Surviving the Storm

Little did we know what awaited us Thursday evening.  Our day was spent eating at Fuddrucker's in Sevierville, hitting the streets of Gatlinburg, boarding the Titanic and riding out the storm.    After enjoying lunch in Sevierville, we tried to purchase tickets for the Titanic exhibit.  It appears that the Titanic crew does not let locals board until after 5:00 pm (locals get a deep discount on the price).

Part of our crew headed back to Blackbearry Ridge to nap while another part hit the parkway in Gatlinburg. During the afternoon Brent and Conley headed to the Parkway and went to Ripley's Haunted Adventure and Ripleys Believe It or Not, hit the arcade at Fannie Farkels' and grabbed some candy at Aunt Mahalias'.  Then the two (2) met Jessica at Ranger Bobs as she ended her shift and the trio headed to the Titanic to meet the rest of the gang.

Out of a premonition, Becky, Brent, JoLynn and Stella did not board the Titanic, but instead headed to the Old Time Pottery while the rest of the group ignored all the warnings and took sail on the Titanic.  About an hour into the voyage, a huge and violent storm descended on East Tennessee, as all those on board were unaware of the danger.  The group at Old Time Pottery watched as the storm rolled in, the winds became strong and the rain fell in buckets.

Shortly thereafter, Brent received a distress call from Rebecca inside the Titanic as she informed him that all power was out in the ship and they were floundering in total darkness.  We had power inside the shop and soon all met for dinner in Piegon Forge before heading back to Blackbearry Ridge.

This time Jessica and Conley headed back to Gatlinburg to go to Ripley s' Mirror Maze and Ripley's Moving Theater, while the rest of us headed back to blacked out Blackbearry Ridge.  Yep, we did not have power at Blackbearry Ridge because of the storm.  Luckily, the temperature had dropped so it was not unbearable but we were glad to have the power back around 1:00 am.

The area did sustain some high wind and violent lighting and two (2) people were killed by falling trees while camping in the park.

Boarding the funicular that takes you to the funeral parlor at the Haunted Adventures.

Conley playing skee ball at Fannie Farkels'

Conley is ready to throw again!

Conley eating candy outside of Aunt  Mahalia's.

That candy sure is good.

The moon rises over Mt. Le Conte.

Stella Gets Her Groove Back

Stella was unable to make it to the parade early this morning because it did not start until 12:01 am on July 4 th.  Armed with a good restful nights sleep, Stella was ready to tackle the town of Gatlinburg.

Shopping in Aunt Mahalia's Stella searches for the right piece of candy.

Success!  Like an Olympic champion, Stella holds up her perfect selection.

An employee assists Stella in the opening of the candy.

Stella decides to ride a bear while eating her candy.

After finishing her first piece of candy, Stella inspects the taffy at Ole Smoky Mountain Kitchen.

To work off the candy, Stella pushes the floating ball at Ripleys.

After eating dinner at Mellowmushroom, Stella enjoys ice cream at Berkshires.

From the expression the ice cream was delicious.

Gatlinburg - First 4th of July Parade in the Country

Happy 4th of July.  We met the Birmingham crowd at Blackbearry Ridge and then headed down to Gatlinburg for the 4th of July parade which begins at midnight.  What a great tribute to the men and women in the armed service representation from all the branches.  There were several floats which had the Tuskegee Airman, a float with a Congressional medal winner and numerous floats with veterans.  It also was a great time to reflect and understand that the upcoming election is very important and to rid our country of socialism, we need to kick 44 out the door.  The Tea Party even had a float in the parade.

Lining the streets of Gatlinburg at 10:30 pm.

Rebecca, Conley and David.

David, Becky, Jennifer, Jessica and JoLynn.

We were sitting on the Parkway across from the aquarium.

Conley joined in the pre-parade activity of kids scrambling for coins thrown by parade watchers.  

Here comes the start of the parade

Lots of flashing lights and loud sirens.

Several marching bands from across the country and Canada.

A marine shaking hands with Conley, Jennifer and Jessica.

Aunt Mahalia's Candies

This week, our featured Gatlinburg establishment and building is Aunt Mahalias'.  There are two (2) locations of Aunt Mahalia's.  One location is in the Mountain Mall and the one pictured is on the parkway.

With all the renovation happening in Gatlinburg, this building may be destroyed in the next few years.

This location of Aunt Mahalias I believe took over the building that once housed McCutchen's Candy.  When McCutchen's occupied the building, the large storefront window on the left allowed people on the street to watch the worker hand roll the peppermint candy on a large wooden table.

Across the parkway.  The building on the left was recently renovated in the last few years.

The Battle of Blackbearry Ridge

As noted before, the war on kudzu at Blackbearry Ridge has been in full force for nearly two (2) years.  This weekend at Blackbearry Ridge was the scene of a major battle that has shifted the outcome to our favor.  We were unaware that kudzu cells had spread their evil vines into the base of Blackbearry Ridge.  While the battle lines had clearly been draw on the ground and a front establish, the kudzu had become airborne.

This weekend at the Battle of Blackbearry Ridge, we attacked the kudzu aerial assault and inflected major damage on the enemy.  With a chain saw and heavy artillery (the jeep) two (2) trees that had been harboring the kudzu and providing a base for their aerial attacks were taken down with precision strikes.  After taking down the trees the kudzu was brought down to the ground level where it was quickly neutralized with a lethal agent to kudzu but environmentally friendly to animals and the allied forces.

We have clearly stopped the advance this weekend but we are not allowing ourselves to become complaisant but instead vow to continue the attack and bring the battle to the kudzu root.  Our largest problem is the neighboring property which appears to be kudzu sympathizers.  This had forced us to make numerous covert strikes on the property to weaken the kudzu stronghold.  No collateral damage has been witnessed by these covert missions, but after witnessing the battle firsthand and forced to retreat, the kudzu leader has retreated his forces but all signs indicate the fight for the kudzu's claim to Blackbearry Ridge will continue.

A cable was attached to the second kudzu base.

While the cable is attached to the base, forces move in to make precision cuts and  weaken the base.

The kudzu air force is brought to the ground.

The pile of kudzu wreckage combine with the trees.

Allied ground forces quickly move in to destroy any remaining kudzu.

The ground assault continues as the kudzu is destroyed.

The heavy artillery is called to the ridge in case of another attack. 

The kudzu leader surveys the damage and ponders his next move.

In retreat, the kudzu leader crosses the new battle lines that were formed.