Author Archives: JerryLukins

After the Tennessee Relays Jonny was able to spend some time of Nikki, Stephanie and I. We waited for him to finish cheering on his team and get back to his hotel and shower. We finally left around 10:30PM and headed for Pigeon Forge where we had reservations at The Inn at Christmas Place. It was a Bavarian hotel with a Christmas Theme year around. Other than the Christmas decorations everywhere the hotel was nice and the room and beds were comfortable. The omelets, bacon and sausage were good, and after we all ate we packed up and headed out to the The Great Smoky Mountain National Park. The concierge at the hotel gave us a couple of recommendations and we decided on the Grotto Falls trail which is 2.6 miles round trip to the Falls and back. We headed into Gatlinburg and because it was early and shops were still closed, we drove through without any issues. We turned left at light #8 and headed out to the trailhead. As soon as we left town and were in the National Park, we saw wild turkey everywhere and even saw a few whitetail deer.

The scenery was beautiful although we could still see the scars from the fire which started in November of 2016. We stopped along a lookout and took a few pictures and headed up the rest of the way.

We make it up to stop #5 which was the trailhead to Grotto Falls. We say lots of beautiful streams and running water on the way to the falls and saw a few local species of birds and insects.

The falls were pretty and as they were posing for pictures, Jonny got a hand full of water and splashed Stephanie which you can see in the video.

Stephanie returned the favor which you can see in the photos below.

We continued on beyond the falls for a bit and then headed back down where we spotted this guy sunning on a log.

The kids wanted to see a black bear and we didn’t see any along the trail so before heading back to drop Jonny off with his team at the meet, we drove over to Cade’s Cove and took the auto tour. The entire loop is 11 miles, but we got stuck in a terrible traffic jam along the single lane one way road. We got up to where all the excitement was and the kids and Nikki got out to view the Mama bear and her cubs. We stayed for a few minutes and then headed back on the paved road to finish our trip. We got caught behind some people leisurely driving along at under 5 MPH and it was going to take way to long to get back. We got off the main loop and took a dirt road shortcut over to a place where we could take Rich Mountain Road out of the park. Rich Mountain Road is nothing more than a forest road that is gravel and switchbacks and another one way. We decided to take the chance and headed out of the park using that road. It wasn’t bad as there were no ruts or anything and my car handled it well as long as we kept it under 25 MPH. Along the way we saw a pack of wild boar and 100 feet further down the road down the ravine there was another mother bear and cubs.

Shortly thereafter we got out of the park and to a paved two way road. We had Jonny back to the University of Tennessee an hour before his bus left and we headed out of Knoxville for home. We dropped Stephanie at home and said hello to Marcus and Braxton again. We at dinner with Stephanie and Marcus and then headed home and arrived after 11:00PM where we were greeted by happy dogs that we didn’t totally abandon them.

Stephanie and I had a wonderful time in Florida, but it was time to head home. We had wonderful weather the entire time we were there. We were getting to leave at 5:00AM and at 4:55AM we got our only rain while we were there. It rained really hard, but by the time we got down to the lobby and walked outside, it had already stopped. We drove north towards Asheville, North Carolina. We planned on hiking Chimney Rock and having lunch at Lake Lure. We got to Chimney and they closed the state park due to high winds. We ate at Lake Lure, but the lake was down about 15 feet for maintenance. So instead of eating across from the beautiful beach, it looked more like a marsh. So far we were zero for two.

We headed up to Little Switzerland to check out the views and hop on the Blue Ridge Parkway. Little Switzerland was still closed for the season, which I did know, but I wanted to show Stephanie the views. As soon as we got out of the car in our shorts and sweatshirts, we realized why nearby Chimney Rock was closed. It was 39 degrees and 60 MPH winds. We quickly took a selfie and ran back to the car. Running against 60 MPH winds was a lot slower than when they were at our back!

We headed down the Blue Ridge Parkway with our destination being Cherokee at the end of the Parkway and through the gap to Gatlinburg. With the high winds we were dodging large limbs and branches that were all over the road. We got out at only one lookout and took some quick pictures before we froze! We decided we struck out on the Blue Ridge Parkway and got off after only 10 miles.

We decided at that point that we were just going to swap driving again and drive all the way through to home. We got Stephanie home about 10:30 and I made it home about 12:30AM.

It was a wonderful trip and I had a great time with Stephanie. She started me on some hard workouts and I feel like I am almost back to where I was a few weeks before Christmas before my back problems brought me to a screeching halt.

We took a day trip to Cape Canaveral to watch NASA launch an Atlas V rocket with a NOAA Weather Satellite payload. We looked into watching the launch from within the Kennedy Space Center, but it was going to cost $50 per person to visit. If we wanted to watch from the observatory we were going to have to pay another $50 per person.

The internet came to the rescue and I found a beach on Merritt Island that is directly north of the launch pads. It cost us $10 for a carload to go to the beach. The beach had a big berm you have to cross to get from the parking lot to the beach. There are some bridges that go over the berm and that is where everyone was 10 minutes before the launch. But the beach was pretty empty and I would highly recommend Playalinda Beach as a viewing point to see a launch.

The launch itself was amazing. The acceleration is hard to describe. Stephanie had the binoculars and could see the first stage coming off the rocket.

Here is a video I shot of the rocket launch.

Since we were going to be on vacation for two weeks we were looking for some things to explore that weren’t going to cost a lot of money while we were there. I did some searching on the internet and found ways to get around Disney using the free transportation they offer.

One day we headed towards the Magic Kingdom park and found our way to Disney’s Polynesian Resort. We told the guard we were interested in touring the Polynesian for a possible future stay at the resort. They let us in and we parked the car in their free lot.

We went into the resort and looked around the main building for a bit through their shops. We then went upstairs and headed to the monorail and hopped on. The first stop was the Grand Floridian Resort, then the Magic Kingdom. Next was the Contemporary Resort. The last stop was the Transportation and ticket center. We stayed on the monorail for a first complete loop then on the second loop we got off as the Grand Floridian Resort. It’s Victorian theme was indeed grand. We toured the main building and walked through it’s many shops on multiple floors.

We hopped back on the monorail and got off at the Transportation and ticket Center stop. We hopped on another monorail that took us on a ride to Epcot. The monorail actually travels around the big Epcot sphere and through the park where we got to see some of the beautiful flower beds in the park from up above.

The monorail stops just outside the gates, but we stayed on and made our way back to the transportation and ticket center, were we again got off and back on the Magic Kingdom and resort loop. The ride was a short 1/4 mile trip over to the Polynesian Resort and we disembarked. Stephanie and I both bought some mementos from one of the resort shops and we left the resort for the day. In all it killed about a 1/2 day and we could have probably spent more time if we wanted to eat at the resort or take a walk out on the beaches of the Polynesian or Grand Floridian Resort.

A couple of days later we decided to take the boat taxi tours that originate from Disney Springs, which used to be called Downtown Disney. We parked in the garrage about 10 minutes before the shops opened and got a great parking spot from the Lime Garage to the entrance to Disney Springs. We walked straight back and hopped on the water taxi that transports you from the ceter, which is where we were to the East end of Disney Springs, the next stop is the West End of Disney Springs and then back to the center.

We disembarked on the East End and hopped on another boat taxi that took us to Port Orleans, which is another Disney resort. While we changed boats a Bald Eagle landed on a nearby tree.

On our way up the river we passed other resorts and golf courses and an amazing looking tree house colony that guests can rent. They can sleep up to 9 people and there are 60 of them to rent. Later we looked up the price to rent those and the price was $1375 a night for the most prized weekends and prime time. I think they were still $900 for the cheapest nights. The first stop at the Port Orleans Resort was the French Quarters District, where we got off the boat and walked past a little water park and into a food court that offered Beignets and got a plate full that we shared with my parents. Evidently two of those were just appetizers for Stephanie who went back and ordered a Po Boy Shrimp Sandwich. She said it was good, but not quite New Orleans good!

We hopped back on the boat and the took us to Port Orleans Riverside, but we didn’t get off there. We went back to Disney Springs and hopped on the water taxi to the West End and then the Central port again. From there we hooped on another water taxi and made our way to Old Key West Resort which was another 15 minute boat ride up river. It was the original resort at Disney and had a small water park and what looked like condo’s. We didn’t get off there as it didn’t look like there was enough to do while we waited 40 minutes for another taxi. We got off at Central Port at Disney Springs and then walked over to the Ghiradelli Chocolate shop and got a free chocolate. At that point it was after 2:00PM and we got there just before 10:00AM. We were planning on going out for dinner as it was also my 50th birthday.

We spent the entire day with my aunts and uncles on my Dad’s side. It was a great day. At the end of the day Stephanie and went back up to the 17th floor and watched Fireworks and heard some live music below us, so we went to the bar and wathced the last hour and a half of the dueling piano show, which was a lot of fun. If you are ever at Bonnet Creek Resort and they have that show going on, I would highly recommend it. Stephanie bought me a drink for my birthday and ended up drinking most of hers as well.

Stephanie and I enjoyed our vacation in Florida.  During the 2 weeks we were there, we enjoyed high temps from 83 to 90 degrees and sunny to partly cloudy each day.  My parents were in a condo in tower 6, which was the newest tower and tallest on site at 19 stories.  They were on the 5th floor, but because they have so many points with Wyndham, they had access to presidential reserve amenities, which includes access to the 17th floor club suite.

From the 17th floor at night you can see the fireworks shows from Disney’s Magic Kingdom,  Universal Studios and Epcot.

Click here for the Universal Studio Fireworks Display on YouTube. 

We enjoyed a number of things to do that were offered at the resort.  We say a comedy magic show that was funny and amazing, Gatorland came and brought several of their animals.  Stephanie got to hold a 3 year old alligator.

We also attended a Luau with dancing, music and even fire dancing.  We watched a show of dueling pianos that was fun and entertaining and audience participation was encouraged and sometimes required.

There were several pools, water slides and lazy rivers to keep us cooled down.  Here is a link of the resort property from the Presidential Club Suite Balcony on the 17th floor.

 

I am to a point where I either need to use vacation or lose it.  I have to burn up 3 weeks before May.  My parents normally head somewhere warm for a few months after the New Year and this time they were in Central Florida at Wyndham’s Bonnet Creek Resort in Orlando.  The location of the resort is surrounded by Disney Property.  To the north is Epcot, to the south is the Waldorf Astoria Golf Course, to the east is Disney Springs and to the west is Universal Studios.  I decided I was going to take two week and enjoy the warmer weather and visit them.  Stephanie wanted to come along and Nikki had to cover at work and was unable to go.  She ended up in Michigan helping her parents out as her Dad was hospitalized with an infection that caused swelling in his legs and joints that made it too painful to get around, so she was being a good daughter and helping out.

I left at 4:00 am on Saturday morning the 17th of February and was down in Cincinnati around 6:00 to pick up Stephanie.  We drove until almost noon and stopped in Chattanooga, Tennessee for a break and to get out and walk.  We visited Ruby Falls as it was overcast and rainy and wouldn’t be able to see anything from Lookout Mountain.  We paid for the tour and took the elevator down 1120 feet into the cavern.  We walked the 1/2 mile to the cavern while stopping along the way to hear interesting facts and formations from the tour guide.

 

Since there is only one way and one way out, we had to stop several times to let other tour parties by us as we headed in.  The falls themselves were amazing and they have it lit up with lights that change colors.  We took a few pictures and some video but were only allowed about 5 minutes at the falls to make way for other tours behind us.

Here is a short video I took while at the falls that I posted on YouTube.

We made our way back out and got back in the car just before 3:00 and continued on our way to Central Florida.  We arrived at the resort just after 10:00 pm.