So we set off eager to get on the road after months of waiting. We had spent the day before finding all the right equipment such as storage boxes, camp kitchens items etc and after much delay, we finally found ourselves in Shenandoah National Park, Virginia.
Upon arrival, we were greeted by a camp ranger who was giving a talk on all the wildlife so we politely attended, mainly because we thought we’d need to clue up on what to do if a bear attacks us (having spotted all the warning signs coming into the national park!)
The ranger had the enthusiasm of a 5 year old and it was adorable listening to her do all her wildlife impressions but we came away more amused than informed.
Sleeping with one eye open would be the strategy that night.
We had plans to drive the Skyline Drive (105 miles) which takes you through Shenandoah and has a speed limit of 35mph. It was beautiful winding up and across the mountain ridgeway on our second day and we managed a short hike to a waterfall too. However we were there with quite a few others too. I think this will be the way across America but we are grateful for all the beautiful landscapes we get to come across.
We decided to set up shop at the end of the Skyline Drive before the next day where we would tackle the Blue Park Ridgeway (400+). As we approached camp, so did the bad weather and we pretty much cooked and went to bed to avoid getting soggy! The beauty of it is that James installed an iPad mount so on evenings like that, we can just chill watching something in bed.
Packing up a wet tent is never fun but it’s part of the deal here, so after getting a little damp the next morning, we made our way towards the Great Smoky Mountains. We managed to find a great spot on the river and have a warm shower before going to bed a little drier that night.
With a belly full of good food (sausage and mash), we arose early and hit our first trail in the Smoky’s. The drive up to the trailhead was just gorgeous and we even managed to find coffee on the way into the park in a strange little town called Gatlinburg (Tennessee). We began a climb up to Alum Caves which was super cool, literally hiking through a hole of a cave and then further up, what is called a bluff where a rock curves over you and you can stand under it! Awesome hike and great to stretch our legs.
We then made our way to a campsite in the Smokys which felt really special (Cades Cove). We could hear wildlife all around us and the toilet block had a sign in, warning us ladies about a friendly snake that likes to appear at night sometimes. Excellent.
James had very kindly bought me a citronella candle in a little flower pot, however we didn’t have a lighter. I thought I was being ingenious by using the stove flame to light it however the whole candle fell out of the pot onto the stove and went up in flames. James is calling it the Great Citronella Fire of 2022. (Disclaimer – noone got hurt)
After a night of avoiding the friendly snake in the bathroom, we woke early to explore the Cades Cove loop, where we were told, we would definitely see bears. After 3 nights camping, we felt like pros and knew what to do if we spotted one. Driving along to our trailhead, James just shouted bear, bear, bear. I looked out the window, and turns out he was right, a black bear just running past the car so nonchalant. It felt so exciting and we’d hope to see more on our trail.
We really enjoyed our hike to Abram Falls and got there early enough to avoid lots of people traffic however did have wild turkey overtake us on the trail which made us chuckle!
NB. For those at home panicking that we’re getting a bit too brave about bears…the black bear found here is nowhere near as big as a grizzly/brown bear and generally runs away if it sees a human. Needless to say, we aren’t looking for a cuddle from them and have been taught to shout loudly if we spot one to scare it off. And also anything scented such as food, Toothpaste etc has to stay in a sealed box or locked in your car.