Page 1 of 2 12 LastLast
Results 1 to 20 of 38

Thread: Things to see and do in North Carolina/Kentucky/Tennessee/Georgia area

  1. #1
    Owner Dan Druff's Avatar
    Reputation
    10110
    Join Date
    Mar 2012
    Posts
    54,626
    Blog Entries
    2
    Load Metric
    65647581

    Things to see and do in North Carolina/Kentucky/Tennessee/Georgia area

    I'm going to be visiting Harrah's Cherokee (North Carolina) next year, which is located in in western NC, very close to Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

    Coincidentally, it is very close to Asheville, the town we talked about a lot on radio. I will actually be going to Asheville because there are some interesting things to see in the area.

    I've been doing research on the internet, and trying to find the most interesting things to see within approximately a 500 mile radius. I will have a car, and plan to fly back from a different airport from where I arrive.

    I have no experience in the area, and have never been there before.

    Benjamin will be with us, but as I've said many times before, he can find fun in almost anything, and does not need "kiddie" attractions to enjoy himself. In fact, I would prefer NOT to do kiddie stuff, as it will be boring for the adults.

    Here's what I found so far:

    Near Harrah's Cherokee:
    - Great Smoky Mountains National Park
    - Blue Ridge Parkway (Asheville)
    - Chimney Rock State Park (a little east of Asheville)

    Other places of interest:
    - Atlanta (will probably fly in here, never been before)
    - Blue Ridge, GA (located between Atlanta and Harrah's, pretty much a no-brainer stop)
    - Chattanooga, TN (150 miles from Harrah's)
    - Nashville, TN (132 from Chattanooga)
    - Mammoth Caves National Park, Kentucky (92 miles from Nashville)
    - Memphis, TN (212 from Nashville)

    Of course, most of this is west of Harrah's Cherokee.

    I tried to look at the other directions (South Carolina, Mississippi, Alabama, West Virginia), but I'm not seeing much to see/do as a tourist in these places. Would be interested to see how people live in these places, but doesn't seem worth driving hundreds of miles just for that.

    But my mind is open to suggestions.

    Again, don't focus on kid stuff, because I don't want that.

    Don't need beach-type stuff because the water won't be warm, and we already have that in Los Angeles.

    Would prefer more unique things that we won't see in the western US. Anything we could duplicate in California or Nevada won't be too interesting.

    Thanks for any suggestions you guys can make.

    Also, please do not shitpost or troll in this thread. I will delete any of that stuff from this thread, and will kick anyone out of this thread who keeps doing it (I have a new mod that allows me to do that.)

  2. #2
    Banned
    Reputation
    254
    Join Date
    Mar 2020
    Posts
    642
    Load Metric
    65647581
    There is a large quartz dome near Atlanta called Stone Mountain. It has some sort of history with the confederacy and the KKK, and the largest bas-relief in the world carved into it. Recently the BLM movement has been petitioning to have that removed or defaced. I live a short drive away, but have never been, despite lots of suggestions to go check it out. I understand they've built a museum, and for some reason a theme park, right next to it.

    The whole thing sounds pretty weird, but interesting.

  3. #3
    Plutonium sonatine's Avatar
    Reputation
    7368
    Join Date
    Mar 2012
    Posts
    33,367
    Load Metric
    65647581
    Dont run any solar cells; North Carolina is very concerned about you depleting the sun.

     
    Comments
      
      ftpjesus: ROFLMAO. Yeah I read that story and left me scratching my head. I knew people in NC were a little stupid but WTF
    "Birds born in a cage think flying is an illness." - Alejandro Jodorowsky

    "America is not so much a nightmare as a non-dream. The American non-dream is precisely a move to wipe the dream out of existence. The dream is a spontaneous happening and therefore dangerous to a control system set up by the non-dreamers." -- William S. Burroughs

  4. #4
    Owner Dan Druff's Avatar
    Reputation
    10110
    Join Date
    Mar 2012
    Posts
    54,626
    Blog Entries
    2
    Load Metric
    65647581
    Quote Originally Posted by SrslySirius View Post
    There is a large quartz dome near Atlanta called Stone Mountain. It has some sort of history with the confederacy and the KKK, and the largest bas-relief in the world carved into it. I live a short drive away, but have never been, despite lots of suggestions to go check it out. I understand they've built a museum, and for some reason a theme park, right next to it.

    The whole thing sounds pretty weird, but interesting.
    Good suggestion. Will check this out on the internet.

    Oh, and I will have a maximum of 8 days to cover wherever I go, so that's also a consideration.

  5. #5
    Diamond DRK Star's Avatar
    Reputation
    1282
    Join Date
    Mar 2012
    Posts
    8,401
    Load Metric
    65647581
    Biltmore Estate - Largest Private residence in the US. Take a tour. Good wine there too (winery). Just north of Asheville

    http://www.biltmore.com/visit/photo-gallery/

    Pigeon Forge TN
    Gatlinburg TN

    lots of touristy things to do there. Rent a cabin for dirt cheap in off season, up on a mountain (its like a 5 minute drive from the strip). Seriously, there are mountaintop cabins with amazing views and hot tubs on balconies for practically nothing. Tons of things to do with Kids in those areas. If you are talking summer time, do not miss this with Benjamin. He will love it. My kids did. Dollywood amusement park has one of the best waterparks in the country. I know you dont want to focus on it, but seriously, spend a day there with him. He will never forget it. Its like an 8 mile long strip of shit to do. Start at Sevierville and go south to Pigeon Forge...miles and miles of stuff. From Pigeon Forge to Gatlinburg, you go through a forest for like 15 min.

    Sevierville/Pigeon Forge = Dry Counties (No booze sold)
    Gatlinburg = you can buy booze

    Golf - seriously, some of the best and cheapest courses in the US in TN and KY. NC starts to get a bit pricey for the really nice areas, but the views are amazing.

    Keep in mind, when you go to Cherokee, it LOOKS like the roads will be pretty quick to get to/from there, but its scenic and people are slow as hell on winding roads. Estimate that the 55 mph highways will typically be 25 mph to get from place to place. It took me several hours to go from Gatlinburg to there. You can pull over and take in the views all over this road. Lots of waterfalls everywhere and good hiking as well.


    KY - not much exciting there. Cumberland tunnel. Lexington to Paris KY has a beautiful road that is apparently the most expensive road in the US. Rock walls. All the foreign sheiks keep their stables there for their race horses. Some of the very rural areas of KY are as ass backwards and fucked up as you would imagine. I actually was in an area with one of my customers where he was telling me that they trade POT like its currency in the town, and people have their farms protected by Copperhead snakes. Seriously, snakes that are tied to stakes in the ground, slithering all over. Meth-land USA. Avoid.

    You can tour through the bumblefuck portions of TN to hit up the distilleries.

    Nashville is nice (downtown). My favorite town though is 5 min south. Brentwood. Take Franklin rd south and look at all the mega mansions of the country stars on the left. Also, Corkys BBQ for Dry Rub ribs in Brentwood right off the highway on Franklin rd. They just opened an outdoor venue for concerts just south of downtown Nashville right on the river that is great.

    What I have learned from years of travelling through some of these areas though is for you to STAY ALERT on the Highways, as truckers seem to drift off and will cross their lanes often. Get away from them and never stay along side a truck down there.

    Memphis - casinos in Tunica, and Elvis' Graceland. Hit up the Peabody hotel in Memphis at the two times a day to see the Ducks parade through. Have a cocktail in the lobby. Ben and the adults will enjoy this. BBQ at Rendevouz.

    east of Memphis to almost Nashville is boring drive. East of Nashville is hilly/moutainous and scenic. The Campus of Ol Miss is beautiful. The campus of Miss St is a shithole. UT is very nice. Chattanooga (Lookout Mountain) is scenic. Nice rafting in that area.

    Consider this: Cherokee to Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge, seveierville, then down to Chattanooga, then over to lynchburg for distillery, up to Nashville and check out Brentwood/Franklin.

    Miss is very, uh, segregated in the rural areas and people may give you the stink eye if off the beaten path. Huntsville AL seems sketchy, but once you get to the east part of downtown, its insanely scenic. Great gold (RTJ trail courses all over the state).

    Mammoth Caves and maybe the Corvette Museum in KY are pretty much all I would recommend there.

    GA - Buckhead, Atlanta.
    Alabama - IF you were heading down to the coast, Id recommend Gulf Shores, but otherwise, meh.


    If you are into BBQ, all of those states have their own type of bbq. Different flavors and meats. I like Corkys dry rub ribs, wet ribs from Rendevouz, and the mutton Bbq from places in KY like Moonlight bbq. NC has different ingredients.

     
    Comments
      
      IAmProfessionalTalk: nice work ty
      
      MumblesBadly: Ty
    Last edited by DRK Star; 12-15-2015 at 12:08 PM.

  6. #6
    Platinum garrett's Avatar
    Reputation
    29
    Join Date
    Mar 2013
    Location
    east coast
    Posts
    4,259
    Load Metric
    65647581
    Its out in the middle of nowhere

    Fall foliage definitely but just missed that. Lots of camping lakes fishing outdoor stuff etc along the way. State Parks are definitely plenty. Southern fried chicken/collard greens/okra/mac and cheese in Atlanta. BBQ in Western N.C and Tennessee hope that helps some have a great trip.

  7. #7
    PFA Boxing Guru JMM's Avatar
    Reputation
    169
    Join Date
    Mar 2012
    Posts
    1,257
    Load Metric
    65647581
    Mammoth Cave is just OK. Probably not worth the drive. It's cool to explore the cave, but some of the areas are small and annoying to go through with a group.

    Lost River Cave is less of a "cave tour" and more of a trail walk. But it's free and only about 65 miles North of Nashville. They do some boat rides and other shit, too.

    If you're into cars, the National Corvette Museum (a few miles from Lost River Cave) is also an option. I can't speak on how fun it will be. I've lived like 3 miles from it for years and I've ever been. Fuck corvettes imo.

    Definitely spend some time in Downtown Nashville.

  8. #8
    Silver
    Reputation
    320
    Join Date
    Apr 2014
    Posts
    874
    Load Metric
    65647581
    Drk hit on a lot, but this is in my wheelhouse as the 4 states I've lived in are NC,TN,GA, and NV. I've been to harrahs Cherokee several times as well. One important question is what time of year are you planning to be there? I know you said not summer but big difference between winter,spring, and fall.

    Off the top of my head.

    Asheville- definitely the Biltmore house. That's a must see.
    Asheville has tons of good breweries but I know that's not your thing.

    Atlanta- Thomas mentioned stone mountain, it's decent, but best thing to do there is to hike to the top. Great view of the area and it's a pretty easy hike.

    Atlanta - aquarium is largest in country and 2nd largest in world. Weekends are insanely crowded though so if interested try to go on a weekday. I know you said not trying to do activities for kids but I'm sure Benjamin would love it.

    Atlanta - World of coke - Given your love of soft drinks this is a natural haha. It's also real close to aquarium and you can buy tickets that are good for both. The popular thing for tourists of Atlanta to do is aquarium/world of coke/cnn center all in a day as they are all together. The college football hall of fame is also new and in the are and a fun thing to do.

    Atlanta has tons of good restaurants too and can give recommendations if interested. I know Thomas hates on Atlanta but I like it. Ponce City market is also something to check out as are The Beltline, and Piedmont park.

    Nashville - really underrated city. I'm not a country music fan at all but the music scene there is incredible. Great food and live music at almost all restaurants. Fun city.

    Memphis is pretty dang far from Cherokee, that's like a 8 hour drive with not much to do in between except Nashville.

    Chattanooga has a cool downtown area on the river, but otherwise not a lot to offer.

    SC - sucks as a state, other than Charleston which is awesome. I know you're not looking to go to the beach, but Charleston is a fun town on the coast, as is Savannah in GA.

    NC - blue ridge parkway is a scenic highway that's a fun and pretty drive especially in the fall. Can take it from Asheville all the way up to blowing rock and Boone which are neat small towns in the mountains, with lots of sites along the way. There are also tons of different hikes you can do if you're in to that. And white water rafting/cayaking etc.

    Definitely get some NC bbq.

    There are tons of outdoor activities to do in that part of the country depending on the time of year. Let me know if you have any questions on anything.

  9. #9
    Banned
    Reputation
    254
    Join Date
    Mar 2020
    Posts
    642
    Load Metric
    65647581
    ^The aquarium sucks.

  10. #10
    Silver Indyrick's Avatar
    Reputation
    134
    Join Date
    Jun 2012
    Posts
    569
    Load Metric
    65647581
    As drk said Pigeon Forge is great. It has great attractions and lots of things to keep you occupied. Gattlingburg has some great lodging choices with all the amenities. It is very cheap if you are going off season but if you book early during the season you can still find deals. Cherokee has some great attractions that are very scenic and worth seeing. The one thing I remember when I was a kid was panning for gems at a small business. They had a long wooden sluice running water and you buy a bag of sediment. Using a small wooden box you do some panning and you will find some cool things that kids will keep for a long time. I have taken my kids there and they loved it.

    http://www.tripadvisor.com/LocationP..._Carolina.html

  11. #11
    Gold gauchojake's Avatar
    Reputation
    583
    Join Date
    Mar 2012
    Location
    Zipolite
    Posts
    2,447
    Load Metric
    65647581
    I found KY to be a pretty cool state but only visited Lexington and Louisville with a stop for a few hours in Frankfort (and all along the bourbon trail). We bet the ponies at Churchill (Keeneland was not running), went to a few bourbon distilleries which are super interesting even if you don't drink, and walked to Indiana just for shits and giggles. The food was surprisingly good and people were all very nice. We saw some squirrely stuff like an old econoline van permanently parked along a river with a Century 21 for sale sign and a truck with some road kill in the back, but it was part of the charm. We went to the formerly abandoned Old Taylor Distillery (since then it's been almost fully restored) and did a little illegal recon. Anywhere you have limestone you have caves, so there are tons of cool places to explore if you care to. IDK I liked KY a lot, but to each his own.

  12. #12
    Platinum
    Reputation
    631
    Join Date
    May 2012
    Posts
    4,892
    Load Metric
    65647581
    I'll second the Kentucky bourbon trail if you are at all interested in stuff like that...did it as part of my buddy's bachelor party and it was interesting and made for some good drinking...might be a little too kid unfriendly...

    Also definitely try to hit up Nashville...never been myself, but haven't heard a bad thing about it and that's from both southerners and northerners...

  13. #13
    Platinum Lord of the Fraud's Avatar
    Reputation
    1272
    Join Date
    Mar 2012
    Location
    Get A BRAIN! MORANS - GO USA
    Posts
    4,973
    Load Metric
    65647581
    Take your woman & boy to Europe... Show them what the real world and culture actually looks like.


    Just give Paris a miss.
    http://pnimg.net/w/articles-attachments/1/4c2/74d75c36d2.jpg

  14. #14
    Platinum ToasterOven's Avatar
    Reputation
    983
    Join Date
    Jul 2014
    Posts
    2,667
    Load Metric
    65647581
    If you bring your sister, you are allowed and even encouraged to fuck her in any of those states.

     
    Comments
      
      big dick: lol
      
      herbertstemple: hanging n-words is also encouraged.

  15. #15
    Plutonium Brittney Griner's Clit's Avatar
    Reputation
    1501
    Join Date
    Mar 2012
    Posts
    10,830
    Load Metric
    65647581
    First off all the strip clubs Jermaine Dupri rapped about.








    And to maintain duality check out the creepiest monument in the U.S. while you are in Georgia. Dubbed American Stonehenge with such messages as wiping out 9/10 of the world population and One World Government.

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georgia_Guidestones

    http://thesecrettruthabout.com/the-georgia-guidestones/

    http://vigilantcitizen.com/latestnew...a-guidestones/

  16. #16
    Gold gauchojake's Avatar
    Reputation
    583
    Join Date
    Mar 2012
    Location
    Zipolite
    Posts
    2,447
    Load Metric
    65647581
    Quote Originally Posted by Lord of the Fraud View Post
    Take your woman & boy to Europe... Show them what the real world and culture actually looks like.


    Just give Paris a miss.

    Yeah why would you ever visit such a shitty city like Paris?

  17. #17
    Gold tommyt's Avatar
    Reputation
    154
    Join Date
    Mar 2012
    Posts
    1,139
    Load Metric
    65647581
    Quote Originally Posted by ToasterOven View Post
    If you bring your sister, you are allowed and even encouraged to fuck her in any of those states.
    ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

  18. #18
    100% Organic MumblesBadly's Avatar
    Reputation
    94
    Join Date
    Jun 2015
    Location
    In the many threads of this forum
    Posts
    9,408
    Load Metric
    65647581
    Druff, What times of the year are you thinking? Hopefully not before April, because the winter and early spring storms could make driving unpleasant, and potentially dangerous in the Smokeys when the roads get icy.

    But if you go in April, the dogwoods are in bloom in Tennessee then. And there is an arts festival in Knoxville during that time you could catch a day of.

    http://www.dogwoodarts.com
    _____________________________________________
    Quote Originally Posted by Dan Druff View Post
    I actually hope this [second impeachment] succeeds, because I want Trump put down politically like a sick, 14-year-old dog. ... I don't want him complicating the 2024 primary season. I just want him done.
    Quote Originally Posted by Dan Druff View Post
    Were Republicans cowardly or unethical not to go along with [convicting Trump in the second impeachment Senate trial]? No. The smart move was to reject it.

  19. #19
    Owner Dan Druff's Avatar
    Reputation
    10110
    Join Date
    Mar 2012
    Posts
    54,626
    Blog Entries
    2
    Load Metric
    65647581
    Will be going in early spring.

    Thanks for all of the responses so far.

  20. #20
    Platinum
    Reputation
    21
    Join Date
    Mar 2012
    Posts
    4,110
    Load Metric
    65647581
    Srsly you're not going to invite Druff to stay in your guest bedroom? Druff's your boy, you know how he likes to save money. Lol that'd be pretty awkward but it'll make great radio so go for it.

Thread Information

Users Browsing this Thread

There are currently 1 users browsing this thread. (0 members and 1 guests)

Similar Threads

  1. MNF - carolina @ philly
    By mulva in forum Flying Stupidity
    Replies: 23
    Last Post: 11-11-2014, 12:33 AM
  2. Another reason for not visiting Georgia
    By Baron Von Strucker in forum Flying Stupidity
    Replies: 43
    Last Post: 04-06-2014, 08:54 AM
  3. nyg @ carolina...
    By mulva in forum Flying Stupidity
    Replies: 3
    Last Post: 09-21-2013, 03:35 PM
  4. Replies: 4
    Last Post: 05-02-2013, 07:17 PM
  5. Tennessee club rips off poker players
    By Steve-O in forum Scams, Scandals, and Shadiness
    Replies: 4
    Last Post: 07-18-2012, 08:56 AM