1-Day Great Smoky Mountains Tour from Pigeon Forge

We'll be going round the mountain when we arrive. This tour takes us from the Shops of Pigeon Forge up around Gatlinburg bypass and into the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Along the way, we will be showing a few videos about the Great Smoky Mountains. We will go on a non-stop drive up to the top of the mountain where we stop at Rockefeller Memorial, the spot where President Roosevelt dedicated the national park in 1940. At this point, we will take about 45+ minutes to explore and take photographs. Restrooms are available here for those in need. When we all get back on board, we will head down to the other side towards Cherokee. Once on the other side, we will have another 30-minute stop to visit Mingus Mill, one of the last 2 working grist mills inside the Smoky Mountains. Built in 1886, this historic grist mill uses a water-powered turbine instead of a water wheel to power all of the machinery in the building. Located at its original site, Mingus Mill stands as a tribute that stood the tests of time. A miller demonstrates the process of grinding corn into cornmeal. Cornmeal and other mill-related items are available for purchase at the mill. Next stop will be the Okanaluftee Visitor Center and the Mountain Farm Museum.  Oconaluftee offers both a visitor center and the Mountain Farm Museum -- a collection of historic log buildings gathered throughout the Smoky Mountains and preserved on a single site. Buildings include a house, barn, applehouse, springhouse, and smokehouse.  The Mountain Farm Museum is a unique collection of farm buildings assembled from locations throughout the park. Visitors can explore a log farmhouse, barn, apple house, springhouse, and a working blacksmith shop to get a sense of how families may have lived 100 years ago. Most of the structures were built in the late 19th century and were moved here in the 1950s. The Davis House offers a rare chance to view a log house built from chestnut wood before the chestnut blight decimated the American Chestnut in our forests during the 1930s and early 1940s. The museum is adjacent to the Oconaluftee Visitor Center. The site also demonstrates historic gardening and agricultural practices including livestock. An inexpensive, self-guiding tour booklet is available. Another rather often occurrence in the area is the sighting of Elk as they tend to visit the nearby fields. (Elk sightings are not guaranteed but do occur rather often.) Before getting back on the bus, we encourage folks to take a restroom break. Back on board, we start our return trip to Gatlinburg. Along the way, be sure to keep the cameras ready for some amazing shots. See 6 different and distinct forest types all long the way. Take in some of the most amazing views in the United States. This tour lasts approximately 4-5 hours but can be longer or shorter depending on group sizes, traffic, and road conditions.

**This tour departs from 153 E Wears Valley Rd Pigeon Forge, TN 37863. Please check in at the tour office located in Suite 10.**