned unusually hot and the house was experiencing a significant water shortage issue. Those in attendance were more experienced desert campers and backpackers and functioned more favorably with water restrictions.
We enjoyed a day at Snowshoe Ski resort including riding the chair lift, hiking around the lake, swimming in Jackson Lake, the climbing wall
and 
Bungy/trampoline jumping for the younger set.
We enjoyed a rainy hike to Red Spruce Knob and an amazing hike through Beartown State Park. 
Then the final adventure of the trip was our ride on the Cass Scenic Railroad.
All seemed impressed with both the scheduled events and the scenery of the Mountain State.
Homeward travel went smoothly for all and now it is back to the everyday life until we meet again
With help from Brian we continue the cleaning and staining of the cabin. It is going well and all the basic areas have been cleaned and pre-coated with sealer. Staining is weather dependent and weather has not been cooperating. Prior to out WV family reunion, we get the 3rd side completed. Just the back side to complete then the dreaded(high) dormer sides. They will be a challenge. Looks Great so far.
We received notice that our mortgage has been sold. Not unexpected but, the first payment will go the new company. Annoying. I expect we will get another round of new homeowner offers/threats when the new mortgage is officially filed. Apparently our warranty is about to expire, we need more insurance, our windows are bad, we need furniture and our water needs treatment. Hope no one sends us anything important mixed in with all the junk.