The Great Smoky Mountains National Park provides a beautiful backdrop for any gathering. With more than nine million visitors per year, Smoky Mountains is easily the most visited National Park in the United States. Of those nine million visitors, however, how many can say they spent their time there enjoying the company of 80 of their closest friends and brothers? 

Last week, the brothers of Georgia Tech had just such an opportunity.

As an ongoing tradition at Georgia Alpha, every year the chapter spends a weekend of the spring semester in the nearby mountains of Gatlinburg, Tenn. This ‘Mountain Weekend’ was the first major chapter event this semester, and was only made sweeter by the beautiful scenery the previous week’s winter storm had provided. After several hours of driving through northern Georgia, North Carolina and the beautiful Great Smoky Mountains Parkway, brothers made their way to the cabins high in the mountains.  

Throughout the trip, brothers and their dates enjoyed themselves in a wide range of activities. One group took advantage of the winter weather and spent an afternoon snowboarding and skiing. Other groups spent their time exploring the surrounding geography by hiking the various trails the National Park had to offer. Others decided to take a more domestic route and perused the sites and attractions of downtown Gatlinburg.

Though the background and scenery were beautiful, what made the trip special wasn’t where we were, so much as who we were with. Building and fortifying bonds with friends and brothers is what weekends like this are all about.