Charlotte, NC to Sylva, NC

It feels like we haven't left the house in 16 months (because basically we haven't).  So I decided to take the boys on a road trip to get them out of the house and to give Mom a break from having us there all the time while she is working from home.  We are headed to Knoxville, TN, as the boys have never been to Tennessee before and wanted to tick that of the list of states they've been to.

First we head down the I85 to Clemson where, after a Chick Fil A Lunch, we head to Issaqueena Falls and the Stumphouse Tunnel. The Falls are flowing well and from our vantage point half way down we can get a good view of it and the surrounding forest. It started pouring as we got into Clemson (hence we didn't go over to the university), so the steep trail to get to the bottom of the falls was too muddy to continue on.  

B&L @ Issaqueena Falls, SC

Just 5 minutes away was the Stumphouse Tunnel.  This pre-Civil War, uncompleted railroad tunnel was supposed to connect Charleston to the Ohio River in the 1850's, but budget constraints meant the project was abandoned by 1859.  Today you can walk the 1/4 mile tunnel and escape the summer heat, as the tunnel remains constantly at 50 degrees.

B&L Indiana Jonesing out of Stumphouse Tunnel, SC

Afterwards we drive up to Sylva, NC, where we are to stay the night before heading to Bryson tomorrow to ride the Great Smoke Mountain Railway.  The boys are happy, as the Holiday Inn has a pool, and there are more than happy to spend the early evening playing here.