Day 8 & 9: Getting Finished

Day 8

I spent a leisurely Saturday morning with Shelley and Barry, which felt nice...no pressure to dash off to the next location.  In fact, I really had only two locations on my list for this day day: (1) Soco Falls and (2) the location where I'd spend the night.

I had originally planned to visit Soco Falls after I left The Great Smoky Mountains National Park, but that's when my tripod ball head issue occurred, so I skipped it, hoping to catch it later.  Soco Falls is actually on the Cherokee Indian reservation but is open to public.  It is a twin falls, but based on pictures on line I wasn't expecting to much.  And, it was mid-day with strong sunlight so I was anticipating some challenging lighting conditions.

I put the location in the Garmin and headed off.  It was (yet another) twisty, turny mountain road.  The parking area was very small and on the opposite side of the road...impossible to safely pull in with Ansel.  So I kept driving looking for a spot to turn around, which I eventually found three miles later!  When I got back to the parking area there were no spots open.  I pulled off on the shoulder to wait, thinking someone would leave soon.  But, Ansel's hind end was sticking out a little, making me a little nervous.  I noticed people walking down the road so there must be additional parking up there, which there was (about 1/4 mile walk).

To access the falls, you had to climb down a bunch of rocks.  Fortunately someone had strung up a bunch of ropes to create a kind-of technical ropes course.  I didn't have any problem going down (or back up) but some folks did as they either did not have suitable footwear (I had my hiking boots on) or were not in good (enough) physical condition.  Anyway, the falls turned out be nicer than what I expected, and the lighting was not too bad either  A great photo spot to close things out!

Full view of Soco Falls

Lower section of right-hand falls

The right-hand falls

Some "drips"

Off to the location where I would spend the night: Crafty Bastard Brewing in Knoxville.  Crafty Bastard is a partner of Harvest Hosts, an organization that enables RV-ers to park overnight at partner locations free of charge (if you're member).  The expectation is that you spend at least $20 at the establishment, which could be a brewery, winery, farm, museum, church or (if premium membership) a golf course.  I had wanted to stay at one of these locations on the way down, but it didn't work with my schedule.

When I arrived, there were already several RV's in the large parking area, and a couple more pulled in after me.  By the time I walked into the brewery (to spend my $20), I was one of seven RV's in the parking lot.  Knoxville being the home of the Vols, it was a raucous atmosphere inside with the Tennessee-Alabama football game on TV.  Of course the place went nuts when the Vols beat the Tide, the first time in 15 years.  Fun!

As I walked back to Ansel to make dinner, there more RV's in the lot, including two Promasters.  One had parked right in front of Ansel and one right behind, as if they said, "we need to stick with our own kind".

My beer flight....beers were not too bad!

The 3 Promasters with Ansel in the niddle

Day 9

My destination this day was my mother-in-law's place in Ohio.  Not only was this a convenient (and free) place to spend the night, it turns out Mary Jo was there for a baby shower.  So, I would be abke to see her a day sooner!

Before leaving Knoxville, I wanted to upload my next blog so I found a McDonalds.  For some reason, I couldn't connect to their free WiFi as I had been able to do all week.  I tried two other McDonalds nearby, but still couldn't connect.  Very strange.  I eventually went to a Starbucks since I needed another cup of coffee anyway.

I thought I might have time to do one more waterfall in Daniel Boone National Forest in Kentucky, but I dilly-dallied too much, and so it didn't work out.  I probably wouldn't have had time anyway, so it will just have to wait for the "next trip".

It was a long drive to my mother-in-laws place (I was so tired), but I made it.  It was great to see Mary Jo and to enjoy a nice dinner.

Sorry, no photos from this day!

I'll have one final post with my thoughts from the trip, so still stay tuned in!