Travel Gatlinburg: Llamas, Bears and Fish, Oh My!

By Flo Conner

Nestled at the entrance to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Gatlinburg is more than just a gateway to the Smokies. Beyond the shopping, dining and distractions galore the small burg is known for, visitors can find plenty of nature and wildlife both inside and just outside of this charming mountain town.

The area’s newest attraction is the $50 million Ripley’s Aquarium of the Smokies. To avoid the inevitable crowds that come with a new attraction, visit between 7-11 p.m., where you’ll have the exotic animals almost to yourself. The Aquarium’s main draw is the world’s longest underwater tunnel. Riding the 340 feet of slowly moving walkway, you have plenty of time to enjoy views of restless sharks patrolling their turf, roaming schools of brightly colored fish and sting rays gliding over the top of the tunnel, seeming checking you out with gills that look like cartoon faces. In adjacent tanks, prized golden moray eels float motionless in nooks and crannies, their wide-eyed expressions and open-mouthed breathing making them look like aquatic deer caught in headlights.

Kids of any ages can get close and personal with sea creatures in the petting pools that feature huge three-foot rays that glide effortlessly just out of range of little hands. The horseshoe crabs aren’t so lucky; you can pick  up these gentle creatures and view their alien-looking undersides under the watchful eyes of Aquarium educators. On-the-hour feeding shows kick it up a notch.

Outside, there’s plenty of exotic wildlife on the sidewalks of Gatlinburg, but just a few steps will take you from the mean streets of civilization to the peaceful quiet of the South’s mightiest forest. Here, you’re a world away from shop-till-you-drop, eat-till-you-bust, thrill-a-minute mentalities.  Although the Great Smoky Mountains National Park is the most visited park in the United States, you can still find slices of sunlit heaven that don’t include gaggles of other people.

 One of the best ways to enjoy the wildlife is on an early morning bike ride through Cades Cove. The easy paved 11-mile loop is closed to car traffic two mornings a week, so you’ll have till about noon to enjoy deer feeding, turkeys strutting, frogs croaking and an occasional bear roaming before any cars catch up with you. Bikes can be rented at the Cades Cove Campground store.

Equestrians consider the Smokies among the best riding country in the east, but you don’t have to have jodhpurs and a crop to enjoy a horseback ride. Private stables in the park offer a variety of rides catering from beginners and children to experts.

For a lighter touch on the trail, consider a daily or overnight Llama Trek. Smaller than a horse, with gentler dispositions and padded hooves that don’t tear up the trails, llamas make great companions when camping or hiking. The ever-observant animals are great wildlife spotters and are fond of children. The Llamas’ only drawback is their propensity for occasional spitting. For more information, check out www.hikinginthesmokies.com.

Grazing animals of the human kind flock to the many pancake houses that crowd the area. For a taste of real Southern cooking, duck into the unpretentious River Road Pancake House where waitresses named Pammy and Darla greet you with friendly “Hey, how y’all doin’?” and whip up waffles, pancakes and hashbrowns any way you’uns want. Of course, the coffee cups are bottomless.

The only drawback to the small town is that traffic can make you feel like you’re in a slow-motion stampede. The best way to avoid the herd is arrive early in the morning, then use the city’s well-organized public trolley system to get around. Day trippers can also use the park-and-ride facilities that serve Gatlinburg and nearby Pigeon Forge and Dollywood.

Flo Conner is a freelance travel writer whose travel writing has appeared in Meeting Professional, the Boston Globe, AAA Going Places, Successful Meetings, W Magazine, For the Bride, Streetmail and other consumer travel and business travel trade magazines.