Bringing group down from Michigan for Nemo Tunnel / WindRock Park (1 Viewer)

[VSPro9]

Hello Tennessee Cruiser folks,

June 23-26 i will be bringing some friends down to go through Nemo Tunnel, then camp and ride at windrock park. i had a few questions i was hoping yall could help me with!

1. Is nemo tunnel just a drive through and done, or should we plan more than a hour or two for riding in the area?
2. were planning to camp at half moon campground near windrock. does anyone have any experience with it, or is there a better option?
3. General tips for windrock - what should we try to see or do out there?
4. Vehicle equipment - we all will have skids and A/T tires, but most of us arent rock crawlers or mud slingers. are sliders necessary for every trail, or can we get by without them if we avoid the rough stuff?
5. Any other tips or info to share for first timers?

Thank you!

 

[michaelj]

Nemo tunnel is just that. A drive through and come back type of thing. Not much to explore. I wouldn't pklan on spending a lot of time there. However nearby there is a WMA and lots of good swimming holes if you wanna spend an afternoon lounging.

 

[jynx]

Sounds like a good time. To try and answer your questions:

1. Nemo is a drive thru and back out. There isn't much to it. The surrounding area has some bike and hiking trails and Frozen Head state park and the old Brushy Mountain prison are pretty neat to check out while you are close. But as far as time, it will be as long as you want. There are a couple of spots down by the creek that you could stop and check out once thru the tunnel, but you could just as easily drive thru, then turn around and drive back. The tunnel generally will have water in it. hub to rocker deep depending on the recent rainfall.
2. Never camped at Half moon, but to be honest, I'd say most any of the camp grounds around there are going to be pretty good.
3. Windrock is a huge park. The windmills are really cool, there is an old train over there, but access to it has been kind of hit and miss. there are some cool overlooks and the scenery is nice on the mountain.
4. Windrock is a huge park. You could run all day on the gravel road and easy trails and not need a slider or skid. We wheeled our GX and I don't know that we ever got into anything that got into the sliders. Just stay on the easy stuff and you should be good. Plan the day. As I have said, the park is huge and if you don't have a plan then you will waste more time just trying to figure it out.
5. Plan for a long trips. Not sure what you are used to, but the trip up to the main trail head is a good 15-20 minutes up a curvy little road. So just "running back to camp" really isn't a good plan. Pack lunch, make your plans for the day the night before and enjoy the scenery. Also, make sure the AC is working, in June, humidity, heat and dust are a strong possibility, so be prepared to run windows down AC on to be comforable.

I am sure that there are folks who will chim in, and you might hit the Appalachian cruiser club house, they are located in east TN and might be able to offer some additional insight.

Also, I feel that I need to suggest, that if you could possibly move the trip dates back a week, then you would actually be there during the 31st annual Great Smokey Mountain Trail Ride, which is a big event put on by the STLCA chapter in TN and there will likely be a 150-200 trucks and a few hundred cruisers and other assorted Toyota folks there. They will have guided rides and dinner each night. Just a thought. It runs June 13-18th this year.

 

[VSPro9]

Nemo tunnel is just that. A drive through and come back type of thing. Not much to explore. I wouldn't pklan on spending a lot of time there. However nearby there is a WMA and lots of good swimming holes if you wanna spend an afternoon lounging.

thank you! the plan was to spend a hour or two at nemo - its about a 9 hour drive from michigan then go to our campsites around windrock.

 

[VSPro9]

Sounds like a good time. To try and answer your questions:

1. Nemo is a drive thru and back out. There isn't much to it. The surrounding area has some bike and hiking trails and Frozen Head state park and the old Brushy Mountain prison are pretty neat to check out while you are close. But as far as time, it will be as long as you want. There are a couple of spots down by the creek that you could stop and check out once thru the tunnel, but you could just as easily drive thru, then turn around and drive back. The tunnel generally will have water in it. hub to rocker deep depending on the recent rainfall.
2. Never camped at Half moon, but to be honest, I'd say most any of the camp grounds around there are going to be pretty good.
3. Windrock is a huge park. The windmills are really cool, there is an old train over there, but access to it has been kind of hit and miss. there are some cool overlooks and the scenery is nice on the mountain.
4. Windrock is a huge park. You could run all day on the gravel road and easy trails and not need a slider or skid. We wheeled our GX and I don't know that we ever got into anything that got into the sliders. Just stay on the easy stuff and you should be good. Plan the day. As I have said, the park is huge and if you don't have a plan then you will waste more time just trying to figure it out.
5. Plan for a long trips. Not sure what you are used to, but the trip up to the main trail head is a good 15-20 minutes up a curvy little road. So just "running back to camp" really isn't a good plan. Pack lunch, make your plans for the day the night before and enjoy the scenery. Also, make sure the AC is working, in June, humidity, heat and dust are a strong possibility, so be prepared to run windows down AC on to be comforable.

I am sure that there are folks who will chim in, and you might hit the Appalachian cruiser club house, they are located in east TN and might be able to offer some additional insight.

Also, I feel that I need to suggest, that if you could possibly move the trip dates back a week, then you would actually be there during the 31st annual Great Smokey Mountain Trail Ride, which is a big event put on by the STLCA chapter in TN and there will likely be a 150-200 trucks and a few hundred cruisers and other assorted Toyota folks there. They will have guided rides and dinner each night. Just a thought. It runs June 13-18th this year.

Thank you for the info! this is exactly what i was looking for.
unfortunately i cant move the dates cause some of us have already scheduled vacations.
i looked all over the website and couldnt find a trail map besides their app. did i miss something or do i really have to pay for an app to see the trails?

 

[jynx]

Thank you for the info! this is exactly what i was looking for.
unfortunately i cant move the dates cause some of us have already scheduled vacations.
i looked all over the website and couldnt find a trail map besides their app. did i miss something or do i really have to pay for an app to see the trails?

I hear the app is good, but they sell maps at the office too. I think I've got one or 2 laying around. Let me look and if I find it, I'll PM you and get your address and mail it to you. Now, to see if I can find it...

 

[VSPro9]

I hear the app is good, but they sell maps at the office too. I think I've got one or 2 laying around. Let me look and if I find it, I'll PM you and get your address and mail it to you. Now, to see if I can find it...

if you cant no biggie, ill email them and see if they can mail me one.