The Pancake Project

Yesterday Ashley and I set out on our quest to discover the best pancake house near the Smokies. Since the Log Cabin Pancake House is right across the street from St. Mary's Catholic Church in Gatlinburg, we decided to invite the pastor, Fr. Joe Brando, along. He was happy to join us for our first taste of Smoky Mountain pancakes. Fr. Joe had pancakes of the cornmeal variety, while I went for you basic old fashioned, with Ashley settling for chocolate chip.


Fr. Joe warned us that we may be attempting an impossible task, due to the number of pancakes houses in the area. He likened it to trying to eat at every restaurant in New York City. This did not deter us from beginning our search for the best pancakes in the area, however, and I must say that the Log Cabin Pancake House has the best pancakes we have tasted so far. Fr. Joe also unwittingly helped us begin another recent humdinger project suggested by friends, that being an exploration of the area wedding chapels. Gatlinburg has often been called the Las Vegas of the South due to its numerous wedding chapels and the relative ease of obtaining a civil marriage license in Tennessee. Fr. Joe spoke to us about the numerous Catholic weddings that occur at St. Mary's.


It seems that in this regard, Catholics are very similar to other tourists and that many call upon St. Mary's as a place to tie the knot. Fr. Joe explained that many couples complete their preparation at home and bring their own priest for the celebration. He noted that the parish charges a 300 dollar fee for the use of the facility.

It was a beautiful day in Gatlinburg for a pancake lunch and I am glad to have our first pancake companion in Fr. Joe Brando.

Easiest Hike Ever

Fr. Christian and I were fortunate enough to be able to travel down to the country of El Salvador from June 3-8 to visit Nuestros Pequeños Hermanos (NPH). NPH is a home for orphaned and abandoned children, and they have 9 houses in Latin America. It is an organization that aims to provide children with the skills to break the cycle of poverty. It is an organization that truly works. Visit their website to learn more.

For safety reasons, the two of us didn't venture off the grounds of NPH El Salvador, but we did take a stroll around the grounds. It is a beautiful home full of wonderful children and staff.

We dubbed our walk the "Easiest Hike Ever" because it was all flat and concrete. Although, I think I was sweating more in the El Salvador heat and sun than I ever have on a hike here in the Smokies, but that's a personal problem. We guesstimated that the entire hike was around 0.5 mile. We ran into some of the kids, and FC played a quick game of soccer.

I hope you enjoy these brief snapshots that don't do the real thing justice.

A little bird told me that the next Humdinger project will be the kick off for our pancake house contest. Our goal is to visit every pancake house that surrounds the park, and then we will determine which one is the best!

Wet Rocks Are Slippery

Of course it is obvious that wet rocks are slippery, but I like to emphasize and reiterate important information.

This hike was a lot of fun, in spite of the ominous clouds and humidity. It rained on the way up, but it only rained for a short while when we were actually on the trail. I might make this hike again with friends as part of our summer hanging out. There were also an awful lot of tempting swimming holes along the way...

Jakes Creek, Cucumber Gap, and Little River trails were relatively flat. The only noticeable incline was the first 0.3 mile jaunt. Even so, with a bum leg I was hurting at the end of the hike. Hopefully, this funky ligament isn't a permanent nuisance.

If you're hoping to keep your feet dry, whether professional or beginner hiker, then this little loop may not be for you. There are several stream crossings, and if you are anything like me, well, you could get a little wet.

Luckily, I never fell in. At one point though, I almost lost it. As Fr. Christian was climbing up the bank, I literally danced/skated across the hardest crossing. Wet rocks are slippery, I knew that. Having that knowledge doesn't prepare you for flying across a stream, but that's basically what I did. When I landed on the other side, my bum leg/ligament wasn't very happy, but the rest of me was because I didn't fall in! I don't know how it happened.

Stay dry folks!

Here Comes The Sun

This morning I awoke to the sound of rain outside my window. Usually this would be a soothing sound, especially on a holiday when I could sleep in. Today it was the last thing I wanted to hear as I prepared for the second hike of the Humdinger Project. Not to be discouraged, I decided to wear a hat from Sundog Outfitters in Damascus, Virginia. It seemed like a good way to inspire the sun to come out to play. As Ashley and I drove toward the Smokies the rain continued to fall. The closer we got to our destination, the harder it seemed to rain.

One lesson I have learned from both the Smokies and the Appalachian Trail is that you can't control the weather, you just have to accept it. The other thing that I always try to keep in mind about the Smokies, even on days when the sun is shining at home, is that it is a rainforest. There is always the possibility of rain.

Oddly enough today, the vast majority of rain was what we experienced on the drive to the park. All the trails were damp from earlier rain, but there was really only about five minutes of actual rain on the hike today. Almost as soon as the rain had begun, it stopped and out came the sun and blue skies. The power of the Sundog showed forth clearly today.


We began the hike with a short section of Jakes Creek Trail and continued on to Cucumber Gap Trail. Cucumber Gap is a fairly easy trail with gentle ups and downs with one moderately difficult stream crossing. The majority of our hike today was on the Little River Trail. The Little River is actually pretty big when compared to many other rivers and streams in the Smokies. This trail too is a relatively easy hike that follows the river closely. The only difficulties we encountered on our hike of the Little River Trail were the several stream crossings, which were especially difficult near Campsite 30.


Rain did not discourage us today and as a result we had a sunny hike on soggy ground.

Defying the Cult of Haste

Earlier today I picked up a used copy of Michael Frome's book, Strangers in High Places, the Story of the Great Smoky Mountains. Since our first hike, we have been thwarted in our efforts to get back on the trail due to injuries and busy schedules and that fact has bothered me a bit as I have thought of the scope of this Humdinger Project. As I began reading this book I came across some words that helped me to relax a bit.

These hills demand time and patience. Entering one must take them on their own terms. They defy the cult of haste, being old and artful and surprising.

The whole point of our quest to hike the 800 miles of trail in the park is to slow down. That being said, Monday looks to be a good day for a hike!

Finding a Trail Name

In a recent comment on this blog, my partner Ashley inquired whether she had been given the trail name "Gimpy" as a result of our first hike. For those of you who may not be familiar with the term "trail name", it is a term used frequently among hikers of the Appalachian Trail. They are typically names that sum up your personality on the trail and are given by others. The idea is that the correct name will find you when the time is right. If I were a complete purist when it cam to hiking, I would tell Ashley that her trail name would have to wait until we are hiking on the 70 miles of the AT that runs through the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Not being a person who has ever felt the need to follow the absolute letter of the law, however, makes me think her trail name could come about at any point during the Humdinger Project. So to answer the question, "Is Gimpy my trail name?" we will have to hike a bit further to see. If sprained joints become a regular part of hiking with Ashley, then Gimpy might be the name that has chosen her, but my hunch is that her trail name is still out there looking for her.

It took several hundred miles on the AT for the name "Worst Case Scenario" to be given to me, but I must say as fitting as that trail name is for me, I prefer the name given to my other hiking partner Fr. David and I when we hike together. It was while hiking on the AT in the Smokies toward Fontana Dam that three ladies dubbed us "The Karma Police". My favorite quickly acquired trail names are "Lost and Found" and "Longshot". Fr. David and I met both hikers on our first section hike down in North Georgia. "Lost and Found" got his name after having discovered that he had left his jacket on the trail seven miles back. He walked all the way back to retrieve it. "Longshot" was an older man from Florida who had decided to take on the challenge of the 2,000 mile thruhike. When his friends dropped him off they simply looked at him and said, "You're definitely a longshot." Some trail names come as easily as that. We will have to wait for Ashley's to make its appearance.

Video Clips from the First Hike of the Humdinger Project