January 2007 Archives

This year, your favorite regional theme park is introducing a brand new addition to its already thrilling line-up. It’s true, Dollywood in Pigeon Forge is adding a ride to be launched (just as its riders will feel like they are) in late spring, and it will definitely amaze not only all who choose to ride it, but also every single person who even gets the chance to look at it. This $17.3 million coaster is called the Mystery Mine, and they have been working on it for long enough to say that when it is finished you won’t want to miss it. It’s by no means a cheap project, but when you see it, you will understand why.

Thank you to all you Southern Living Magazine subscribers out there who gave recognition to our area as being your favorite Mountain Destination in 2006. In the annual end of the year “Readers’ Choice Award” poll, because of your efforts, Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg took first place! In addition to that, Pigeon Forge was second only to Atlanta in the category of favorite place to shop.

It’s storytelling time in Tennessee. Pigeon Forge and its surrounding region have been known for their great tales and yarns for decades. That’s why, to honor that reputation, Pigeon Forge is celebrating with the 16 th Annual 2007 Storytelling Festival. It will be held in the Country Tonite Theater and the new WonderWorks Theater during the weekend of February 1st-3rd. So, for the entire weekend, all you have to do is come and hear your fill of tales, including classic folklore, haunting ghost stories and wild western adventures!

Laughing is most certainly contagious. All the proof you need is plain for all to see in a video taken at the Comedy Barn in Pigeon Forge. During an act by Eric Lambert, a regular to the Comedy Barn, a gentleman by the name of Doug Collins is called up on stage along with two other audience members. As Lambert starts his routine and asks the first man a few simple questions, the man’s responses stir up the audience enough to draw out some hearty laughter, and the act is rolling. It’s going smooth, but the real entertainment doesn’t begin until Collins’ laughter is heard. For the rest of the act, Collins provided pretty much all the entertainment. Read on for the rest of the story and a link to the video.

Winterfest orchestrators have added a new event to Wilderness Wildlife Week, to highlight the region's rustic mountain music. David Holt, a Grammy award-winner, will host AppalachiaFest with Doc Watson making a special appearance! AppalachiaFest is the place to enjoy the traditional mountain music of the Smokies.

The first large snow of the winter blanketed the Great Smoky Mountains near Pigeon Forge with gleaming white caps, but also forced closure of the Newfound Gap Road, halting travel across the mountains from Tennessee to North Carolina. Park officials closed the road when snow and ice became too hazardous to allow even four-wheel drive vehicles attempt the pass. The Little River Road was also closed to motorists.

A Pigeon Forge Winterfest event celebrating the cultural heritage and natural beauty of the Great Smoky Mountains, the 17th annual Wilderness Wildlife Week, begins this weekend on Saturday, January 13 at the Music Road Hotel and Convention Center in Pigeon Forge. The week-long event features a tremendous line-up of speakers, artists, demonstrations and hikes that provide an opportunity to better understand and appreciate the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the nation’s most visited national park.

A Pigeon Forge restaurant was lost to a fire on Sunday morning. Firefighters arrived at the All-American Pancake House at the corner of the Parkway and Wears Valley Road around 6:30 in the morning to find that the building was 60% engulfed by flames. An emergency call alerted authorities of the blaze at 6:20; at 6:45, the building “blew up in flames,” in the words of one witness. The pancake house was over 20 years old and constructed primarily of wood, according to fire investigators, who said the blaze originated in the kitchen area. These factors made the fire more intense, but no one was injured in the blaze.

To all of our friends and Smoky Mountain visitors, the staff at www.PigeonForge.com would like to wish all of you a healthy, happy and prosperous 2007. Cheers!