Brian Cavalier

The first time I went to the New River was when the Gorge Bridge was still under construction. I was just a kid and my parents have pictures of me standing on the huge concrete pylons on which the bridge now sits.

The area is beautiful. Thank goodness there are still places like this to visit where there aren’t any skyscrapers in sight.

We were only 5 minutes from Smoky Mountain National Park, which is beautiful. There are a ton of things to do, from just driving through the national park, to seeing the old settlements, to white water rafting, to antique malls and shopping.

We toured Tuckaleechee caverns, hiked, rafted, and yes, we even went to Dollywood, which is overpriced, imho, but fun.

It’s also only 15 minutes from Gatlinburg, which seems touristy, but is fun to visit as well—definitely go to the aquarium, it’s the best we’ve seen.

I’m usually in LA for work, and don’t get to see much of the nicer surrounding areas. I definitely wouldn’t want to live there, but it’s easy to visit and have fun there.

A truly beautiful place. Thousands of years of history, that most of us Americans can’t even imagine, and the people are wonderful.