perfect doesn’t even begin to describe this cabin.  despite it’s size, it could actually sleep five people rather comfortably.  there is one bedroom and a loft looking down on a small den and kitchen.  but what really mattered was outside.  the porch.  lauren and i spent hours on this porch taking in the incredible view.  this cabin made me want to sell all my belongings and offer the owners everything i had to be able to live here.  i’m not sure what i’d do in bryson city, north carolina… but i’m sure i’d be able to figure out something. we spent our first full day driving through the national park and taking in the amazing views.  in the morning, as we drove through, it was bright and sunny… but later in the day, clouds settled in and we watched as the low flying clouds settled into the mountains themselves as they headed by.  it gave the mountain a very eerie look, like something out of a movie. after traveling through the park, we decided we weren’t done with kitschy ridiculousness, so we headed to the towns of gatlinburg and pigeon forge.  these towns are the definition of tourist traps.  despite our love for ripley’s believe it or not museums and wax museums, we opted to just do a drive by.  our only stops were at a ridiculous replica of the titanic, an “as seen on tv” mega-store, and a western store called stages west at the recommendation of the team tenn ladies. after we had our fill of civilization, we drove to a place called cades cove.  cades cove is a small little valley surrounded completely by mountains on all sides and is a sanctuary for wild animals.  the one-way road that looped through the valley was full of amazing views of both landscapes and wildlife.  there were also several homes dating back to the late 1800’s. having spent most of the day driving, we were anxious to get back home.  lauren made some delicious chili back at the cabin and i used my eagle scout skills to make a campfire where we roasted marshmallows.  we fell asleep exhausted after the long day.

perfect doesn’t even begin to describe this cabin.  despite it’s size, it could actually sleep five people rather comfortably.  there is one bedroom and a loft looking down on a small den and kitchen.  but what really mattered was outside.  the porch.  lauren and i spent hours on this porch taking in the incredible view.  this cabin made me want to sell all my belongings and offer the owners everything i had to be able to live here.  i’m not sure what i’d do in bryson city, north carolina… but i’m sure i’d be able to figure out something.

we spent our first full day driving through the national park and taking in the amazing views.  in the morning, as we drove through, it was bright and sunny… but later in the day, clouds settled in and we watched as the low flying clouds settled into the mountains themselves as they headed by.  it gave the mountain a very eerie look, like something out of a movie.

after traveling through the park, we decided we weren’t done with kitschy ridiculousness, so we headed to the towns of gatlinburg and pigeon forge.  these towns are the definition of tourist traps.  despite our love for ripley’s believe it or not museums and wax museums, we opted to just do a drive by.  our only stops were at a ridiculous replica of the titanic, an “as seen on tv” mega-store, and a western store called stages west at the recommendation of the team tenn ladies.

after we had our fill of civilization, we drove to a place called cades cove.  cades cove is a small little valley surrounded completely by mountains on all sides and is a sanctuary for wild animals.  the one-way road that looped through the valley was full of amazing views of both landscapes and wildlife.  there were also several homes dating back to the late 1800’s.

having spent most of the day driving, we were anxious to get back home.  lauren made some delicious chili back at the cabin and i used my eagle scout skills to make a campfire where we roasted marshmallows.  we fell asleep exhausted after the long day.