The World's Largest Rubik's Cube, The City of The Sunsphere, and Colonel Sanders

Some days you win, some days you lose, and some days you eat Wendy's twice.

- Foreboding weather on the way down.

I went down to Gatlinburg, Tennessee for a bachelor party. I'd never spend a dime on the Hatfield and McCoy Dinner Show, but I don't mind shelling out for fried steak covered in sausage gravy with pancakes on the side. The Smoky Mountains isn't really my kind of place or destination—the "Space Needle" of Tennessee and its surroundings were a far cry from the attraction of the same name and the setting of Seattle last week—but it was a good time all things considered.

- Abandoned hotel, Gatlinburg.

- Gatlinburg Space Needle.

- A 3.5/5 rating on Trip Advisor as of March 2019.

- The incline railway of "Hillbilly Golf."

- Pigeon Forge go-karts.

- Abandoned hotel, Pigeon Forge.

- Abandoned hotel and go-karts, Pigeon Forge.

- Abandoned hotel, Pigeon Forge.

I was dreading the Sunday exodus traffic that I'd experienced here a few years back, but for once, my GPS came through. When I asked it to avoid the interstate between Pigeon Forge and Knoxville, it happily obliged and took me away from the congestion while guiding me down a cemetery road flanked by discount motels and a fiberglass King Kong. Soon, the road became rural and the cell service dropped.

I followed signs for Knoxville while occasionally "paddle shifting" into a low gear to get up hills and around washed out roads, all while pickup trucks passed by and handled the obstacles with ease.

- Helicopter atop auto shop, US 441.

- Bowling alley turned auto dealership, Knoxville outskirts.

Like any other obligation that takes me out of town in my car, I try to plan out a decent trip for the way to and fro. If I can, I'll seek out any interesting roadside oddities, diners, sights, etc., while leaving time to spontaneously stumble upon something "cool." More often than not, that strategy works out, but this particular Sunday drive just never seemed to click.

The usual online resources hadn't turned up many good recommendations in terms of what I might find interesting. However, suggestions solicited via Facebook and Twitter revealed some good tips and the legendary roadtripper known as Denny Gibson shared quite a few solid points of interest. I'd scribbled down a haphazard list of these proposals in my notebook before the weekend began and planned to regroup in Knoxville. I'd find a decent place to grab coffee, get my bearings, review the notes and then lay out a map for the day.

The coffee didn't come easy, though. The first place was closed (despite Google's info) and the second place on a college campus had a line out the door. A third had a solitary five-star review, but I came to find out that it was located within the lobby of a Holiday Inn and closing in ten minutes. My drink came free so long as I didn't mind enjoying what was left in the two pots on the counter. I mixed what remained and sat down amongst the hotel guests. My list of recommended roadside attractions had a few promising stand outs, but some quick googling was revealing that many places were now gone, too far out of the way, or closed on Sundays. I did look up from my lukewarm coffee to see the "World's Largest Rubik's Cube" right in front of me—so at least that was something.

- The World's Largest Rubik's Cube.

Here in 'The City of The Sunsphere,' I began to feel dismayed with a road trip that had hardly even begun. I figured I'd at least see The Sunsphere, though.

A relic of the 1982 World's Fair, the Knoxville observation tower sat mostly vacant after the exhibition ended. It was returned to prominence in recent years and its viewing deck is now open to visitors for free.

After taking in the view from the local landmark that's maybe best known for being featured in an episode of The Simpsons and is about 300 feet shorter than a similarly looking building in Dallas, I was still hopeful in what the road might reveal on this day. In hindsight, I probably should've just spent more time exploring Downtown Knoxville.

One of the few things on my list that I had truly been looking forward to was a local drive-in restaurant, the kind that the Sonic chain attempts to emulate but can't quite replicate. I grew up going to a classic root beer stand as a kid and finding modern substitutes is rare. However, like many things encountered on this particular trip, Cardin's Drive-In with its renown ice cream and burgers was closed on Sundays.

I did seek out an old gas station built in the shape of an airplane, though. An example of novelty architecture, this structure sits on the National Register of Historic Places. These days, it's a barber shop and it's closed on Sundays.

I was hoping that the unique, former filling station would be situated near a good place to eat, but a glance down the highway revealed the usual sights of freeway exits found ten times over in nearly every American community:

I scrubbed any semblance of a plan I had left and just took to Interstate 75 towards home. Several people had recommended stopping at the original Kentucky Fried Chicken in Corbin, KY and that was only an hour and some change away. My hunger could wait even if I had to stop and photograph the remains of a fireworks store that ironically burned down on the Fourth of July in 2014.

- The remains of the Patriotic Palace.

- Remains of The Patriotic Palace and its interesting signage.

In Corbin, KY,  I made my way to the Harland Sanders Cafe and Museum. This historic restaurant had been where Colonel Sanders honed his recipe of '11 herbs and spices' now served in ubiquitous establishments that bear his likeness. I probably haven't had Kentucky Fried Chicken in over a decade, but I was willing to forgo the gastronomical embargo in the name of history, especially since this tourist attraction was a supposed step up from the typical KFC.

A small corner of the cafe featured Sanders memorabilia as well as a statue of the man. The "cafe," though, was just a typical KFC complete with a drive-through. It's the same dining experience you can find at 20,000+ locations in 123 countries and territories across the world. I was ok to wait another ten or so years and left.

Passing through Corbin, I came across two more drive-in restaurants, both abandoned rather than just closed for the season. A third derelict drive-in just seemed like it was adding insult to my hunger induced injury.

With no root beer floats or soggy french fries to be found, I gave up on my diner quest and settled for the monotonous consistency of a Wendys. I did a few more miles on US-25 before just shrugging things off and heading for the interstate.

- Closed drive-in, Corbin, KY.

In Clays Ferry, Kentucky, I remembered a recommendation from a QC/D reader (thanks, Richard) and exited I-75 once again. Winding down some backroads, I waited to cross a one lane bridge over the Kentucky River that looked up at the Clays Ferry Bridge. A combination of several historic bridges, the I-75 span carries six lanes of traffic 280 feet above the river below. There was an interesting looking BBQ joint at the bottom of the bridge, but I had just eaten some forgettable fast food not long ago.

I contemplated following US-25 all the way back to Cincinnati, but I had done a similar route back in 2015. I ended up back on I-75 and headed straight home. I ate Wendy's again for dinner later.

Some days you win, some days you lose, and some days you eat Wendy's twice.