This is intended as a place for our memories that we can share with friends and family.

Roan Mountain State Park, TN

Day 1

There were multiple routes to the park, all within 10 minutes of a 2 hour drive. We decided to take the small roads for some new scenery and a couple small towns. Our choice made for a memorable trip. As we left I-26 onto NC-19 east, the roads were in great shape with a 4 lane highway that was virtually empty. In Burnsville we headed north on NC-197 north past a sign that promised a steep and winding road. Just outside of Redhill we turned onto NC-226. We were a little suspicious because the Garmin told us to turn right while the phone said to turn left. The phone showed a 10 minute earlier arrival to we chose that route. It soon turned into a very steep, winding, single lane gravel road.

The campground was severely impacted by Hurricane Helene and many of the hiking trails were still closed primarily due to a washed out bridge just past the lower campground. When we checked in, the hosts were very nice and the campground was well maintained. The site as paved, fairly level with water and power. The neighbors were friendly with several stopping to talk for a while. The Doe River runs through the campground, we walked Mack to the water to look for potential fishing spots for tomorrow morning. We saw several 8-10" trout and more small, 2-3" trout than we could count. While there a young park ranger drove by. I stopped her to ask where I should fish in the morning. She told me of several places nearby including one that a friend of hers caught a 22" rainbow a few weeks ago. I'm looking forward to getting out that tomorrow morning.

We ended the say with a little time in front of a small fire, a couple games of cribbage and some good Mexican food we picked up from Puerto Escondido, 10 minutes up the road in the little town of Roan Mountain.