Camping In Smokemont Campground - Near Cherokee, NC

[@retiredandpreppingquilting2350]

With the river so close to your camp site at night, that would be a good sound to hear at night. It would be so peaceful. I hope you are have a blessed weekend. The mountains were absolutely beautiful. Thank you for sharing.

[@NCMemoryMakers]

You are very welcome. We are so glad you enjoyed it!

[@koalabear6722]

We camp every fall in Elkmont. Absolutely beautiful time of the year. Always enjoy watching camping videos including this one. Happy Camping! Oh. And we have a self contained R POD. Had a tent then a popup and now the Pod. Love it.

[@TRPage]

I love these camping videos! Makes me halfway tempted to go buy a popup camper again. Was also impressed with the little Blackstone. We have a larger one at home and do burgers, breakfast, even Japanese hibachi on it. See y'all in the next video! God bless.

[@NCMemoryMakers]

Camping is one of our favorite things to do. A lot of memories are made in a campground. Thank you for watching.

[@reneewhetten4909]

So gorgeous. Thank you for showing a beautiful time, rain or not!

[@jarasaoo6292]

Thank you for sharing your camping experience. My husband and I have been camping since 1998 and many of those days and nights in the rain. I like the campground you are in and I think I would like to tent camp there one day but maybe when it is a little cooler. My planning would be a little more in-depth since we will be traveling from Jacksonville Beach, Fl.

[@NCMemoryMakers]

Glad you enjoyed it, and thank you so much for watching. This is a really nice campground, and even though we were there in late July, it was pretty cool in the campground. We've kept there in October, and it was downright chilly. Be aware that it will be several degrees cooler in the campground, than in town. If you do get to camp there, let me know how you like it.

[@nancyk4595]

We have been having lots of rain here in the southeast area of West Virginia so I can join in with your misery. I enjoyed seeing the different food you made on your Blackstone. I love grilled squash I know it was delicious. The fried potatoes looked really good too. Sorry the rain got into your tent, but you were able to enjoy your camping experience before that. I always enjoy the banter between the two of you. My husband and I have been married 49 years and get along really well.

[@NCMemoryMakers]

I appreciate you saying how much you enjoy our banter. There are a few people who have been critical of it, but I'm glad that for the most part, people understand that that's just how we are with each other. We have a very strong marriage and love every minute we spend together. Yes, we've had lots of rain here where we live, too. I feel like I'm having to mow my grass every 3-4 days right now. A storm is blowing up now as I speak. The potatoes turned out pretty good. Grilled squash/zucchini has become one of our favorite things to have when we are camping, as a healthy side item. It really is good on the grill. Thank you so much for commenting, and for your kind words.

[@Marilyn-KY]

Thanks for sharing your camping adventure. You were good sports about the rain.

[@NCMemoryMakers]

Yes, the rain wasn't much fun. But what can you do? Make the most of it and be thankful that we got to go.

[@KathyWalters-ol8mh]

I love your videos. Such a loving and "down to earth" couple who love the Lord. Keep up the sharing.

[@NCMemoryMakers]

Thank you so very much for your kind words. We really appreciate it!

[@mikeanderson7165]

I really like the shower blind. Thank y’all for sharing another awesome video.

[@NCMemoryMakers]

Absolutely. Thanks for watching.

[@mikeanderson7165]

@@NCMemoryMakers definitely made me wanna Cherokee purple mater they are the best all the food looks delicious

[@NCMemoryMakers]

@@mikeanderson7165 They're my favorite kind. Look forward to them every year.

[@pamhyatt5533]

Enjoy watching, looks like a nice place. 👍

[@sheilamiller1076]

Enjoyed this video! Love the water!

[@NCMemoryMakers]

Yes, very peaceful

[@judyparker8283]

Enjoyed this so much! Thanks for making a camping video!

[@NCMemoryMakers]

Our pleasure. So glad you enjoyed it!

[@kathyjones3963]

We used to use one of those air mattress s but we got to old for that to my husband got R A an can’t get up off of one any more so we had to get a camper happy camping guys

[@sharonscain7673]

Rain is refreshing! Thank you Lord for blessings!

[@ritalockett9788]

There is nothing wrong with budget friendly, that is right up my alley.Well it’s to bad that it rained but it looks like y’all still had a good time. When I was growing up we would camp on the banks of the Tn river at Pickwick, we had army cots and umbrella tents.That rainbow was amazing being that close to the ground,you should have looked around the truck for the pot of gold.

[@NCMemoryMakers]

Yeah, I made some comment to her about the pot of gold. I think that's the closest I've been to the end of a rainbow. We were at the beach a few years back, and there was a FULL rainbow out over the ocean, that we could see from our balcony. But it was further away than this one.

[@pattivanderhart2221]

It looks like hamburgers that thin while they can be dry but if they are cooked quick and searing hot with a spatula or something to smash it to the flat top as it cooks to create a crust and cooking that hot and quick helps them retain what juice they do have. I have seen people use butter under the burgers or carmelized onions . I love that area of the country. Thanks for taking us along camping.

[@NCMemoryMakers]

Thank you for watching. Yes, the burgers were not quite what I'm used to, but not bad.

[@bmoore3199]

You guys are a breath of fresh air ! Great video too..

[@NCMemoryMakers]

Thank you so much for your kind comment, and for watching!

[@Bl1te]

Taking off from San Antonio TX in October to Smoky Mountains NP so hopefully we can avoid some terrible weather. Great video and yall keep at it!

[@NCMemoryMakers]

Thank you for watching, and hope you have a great trip with great weather!

[@sharonscain7673]

Awesome pictures!

[@jenniferbryan7659]

When I was growing up in the 60's, 70's and 80's we would camp at Holly Cove Campground between Sylvia and Whittier NC off of 441. After we got camp set up we would go to the hardware store in Sylvia to buy visqueen and rope to make our tarps. One time we were camping next to a Methodist peacher and his family. His wife was frying chicken and it started hailing and she said that she had done a lot of things but she had never fried chicken in hail.

[@NCMemoryMakers]

Ha, that's funny! I can't say I've ever fried chicken in a hailstorm, either. I've cooked in the rain a few times, but it isn't pleasant. Those are certainly some good memories that you have, of when camped with your family. Thank you for sharing.

[@chriscourson2824]

I love the Smokies!

[@NCMemoryMakers]

Yes, the Smokies are beautiful

[@bertie-the-explorer]

I just came across the channel. You all are grest. I will be following. Sorry the trip got washed out.

[@NCMemoryMakers]

Thank you for watching and for commenting!

[@spencerwarren9219]

Love your shower. Great idea with pvc piping

[@NCMemoryMakers]

Yes, I got the idea from Pinterest. It works great.

[@foreverrving]

Can’t wait to meet you guys! We love following you

[@NCMemoryMakers]

That would be great! Thanks so much for watching!

[@johnskipper432]

Transmission went out on me one time when my family was meeting in the Smokies. We made it to the parking lot for Clingmans dome at about five o-clock in the afternoon and stayed there until about two in the morning. That was the darkest night I had ever seen!! We were rescued by family members and spent the next day with repairs in the parking lot of the hotel. What a trip we were glad to get home.

[@NCMemoryMakers]

I hate that happened to you. Yes, it is VERY dark up there at night, away from the lights of the towns.

[@farmerbrown2a]

We really enjoyed your camping trip! It can be fun camping in the rain. I live in WA State, for now so I know all about tarps and wet sleeping bags ! 😅

[@NCMemoryMakers]

Thank you for watching. So glad you enjoyed the video. I don't mind a thunderstorm or two, if I can lay in the tent and stay dry. But when the sleeping bag gets soaked, that's when the fun ends for me.

[@WildWildWestTaurus1]

Just found yall. Looks fun & gonna che k this campground out! Thank you ❤

[@NCMemoryMakers]

You're very welcome! Thanks for watching!

[@elrodelectrical6382]

MY Dad run smokemont riding back in late 80s early 90s. When he retired from Police Officer from Greensboro N.C

[@dpmart3275]

Will glad you two are safe and back. That rain would have gotten on my nerves 😆

[@NCMemoryMakers]

Oh, it did. Especially when it just kept on coming.

[@trudivecchione9642]

The meat package said double stack. Maybe the patties were thin because they were meant to be..... well, double stacked. 😉 😆

[@NCMemoryMakers]

That's actually what we did. The problem with ones that thin, is that they cook in a matter of a minute or two, and you don't want to overcook them.

[@almanichols2585]

My brother uses a dog kennel with tarps for the outdoor shower and toilet area when dispersed camping.

[@lil_Marie_Red]

I stayed at Smoke Mont campground April 2024. Very Nice. You need to bring your own water and power. They have a wash sink by the bathrooms but not at the site. Primitive. It rained too. I had an oversize tarp too. After the fact I just bought collapsible poles for my tarp to cover my tent. I ll be practicing with my poles next week. The one thing I wanted to address. The Smokey Natl park started a new parking fee. You need to stop at that Welcome Center. He passed to buy the parking ticket for parking. It's for parking at the larger parking sights. If you don't stop there and driving through. You dont need parking ticket. Daily ticket. There is one day a week they have a road shut off from cars. Bikes only. I gonna misspell it. Cape Cove Rd. Look it up.

[@NCMemoryMakers]

Yes, we are well aware of the fee, and did a video on it right before it was instituted. You only need the parking pass, if you park longer than 15 minutes in any one spot.

[@johnskipper432]

I have been camping in smokemont every summer since I was a kid. It was a family trip and my dad loved the Smokey’s but mom kind of tolerated it. As kids me and my four brothers would explore and play at the creek and sometimes at night you got to see the bears. Camping as a kid was a lot of fun so grown up’s take your kids camping if you can pry them away from their phone or I-pad. The earliest memory I have of camping in smokemont I was probably six and now I’m 63 years old. I love camping but my wife would rather stay at the hotel. And now it’s hard to get down on the ground and get back up so not sure if I could go camping now. The last time I was there it was little things that had changed and there were budget cuts so the water fountains were not operational but perhaps that’s changed. As I remember it would rain there pretty much every day usually at night. So be sure and bring a few tarps especially if you are tent camping. One time camping there we didn’t have any tarps and our tent leaked, I think that we would have been dryer if we had been outside the tent! So had a good time and God bless.

[@NCMemoryMakers]

I fully agree with you, about taking kids camping and prying them away from their devices. This generation is far different than our generation was. Camping is a wholesome time with family, and a way to make memories that will last forever. Like your comment illustrates. Thank you so much for sharing your experience and your memories, and thanks for watching. God bless.

[@lil_Marie_Red]

I was told the well went dry. So they had to get Cherokee water. So the water items from that water source is dry.

[@Momtocam1997]

Elk will get thicker come mid September through end of October...

[@cryptofire8201]

Enjoy ya'lls videos.

[@NCMemoryMakers]

We appreciate that!

[@dennisjackson6693]

you are going to have to break down and by a camper its a lot easier and you dont have to worry about the rain great video

[@NCMemoryMakers]

There's no doubt that would keep us dry. I'm just very partial to tent camping. I love being able to lay there and listen to the sounds of nature at night.

[@Allisillusion-z3f]

@@NCMemoryMakers that's the way to go, agreed:)

[@johnskipper432]

Me and my wife spent our honeymoon there and if the weather is the same then it rains every night and sunshine’s during the day. We didn’t think about an outdoor shower. We just did a bird bath and heated water on the Coleman stove because there was no hot water.we slept okay but by morning the air mattress was flat. One time we were camping with my parents and it rained day and night and our tent leaked so bad. I think we would have stayed dryer if we had just slept in the rain. We ended up sleeping in the car. Every morning everything in the tent was soaked, sleeping bags blankets everything. We hung up everything to dry when ever we got a sliver of sunshine. I loved camping but my wife would rather have a motel room. We decided we would go on one of those quiet walkways on the side of the road. We started and went about fifty yards and then came back because the trail went straight down what I thought was a sixty degree grade so going down was steep and then coming back was straight up. That fifty yards took us about an hour because we were not in shape. So if you are going on one of those inocent quiet trails you better be in excellent shape. That was the Smokies got to love them!!!

[@NCMemoryMakers]

Sounds like quite an adventure you had. It doesn't rain every single night, but the Smokies do get lots of precipitation.

[@therusticcollectionebaysto7028]

New sub ! Liked 🙏😂🤘😃

[@NCMemoryMakers]

Thank you for subscribing and for commenting.

[@lil_Marie_Red]

Didnt I see a topper on that pickup. Sleep in there during rainy nights. You can put you stuff in the tent raised up from ground via tables n chairs to keep off the ground.

[@NCMemoryMakers]

Yes, I have a Soft Topper. Easy to take off and put back on. Unfortunately, we are required in the National Park, to keep our coolers packed away in the back of the truck, so no room for sleeping in it.

[@philliproupe8967]

My great grandmother Was half Cherokee my great great grandmother Pheobe was full blooded Cherokee ❤

[@NCMemoryMakers]

That's awesome! Same with my great-grandmother.

[@WoodyWillisIII]

safari truck is a compliment. 😂

[@NCMemoryMakers]

I guess

[@unpavedexplorer338]

Hello, I was there on Memorial Weekend. I am posting my videos now.

[@NCMemoryMakers]

I'm looking forward to seeing it

[@lil_Marie_Red]

I was there too. We'd n Thursday. Same week. I was in the D section.

[@johnwillenburg1586]

Me and my f😊amily use to camp at yogie bea😊r camp ground in Maggie valley,i just bought a Coleman sundome hope it doesn't leak ftom NC.

[@NCMemoryMakers]

I would highly recommend buying a large tarp to provide extra protection. Ours will leak during heavy rain, plus the rain fly will develop small holes over time. We've used our Sundome for years, and love it. But have a back up means of rain protection.

[@sandreawhite7534]

I’ve always wanted to go camping again. We did in my 20’s. I’m so afraid of bears.

[@NCMemoryMakers]

I wouldn't worry about bears. Just don't leave food out or take it in your tent. You'll be fine.

[@rhondatomlinson1571]

I know this was last year. Sorry but question, how do you contain your grey water from the shower?

[@NCMemoryMakers]

We really don't. We use biodegradable camp soap

[@chriscourson2824]

Are they still charging entrance fees to the Smokies? If so, what is it?

[@NCMemoryMakers]

There has never been an entrance fee to enter Great Smoky Mountains National Park. There is none now. They do have a new parking fee, that requires you to pay $5 per vehicle, if you're going to be parked in any one spot for more than 15 minutes. That does not include campgrounds or your own campsite. But if you were going to go up to Clingmans Dome or one of the places in the park, and if you're going to park for over 15 minutes, you would need a parking pass. I believe it is $5 daily, or you can get a year pass for around $40. But as long as you are just driving through the Park, or you are not going to park anywhere for longer than 15 minutes, you don't have to pay a fee. Also, if you are in one of the Park's campgrounds as a registered guest, you do not have to pay an additional fee to park in your own campsite.

[@lil_Marie_Red]

Yes. They charge a parking fee. $5.00. If you just drive through you dont need it. Irs only for the congested big parking lots. Not the quick photo opp spots. Not Entrance fee. I bought my ticket at the Welcome Cntr by Cherokee. April 2024. ​@@NCMemoryMakers

[@NCMemoryMakers]

@@lil_Marie_Red I actually explained the parking fee in the above comments already. Just to make sure everyone gets the correct information, the fee is not just for the congested parking lots. It is for any spot within the National Park, if you are going to be there for longer than 15 minutes. Meaning, it is for picnic areas, and pull offs. Just make sure you don't stay over 15 minutes, and you are fine. Also, it does not apply if you are in your site in a campground. But other than it, it applies everywhere in the Park.

[@dennisballew3029]

Enjoyed Where do you live

[@NCMemoryMakers]

North Carolina

[@AuntieM78]

Which one of you is driving after church?? From the video, it looks like no one is.

[@NCMemoryMakers]

I was driving at the beginning, and after church, she was driving. We were on our way home from church. Wasn't sure what you mean, when you said from the video it looks like no one is. She was driving at that point.

[@AuntieM78]

@@NCMemoryMakers I guess the camera wasn't close enough to see her hand on the steering wheel. Unless you have one of that drive-by-it-self cars they are talking about. lol

[@NCMemoryMakers]

@@AuntieM78 No, but that would be nice to have. Perhaps it looked like we were sitting in the back seat, and someone else was up front? Unfortunately, our camera lens just doesn't have that wide of an angle. I don't know where on the wheel her hands were. Probably on the bottom of the wheel.

[@AuntieM78]

@@NCMemoryMakers Ok, thank you for sharing that area. I visited Cherokee once, and I love it!

[@peggystephenson9262]

Make sure to put everything up in the Smokies from 🐻 bears.

[@NCMemoryMakers]

Yes, we do. This camping trip was a year ago.

[@bobjohnson1818]

WE HAVE YORKIE/CHAWAU (NOT SPELLED RITE I KNOW) THAT WILL BE 21 NEXT VALENTINES DAY.

[@NCMemoryMakers]

Wow...It has been blessed with a very long life. That's great. What do you feed it, out of curiosity?

[@bobjohnson1818]

@@NCMemoryMakers NOT MUCH ANYMORE. HER FOOD HAS TO BE MASHED UP /DOG FOOD/LEFTOVERS PURDY MUCH WHATEVER SHE WILL EAT.NOT MANY TEETH.

[@freegrazer]

Hard to tell but where you had your little dog tied up it look like poison oak going up that tree. Hard to tell.

[@NCMemoryMakers]

I'm not sure if it was or not. Didn't notice that in the video. While its possible for a dog to get poison oak, its rare, because their fur/hair usually protects them. One thing I did notice that I mentioned to my wife, was that he was tied near several red mushrooms on the ground. Since we aren't sure if those were poisonous or not, that we needed to be more careful where we tie them. Glad he didn't eat one of them.

[@NCMemoryMakers]

After doing a quick search, it appers that poison oak has more jagged leaves, while these were more smooth. Possibly poison ivy. The only thing is, I'm the one who unwrapped him from the tree. As I normally get the stuff whenever I'm near it, and didn't, it could have been something else.

[@MrsamH08]

I hope y’all didn’t get eat up with the poison ivy all over that tree your dog was tied to. 😬

[@NCMemoryMakers]

No, not at all.