NC | 2013, Oct. 17-20: Cherokee NC in October

[Radar1]

Good news! The state of TN paid to reopen the Smokies beginning 8 AM tomorrow (Wednesday the 16th).
Agreement Opens Smokies | Great Smoky Mountains Association

[Chris Jones]

Looks like we are not going to get to be there this week end. Hope the weather holds out good for you all and that you have a great time. Looking forward to next year.

[semaj]

Hi All,
We are new owners of a '07 SD and new also to this forum. Not sure how it works but will give it a shot. We are hoping to get to the Rally in Cherokee and will be coming from Knoxville area of Tenn. Just wondering if anyone else has made the trip through the Smoky Natl Park route or the Cherokee Natl Park route. Mapquest makes part of both routes look like a corkscrew and being new to hauling this trailer I'm wondering how bad the routes are and if there is any recommendation from the group. We pull with a Nissan Frontier and just finished a trip through 8 New England states and had no problems with the grades, up or down, on that trip. Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks, Jim and Mary Schulz

[papa-t]

Hey Jim, Welcome to the site. We came in from N.C. so can't answer that one. So far here we have about 25 Casita's, 1 U-Haul, 1 Burro and 5 Scamps. Safe travels. Sîte 804.

[Troy Hawkins]

Had a great time in Cherokee can't wait till the next time!!! Great people great friend good times.

[papa-t]

Nice to met you Troy. Super Cool Burro. Ted

[Larry,C]

I don't know if it was the full moon or Indian spirits but some unexplained things happened to Cindy and I when we went to the rally in Cherokee this weekend. The first thing happened when we took a little side trip to the casino that was just a couple of miles down the road. We are not experienced gamblers so when we went to the desk to inquire the nice lady explained to us how to get started and she gave Cindy a voucher for $5 to give it a try. We wander around a while trying to find just the right slot machine. It was a bit overwhelming but we finally sat down at a machine. It was very confusing with many options and 2 rows of button to push. Cindy was not intimidated, she just reached down and placed her bet ($.05 I think) and ring a ding ding she won $.65 I wasn't paying too close attention cause I was busy losing my $5. I did notice her machine seemed to have lots more lights and sounds than mine so I started watching her. She kept placing her bet on the buttons with the little numbers on them and every time lights bells and her credits kept raising (I think she was up to about $12) I was sure amazed. My fiver was long gone and she still had more than she started with. Suddenly she reaches all the way down the row of buttons to the one with the biggest number on it and pushes it. Ok now I'm thinking this is it she is going to lose and our day of gambling will be over, but no a voice in the machine says "you win" and the machine goes crazy and the credits go up and up and finally stop at $113.65 Cindy looked over at me and asked "can we leave now?" I said sure and we went to the cash out window and collected her winnings. All together we were in the casino for half an hour.
Well maybe that wasn't so amazing but how about this. Saturday we were looking at other peoples trailers and the improvement they had made. There was a wide variety of fiberglass trailers including a silver Burro that looked like a miniature Airstream. As we approached we saw that it belonged to Troy who we had met the day before. He invited us to the inside to check it out. As we entered the trailer I noticed it appeared to be bigger on the inside than it looked on the outside. Troy showed us all of the cool things inside of his pride and joy but I just couldn't shake the feeling that the trailer seemed unusually large inside of what appeared to be a tiny trailer. It wasn't until we went to step out of his trailer that I realized things on his site were unusually sized. I have a picture to prove it. Check this out.

[_Scamp87_]

Troy i just loved you and your burro, such a pleasure to meet you. When you throw that Mammoth Cave Rally i'm in!

eta...

Dang...i should've sat in your chair for a photo op...it would have made me look 10 lbs lighter instead of heavier

[Kip in Ga.]

Thank you all for making this Cherokee 2013 rally such a success.
It went way beyond our wildest expectations.

And special thanks to Jean for taking the reins again.

This is written for those that were unable to attend as well as from one perspective.

There were so many memorable occurrence's, that to name just a few seems unfair. As they were surfacing all over the "NEST"! I believe also that the sites being fairly close together, compared to State and Fed parks, actually contributed to the festival atmosphere.

A few come to my mind and maybe some of you can talk about some of your own experiences.
Wednesday we arrive at 2:30. Got set up, and met neighbors. Trying to decide whether to roll out the awning. Decided to do it Thursday!

Thursday AM rolled out the awning in the rain while the guy in the Class A motor Home sat in his slide out kitchen enjoying the show. But I had help of 2-3 folks giving advice. Actually made it kind of fun!

Thursday was somewhat of a dark dank drizzly day lending to folks gathering under awnings for fireside chats, without the fires. Still there were plenty of between shower times to move around and get acquainted.
And if the rain started up, just stay where we were and chat until the next rainless spell.

Friday AM started out at Granny's Kitchen breakfast Buffet. Ann told me to eat real well, cause she wasn't fixin lunch. The rest of Friday was absolutely a gorgeous fall day with plenty of sun and lots of visiting. Jean pulled out around 6:30AM to go up the mountain to get that special sunrise. She got that and a bonus moon set from the same vantage. Sun rising East and moon setting west, viewed from a mountain top has to be spectacular. Lots of folks drove up the mountains for viewing and picture taking during the day.

Friday night some of the staff and locals did a karaoke gig at the rec building which lasted until 10ish. I didn't go due to a sick dog, but understand it was quite entertaining. Also a bunch of folks went to the Casino for a serious buffet. The buffet was $25, but with the purchase of the buffet ticket, the Casino gave a $20 gambling card. Ann got back to the trailer at 10PM. And said she wants to do that again next year.

Saturday morning I asked about breakfast and Ann said, "I'm still full from last night. Eat a banana and some yogurt." The parade of homes was a blast! The streets were full of people, similar to a festival. Some of the reconstruction and modifications were truly inspiring. The day was beautiful.

The weather held good for the pot luck. There was a counter and 3 tables loaded with food. Jean was the perfect hostess and kept rearranging the food to make room for more coming in the door. The tables looked like a jigsaw puzzle with all the pieces fitting perfectly in place. Lots of recipe swapping afterwards. There was so much good food and lots of delicious deserts.

NOTE: One couple brought 10+/- dozen Krispy Kreme donuts. And likely every flavor KK makes.

It's astounding to me that they brought that many. Even more astounding, they knew where to get them. Then the mystery was solved. He, Ted, is a COP! .....At the end of the pot luck there were virtually no deserts left, including the donuts. Actually very little food of any kind was left. Those tables looked like a war zone.

Special thanks to those that arrived early to prepare and those that stayed late to clean up. And to Troy for carrying every bit of garbage to the dumpster! The Rec building looked like we had "never even been there" when we closed the door behind us.

Thanks to all!

Kip

[Kip in Ga.]

We want to have Cherokee 2014 at the same time next year. October 15-19.

Jean has other engagements for next year, and has handed the reigns over to Lynne. Also "Shorty" of Green Eggs and Ham fame will be involved.
As usual I will be offering ideas that will mostly be rejected, and be the "Town Crier" with news and updates.

As some of you know the 20% discount was only given from Thursday night through Saturday night. Other nights were only 10%. That caught us flat footed. Nothing we could do about it.

Lynne negotiated with HH management that the 20% discount would apply for all nights relating to the rally. While that is not an earth shaking deal, it is still a deal! Opening the door for other concessions from Happy Holiday. This year they did everything they had promised. And we are looking forward to next year.

FWIW: If you know of a site you would like next year, HH told Lynne we can go ahead and set up reservations. We can cancel those reservations and get a full refund up to 7 days before those reservations begin.

Thanks,
Kip

[Darrin S]

Had a great time in Cherokee. Our first rally. Wished we could have gotten around to see more of the trailers on Saturday, but the 6 month old is the boss now(Feedings,Naps). Thanks Troy for sharing!!! Enjoyed meeting everyone!

[2yax2go]

After a month and a half we're home!!!

Our last stop was the Fall Rally at Cherokee. What a blast. Met so many nice people, visited campers, entertained campers, ate WAYYYY to much food, sat by the fire till it was too cold to sit any more and didn't want it all to end. We stayed an extra night just to recuperate.

Our thanks to all who pulled this together.

Here's hoping to see y'all again next year.

Josie and Craig

[Skytalker]

I just made our reservations for next year on site #914. Cost is $47.00 per night now. Up from $44.00 per night this year. Of course that does not reflect the 20% discount.
We had a great time and looking forward to next year. When I made reservations today, the lady said there was a rush on reservations from the folks checking out. Be sure to reserve early to get the site you want.

[lynne r]

Hi Everybody! My name is Lynne, husband is David and we will be assisting with the next Cherokee rally.

The 5th Annual Cherokee rally will be October 16-19 2014 at Happy Holiday RV Park. The website is www.HappyHolidayRV.com and the phone# for reservations is 877-782-2765.

We are already reserved for site #97 and we suggest that you go ahead a make your reservations as many secured a site before they left the rally.

The sites do cost different amounts depending on what you get. Our site is $49 a night...that's without the discount. There will be a $10 charge if you cancel. Your deposit will not be refunded if you cancel within 7 days of the rally.

Looking forward to adding a few activities.... more info soon in the appropriate thread of 2014 rallys. See you there!

[Kip in Ga.]

Ann and I just registered on site 919.

We will arrive Wednesday October 15 and leave Sunday Oct 19th of 2014. And we are from Ga.

As soon as Lynne Starts an appropriate thread here on FGRV for Cherokee 2014. More info will come forth.

Getting excited already!

Kip

[Kip in Ga.]

Anyone already reregistered or going to register, please E-Mail:

Lynne at lyprs@aol.com

Or

Me at Kipann@att.net

It is OK to post the info on the new Cherokee 2014 thread to let others know your intentions. I'll try to get that thread started in the next few days.

We need:

First name(s)
State
site number
Arrival/departure dates

This helps us keep a running list to get the 20% discount Happy Holiday has promised again. . Also helps when someone asks us if you are coming, what site you are on, and when you are scheduled to arrive. . And helps Lynne plan seating for the Pot luck.

Lynne and I will both keep a list and send E-Mails to each other of additions, cancellations and changes.

I understand that "Shorty" of *Green Eggs and Ham* fame will be taking charge of a new activity. The Chili Dump. Not sure where he will hold it or which night. In a nutshell we each fix our very best chili and dump it in a big pot with everybody elses. Last year at, GE&H, it was delicious.
I don't know if there will be a salad or bread or crackers.

Shorty will post his information a bit later .

I talked with the manager at HH today. They are already gearing up for us next year. She said they have started our "Egg Rally 2014" folder and several people pre registered when they checked out Sunday. So if you know which site you prefer,

FWIW, Lynne is the official Hostess of Cherokee 2014. I will be doing the forum stuff, Shorty the Chili dump. LindaLee the Pot luck table decorations. For starters.

This same post will be on the Cherokee 2014 Thread.

Thanks,
Kip

[Troy Hawkins]

Ted, Thank you,
It was nice to have met you and all the great people at the October 2013 Cherokee Egg Rallies. I had one of the best weekends I have in a very long time.

Larry
I am sorry some of the Harry potter magic that gives me more room on the inside of my Burro must have rubbed off a little. don't worry, I have checked with the Ministry Of Magic/Muggle Affairs Office and it will wear off shortly. Thanks Larry I loved your version of the events from the October 2013 Cherokee Egg Rallies also the LED lights I got from you.

Kim
Loved meting you and your family also. I wanted to ask you if it got a bit crowded in the Scamp with all of your family members. I just got home from Dell Hollow Lake State Park Where I met up with two friends and their dog Where we were caught in the rain and since they camp from the back of a pickup. We moved into my Burro where their puppy promptly decided the floor was all hers, not giving us much foot room....lol

Thanks Jean and Kip and all the rest that makes this happen each year. An extra special THANKS goes out to my neighbors that did not let me go hungry.

[amyn]

This rally was the first for my husband, Doug and me. We came down from Virginia in our little Scamp and had a great time talking with all the people we met. We really enjoyed getting to look inside the various eggs. What fun! We learned so much and wish we could have spent more time with those we met. Just not enough time to see all the different trailers. Thanks so much to the organizers and helpers for pulling it altogether. The potluck was great. We hope to do it again sometime. So many nice people.

[airculd17]

This was our first rally for me and my wife. We wanted to say how much we enjoyed it and how nice everyone was . Enjoyed seeing the different styles and mods on the campers. Was a little disappointed that there were so few vintage campers. We came up from GA with our yellow and white Compact Jr. Would have loved to see another compact Jr. so I can see what was done to it. Either way , we enjoyed it...

[Kip in Ga.]

Originally Posted by airculd17

This was our first rally for me and my wife. We wanted to say how much we enjoyed it and how nice everyone was . Enjoyed seeing the different styles and mods on the campers. Was a little disappointed that there were so few vintage campers. We came up from GA with our yellow and white Compact Jr. Would have loved to see another compact Jr. so I can see what was done to it. Either way , we enjoyed it...

We saw ya, but unfortunately you were just on the edge of the group. So you may not have gotten the foot traffic you deserved. Hopefully you will register early and get more in the mist of things.

Those vintage models are so neat and just full of character. If you belong to any vintage groups, please tell them about us.

The Cherokee 2014 thread is now operational.

Kip