Monday, June 3rd, 2019
Left the house about 9a; stopped at Frisch's south of Lexington to eat. Got to the hotel about 3p. Swimming at the hotel (indoor pool). Hot tub at the hotel. Megan and Cameron played chess at the hotel lobby (Megan got all Cameron's pieces, but then he tricked her into a stalemate). We ate hot chocolate chip cookies at the hotel. Then we set out on foot to "The Island", where we were staying. We looked through the shops. Jen got an Auntie Anne's pretzel. Then the kids did the ropes course, which they quite enjoyed. At the end of the course, then jumped off the top - maybe 2 stories. While the kids were on the course, Jen bought her souvenir jacket, as it was getting chilly.
After the ropes course, they did and kiddie up and down ride, then the Great Smoky Mountain Wheel. They also did a small spinny roller coaster. Megan did a crazy spinning ride called the "way back ride". Then, since it was late (past 11p), and we were all hungry, we headed to Denny's, since it was the only thing we could find open. It ended up being our most $$ meal of the trip - partly because we all wanted milkshakes.
Tuesdey, June 4th, 2019
Breakfast at the hotel (good scrambled eggs and sausage); back to The Island to do the mini tramp high jumps, and then the kids rode the big wheel again (their wrist bands were good for 24 hours). Then they did the Mirror Maze, Atomic Rush, and the Lazer Maze challenge (a group of fun activities, also at The Island). Next we drove to look for an ATV ride/tour, but we found a mountain slide instead. First the kids did it with David, and then I took a turn trying it too. I tried not to use the brake, but around the bends it seemed like it was out of control. Then we took a rest at the hotel. A little later, we drove about 40 minutes outside of Pigeon Forge so the kids and David could go on a guided ATV ride. This was probably the low point of the vacation. The office had told us that the ATV would be simple to operate. It was much more complicated than she indicated, and Cam ended up riding with David. Which was not the type of ATV David wanted to drive.
After the ATV ride, we went to Cicis pizza (they are all over down there!) Because it was super-busy, the pizza was extra fresh and delicious. Then we went back to the hotel (not far) and spent some more time at the indoor pool. We also checked out the hotel fire pit before turning in for the night.
Wednesday, June 5th, 2019
Breakfast at the hotel (included in our room); mini-golf at Crave (we played the outdoor course and were finishing up just as the rain started). At Crave we had a buy-one, get-one coupon. We decided to use the 2nd game later. David and the kids then drove some outdoor go-carts. It was starting to drizzle, and looked to be threatening worse. After the go carts, we drove to an indoor snow tubing building. It had been open less than a year. The kids got in several rides before the place started to fill up. Next David and I made a junk food run to Publix, which was across the street from our hotel. We then checked out Top Jump, but it was way packed, and we decided to come back another time.
We then drove to Gatlinburg with the intention of riding the Sky Ride. It was not running when we got there, and it was doubtful we would have had enough time. Then Cam, Megan and I walked to the hot sauce store (at The Island). Cam worked up the nerve to sample a few salsas. We also went to the candy store; Cameron got a sour tube, Megan got some gummy candy. Next we had dinner at the Murder Mystery theater. It had its strengths and weaknesses... Then we turned in for the night; we were all pretty wiped out. Plus, we had to get up early for white water rafting
Thursday, June 6th, 2019
Breakfast at the hotel; approx hour drive for white water rafting. This was an excellent organization. The place was clean, everyone was friendly, and the guide knew what he was doing. We also talked to the owner for a while. It sounds like she really turned the place around in recent years. We had a great rafting ride - with at least 3 rapids rated at 4. The guide was impressed with our rowing skills. The 4 of use tried hard. We had a raft to ourselves (the 4 of us plus our guide, who was a college student at Appalachian State, and had a mohawk). Then the kids went zip lining (at the same organization), partly in a decently-hard rain.
On the way back to PF, we stopped at Food Lion for hot dogs and accouterments for lunch. We at this at the hotel. We also were at the hotel at the right time for warm, fresh-baked chocolate chip cookies again. Then the family humored me by walking over the the Goats On The Roof store. There were some young goats, who genuinely seemed to enjoy attention and petting. We continued our walk over to The Track, where David and Cameron rode go carts. Back at the hotel, we got our wet clothes out of the industrial-sized dryer that the hotel luckily had for guests.
Because the weather was perfect, and we had a decent amount of time left to the day, we drove to Gatlinburg for the Sky Lift. At the top, we walked the Sky Bridge, which was pretty terrifying to me. The kids were not phased. While David and I stayed at the top, the kids rode the Sky Lift again (we were allowed to ride it as much as we wanted for the rest of the day). We then all rode it to the bottom, where Megan and I ate at Five Guys and the boys got ice cream treats. Then the kids wanted to ride "with 3" on the Sky Lift, since the seats would fit up to 3. David went with them. While they were up there, they did the Sky Bridge another time.
At the outer edge of Gatlinburg, we stopped at Big Bear glider coaster. It was dark by now, which was a perfect time to ride the glider coaster. The package also included 2 rides on their mountain coaster, which was also cool at night. While the kids rode these (David was afraid they would make him sick), David and I chatted with the roller coaster operator, who even David agreed was "adorable" (My phrasing was that he was probably "beating them off with a stick")
Friday, June 7th, 2019
Breakfast at the hotel, then we immediately headed over to Top Jump, hoping to beat the crowds. The kids got a 2-hour pass, which included a VR game. They did the VR game first, hoping to avoid lines later. Megan said the one at The Web was better. Then they did the cool rock-climbing variants for a bit, but it was tiring for them for sure. Then Cam played dodge ball for a while as Megan rested. Next Megan tried the Ninja Course, which was super challenging. Cam tried it next, but it really seemed made for adults (FIT adults at that). After Top Jump, we went over to McDonalds where we all got a drink. Then Cam and David stayed at the hotel while Jen and Megan drove to a book store down the street. Megan had already finished reading both books she brought. Megan said "This bookstore is probably not the type that would even have The Hate U Give", but I proved her wrong by finding that exact book. Megan picked out two teen books (one was a John Greene), which would serve as her souvenir.
Megan and Cam then did the hot tub, then the outdoor pool. After that we had some rest time, and cookies at the hotel. Then David and Jen took a walk down the Parkway. We went pretty far, but as we got close to the hotel, the rain came down hard. After another hour or so in the hotel, we walked over to Dicks Last Resort (at The Island). The kids liked the idea of a restaurant where everyone was supposed to be rude / obnoxious to you. Megan kept our hats with insults on them (Cams said "I pee sitting down", and Megan's said "I practice kissing on shower walls"; mine said "If it vibrates, I own it"; Davids said "Have you seen Mike Hawk"). David also made a few jokes. One was he wrote "here's your tip: move out of Tennessee", which I gave to the waitress.
After eating our dinner, we headed down the street to another Big Bear activity (they gave us a discount with our receipt from the first place). Megan was all intertubed-out, and David was afraid it would make him sick, so I did the outdoor tubing hill with Cameron. We were the only ones there at the start, as they were just trying to decide if they should re-open after a downpour. The hill was even faster than usual, because of all the rain, and when I went down the hill, the sand bags really went flying with my weight and momentum.
Saturday, June 8th, 2019
I wanted my animal fix, so Megan and I picked an 'exotic petting farm' that was about a 40 minute drive from the hotel. Cam and David stayed at the hotel - Cameron slept in until noon. The petting farm was way too many animals in way too little space. They were definitely tame though. I liked feeding the emus, and how the horses stomped their hooves to ask for food. The goats were my favorite though - we got to hold the baby goats, and again the goats actually asked to be pet. I also made friends with the pet cats that were outside the main entrance.
After Megan and I got back to the hotel, we went to a movie theater a few miles away to see Secret Life of Pets. We were running out of vacation activities. (at least ones that any of us were interested in) We had lunch in our room, and then walked in the rain to play our second game of Crave mini golf. This time we played the indoor course. It was super crowded, but we weren't in any hurry. We were supposed to stay until Monday, but we had all agreed that we would check out Sunday (the next day) instead. David especially wanted to get home. Although the hotel bed was pretty darn comfy, he did not sleep as well away from home.
As we were walking back to the hotel from Crave, we were talking about a crazy ride that goes high into the air. David and Cam and I said we would never do it - too scary. Megan said she would, and this turned into basically a challenge from Cam. So Megan marched right up to the ride and sure enough, she did it. There was no one else waiting, so the operator even gave her a few extra spins.
Back at the hotel, Jen and Cam spent some time in the outdoor pool. The water was really pretty warm, and Jen even went under the water. Then Jen spent some time in the hot tub. We watched Guardians of the Galaxy 2 in our room. The next day we got up, breakfast at the hotel, and then hit the road. We had lunch at McDs (the boys) and Arbys (the girls), and made it home by about 3:30p.
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