Great Smokey Mountains National Park

Great Smokey Mountains had been top on our list of tnational parks. We started the journey in April 2010 from upstate NY which is a 11 hours drive from Corning, NY. After a full day drive we reached Gatlinburg around 11:00 p.m. A short nap of 6 hours and we were ready to embrace the breathtaking views of Smokey mountains. It encompasses over 800 square miles of Appalachian mountains and harbors around 17,000 species of wildlife.

Drove through the scenic drive to the top up till North Carolina Tenseness State border line. Enjoyed 5 mile hike and the rich beautiful colors of  different plants. In the evening took a cable car to the top of Crockett mountain and enjoyed the scenic view of Gatlinburg town and Great Smokey Mountains at a hanging at a height of 1800 feet. 

   

Next day, on our way back home we stopped at Virginia Safari Park and spent some time with the wild. As we began our drive through safari we were greeted by a herd of Llama's. One of them seemed to be in no mood to let go us inside the park without collecting his share. He refused to give us way thru to the park and turned to the side we turned to not letting us cross. Twenty minutes of this game and we were about to call rangers for help when this moody fellow showed mercy and walked away while giving us a grumpy look. Had a nice drive watching wild animals very closely. Tired we decided to retire at a nearby hotel.

 

Next morning we continued our journey way back home. Final stop at Atlantic City, New Jersey enjoyed board walk, sea waves, shopping and food. After having spent a beautiful evening at Atlantic city ,we headed back home. This was a week long trip with 26 hours of total drive but the fascinating Smokey mountains , the beautiful city of Gatlinburg and scenic stops along with the way made it worthwhile.