Kardos Family Road Trippin’ Adventure

Smokemont campground was a good location not too far from civilization but far enough to be off the grid with no cell coverage! Our campsite was riverfront which was very peaceful. We have to say we had fairly high expectations after seeing Glacier National Park and the Great Smoky Mountains were amazing but not quite as breathtaking… our first night we watched a huge herd of elk in a grass prairie area near the park entrance. The second day we went to Gatlinburg which we had been told was a historic town with coasters and an amusement park above the town and supposedly lots of bear sitings on the road to town, but we didn’t see any 😢🐻 Gatlinburg was a cool town but quite touristy… we had a great lunch at a restaurant off the beaten path then we each did the mountain coaster ride before heading back.

After returning from Gatlinburg it was time to celebrate our little man turning ONE!!! Mommy baked him a brownie cake with ice cream. His “Happy Birthday” video is quite funny… he’s a little character! Big brother helped with blowing out the candle.

Our next morning we decided to do a hike from our campground. It was supposed to be a simple 2 miles out, 2 miles back… but at our 2 mile resting point Kevin saw the sign for the loop being 3.9 more miles so convinced Ash to do the full 6ish mile loop… and she will never listen to him again when it comes to hikes!!!! After crossing the log bridge over the river, the hiking trail proceeded to go straight UP for 2 miles!!! It was miserable and one of the most painful hikes ever… having PTSD just typing about it. Oh and we both had kids in backpacks on our backs which was even more killer… ohhhhh and we decided to switch since the pack for Bentley is more comfortable, but that meant more weight. By the time we got back it was almost 7 miles according to our tracking watch and we could barely walk. Ouch! Let’s also add… there were no good views, no animal sightings, and the best part was crossing the log bridge. 🙄😤

That afternoon Mommy earned some casino time in Cherokee and won $200 playing blackjack!! Daddy drove the boys for a long 2 hour nap which was much needed after our big morning hike. The next day we packed up and left the Smoky Mountains on our way to celebrate Mommy’s birthday in Nashville!!!! 🤠🎉🎂 On our way we researched some things to do before Nashville and found a really cool thing called Ruby Falls in Chattanooga, Tennessee. It was a mile cave hike underground to a waterfall… amazing and the boys loved it! Such a cool experience.