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You can’t say you’ve experienced these dusky peaks if you’ve never sat outside on the porch with a mason jar full of moonshine cocktail while listening to bluegrass music. After all, white lightnin’, as the locals call it, is one of the most famous novelties of the Great Smoky Mountains. So how did Appalachian moonshine […]

Pigeon Forge makes its primary claim to fame as a center for thrilling amusement park rides and interactive outdoor adventures in the Great Smoky Mountains. However, these aren’t the only features that make this small mountain town so special. The local community is bursting with talent, from actors and musicians to comedians and magicians. As […]

Your higher power is with you no matter where you are. Yet, you may feel a stronger connection with the divine when surrounded by ancient beauty and graceful grandeur. Impressive, timeless, yet gentle – the Great Smoky Mountains inherently generate such a sense of sacredness. It’s no surprise that there is a wide variety of […]

The truly spiritual need for caffeine to wake you up in the morning? It doesn’t compare. What about the universally-felt longing for your cat to come and sit on your lap? No, that doesn’t compare either. Nothing compares to the ravenous craving we can feel for a thick, juicy, twelve-story-high burger! Sometimes, the simplest things […]

Eastern Tennessee is full of gorgeous mountain rivers and streams. However, it can be daunting to navigate them all and know which ones are best suited to which activities. Plus, the only information available online is limited and scattered, which might not help if you’re new to the area. Come with us on a virtual […]

If you’re not from the South, you may have a hard time pinpointing exactly what defines Southern cuisine. After all, it is a vast category. The Deep South near New Orleans includes Creole dishes like étouffée and Cajun entrées such as jambalaya. Further north along the Atlantic coastline, you have Lowcountry seafood like shrimp and […]

Just as you reach the trail’s end, where a majestic waterfall splashes over slippery little red salamanders, your stomach starts to rumble. As you spot the parking lot past the trailhead, you wonder how many hours it’s been since breakfast. The moment you finish taking a sip of water and buckling up in the driver’s […]

In one suite, there is a lively grandmother who communicates in American Sign Language to supplement her hearing aid. Across the hall, there is an adorable family whose child was born with cerebral palsy, which affects her movement and walking. There is an intelligent young man on the ground floor who suffered a traumatic injury […]

There will never be a lack of goals to work toward. There will never be a shortage of chores to catch up on, after-school activities for the kids to try out, or DIY home improvement projects. All these things can be fantastic opportunities to move us toward our dream lives. On the other hand, if […]

Sturdy oak trunks seem to tower endlessly upward, and their leafy branches merge to create an emerald ceiling above you. Your ears perk up to the abrupt rattling stutter of a woodpecker before the sound is lost to the serene shushing of leaves in a gentle breeze. The beauty of nature has the power to […]