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Wayfound Adventures

Curated RV adventures built from firsthand experience, hidden gems, scenic campgrounds, local discoveries, and meaningful travel.

Helping RV travelers spend less time researching and more time enjoying the journey.

09/21/2026

Breakfast at Chimneys Picnic Area

When I was putting together the Smoky Mountain Adventure, I knew breakfast at Chimneys Picnic Area had to be part of it.

It has so much going for it — cooking outdoors beside a rushing mountain stream, plenty of shade under the big trees, and that steady sound of the water that makes you want to sit there a little longer than you planned.

There’s some history here, too. Chimneys was developed by the Civilian Conservation Corps during the early years of Great Smoky Mountains National Park, and the stone comfort stations they built in the 1930s are still standing today.

But for me, this place is personal. I’ve eaten quite a few breakfasts here over the years — with my parents and grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins, and later with my wife and kids. A lot of good memories are tied to this little stretch of the Smokies.

On this trip, breakfast was simple: eggs, avocado and a few things cooked right there at the picnic table while the stream rolled by.

If you’re heading through the Smokies, put Chimneys on your list. Stop for breakfast or lunch, slow down for a while, and make a few memories of your own.

And if you’re looking for more ideas like this, Chimneys Picnic Area is one of the stops included in my Smoky Mountain Adventure at Wayfound Adventures https://wayfoundadventures.com/smoky-mountain-adventure-page/.

09/11/2026

Stone Mountain State Park — A Very Different Kind of Mountain Hike

Last year I made my first trip to Stone Mountain State Park in North Carolina. It’s only about an hour and fifteen minutes from Grayson Highlands, but the two parks couldn’t feel much more different.

The centerpiece of the park is Stone Mountain, a massive granite dome that rises more than 600 feet above the surrounding landscape and tops out at 2,305 feet above sea level.

The full Stone Mountain Loop is about 7.5 miles, and it can be strenuous. A good portion of the hike involves a fairly steep descent — followed, of course, by the climb back up. I decided I didn’t need to prove anything, so I broke the main attractions into two shorter hikes.

The first morning, I took the left fork and headed down to the 200-foot Stone Mountain Falls. The water doesn’t really free-fall 200 feet; it slides down the face of the granite, almost like a giant stone chute. Getting there means making your way downhill on a combination of trail, wooden stairs and platforms. The trip down is well worth it, although those stairs look a little different when you turn around and realize you have to climb them all again.

After spending some time at the falls, I retraced my steps and headed back to the camper.

The next day, I took the other fork and headed toward the summit of Stone Mountain. This hike was much easier — mostly a gradual climb until you suddenly step out of the woods onto that enormous exposed granite dome. From the 2,305-foot summit, the views stretch for miles across the surrounding countryside.

After enjoying the view, I headed back the same way I came and decided the complete 7.5-mile loop could wait for another visit.

Sometimes you don’t have to hike every mile of a trail to enjoy the best parts of it.

09/07/2026

Hiking Cabin Creek Trail - Grayson Highlands State Park, Virginia

Hiking the Cabin Creek Trail was one of the most enjoyable parts of my recent trip to Grayson Highlands.

After a couple of days hiking the peaks and taking in those wide-open mountain views, I decided to head the other direction — down into the Cabin Creek Gorge.

It feels like a completely different part of the park. Instead of open meadows and distant views, you’re surrounded by the thick vegetation of the Virginia Highlands, with Cabin Creek running through the gorge beside you.

Cabin Creek Trail is a 1.8-mile loop. When you reach the fork, I recommend taking the left side and hiking it clockwise. That takes you downhill to the creek first, then follows the water upstream, with some great views of the falls and smaller cascades along the way.

The trail is rated moderate to difficult, although I found most of it fairly easy going. There are a few rugged and steep sections, though, so good hiking shoes are definitely a good idea.

All in all, it was well worth the hike.

If you want to try it, park at Massie Gap. I’d also stop by the park office and pick up the Cabin Creek Trail Self-Guided Hike before you head out.

If you’ve hiked Cabin Creek before, tell me in the comments what you enjoyed most about it.

09/05/2026

Campfire Maple Dijon Salmon

I’m pretty sure I could cook Thanksgiving dinner in my camper galley, but when there’s a good bed of glowing coals outside, why not use it?

This Maple Dijon Salmon is something I make at home all the time, and it’s so easy that I usually bring what I need to make it when I’m camping too.

I keep individually frozen salmon fillets in the freezer at home and toss a couple into the camper freezer before a trip. About 30 minutes before dinner, I thaw one — still sealed in its package — in a bowl of cold water.

Once it’s thawed, I pat it dry, season it with salt and pepper, and put it skin-side up on well-oiled heavy-duty foil over the fire. After about 4–5 minutes, I flip it skin-side down and spoon on the Maple Dijon glaze and let it grill another 4-5 minutes.

The glaze takes less than five minutes to make, keeps well in the refrigerator, and I usually have a small jar ready to go. That makes this a pretty easy campsite dinner.

This time I served it with quinoa, broccoli and a squeeze of lemon.

Not bad for dinner cooked over a campfire.

I’ll put the Maple Dijon glaze recipe in the first comment if you’d like to try it.

09/02/2026

A Ferry Ride to an Undeveloped Barrier Island

Last October I camped at Hammocks Beach State Park near North Carolina’s Crystal Coast, mainly because I wanted to take the passenger ferry over to Bear Island.

Bear Island is an undeveloped barrier island with about four miles of ocean shoreline, and you can only get there by ferry or your own kayak or boat. That alone was enough to get my attention.

When I got in line for the ferry, though, we were told the large ferry was out of commission.

Instead, they were taking us over ten at a time in a much smaller boat.

That sounded exciting to me!

The video shows the big ferry sitting at the dock and our little group heading down to board the smaller one. The ride itself was only about 15 minutes, but taking the smaller ferry made the trip over feel a little more adventurous.

And Bear Island was worth the trip.

Once you get there, it’s dunes, coastal vegetation and a long stretch of undeveloped Atlantic shoreline. No hotels. No boardwalk lined with shops. Just beach.

I also enjoyed exploring the mainland side of Hammocks Beach State Park. There are easy trails through the coastal forest and along the water, and the campground made a good base for the trip.

Fall is a great time to go, but there is one important thing to know: the ferry schedule gets more limited after Labor Day.

For 2026, ferry service runs Wednesdays through Sundays from September 9–30, then Fridays through Sundays from October 2–25. There is no ferry service November through March, so always check the current schedule before you make the trip. The schedule can also change because of weather, mechanical issues or other conditions.

Hammocks Beach State Park ferry information:
NC State Parks ferry schedule
https://www.ncparks.gov/state-parks/hammocks-beach-state-park/ferry-schedule

Sometimes the unexpected part of a trip ends up being one of the things you remember most. In this case, I went there to ride the ferry — and getting the smaller boat just made it better.

08/25/2026

The First Wayfound Adventure Is Here

After months of research, travel, writing, photography, and planning, the first Wayfound Adventures guide is officially available.

The Smoky Mountain Adventure is a self-guided, downloadable PDF guide built for RV travelers who want to spend less time planning and more time enjoying the trip.

It brings together Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Gatlinburg, and Pigeon Forge into a ready-to-follow 5-day getaway, including three full days of planned activities, campground recommendations, dining picks, transportation and parking guidance, dog-friendly alternatives, planning checklists, and some of the local discoveries I’ve found from years of visiting the area.

The guide is 40 pages, and your purchase also includes separate Trip Planning and Daily Checklists, plus access to online trip updates.

Take a look through a few sample pages in the carousel, then visit Wayfound Adventures to see the full details.

Explore the Smoky Mountain Adventure:
https://wayfoundadventures.com/ -lavcnu

08/24/2026

One of My Favorite North Carolina Campgrounds

Goose Creek State Park, on the Pamlico Sound, is one of my favorite places to camp in North Carolina. I’ve stayed here at least half a dozen times, and I never seem to get tired of it.

Much of the area had been heavily timbered before the state acquired the land in the 1970s and began turning it into the park you see today. Now it’s filled with bald cypress, loblolly pine, red cedar and plenty of Spanish moss.

One of my favorite walks is the Live Oak Trail along the waterfront. There are five short trails in the park, so you can easily spend a couple of days exploring without getting into anything too strenuous.

Another favorite is the mile-long boardwalk through the wetlands. You might spot barred owls, herons, egrets, mink, muskrats and plenty of turtles. Bobcats and even black bears live here too, although I haven’t been lucky enough to see either one.

And if this sounds like your kind of place but you don’t have an RV, no worries. Goose Creek has primitive cabins for rent — with heat and air conditioning.

You might even keep an eye out for Blackbeard’s ghost. Pirates, including Blackbeard, were known to use the Pamlico Sound and nearby waters in the early 1700s, so there’s a little pirate history mixed in with the scenery.

Quiet campground, easy trails, wildlife, a little history and a beautiful setting on the sound. No wonder I keep coming back.

08/21/2026

Did You Know? There’s Free Early-Morning Parking in Downtown Gatlinburg

You have to read the sign a little backwards to figure it out.

The sign says No Parking 9:00 AM–2:00 AM, which means parking is allowed from 2:00 AM–9:00 AM along those marked sections of The Parkway. The City of Gatlinburg states the same thing more plainly on its website.

This particular sign is right in front of Baskins Square, where Tennessee Jed's Gatlinburg opens at 8:30 AM — just enough time to grab a quick breakfast to go before heading into the park.

It’s one of those small details that’s easy to miss but useful to know when you’re planning your day.

08/15/2026

Campsite Cooking

I cook most of my meals in the comfort of my camper galley, but I do enjoy cooking outdoors. For some reason, everything just seems to taste a little better outside.

This dinner was a good example of making the best of an unexpected change in plans.

I had packed a whole chicken for a roast chicken dinner and had already prepared the potatoes, carrots, onions and peppers in the cast-iron Dutch oven. When I opened the chicken, though, it didn’t seem as fresh as it should have been, so I decided not to take any chances and discarded it.

Fortunately, we had some ground beef left from a meal made the day before. I formed it into small meatballs, added them to the vegetables with some fresh rosemary and broth, and let everything cook together in the Dutch oven.

I served it over quinoa, and the improvised version turned out to be delicious.

Not exactly the dinner I had planned, but that’s part of camping — sometimes you just use what you have, change course and make the most of it.

I’ll put the simple recipe in the first comment in case anyone wants to try it.

08/14/2026

It Made the Guide: Tennessee Jed’s

I first came across Tennessee Jed's Gatlinburg while researching dog-friendly lunch spots in Gatlinburg. The outdoor patio caught my attention, but once I stopped in, I discovered there was a lot more to this little place than a dog-friendly table.

I had a breakfast sandwich with egg, cheese and sliced turkey breast, freshly roasted in-house and served on a French croissant. It was a generous portion and kept me going all morning. I enjoyed it at an umbrella-shaded table on the patio—a great way to start the day before heading into Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

I also spent some time talking with the manager and learned that Tennessee Jed’s isn’t a typical sandwich shop using processed deli meats. They roast their meats on-site and make their own sauces. While I was there, I watched one of the staff trimming a large brisket in preparation for roasting.

It has exactly the kind of atmosphere I’m always hoping to find when I travel—small, casual, local and a little tucked away. It sits in Baskins Square near Ripley’s on the Parkway, not far from the Aquarium and Anakeesta, but it’s easy to walk right past if you don’t know it’s there.

After my visit, I learned that Tennessee Jed’s has earned recognition well beyond Gatlinburg, including being named Tennessee’s best sandwich shop in a Yelp state-by-state ranking.

So yes, Tennessee Jed’s made the guide.

And for travelers with a dog along for the adventure, that outdoor patio is what led me there in the first place.

Address

Raleigh, NC

Opening Hours

Monday	9am - 5pm
Tuesday	9am - 5pm
Wednesday	9am - 5pm
Thursday	9am - 5pm
Friday	9am - 12pm
Saturday	9am - 12pm

Website

http://www.wayfoundadventures.com/

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