Our final breakfast in what Karen was still calling Cell Block H was as the other days except we got worried that the old lady was not around to start with. But then like the spring chicken she wasn’t, she reappeared to restock the food and wipe down the tables and chairs as people left.
We loaded the car before I went to reception to check out and to get confirmation our refund for leaving one day earlier than booked was on its way to us.
Our first stop was at Publix to get some rolls for a picnic and with that we said goodbye to the Great Smoky Mountains, Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge. It had been fun, but we were happy to be now moving on. Although we could have found things to do, there was nothing that we felt we were missing out on and were glad to be moving on.
Our destination for the day was the Cumberland Gap National Park for three reasons. The first was that it looked interesting, the second was that we both recalled the song by Lonnie Donneganand the third and final reason was that it would take us into Kentucky which would be a brand-new state for us.
By more luck than planning we ended up in the very small town of Cumberland Gap which was enchanting. In the centre next to a lovely stream was an old shack coffee shop called Gap Creek which had a large outside seating area which was heaving with people. We parked up and went in. It had all the old charm you would expect and was full of locals all meeting up and having lunch. We ordered drinks and, on a whim, decided to abandon our just purchased rolls and ordered Grilled Cheese paninis which looked super good.
We sat and ate them outside in the shade as the sun was burning. The pepperjack grilled cheese was delicious but not really to Karen’s liking.
The town was perfectly preserved and from our position we could see the ‘Cumberland Gap’. From here we drove into Kentucky to the Visitors Centre which has some stunning flowers outside. Inside we had a small theatre to ourselves as we watched a 20 minute film about Daniel Boone and his crossing of the Cumberland Gap. It was very informative.
From here we drove up to the Pinnacle Overlook. The drive took about 10 minutes but was stupidly steep in parts. The overlook gave us a great vista of the gap, and we could just about identify the point on top of the mountain where the states of Tennessee, Kentucky and Virginia meet. There was a trail up to it, but it was a 4-mile round trip and marked as strenuous with a climb of 600ft. So, we maturely decided it was beyond us and just view it from afar.
We were really pleased that we had made the effort to drive here today.
From here we drove back down again and headed to the Lincoln Museum and Library in the town of Harrogate which we had passed just before getting to the National park.
The museum was almost empty when we arrived. It cost just $5 each to enter so we didn’t expect too much. It was though surprisingly good.
We learnt about Cousin Abe’s connection to Hingham in Norfolk. There were many genuine artefacts like a clipping of his hair. We learnt much about the man, his family and background, his politics and his assassination. It also explained why that despite the fact he never set foot in Tennessee that his museum and library was situated here. It had been rebuilt in 1977 thanks to a large donation from Colonel Sanders of KFC fame. I liked the painting that had been done of the Colonel shaking hands with Abe.
From here we drove back to Knoxville where our recently booked hotel for the night was another Holiday Inn Express which met with Karen’s approval.
For dinner today after driving to a local Ruby Tuesday and walking out again because neither of us liked the vibe, we headed to a local chain instead called Aubrey’s. It was a great choice.
We sat outside in the lovely warm evening sunshine and were served by a lad called Dawson who picked up our accents and wanted a long conversation about what he correctly called Football. He asked about Josh Sergent which pleased me.
We both ordered Fish & Chips which was good but just not what we would call Fish & Chips. The fish was Pollock and was panko coated. The homemade chips were more like potato scallops. It was very acceptable
Then we headed back for the night and after sorting ourselves out watched the final of ‘Race across the World’ as we were concerned, we would read about the winners online before seeing the programme. I know it is cleverly edited but the ending was too close to not have been a set up surely.
Anyhow we were very pleased with our late replan. It had been another good day.
