Courtyard By Marriott Knoxville

... I was proud of myself that I made it to the falls. They were very nice but let’s face it – once you’ve seen Niagara and the falls in the Rocky Mountains anything else is a disappointment. Needless to say, the walk back (downhill) was a lot easier than the walk to the falls! The road through the Smoky National Park caused me some anxiety but the breathtaking views were well worth the trip.

... Smokies, and that gave them their name, is due to the 85+ inches of annual precipitation that they get at the higher elevations...and because of their two unique climates, at higher and lower elevations, there are many species of living things (including several salamanders!) that are unique to the Park. There are over 1600 varieties of flowers in the park and a population of 1500+ bears,- but alas, we saw none of this, only a few leaves ...

... I decide I want to watch that.

We try and head to Calhoun's for dinner, passing yet another car that has slid off the road, but it is mobbed. That is expected for the night before a game. I figure anything near the University will be packed so we eventually head over to the south side of the river. Of course that was after we drove through the revived old town area. I am glad to ...

... Lodge rates are very reasonable and they have several activities on the property. Most every weekend Bluegrass Band out on the large deck with a nightly campfire (every night) surrounded by rocking chairs to just sit back and enjoy. Restaurant on property with great homestyle food and Riverstone's guest get a discount. You can even walk down to the river (wow) be there in 1 minute. Large salt water swimming pool. Goldfish ponds ...

... to me how the unit is being remodelled and new facilities designed to improve forensics for them. He has also implimented a mentoring programme for new CSI's to ensure that they are competent to undertake scene examinations and give him the opportunity to develop individuals futher if required.

The unit has not quite moved over to digital images for everything yet, there are still concerns over this type of evidence which we discussed.

A quick lunch and then we were ...

... away form your arrival gate??

A 10 minute sprint later and I arrive sweating at my gate to see that my onward flight has been delayed by 2 hours due to essential maintainance. Of course, that fills you with confidence doesn''t it - the words 'essential maintanance'!!

Anyway ,we all board finally and I land in Tennessee where Nathan from the University of Tennessee Forensic Training Academy is going to collect me from the airport ...

Well, not much to say about Knoxville as we arrived late due to trying to sort out an extra day car hire as we realised we wouldn't make it to Washington D.C. by 11:00 the next day. By the time we got there we just wanted to relax so we went to Ruby Tuesday's for a late lunch and then I went and sat by the pool. We ended up watching back to back movies of Get Shorty and Be Cool (which always makes us laugh).

The next day it was the big pull to Washington D.C.

... Trail, where every Friday night the Blue Ridge Backroads Radio Show is broadcast live. Can you imagine old time music as played by a Finn? The band was Kari Makinen and Friends, and included a Finnish musician, Kari Makinen , accompanied by local traditional old time string musicians, playing old time Appalachian music, including Doc Watson, his favorite, and even Johnny Cash . Interesting, and immensely enjoyable. DAY 3 Hiltons, VA--Driving west ...

... shops and no streets in the middle. We also met up with Erin, a friend of the family. We walked around and then had a sandwich for lunch. Afterwards we strolled on the grounds and took some pictures. Sam got some great photos of her family for Mothers day. We went home and later on had supper. We watched some tv and her son worked on the computer which had issues. Another good day and late night.

... lanes of traffic when they are going slower than the posted speed limit. This is really nice when traffic is at a standstill. I came upon a traffic jam almost as soon as I got on the Interstate. Because of the lane-splitting law, I was able to scoot through the traffic in about 30 minutes. When I stopped for gas before going over the mountains, the radio was saying that the traffic was backed up for 14 miles, and travel estimates ...