During the past couple of weeks, we have begun to gain momentum hosting Boondockers here at the Mecca Camp Resort! We had guests each day this past weekend and a couple mixed in during the week. We also had our first guest spend more than one night with us, which was fantastic. We really enjoyed their visit and letting them know about the area and the beautiful places to visit. Additionally, for the first time, we had multiple reservations for the same night.
For each visitor that has come to Mecca Camp Resort, there has always been one consistent question that we receive.... what's our story? What is it in our professional backgrounds that has led to this adventure? Funny enough... our answer is NOTHING! We enjoy camping, meeting new people and generally like hosting guests from near and far. However, my wife would argue that camping was a struggle when we were first married. We started out tent camping and there were many nights of rain, tears, and bottles of wine that led to the eventual purchase of a Travel Trailer and an upgrade to a 5th wheel!
About Us
Once we bought our first camper, Julia and I truly began to enjoy camping and what the country had to offer. Whether it was camping and catching fresh crabs on the Eastern Shore of Maryland for dinner or traveling to Oshkosh, Wisconsin for the world's largest air show, we were hooked!
Every traveling season, we would hitch up our fifth wheel and look to visit campgrounds and areas that were of interest to us. Ten years later, we have seen a lot of places, stayed at a lot of campgrounds and learned from everywhere we have been. Every place we stayed offered its own uniqueness, but always left us saying... if it were our place, we would do this or we could do better at something else. As a result, sometime in the past 5 years we said.... we are going to own a campground one day!
Fast forward to the un-precedented year that is 2020 and guess what.... we are now developing a campground in the mountains of East Tennessee. Our kids grew up and moved out to begin their own lives and we put our house on the market. Little did we know that during a pandemic, our house would sell in 7 days. Shortly after, we found the property of our dreams and quickly made an offer in Tellico Plains, TN with the intent to begin the process of campground development. We often are asked... what do we know about building a campground, and our answer is always the same.... we know what we wanted when we were guests... how can that be wrong. We do maintain day jobs and work remotely, thanks to a pandemic, but we are able to get this process kicked off.
In fact... we had our weekly meeting with our Architect and now have a surveyor on contract to develop a topographic survey of our property. We also have selected the style of pool that will be built as part of our initial amenities.
Grand Opening
Now that things are beginning to get ironed out and our Master Plan is underway, progress can really be seen. Our architect will be meeting with the County Planning Commissioner this week and the TN Department of Environmental and Conservation will hopefully be visiting us this week. That being said... we are looking to have a Grand Opening Memorial Day Weekend 2021. Please save the date and contact us early for reservations! We also will begin taking applications for seasonal spots after the first of the year.
Closing
Whether it be for Boondocking or for our Grand Opening, please come join us for the excitement that is Mecca Camp Resort!
From our family to yours.... may God Bless You, Stay Safe and Remember to Vote!
Thanks,
Chris & Julia Jones
Mecca Camp Resort
423-253-3513