Dollywood Welcomes Wildwood Grove Guests
Dollywood Welcomes Wildwood Grove Guests beginning May 2019. This is sure to be a great year for America’s favorite theme park. The Wildwood Grove will boast six new themed rides, the amazing Wildwood Tree, outdoor water play zone, four new Woodland characters to interact with and a new restaurant.
Dollywood is known world wide for heart pumping rides and the best music anywhere. The new grove ramps up the fun for the entire family. Kids will love the Tree Top tower offering a sky high view of the grove and surrounding Smoky Mountains while whisking through the air in a giant acorn.
The great tree swing is just what you would expect and more. This swing is big enough for the entire family. Fashioned as a flying leaf boat rising and falling through the air as if on an autumn breeze.
The black bear trail is your chance to catch a glimpse of the iconic symbol of the Smoky Mountains, black bear. Be sure and have your camera ready to capture some cuteness.
This Heysmokies.com exclusive video shares a few of the Wildwood Grove secrets!
Hop on over to the Frogs and Fireflies ride for a fun race around the lily pad pond. Hold on tight astride a giant frog for a fun romp chasing fireflies.
Smoky Mountain Synchronous Firefly Dates Announced
Smoky Mountain Synchronous Firefly Dates Announced. Every year in late May or early June, thousands of visitors gather near the popular Elkmont Campground to observe the naturally occurring phenomenon of Photinus carolinus, a firefly species that flashes synchronously. Since 2006, access to the Elkmont area has been limited to shuttle service beginning at Sugarlands Visitor Center during the eight days of predicted peak activity in order to reduce traffic congestion and provide a safe viewing experience for visitors that minimizes disturbance to these unique fireflies during the critical two-week mating period.
The lottery will be open for applications from Friday, April 26 at 8:00 a.m. until Monday, April 29 at 8:00 p.m. Results of the lottery will be available on Friday, May 10. A total of 1,800 vehicle passes will be available for the event which includes: 1768 regular-parking passes (221 per day) which admit one passenger vehicle up to 19’ in length with a maximum of seven occupants, and 32 large-vehicle parking passes (four per day) which admit one large vehicle (RV, mini-bus, etc.) from 19’ to 30’ in length, with a maximum of 24 occupants. Lottery applicants must apply for either a regular-parking pass or large-vehicle parking pass and then may choose two possible dates to attend the event over the eight-day viewing period.
The lottery system uses a randomized computer drawing to select applications. All lottery applicants will be charged a $1.00 application fee. Successful applicants will automatically be awarded parking passes and a $24.00 reservation fee will be charged to the same credit or debit card used for the application fee. The parking pass permits visitors to park at Sugarlands Visitor Center and allows occupants to access the shuttle service to Elkmont. The $24.00 reservation fee covers the cost of awarding the passes, event supplies, one red-light flashlight per pass, and nightly personnel costs for managing the viewing opportunity at Sugarlands Visitor Center and Elkmont.
Parking passes are non-refundable, non-transferable, and good only for the date issued. There is a limit of one lottery application per household per season. All lottery applicants will be notified by e-mail by May 10 that they were “successful” and awarded a parking pass or “unsuccessful” and not able to secure a parking pass.
14th Annual Master Gardener Flower And Garden Show
Master Gardener Flower and Garden show is fun for the whole family!
14th Annual Master Gardener Flower And Garden Show is a great Smoky Mountain event! The event is scheduled for Saturday, April 27, 2019 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. The event will be held at the Sevier County Fairgrounds, 754 Old Knoxville Hwy. near downtown Sevierville, Tennessee.
Find out all the dirt on gardening with native plants as well as annual and perennial favorites at the Sevier County Area Master Gardeners Association and the University of Tennessee Extension Service’s day-long show that is guaranteed to produce wheel barrow loads of garden inspiration for the spring planting season.
Onsite vendors will showcase and sell the latest in garden supplies, lawn and garden equipment, herbs, ornamental plants as well as veggie and fruit starter plants.
“This is a great opportunity for families and individuals from the Smoky Mountain region to discover the joy of gardening,” said Master Gardener Brad Knight. “The Master Gardeners have the answers to commonly asked questions on how to beautify your home with landscaping and how to grow fresh and healthy herbs and veggies!“
