Gateway City
Trip Start
Apr 07, 1996
1
6
12
Trip End
Apr 09, 1996
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Gatlinburg, Tennessee
Monday, April 8, 1996
Any visit to town should begin at the Gatlinburg Welcome Center. Gatlinburg is the ultimate big-little town; with hawkers on every corner peddling T-shirts picturing the incredible natural beauty that surrounds you. You can stand atop a "space needle" in the heart of downtown and gaze at the full moon rising over 6,593-foot Mt LeConte. Down below, you can get married in a wedding chapel or play gooney golf by floodlight. Or, eat fudge you've just watched someone make. Many folks are content to sit in a rocking chair on a porch hanging over the Pigeon River; sometimes they make extra effort and dangle a fishing pole down below. People watching and shopping top the list of things to do.
Serious crafts-people visit the Arrowmont School of Arts & Crafts; this arts complex provides year-round changing programs and exhibits. Ride the Arts & Crafts Trolley for an 8-mile loop tour of the Great Smoky Arts & Crafts Community, taking you to the shops and studios of more than 80 artists and craftspeople; watch and visit them while they work.
Shows you may want to catch: the Gatlinburg Passion Play, a musical drama depicting the life of Christ with choir, soloists, and special effects; Smoky Mountain Travelers, live bluegrass and mountain music; and Sweet Fanny Adams Theater, with two musical comedies, presented on alternate nights.
A quick ride to the mountain tops on the Gatlinburg Sky Lift, go up Crockett Mountain for a panoramic view of the Great Smokies; or Gatlinburg Aerial Tramway, which takes you to Ober Gatlinburg Ski Resort and Amusement Park. Looking for a slower ride? McCarter's Stables offers horseback guided one-to-four-hour mountain trail rides inside Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
