Weekend Trip to the Smoky Mountains

This weekend we took a trip up to the Smoky Mountains in east Tennessee. On the way up we stopped in Chattanooga for lunch at Sluggos and picked up some fresh bread from the Bluff View Bakery in the Art District. The daily special at Sluggos was vegan shepherds pie.

We kept seeing signs on the interstate for a cheese farm so we decided to stop there too. We bought a smoked cheddar, gouda, and garlic cheese. The first night at the cabin in the mountains we just bread and cheese with some grapes and olive salad.

The first day in the national park we spent most of the day hiking. There are some cool old buildings in the park that you can walk into to imagine what early settlers lift might have been like. We started in the  Metcalf Bottoms area by the old school house and then explored Oconaluftee River Trail and Mountain Farm Museum in the afternoon. That night back at the cabin we made an apple gorgonzola cheese pizza with a simple salad.

The second day we drove to the other side of the park to the Cataloochee where you can often see elk. The road to get there was fun to drive. It was very curvy and parts of it were unpaved.

The last night at the cabin we just made a simple pasta with the leftover pizza sauce, some red wine, mushrooms, and yellow cherry tomatoes.