Favorite hikes

One hike I really enjoyed was at the Great Smoky Mountains. The hike is to Abrams Falls in the Cades Cove Area. The walk is 2.5 miles each way for a total of five miles. This is basically an easy hike with three hills which are not too difficult to tackle. They will get your heart rate up though. The flowing stream can be heard most of the way, and the waterfalls at the end makes this hike rewarding.

The trail does get crowded in peak summer months, and parking sometimes gets difficult around 10:00 in the morning.

I love the Gatlinburg/Smoky Mountains area.  I have never found a bike that I was comfortable riding until I rented one from the park office in Cade's Cove last summer.  The 11-mile loop road ride was exhilarating - especially considering that we got to see a mother bear & cub near the end of it!  A small crowd of very cautious hikers & bikers stood back and watched as they came down out of a tree, drank out of the stream, then crossed the road right in front of us.

I enjoy walking all kinds of trails and inline skating.  After that trip, I'm looking forward to buying a bike this spring for some new adventures.