Three Falls hike

After doing some work for there ranger badges and feeding Livvy it was time to start our second hike. This one was called Three Falls hike, as the name suggest we would see three waterfalls on this hike. 

This hike was only about half the distance from the one the day before, so it seemed a lot easier ;) The boys loved looking for the waterfalls and knew they would enjoy this hike. 

The first waterfall was pretty much at the start of the hike, so there were a few more people then we seen the day before. We were still able to get a nice pic in front :) Livvy stayed with Daddy as he took the picture since we just got started :)

This hike was full of all kinds of surprises and the boys thought it was really cool to see all the wildlife. I for one could have done without seeing the snakes, but it was the highlight of the hike for the boys. The boys have gotten really good at spotting snake…not sure if that is a good thing or not…. The first one was just crossing the path this one above was a topic of conversation for a long time. First it is a snake that is eating a baby rabbit. Sup wanted Daddy to try and save the bunny and trying to convince him that the bunny couldn't be saved. 

At the second falls we decided to stop and enjoy the view and have our trail mix. The boys really like to play in water and was a nice break. It was just a little over half way through the hike so it worked out well. 

Our sweet girl loved the hikes. Strapped on Daddy's back she could see all kinds of things and the mesh helped with the bugs. She never complained and always had many comments from the other hikers ;)

The last waterfall was right at the end. At this park there were a lot of tubers going down the river. The boys thought it looked a lot of fun, so we talked about the possibility of doing it when they were a little older. We did see someone flip which was a little comical ;)

After we dropped our hiking stuff off at the truck we headed over to dip our feet in the water. After the hike it was nice a refreshing! Miss Livvy loved it!

The start of Day 2

After a fun-filled day the boys were pretty worn out and when we got back to the cabin the boys crashed on their murphy bed. 

The next morning was so nice the sun was out and the weather was great! I had set my alarm each morning so I could get breakfast and we could could get a good start. But I always woke up before the alarm ever went off.  

This Saturday morning I was up before anyone for about 20 mins. I was able to get breakfast in the oven and go outside and enjoy the quiet and the view of the mountains. 

We had planned to go to the southern part of the park today so we were up and ready to go at a good hour. It took a little longer then we had planned to get there but we got to see some fun things. Near the Oconaluftee Visitor Center there was a mountain farm and the boys loved chasing the chickens. 

They had some amazing views and since they were working hard on their Jr. Ranger program we were able to pick up these ranger hats at the visitor center. 

With their booklet they had to identify some plants and animals and side the park is very diverse,we were able to knock off some of those items that were only present at the lower elevations. I have to admit I haven't identified plants since my freshman year of college for my biology class, and I forgot how much fun it was!

Ripley's aquarium

After our morning hike we headed back into Gatlinburg. We had seen and heard that the aquarium was a lot of fun so we planned it as part of our trip. 

It was nice that we had ordered our tickets ahead of time so we could head right in. 

On most of the bottom floor was this underwater tunnel that you could stand on the people mover and see that the sea creatures. After hiking 5 miles that morning the people mover was really nice!

The aquarium had a few exhibits that you were allowed to touch some of the animals. Both of the boys were brave enough to touch these and some jelly fish. 

They had a few exhibits that had these built in tubes that you could climb under and then look right into the tanks. It may have been a little tight but they thought it was pretty cool to be "part" of the tank.

After a little while it was time for Livvy to eat and it was pretty family friendly and they had a nursing lounge, which I thought was really great. While we were in there the boys had some fun with daddy with a few of the games the aquarium had for kids to play. 

Livvy really was un-inspired by most of the attractions, with the exception of the penguins. Daddy would hold her up and she would watch and smile at them. This was the prefect way for Daddy to buy her a little stuffed penguin at the pet shop ;)

Cucumber Gap Loop

The trailhead for cucumber gap was not too far from our cabin and the start of the tail was by the Little River. Although it was nice to hear and see the river for the first 2 or so miles it made for a lot more potty breaks for the boys. 

We found that having invested in a hydration kit for all of us was very beneficial. It worked out well in a few ways we didn't have to stop and a dig out water bottles every time someone was thirsty. Also everyone was carrying their own water so Eric and I didn't have extra weight. 

Since this was the longest hike that we had planned for the trip we thought it would be better to do it first while we still had a lot of energy. Also it made the rest of the hikes not as long to the boys. On the first part of the hike there were a ton of bugs. This was very fun to the boys, and Sup liked to stopped and look at a lot of them. Here is has a snail. 

After a few stops we had to help Sup move along a little or the hike would be a lot longer if we had to stop every few minutes to look at the different bugs. If it was something new we would stop and see it to help them with their Jr. Rangers books that they were working one throughout the trip. 

At first Sup wanted to kill every bug that came is way. After a few conversations that they were in their natural habitat and we wanted to not intentional step on them, he became a protector. He would diligently lets us know not to step on the bug on the path. 

Just about half way through our hike there was a little waterfall we stopped and looked at. The boys really haven't seen any so they thought the waterfalls were pretty cool. Eric and I have seen Niagara Falls so they were nice but not overly impressive to us.  

We hiked up a little father to where we took Jake Creek trail, the second part of our loop. At this point we were all ready for something to eat. After getting out our different trail mixes that we mixed earlier we sat on the logs and had a nice rest. Livvy was having a fun time too :)

To this point the boys were complaining and dragging more then usual so it was a nice break for them. After eating they were A LOT better and in fact very enjoyable for the rest of the hike. They were walking in front and were enjoying everything around them. 

One of the things the Smoky Mountains are know for are all the salamanders. Eric and Phillip were trying hard to find them. As we were crossing a small creek Sup was the first one to spot one! After moving some logs we were able to see a bunch of them. Eric and Sup were the most excited.

By the end these boys still had plenty of energy and were running to the truck. We had completed our 5 miles for the day! It was a great start to our morning :)

Rise and shine

We had a pretty buy day planned, so Eric and I planned to get up early so we could have a fun day. The boys seemed to be sleeping pretty well and I was up before my alarm so I was able to get a few pics of them. 

The boys thought this murphy bed was the one of the coolest things in the cabin. It really didn't take up much space in the cabin so we left it down for the time we were there. 

As the boys slept I was able to get breakfast all ready along with dinner. We did a crock pot beef roast for dinner so all we had to do when we walked in the door that evening was set the table! 

For breakfast we had homemade biscuits and gravy. It was the first time I made it and it was really simple and didn't take long at all. The boys were not a big fan do they ate more of the cantaloupe. We were planning a five mile hike so we needed a good breakfast. It was a nice morning so we ate out on the picnic table so we could enjoy everything around us. 

After we packed our gear we were off to the trailhead. Since we had been practice hiking for a few months we were hoping the boys would enjoy their first real hike!