It’s not the Bunny Trail

Posted on March 1, 2014March 1, 2014 by Dusty Roads

Peter Cottontail hopped down the Bunny Trail and many states have Wine Trails including Massachusetts and Maine but I haven’t heard of too many that have Whiskey Trails. Leave it to Tennessee for that.

W.C. Fields advised people to “Always carry a flagon of whiskey in case of snakebite… and furthermore always carry a small snake.”

Tennessee makes some of the smoothest, finest “sipping ” whiskey. Two of the most well know and established distilleries are the George Dickel Distillery in Tullahoma and none other than Jack Daniel’s Distillery in Lynchburg. I’ve never tried George Dickel Whiskey but Jack Daniels is “mighty fine”, sweet and smooth.

I don’t know if I’ll get that far from Gatlinburg but I won’t have to skip the whiskey sipping unless I want to. There’s a new stop on the parkway called Gatlinburg Barrelhouse. Here’s just one of the reviews from trip advisor:

We visit Gatlinburg at least once a year, but were pleasantly surprised to find the Gatlinburg Barrelhouse on the Parkway. After waiting in line for a tasting of moonshine that you can find in just about any Tennessee liquor store, we were happy to find the Barrelhouse and especially Davy Crockett’s whiskey. They offer quality whiskey in a variety of great flavors, and this is the ONLY location you can find them. (Personally, we think the chocolate and southern pecan varieties are fabulous.) I’m sure it’s soon-to-be just as busy as the moonshine distillery, but in the meantime it’s fun not to have to fight a crowd. The people are nice and we enjoyed the live music. We’ll definitely be back!

I’ve never been to a whiskey tasting. I’ve done several wine tastings. Depending on how many wines you try it is possible to get a bit tipsy. I had read that you swish the wine in your mouth and then spit it out. I’ve never seen that done. In fact at the last tasting I went to I asked. The response was that spitting it out was a waste of good wine.

I would imagine that one would need to take it easy on the whiskey.

What’s In Gatlinburg?

Posted on February 25, 2014February 25, 2014 by Dusty Roads

A similar question came up when we went to South Dakota and that turned out to be a great vacation. So I am hopeful that this will be the same. Sandy has been to the Great Smokey Mountains and the first thing she said when I told her I’d decided on Tennessee was to be sure to visit Dollywood.

I admit, Dollywood wasn’t on the top of my “to do” list and I reluctantly said ok, if it’s close enough. Well it sure is close enough. Located in Pigeon Forge it’s less than 10 miles from Gatlinburg.

Dollywood isn’t open year round so I was still thinking I might get a reprieve if it wasn’t open for the season but that didn’t work out either. According to the website it’s opening on March 22 so even if they were to delay the opening for some reason it’s still sure to be up and running by May.

But here’s where it gets interesting. I was dragging my feet because I don’t like amusement parks. 6 Flags is a waste of money for me and I only go to Canobie Lake Park in New Hampshire on occasion to take pictures. But Dolly stresses that her park is a “family adventure” (don’t call it an amusement park”).

My sister says this is the cleanest park she has even seen! Although there are more than 30 rides there are also musical shows, restaurants and arts and crafts shops where wood carving, glassblowing and quilting are demonstrated.

Although Dollywood had to bear the brunt of a number of jokes when it first opened it now hosts 2.5 million guests in a typical season. No longer a laughing matter, Dollywood is a major employer for the region. As of 2010, the park was the biggest “ticketed” tourist attraction in Tennessee each year for more than a decade.

So I have had a change of heart and moved Dollywood from a reluctant location on my itinerary to one of the “must see” stops. They say the Ferris wheel is 60 ft. high. Imagine the pictures I can get from up there!

Maryland

Posted on February 23, 2014February 23, 2014 by Dusty Roads | 2 Comments

The next state with an exchange for me is Maryland and oh my, I think I fell in love when I read the description. Here it is word for word…what do you think!

Nestled in the natural wetlands overlooking the beautiful Isle of Wight Bay, you will discover a very unique and distinct hotel that can accommodate endless possibilities for any occasion.

The Coconut Malorie is a five-story, bay-front resort. With its beautiful marble lobby and waterfall, it offers deluxe suites, all newly designed with attention to meeting your vacation needs. From the building’s exterior to the carpet in the bedrooms, no detail has been left out. Professionally decorated rooms showcase all new furniture, artwork, carpet, bedspreads and curtains.

Located on top of the hotel in the tower, you can enjoy magnificent views of the ocean, the bay and the best sunsets on the east coast.

Ocean City has a boardwalk. At just under three miles, the Ocean City, Maryland boardwalk is a perfect family bike ride, an invigorating walk or run, or a relaxing tram ride. At night, the boardwalk comes to life with rides, arcades, performers and so much more.

And this is the perfect location to see the wild ponies of Assateague. The famous ponies are just nine miles from Ocean City, along with nature trails, deer, foxes and thousands of birds. Oh be still my heart! This is a major wish list of mine.

There’s tons of free events too if the travel pages can be believed. Here’s an excerpt from just one of those pages:

Enjoy our nights of free family fun. In the summer there is a free family event every day of the week. Some of the events include:

Sundaes in the Park with free concert, fireworks and ice cream for a small fee at Northside Park.
Concerts on the Beach every Wednesday evening.
Free Movies Under the Stars Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays.
Family Beach Olympics on Tuesday evenings.
Sunset Park Party Nights every Thursday.
Laser Light Shows on Sundays.
Fireworks on Mondays and Tuesdays.

I’m seeing photo ops everywhere! I think Maryland is giving Colorado a run for first choice. Unfortunately it looks like this location is all booked up for 2014. 🙁 Even in the “off Season”.

Any comments or suggestions from the Maryland contingent?

Metamora

Posted on February 17, 2014February 17, 2014 by Dusty Roads | 2 Comments

Whether I go to Indiana this year or another year, I will get there and now I have even more reason to go. One of the reasons I post my thoughts on my various vacation plans is because I get such great suggestions from you, my readers. Case in point, one of the comments on my Indiana post suggested including a visit to Metamora.

I will freely admit that I had never heard of Metamora and maybe that’s not so unusual because on the home page of it’s website , Metamora is described as Indiana’s Best Kept Secret.

I love hidden gems. We’ve had such good luck finding them in our travels, my sister and me. Probably due to my sister’s good attitude… we’re not lost, we’re sight- seeing.

Anyway Metamora is described as a Canal Town. Having grown up near the Erie Canal I know what that means but as far as I know we don’t have any horse or mule drawn canal boats anymore on the Erie. Well Metamora does. Isn’t that cool? I wonder if we can ride on one?

They have a Grist Mill too. We have one in Plymouth and they are great photo ops.

You know what else they have? A train ride. That’s always a big hit on my trips. I love taking vintage train rides.

And they have a covered bridge but it covers an aqueduct. Metamora has the only wood aqueduct still in service in this country. It was built to carry the canal 16 feet above the Duck Creek.

Now this kind of stuff gets me excited for vacation. The only problem is that it’s too far from the timeshare location. I would need to arrange to stay in a local Bed and Breakfast or motel. Not that that’s a bad thing, just that it changes the cost of the vacation a bit.