Roan Mountain
This was our first visit to Roan Mountain State Park in northeastern Tennessee, very close to North Carolina and Virginia. It is a beautiful, mountainous area and we were there for five nights. A big plus for us was that we got to see our camping friends.
Camping in the Mountains
It was only the second night in our new Lance camper and our first night in a high elevation campground. Fortunately, our site was not too challenging. I have to say, though, that I was grateful for our Ram 250 truck on those hills. So, we are now in the category of “friends” for this group as we are selling our T@B 400. Just happy to hang out with these wonderful people!
Miller Farmstead
A highlight of our time in the area was a tour of the Miller Farmstead, which is a part of the campground. Tours are free, but you need a reservation. Barb, in our group, had a reservation for twelve and we tagged along. It was a lively group!
It was a lot of fun and very educational to see how three generations of a family lived from the late 1800s to the 1960s. The Park Rangers provided a lot of personal information about the family, which I really enjoyed.
The house gives an insight to life during the time the family was there. Electricity and running water were only added later, when the place became a hunting lodge. I had to be a hard life.
The Outdoor Tour
Marco, a Park Ranger, provided an outdoor tour of the property. He was very knowledgeable and enthusiastic about all the plants. The outdoor part of the tour was also very interesting.
Roan Mountain Activities
Members of our group did some amazing hiking through some difficult terrain. Several in the group also did a bike ride in Virginia, called the Virginia Creeper, a long bike trail. Unfortunately, we couldn’t go because it was too long to leave our dog. We did, however, do some limited hiking and I really enjoyed it!
Sitting around the campfire was another activity. Every night, there was at least one campfire, including a big one for everyone in the group. I believe I heard that there were about forty people at the event and around thirty campers.
We have camped with some of these folks for five years and they are good friends. New folks are always fun to meet too!
Lastly, we visited Jarret’s Orchard. We purchased some apples, tomatoes, and corn. They had some beautiful flowers outside their building.
Fabulous Food
For such a small area, the food was outstanding! Our favorite was Smoky Mountain Bakers, which serves fresh pastries daily. They also have delicious thin crust pizzas baked in a wood stove. Lastly, they have a pretty good breakfast. Many in our group visited this establishment more than once.
Another great eatery was Puerto Nuevo Fresh Mex and Seafood. A group of us had dinner there and it was excellent as well. It will also be a must visit if in the area again.
The Lance
The Lance was very spacious and comfortable. We did lots of tours at the campground because our friends were curious about it. Happily, the Ram 250 truck did a very good job pulling it, but we were very aware that it is a much bigger trailer. Most importantly, we had room to relax with our dog.
However, we were disappointed to learn that one of the bars on the roof had come off of one side. A friend in the group put it back in place for us. I posted to a Lance Facebook group and learned that this is an apparent problem with the rack. So, fingers crossed for the rest of our trip!
In conclusion, it was a wonderful five days at Roan Mountain! Next, we are headed to Beckley, West Virginia as part of a 3 1/2 week trip. Check out our travels to other states on our page, States Visited, a Campsite Resource.
Happy Camping!
