Saturday, May 7, 2022
Siyo (hello) from ᏣᎳᎩ (Cherokee).
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| Mingo Falls |
The weather this morning had improved to partly cloudy with patches of blue sky. We first drove to Mingo Falls about 1 mile from our campground. After a short but steep hike up stairs and wet paths, we found ourselves on a wooden bridge at the foot of the 120 ft. waterfall. We gaped up in awe at the beauty of the falls with fellow hikers for awhile. I remember Mingo as Daniel Boone’s Cherokee friend on the tv show I watched as a boy but Dr. Google tells me that character was entirely fictional. I don’t know the story behind the moniker of these spectacular falls.
We then headed toward the entrance to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park dropping by the RV to fetch our national park passport. A crew had shown up to take care of the fallen tree and one member was sharpening his chainsaw blade. Hopefully, chainsaws won’t become a leitmotif for this trip.
We visited the GSMNP Oconaluftee Visitor Center, stamped our passport for proof and walked around the outdoor Mountain Farm Museum of structures preserved from pre-park farmsteads complete with farm animals. While observing the log house, barn, sorghum processing facility, apple house, corn storage bins, etc., we witnessed a chicken crossing the road. We remain flummoxed as to his motives.
GSMNP is huge, one of the most visited national parks, and full of natural beauty and opportunities for great outdoor activities. However, I’ve visited it many times for both pleasure and work. The park is home to about three-quarters of the natural Fraser fir population, our state’s premier Christmas tree species. In my previous life as a Christmas Tree Geneticist, I helped plant and measure a field study investigating regeneration of a Fraser fir stand lost to the invasive balsam woolly adelgid. The research site was a couple of miles hike from Clingmans Dome. So, with only a single day to spend in the area, we opted to go back into the town of Cherokee and explore.
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| Park Entrance |
Cherokee is a town within the Qualla Boundary, i.e., territory owned by the Cherokee people, and is sectored by the Oconoluftee River. It borders the GSMNP and primarily gets income from tourism offering many chintzy and often stereotypical souvenirs and entertainment. We were seeking knowledge about the Cherokee people. After first getting informationed at the Cherokee Welcome Center, we proceeded to Granny’s Restaurant for a stomach expanding lunch buffet. After overindulging, we waddled to the car and headed to the Museum of the Cherokee Indian.
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| Museum Entrance |
The Oconaluftee Indian Village was next in our quest. Here we were given separate guides by three Cherokees. The first was an articulate young lady, Amanda, that walked us around the village stopping and interacting with craft folks who were weaving, beading, making baskets and pots, constructing weapons, etc. After a stroll around the gardens, we went into the Council House and were taught about its purpose by a second guide. The electricity in the village was out due to the storm yesterday so she used her phone’s flashlight to help us see. The Cherokee were divided into seven functional clans that were matriarchal. Men were required to marry outside their mother’s clan.The Council House was heptagonal allow seating for representatives of each clan. Lastly, we visited the dance grounds which were also heptagonal and learned about its use from a third guide. Marcus also spent awhile answering our questions including some about his personal life and experiences. The village tour certainly helped us feel more in touch with Cherokee culture and lifestyle.
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| Brewery Entrance |
Well, after the village tour, it was happy hour, so we headed to Native American Brewing. There, I sampled their Warrior Blonde Ale while Jane tried their Smoke Signal Hazy IPA.
Next up was a trip to Harrah’s Cherokee Casino Resort. We parked in the attached parking deck took the elevator to the main casino floor and were instantly dazzled by flashing lights and cacophonous sounds. Being experienced high-risk gamblers, we found the quarter machines and each fed the slots of nearby machines with a $5 bill. They were video versions of the old one-arm bandit machines where fruits, bars and special symbols spun around and aligned or, mostly not. My 20 bets lasted about 3 minutes. Jane, on the other hand was having better luck and at one point scored about $25 before eventually zeroing out her credits. After our losses, we walked around watching others play more sophisticated games with much larger wagers. All casino profits go to a good cause, supporting the Cherokee people. Half the revenue is used collectively by the tribe to maintain Qualla Boundary and the remainder is allotted to individual Cherokee according to their genetic “purity”, age and other factors.
A hotel, shops, restaurants, bars and a bowling alley were all encompassed in the casino building. We explored several different floors and Jane found Wicked Weed, one of her favorite breweries based in Asheville. So, we decided to have another beer and watch the Kentucky Derby. Jane wrote down the numbers of 5 horses she would have bet on out of the large field of 21 horses. None of her choices were Rich Strike, the 80-1 long shot winner that astonished all.
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| Dazzling Lights at the Casino |
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| Casino Jane |
Later, back at the RV, Jane watched Forest Gump on tv while I started blogging before dozing off after a busy day of touring.