Thanksgiving Break Road Trip: Day One

Fairfield Glades, Tennessee:  For those of you who know me or follow the site, you know we love the mountains.  I have spent my 23 year career working in public safety in Florida and as that career winds down, I am looking forward to retiring to the mountains.  I grew up in Lebanon, Pennsylvania and moved to Florida when I graduated high school because I hated working in the months of cold and snow.  I decided to work in reverse, work in Florida and then return north when I retire and won't have to work in the cold.  

As the time gets closer, we are starting to take trips to explore small towns to find that perfect fit.  We are leaning towards Tennessee but trying to narrow down the right spot.  We recently toured Sevierville and English Mountain.  On this trip we are headed to Crossville and Fairfield Glades.

We hit the road bright and early at zero dark thirty for our trip north. From our home, we have about an eleven hour drive.  We decided to leave on Thanksgiving Day and do our traditional dinner on Sunday after we return.  Our drive took us north up I-75 into Tennessee just north of Chattanooga before taking local road the remainder of the way into Crossville.   While looking at lots, we also are going to check out the towns as well as enjoy some of the attraction.  Well as much as you can with such a short trip.

Traffic was pretty light headed north.  We made it all the way to our obligatory stop at Buc-ee's in Warner Robbins without any issues.  After refueling, the GPS started to climb and we were quickly detoured off I-75 as a result of a crash that closed northbound lanes just south of Atlanta.  Thank goodness traffic was light because the detour didn't alter the overall drive, just gave us a glimpse of the countryside instead of I-75 which isn't a bad thing.

Once we got north of Atlanta, it was time for breakfast so we stopped at the Marietta Diner.  During our trip to Atlanta a few years ago, we wanted to eat here but it was packed when we stopped so we ate elsewise.  The popular diner has been featured on the Food Network and we were excited to try it.  For a diner, it was pretty fancy.  The food was good but the service not so much.  My wife had her usual ham and cheese omelet and I chose the French toast with fresh strawberries  When it was served, mine came with a piece of country ham.  While I did not order that, I wasn't sure if it was something special they were doing since it was a holiday.  Midway through the meal, a manager came to the table and confronted me for having the ham that I didn't order.  He was confrontational with his demeanor and acting like he was going to take the plate away.  He then said I can just keep it and walked away.  The whole encounter had us looking at each other like what just happened.  I am not sure if it was misinterpreted though a cultural barrier, but I felt is was unprofessional and could have been handled better.  Your staff plated and served the food.  It's not my fault, correct your staff and don't come at the customer.  

After breakfast, we continued our trek north.  Once we got north of Chattanooga, we departed from the interstate system and onto the network of state and local roads that took us into Crossville.  This was a very stunning drive.  From small towns to scenic vistas, we really got to see some of the heart of Tennessee.  We have always gone to eastern Tennessee and the Smokies, it was nice to see the stunning beauty outside the tourist heavy regions of Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge.  Even during our last trip to Sevierville, while it was just outside the tourist area, there was heavy tourist presence due to close proximity, something we are trying to avoid coming from the tourist mecca of Florida.  

We arrived in Crossville and headed to the community of Fairfield Glades.  The planned retirement community is nestled in the woods and really offered a lot of what we are looking for.  It features hiking trails, plenty of preserve space, lots of amenities and heavily wooded lots.  We had some reservations of the HOA and worries of the community being too cookie-cutter like the subdivisions of Florida.  But as we visited and toured the community, it was everything but that.  Despite being a community, it still had the woodland feel, something we are looking for as we look for the right spot.  We toured the community and looked at a few lots.  By the time we were done, we decided this could be the spot and contacted a local realtor to entertain buying a lot.  We reached out to Donna with Baisley Hometown Realty who will be working with us as we move forward with the process.

After touring a few lots, we took a hike on one of their several hiking trails.  We took a hike on the seven bridges trail and within a few minutes of hiking, you felt like you had the woods all to yourself and not in the middle of a planned community.  As we walked through the woods and enjoyed the wildlife, we decided this was the place.  

We hiked back to the car and headed into downtown Crossville to check out the city as well as look for dinner.  We attempted to grab dinner at the Homestead Harvest Restaurant located at Cumberland Mountain State Park.  It was almost like everyone in Crossville had the same idea, the parking lot was packed and there was a long line down the sidewalk of people waiting to get in.  We took a quick drive around the park and checked out a family of white tail deer near the park entrance before heading out to look for another option.  We drove through downtown Crossville looking for a local restaurant that was open and everything was closed for the holiday.  So we had to break from our eat local rule and pointed the car towards Cracker Barrel which was also at capacity.  After striking out twice we settled for Waffle House before heading to the hotel.

After dinner we hopped on I-40 and headed towards Knoxville for our hotel.  We picked the Drury Inn and Suites in Knoxville. The Drury Inn always offers comfortable rooms at great prices and includes breakfast, a light dinner, two free alcoholic drinks as well as soda and popcorn during your stay.  Not a bad deal for a budget chain!  We have stayed at them a few times during our travels and they don't disappoint.  

After a long day of traveling and exploring we hit the hotel for a good nights sleep to prepare for another day of exploration.  Tomorrow will take us north to the Jonesborough/Johnson City and into North Carolina.

Be sure to check out later for more from our trip or click on any of the photos above to see photos from today's adventures.