Mom review and helpful tips for your first time river tubing with Smoky Mountain River Rat (with or without kids). I live 45 minutes away from Smoky Mountain River Rat in Townsend TN. I bought season tickets for River Rat -- because I knew we'd be cooling down here a lot this summer with our 2-year-old (and our dog). We had a blast our very first time, and I've enjoyed tubing with River Rat several times since then.