Friday, August 30, 2013

First 2013 Fall Leaf Season Predication for the Great Smoky Mountains of East Tennessee

First it was a random a leaf changing color in our dense Smoky Mountain forests, then it was the blackberries and blueberries no longer on the bushes in my favorite picking spots.

Now just as the days are just starting to get shorter the sounds of fall could be heard with the first bugling sounds of our elk. Fall in the Great Smoky Mountains is right around the corner!

Predicting how long a leaf season will be, when the fall color will start, when the peak of the 2013 leaf season in the Great Smoky Mountains is, how brilliant the colors will be and how long it will last is far from an exact science. What our leaf season predictions must be based upon is previous historical norms as a start.

Last year spring in the Smoky Mountains came more than 3 weeks earlier than normal for wildflowers and some of our insects in the Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg area. Unfortunately for our migratory birds and some of our plants, the birds came when they normally do so some of the food sources they were expecting were not here.

This spring in the Smokies was another story as it was about 1 to 2 weeks later than normal throughout much of the Tennessee Mountains. Besides a late spring, we had one of the wettest summers on record.

This summer with all that rain the streams were full and the waterfalls were astonishing with huge flows of water cascading over the moss covered rocks. The forests and fields that are normally lush seemed impossibly green with the some of the best flower displays in years.

All of that rain and more moderate temperatures than most years started huge growth bursts, awesome for the forests, not much so for crops like our locally grown tomatoes and watermelons which split because they were growing too fast.

Though most of our vegetables suffered from too much water, the reports coming in this week from the local apple farmers look like we will have one of the best crops in years! Though we will lose some our apple trees from too much water, those that survived are producing a bumper crop of great fruit.

So why and I telling you about apple crops and not the 2013 fall leaf season and when the leaves will change color? Very simply, more often than not, the quality of apples most often is an indication of the quality of the leaf season in terms of how long the leaves can last and how bright the colors will be.

Since everything is on target for great leaf season with great fall color in the Smokies, what we just need now is for the weather to continue favorable conditions. If the conditions cooperate, this could be one of the best falls seasons in many years.

As fall starts and the days become shorter we can uses what the weatherman is predicting for the next week to continue. Altering bright sunny skies with moderate temperatures and a little moisture each day is what it will take to make the leaves bright and stay on the trees as long as possible.

Since the Smokies vary by more than 5,000 feet from the lowest valley to the top of Clingmans Dome - the highest point in the Great Smoky Mountains national park.

Between the elevation variations which can mean a change in temperature of 10 degrees or more and the various exposures between open fields and dense forests, fall peak should stretch out this year by more than 3 weeks if you know where to go.

If were continue to be blessed with the right temperatures and moisture as we have been the past few months, we are looking at a stellar 2013 leaf season in the Smoky Mountains starting in late September and the last of the fall leaves will be falling in November.

Let's just hope this fall leaf peeping season for 2013 continues to be as good as we expect it to be. Keep your eyes open for further updates!

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Wednesday, August 21, 2013

Dolly Parton and Her Huge News about the Dollywood Theme Park in the Smokies!

When you think about the Great Smoky Mountains, of course you think about the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. After all more than 9,000,000 people a year come to the park, but did you know that more than 2,000,000 people each and every year now come to the Dollywood Theme Park too?

Since 1986, close to 30 years, Dolly Parton's Theme Park Dollywood in the Tennessee Smokies set the standards for clean, safe, family friendly fun, just like the Disney theme parks in California and Florida.

When you add in Dolly's Splash Country Water Park next to Dollywood and the fabulous unique dinner show Dixie Stampede in Pigeon Forge, you have entertained more than additional 1,000,000 people, many of which keep coming back every year.

As staggering as those figures are, what Dolly Parton just announced today makes all of those numbers seem quite small in comparison. How does a $300,000,000.00 investment in the Dollywood Theme Park and new 300 room resort sound? Intriguing? Exciting? Truly amazing!

Since opening day, the Dollywood theme Park wins award after award. This is no backwoods carnival, but a true world class amusement park and destination for young and old from around the world. Just last year Dollywood was awarded the distinction of having the friendliest hosts of any theme park in the world.

Get ready to be able to enjoy the first major improvement made this with 300 million dollar investment this spring when the exciting new FireChaser Express dual-launch "family-style" roller coaster. This amazing new roller coaster launches both forward and backward as it winds along the 2,427-foot track.

What makes this coaster also very unique is that takes riders 39 inches and taller from zero to 20 miles-per-hour in 1.1 seconds and when it reaches the end of the track, goes backward from 0 to 20 mph in 1.1 seconds back to the coasters starting point! The FireChaser Express Roller Coaster is slated to open in March of 2014.

Of course the Dollywood Theme Park has so much more to do already for young and old alike. Great Roller Coasters, adventure rides of all shapes and sizes, zip lining, live shows indoors and out, traditional artisans blowing glass, blacksmithing, and so much more.

Wait! Don't forget all the great water rides, splash zone, street performances, museums, eagle aviary, delectable mouth watering food and drinks and that all before you even get to the Splash Country Water Park!

Tourism in the Great Smoky Mountains has grown up quite a bit since Dolly Parton came back home and created Dollywood in the same type of hills and hollers and just a stone throw from where she was born and raised. Entertaining millions of guests a year in a family friendly safe environment is what she wanted to provide, and that is just what she got.

There is no better way to enjoy Dollywood and explore the Great Smoky Mountains in privacy with all the peace and quiet you deserve on your vacation than from renting a secluded cabin close to Dollywood. Not only will you have lots of room, your own hot tub, fireplace, outdoor decks with breathtaking views, game rooms and so much.

The price of a cabin rental is about the same as a decent hotel and look at how much more you get! Do you really think you have enough privacy and space in a hotel room? Is there enough to do if the weather turns bad and you are stuck inside with the kids? Of course not. Renting a log cabin style vacation is no longer a luxury but a wise investment so that your vacation can be the best ever no matter what!

When you are on vacation, do you have any desire to wait in long lines in a restaurant to pay about $10 a person for some eggs, toast, bacon or sausage, juice and coffee and have a view of seeing dozens of other people eating or would you have to enjoy a home cooked breakfast for far less sitting on your own deck with a stunning view? Easy choice right? Nothing like having your own full kitchen and even a BBQ grill in the Smokies!

To make a good deal even better, when you stay in one of the American Mountain Rentals Cabins or in the luxurious Brothers Cove Resort not too far away, you not only get a great deal on a cabin rental, you even qualify to be able to buy the cheapest discounted Dollywood and Splash Country Theme Park Tickets!

If for some reason you insist in staying in a hotel to enjoy the Dollywood Theme Park we suggest you wait until the park's 30th anniversary in 2015 when Dollywood's DreamMore Resort is set to open. The resort will have 300 rooms, an indoor and outdoor resort pool, spa, and a full-service farmhouse-style restaurant.

The Dollywood DreamMore Resort may not be a cabin rental with tons of space and privacy but it will have fire pits, swings and hammocks, and story spots scattered throughout the grounds and will surely live up to the high expectations we all have.

While a 300 million dollar investment spread over 10 years sounds likes a tremendous commitment which it is, Dollywood, which is the biggest ticketed attraction in the state of Tennessee is committed to further expansion and improvements with plans already stretching out for the next 25 years!

Come to the Smokies and see what all the fuss is about. You won't be disappointed!

Cabins for rent by the Dollywood Theme Park

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