in the POD - winding our way through Tennessee

somewhere in Tennessee.

*

Heading south out of Knoxville this morning we decided to stay far off the well traveled highways on our way through Georgia and into Florida. We traveled mostly on State Highway 411 through Tennessee skirting the foothills of the Smokey Mountains and the Cherokee National Forest. Early morning was beautiful as we passed through thickly shaded rural areas nestled deep in small, damp valleys. The morning fog was just lifting as the sun, peeking over the hill, lit the air. These rural areas were both spectacular in their remoteness and beauty and yet - a bit sad at the same time. The area was populated by small wooden houses that really were like shacks, seemingly held up by sheer will alone, and then just a few turns in the road later - acres, of what used to be farmland, filled with brick trophy homes. For the most part - most of our drive through the small towns and communities was very pleasant - and I for one always relish the opportunity to get off the highway and take in what is offered up to us - visually. Tim was much more upset by it than I was - probably the myriad of Trump signs that we saw. I have yet to process it - but my optimist self tells me that I need to understand all the stories and stay strong.

So.... on a lighter note..... last night in Knoxville - which is yet another city that is definitely worth a second look! NOT that we were hungry or even needed to eat another thing till maybe-  next week...... We did, however, have three BBQ places on our option list that we needed to explore.
I picked Sweet P's Downtown Dive, based on reading a combo of Yelp and Trip Advisor reviews.....

Sweet P's - right by the train tracks.

*

Sweet P's combo plate with three sides

*

Order and pick up at the self serve counter, find a table or a high top in the small bar area and order a few beers. Friendly atmosphere, mid 80's funk playing on the sound system and the young people at the bar were great fun to talk to. We split a combo plate of pulled pork, 1/2 rack of ribs, 2 slices of brisket, and three sides; cole slaw, mac and cheese and green beans. The brisket was not perfect - we still had the burnt ends from the other night in our minds and this was definitely not even close. The pulled pork was good - dry and tender -  but less than memorable. The ribs, however, were fantastic! Really flavorful, smokey and quite tasty. First ribs we had sampled so it was nice to have them be so good. Sides were all fine - with a stand out mac and cheese.

And because serendipity always seems to work in our favor... there was a distillery just up the block from the BBQ joint! Crazy!  Knox Whiskey Works is a small batch distillery that makes ALL of their product out of 100% Tennessee corn. We sampled 2 flights in order to try all of their offerings and they were all, surprisingly, really good. Unfortunately, they were all out of their first batch of bourbon - which had sold out in 4 days!!!  

Knox Whiskey Works

a few of the offerings

*

We ended the day in  Jasper, FL eating all our BBQ leftovers from the last few days. Still delicious and allowing us to relive the moments and the places. 

Makes me smile.

We head to Pine Island, FL tomorrow. 

Friends.