Porch Swing Memories Pigeon Forge Log Cabin Rental

Just in case you fly into Tennessee....

While we all love to see those bears, there need to be rules in place in the cities for the safety of guests as well as the bears. 22 bears have been euthanized in our general area (Sevier & Blount counties) so far this year. This was mostly due to people either feeding bears, or more often not securely disposing of trash. Bearproof containers are essential for everyone's safety.

If you or someone you know would like to attend this seminar, there will be a lot of information shared. Please everyone, get involved if you can.

On Tuesday, August 13, from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., the City of Gatlinburg, Smokies BearWise Taskforce, Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency , and National Park Service are hosting an open house to educate the public and businesses on best bear management practices. Taking place at the American Legion Building, 1222 East Parkway, Gatlinburg, TN. The event is open to the public and free of charge. Presentations by Park Ranger Ryan Williamson will occur at 10 a.m. and 1:30 p.m.

PLEASE don't feed the bears............this is what happens when they become accustomed to finding food around people....they break into cars, trash, houses. They get too close to people because they are expecting to be fed....they get reported, caught & killed.

There are bears all around the towns. Keep your distance, lock your cars, don't feed them or leave out food or drink containers. Dispose of trash in Bear resistant containers. They were here before the people. Observe from a distance if you see them.

Not local? Tourists & other folks from out of town are able to adopt! Take a look & help save a life or 2.

Tonight & tomorrow night are available!!
Call the office to book 865-777-4339

Just in case you're in town & want to stay another couple nights....or nearby & want to run into the park or town for a quick getaway....here's your chance.

AND you can still get free tickets to local attractions thru Xplorie. Tickets are sent to your phone. It's fun & easy!

Or take this time to book your fall vacation! Dates are filling fast.

Thinking about coming to the mountains? But it's last minute?
Or already here & want to stay a bit longer than your
current check out?

We have Aug 25-30 open!

If you're trying to see bear but not drive ALLLL the way to Cade's Cove, we can't promise, but bear have been quite active in Sky Harbor this year.

Great rate, quiet area, bears? Give us a try. Hot tub, whirlpool bath, wifi & more. At the end of the road for more privacy! Call us or book online. What are ya waiting for??

UPDATED! Fall is booking fast!
Don't wait to reserve your dates for summer or fall vacations!
These are dates still open for the year:

Aug 25-30
Sept 8-13
Sept 15-22
Sept 27-30
Oct 1-6
Oct 18-21
Oct 30-31
Nov 1-21
Nov 26-30
Dec 1-31

Great cabin for a couple. If you've been waiting for prices to come down or just to make up your mind...well, now is the time. Get those dates reserved now before someone else grabs them!

Book online or give us a call!

Porch Swing Memories :: Mountain Time Cabin Rentals Romantic cabin getaway w/ hot tub & arcade, 1 bed/2 bath with whirlpool bath, sleeps 4! FREE attractions ticket included!

Happy 4th of July! Celebrate safely!

ABR takes in orphaned cubs and yearlings. They are raised & rehabbed if necessary then released back into the general area they were found. They do not allow public access to the cubs, but do have a nice visitor's center, as well as online shopping, to help them raise monies. These are the lucky ones that were found & rescued. Many more are not so lucky.

June 25, 2024: What A Day!! ⚾️🐻🐻🐻🍒🐻

It's rare that four cubs arrive on the same day...but yesterday just happened to be a rare sort of day. ABR received four cubs of the year AND our Tennessee Vols baseball team won their first national championship.

The story started over a week ago. Neighbors in Sevierville, Tennessee reported a small cub high in a cherry tree eating ripe cherries. At first glance, we thought "lucky little bear"! Every cub deserves a cherry tree full of cherries! But the cub was always seen alone. By Thursday, it was time for Curators Haley, Jamie and Greg to set a cub trap and install the trail camera. Our trail cameras have cellular service that send us photos of activity around the trap. Every time a photo came in, we looked at our phones. Even late at night it's important to check. Lots of photos rolled in, but just one photo included the little bear...and it passed right by our tasty bait. Only a lone opossum entered the trap and our Curators were quick to release him back to the wild where he belongs.

On Sunday, the cub was back in the cherry tree. Curator Tom reset the cub trap under the tree, but when the cub came down, it passed right by the trap and headed in the direction of a pond. It was time for a drink of water and maybe a cool swim. So we all waited and watched for trail cam photos again…

MEANWHILE

On Saturday morning, we saw a message from a family in Unicoi County, Tennessee. Their security cameras caught a video of a mother bear and three cubs traveling through their yard. The mother bear was severely injured, dragging her back legs as she moved. ABR immediately contacted the homeowner and Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency. It can be very difficult to capture an injured bear, and safely capturing her AND her three cubs would be a huge challenge.

TWRA quickly set a trap for the injured mama bear and everyone waited and watched. Fortunately, the female bear entered the trap about 24 hours later. Then it was time to safely trap three cubs. TWRA Sergeant David Carpenter set cub traps and the homeowners helped to watch cameras and waited. It's very hard to trap one little cub and nearly impossible to get three, but Officer Carpenter was successful. By yesterday morning, three cubs were in traps and ready to come to ABR for care. Unfortunately, TWRA had to humanely euthanize the mother bear. After further examination, it appeared that she had been hit by a car and was paralyzed. Curator Jamie was prepared and left immediately to meet Officer Carpenter to pick up the cubs and take them to the University of Tennessee College of Veterinary Medicine for their medical exams.

While Curators were at UTCVM assisting with intake exams of the three cubs, the trail cam in Sevierville started sending photos of a little bear around the trap under the cherry tree. This time, the little bear couldn't resist cherries AND nectarines covered in honey. The cubby went into the trap, and the trail cam snapped the photo we needed. Fortunately, TWRA Biologist Dan Gibbs was in the Gatlinburg area and headed straight to pick up the cub and deliver her to the ABR facility. Curator Jamie had just returned from UTCVM with the triplets and it was time to head back to Knoxville with a fourth little bear. 🔁

All four cubs appear to be healthy, but they are all small.

The Triplets are currently sharing Hartley House rooms 1 and 2:
ABR #404 is male and weighs 5kg (11 pounds)
ABR #405 is female and weighs 3.5kg (7.7 pounds)
ABR #406 is female and weighs 5.5kg (12.1 pounds)

The cherry tree cub is in the ABR Recovery Center:
ABR #407 is female and weighs 5.5kg (12.1 pounds)

We thank TWRA biologists Janelle Musser and Dan Gibbs and TWRA Sergeant Carpenter for their work to save these cubs. We thank Dr. Swanepoel, Dr. Heniff, and their team of students and staff for providing great medical care (another group of Tennessee Vols who always hit homeruns for our cubs). We thank the homeowners in Erwin and in Sevierville for their willingness to contact us about the cubs and work with us and with TWRA to safely trap the cubs. We thank our Intern Lindsey who dropped everything and assisted with the medical exams at UTCVM and then came to ABR early to help get the new cubs settled in. And we thank YOU for keeping all of our cubs in your heart. We couldn't do our work without you!

FINALLY

After a very long day, we all enjoyed watching our Tennessee Vols Baseball team win the College World Series. GO VOLS! 🧡🤍

Please help us welcome ABR #404 Homer Bear, ABR #405 Diamond Bear and ABR #406 Champ Bear and welcome ABR #407 Sundae Bear (that's a sundae with a cherry on top!)

These bear were euthanized due to humans....If you see a bear getting into trash, or otherwise in a human area-scare it....yell, make noise....and Wildlife for You is also offering this incentive to get one of their books for free. ***As an incentive, if anyone posts a video of themselves yelling at or scaring a bear away from “human country”, we will send you a free “Spooning a Bear” book. Remember, do not scare bears in there natural environment. It has to be a bear getting into human stuff such as trash, a vehicle, a porch, etc.*** You will need to post to or tag wildlife for you to get it.

PERFECT CABIN FOR A COUPLE!

We just reduced rates again for a last minute stay in June!

We have July 11-17 available!
2 nights minimum

This is how the cabin looks right now. Surrounded by lovely trees which filter out the heat of the sun. While there are a few cabins in the general vicinity, we are at the end of the road & quite private!

We've had bear visit several times recently too!

Call to book or book online!

Rates were just reduced!
ONLY A FEW DATES LEFT IN JULY!!

July 26-Aug 2

Reduced rate per night. 2 Night minimum

Best deal is to book direct-save the Airbnb fees.
Airbnb & VRBO links are in the comments.

Great for a couple. Pet friendly!

Porch Swing Memories :: Mountain Time Cabin Rentals Romantic cabin getaway w/ hot tub & arcade, 1 bed/2 bath with whirlpool bath, sleeps 4! FREE attractions ticket included!

This has been extended thru June 30th. Click the ad to see info.

Teacher Appreciation - Alcatraz East Pigeon Forge Alcatraz East ♥’s Teachers Alcatraz East celebrates TEACHERS & ALL EDUCATION SUPPORT STAFF by offering free admission from May 1st – May 31st, 2024! Alcatraz East invites all teachers & education support staff to visit the museum for FREE, and up to 4 additional guests can also come for 50% of...

here's something different...I know a lot of you are Vols fans..

Save the date, Vol fans! The Island in Pigeon Forge is set to host the Legends of Tennessee event on June 8, 2024. Join us as The Island transforms in orange and white to welcome current and former Tennessee football legends. The autograph session will take place from 5:00 PM to 6:30 PM.

Make sure not to miss this chance to meet some of the Tennessee Volunteer greats! 🏈

Outdoor fun in Sevierville!
While we don't have a pool at our cabin, this fun Family Aquatic Center is open 6 days a week. So much fun!

Sevierville Outdoor Family Aquatic Opens Memorial Day Weekend

The City of Sevierville Department of Parks and Recreation announces the opening of the outdoor Family Aquatic Center (outdoor pool, slide and splash play area) at City Park on Saturday, May 25.

The operating hours for the season are 11 a.m. – 5 p.m. Monday-Saturday. The center will be closed on Sundays for rental parties. (The Family Aquatic Center will close at 4:00 p.m. due to swim meets on June 11 and 13, and July 2, 9 and 16.)

Daily admission is $5.00 for adults (13 years old and up), and $4.00 for children and senior adults. Children 3-years old and under are admitted free.

For additional information, please call 865-453-5441.

Reserve your dates now to come for the car shows & Rod run!

Get ready for some awesome car shows coming up in the next few months!

🚗 May 29 - June 1: Pontiacs in Pigeon
🚕 August 16-17: The Great Smoky Mountain Bronco Stampede
🚗 August 22-24: Great Smoky Mountain Jeep Invasion
🚕 September 12-14: Fall Rod Run 2024
🚗 September 12-14: Smoky Mountain Street Dreams

For all the details on these events and even more car shows in Pigeon Forge, check out this link --> https://www.pigeonforgerodruns.com/car-shows/