Summer Vacation 2013: A Rainy Day at Ober Gatlinburg

When we vacation, we always try to prioritize. For example, when we knew we were going to Gatlinburg, we asked Grandma Toni one thing she'd like to do for sure. She chose Ober Gatlinburg, and that was where we spent most of our first full day. The tram ride up is the best part, I think.




I think Nick thought so, too. He wasn't scared at all, and loved when the tram wobbled.

The views were great, and the cars are designed so everyone gets a good view.

Henry didn't look too impressed, but Greg said that he loved holding on to the handles at the top of the tram (or gondola, or whatever you call it).

The sun was shining when we got to the top of the mountain, and the views were gorgeous. The mountains looked very different from when Greg and I had visited back in March.

I love this picture of us, because it is very realistic. Nick is whining and covering his eyes, Henry is trying to crawl over the railing, and I'm trying to smile while preventing Henry from crawling over the railing. Typical.

We stopped for a quick lunch at the restaurant inside Ober Gatlinburg. Nick was very excited by our view--almost too excited to eat! I think for both boys, the highlight of this visit was riding in Lightning McQueen. Look at those grins!

Unfortunately, it started raining, on and off in spurts, shortly after our gondola arrived at the top of the mountain. We did get to visit the zoo, between showers.

While this is a pretty small zoo, I love how all of the animals are native to the Smoky Mountains. All of the animals were also rescued, and cannot live on their own in the wild. This owl was really neat.

The bears were really active and friendly. They must like the rain.

He looks like he's waving at us, doesn't he?

The weather was pretty weird that day. It would get sunny and lovely, and then randomly start to pour.

Our trip back down the mountain was no less pretty, just in a different way. It was also a little more damp because of the rain seeping in the open windows.

The hardest part is when we figured out that the rain wasn't going to stop again, and we had to walk back to the hotel (maybe a half mile away) in pouring rain. This is the look on Greg's face when he realized he'd have to carry Henry back all the way.

I did like Ober Gatlinburg, and I would definitely go again if we ever head through Gatlinburg again. Here's my Yelp Review.