Hay there, it’s me, Hooves. You might know me better as one of the elk in Cataloochee Valley. Come on, you know who I am—I’ve got the legs and all the fur? I could have sworn I spotted you taking a picture of me once. (Thankfully, you got my good side.) Anyways, enough about you for now. Let’s get back to me—err, us.
Boy, it’s been strangely quiet around here lately. What’s going on? We even came out of winter a little early, but I guess you guys didn’t get the memo. It’s a crying shame.
We’ve been checking all over for you, even some of your favorite spots! But we keep coming up empty. You can bet that we’re going to get to the bottom of this.
I’ve overheard some humans talking a lot about something called “social distancing” and needing to “stay away from people” while “getting out in the fresh air.” Wouldn’t you know it, that’s my specialty! I’ve been wandering around Maggie Valley for a long time, so here are some of the ways I think you can do this “social distance” thing right.
Explore Cataloochee Valley
We call it “home,” but we’re good hosts. You can watch us do our thing, go for a hike or have a picnic here.
Go Fishing
Our waterways are full of mountain trout, and fishing here is easy: just get a three-day pass, and you’re all set. We’ve even got this really cool map for you to download.
Chase some waterfalls.
There are some big ones, some small ones, some you can even swim in. You could spend all day at one, or spend one day seeing them all!
EAT!
One thing we hear a lot from our visiting humans is that the food here is really special. We even have this super cool page on our website where local restaurants have uploaded their own menus. (P.S. You might be tempted to give us a nibble of your delicious human food, but please don’t—that could cause some serious harm to your favorite herd of Smoky Mountain elk. If you could clean up after yourself too, that would be awesome.)
Cruise the Parkway.
There’s so much to see, even if you don’t want to hike. As an elk, I tend to walk, but I’ve always wanted to explore things on four wheels.
Golf!
The courses here are beautiful. We love to plop down on the freshly cut greens at Maggie Valley Club and watch you play.
Go kayaking.
There’s lots of space in the middle of the lake to stay distanced. Bring your own kayak/canoe or rent one at Lake Junaluska or Lake Logan.
You get the message, right? Maggie Valley is one of the best places around to get some fresh air while not feeling crowded. Plus, we’re here, and we’re looking forward to seeing y’all again!
If you’ve got photos of us strutting our stuff, let’s see ‘em! But only if you got our good side.
