Spring Break 2021 - Day 4 and 5

For our last day in Gatlinburg, we did a little hike to Laurel Falls. We debated trying another falls too but the forecast wasn’t looking great so we decided just to do the one. Zoe ended up not wanting to walk at all so what was supposed to be an easy hike ended up being a tough one because she was on my back on the way there and DJ’s on the way back. But, the falls were beautiful!

After hiking, we decided to have a picnic one last time at our same spot at Greenbrier. The girls attempted getting in the creek but Zoe couldn’t stand the super cold water. Ava braved the cold and ended up really wet and freezing but she had a blast.

After the cold swimming, we headed back to the cabin to enjoy the hot tub one last time. And we let the girls have an extra special vacation treat - roasted marshmallows! You can’t go to the mountains and not roast marshmallows. Our cabin didn’t have a fire pit but the charcoal grill worked just fine.

After supper, we were getting cleaned up and starting to pack when we saw a bear walk across the driveway! Then 3 more bears joined it! In all my years going to Gatlinburg (and my parents’s times going without me when I got older), I’ve never seen bears that close to the cabin. We watched them walk right in front of our window and then down the driveway. The girls were amazed! It was a super fun way to end the trip.

The next day, we headed back home to get ready to pack and move! We stopped along the parkway for a picture of the beautiful mountains. We also stopped at Biltmore for a picnic lunch. It was such a wonderful vacation for the 4 of us (well, 5 including Winnie. Lucy was enjoying a calm week with my mom)! We needed that time away, especially after COVID.