We spent a great week "bookdocking" in the Smokies. For those of you unfamiliar with boondocking, that means that we were not hooked up to power, water, or sewer. When we bought our trailer, we wanted to be able to boondock a lot, so we got a trailer with large fresh water, black (sewer) water, and grey (sink) water tanks, as well as a solar panel on the roof to charge our batteries. This is the first time we have boondocked for an entire week, and it worked out extremely well. It helps that I accidentally chose a site that got sun, so the solar panels recharged the batteries during the day. We had brought along a generator, just in case, but never needed it.
We got a lot of rain, but we were prepared for that, also, bringing books on Kindle, games, etc. The only difficult thing about the rain is that you are basically in a very expensive tin can, and rain on the roof is VERY loud, especially when you are trying to sleep. Here at home this morning, I was happy to wake up to know that it was raining, and I hadn't heard it until I woke up!
We had a great site across from a branch of the Oconaluftee River.
We were able to do several really nice hikes. The first was a wonderful short walk in the fog at a "quiet walkway" at one of the overlooks. The trail was lined with beautiful ferns and wildflowers. Seeing them all in the fog was magical. Facebook friends have already seen these.
Another day we did the Kephart Prong Trail up to the Kephart Shelter. It was an incredibly lovely trail, also, following a prong of the Oconaluftee River as it cascaded down the mountainside. Unfortunately, my phone malfunctioned, and the camera icon vanished, so I didn't get many pix that day. (It was an easy fix when I got time to deal with it.) The trail was not for those afraid of heights, though. Four times, you crossed the river on a log footbridge with a good handrail. Most of these were 10-15 feet or more above the level of the rushing water.
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Oconalufee River |
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Alan on log footbridge |
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From a distance, so you can see how high the footbridge was. |
We also enjoyed park service things near the visitor center:
Mingus Mill: The water went to a chute
that ran a turbine, not a water wheel.
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Farmstead display: Lovely old cabins, barn, etc. moved there so visitors could see typical old buildings on a farm in the mountains. |
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Huge chestnut logs |
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Yes, she is allowed to sit on the table, where she can watch what is happening outside. |
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She must have been cold here, so snuggled as far back on her bed as she could get. |
2 comments:
Your blog gives us a lot of memories to reflect on with our RVing. Hearing the Elk as we did in Alaska, is awesome especially outside the motorhome 20 feet away at 10 pm. Great pictures and descriptions.
So glad that you enjoyed the blog. Hearing the elk so close by when you were in Alaska must have been awesome. What a wonderful memory.
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