Great Smoky Mountain NP — School's Out Adventures

October 22-23, 2023

GREAT SMOKY MOUNTAINS NATIONAL PARK

Tennessee & North Carolina

“Great Smoky Mountains National Park straddles the border between North Carolina and Tennessee. The sprawling landscape encompasses lush forests and an abundance of wildflowers that bloom year-round. Streams, rivers and waterfalls appear along hiking routes that include a segment of the Appalachian Trail. An observation tower tops Clingmans Dome, the highest peak, offering scenic views of the mist-covered mountains.” ― Google

Note: to avoid crowds at a national park: 1) stay away from weekends, and 2) stay away from peak seasons. The Great Smoky Mountain National Park is one of the parks where following the advice is almost imperative. But sometimes schedules just don’t allow compliance. Such was my schedule on this trip. Fall is probably this park’s busiest season, and the third weekend of October is truly peak season. I, like most visitors, was excited to experience the park amid all the splendid colors.

Sunday, October 22, 2023

My first trip into the park was on Sunday. To try to beat some of the crowd I entered the park early (around 8:30 am), and while I wasn’t alone the number of other autos on the road wasn’t too bad. I had decided to go to one of the most popular destinations in the park, Clingman’s Dome, with its observation tower on top of the park’s highest peak. It was a beautiful drive with the rising sun really highlighting the colorful leaves. While I could have stopped at a couple of pull-offs I decided to drive straight to Clingman’s Dome, again to get there before it was too crowded. The further into the park I got there appeared to me to be more cars. After a 45-minute drive, I arrived at the parking lot and took the first spot I found. There were some great views from the area around the parking lot, but some clouds seemed to be creeping in from the other side of the peak. I found the trail to the observation tower and started the 0.5-mile hike. A half-mile shouldn’t be too bad, right? I didn’t consider the 13% grade…climbing 332 feet in that half-mile. Needless to say, I stopped three or four times on the trek in order to catch my breath. As I climbed the temperatures were dropping and the cloud cover was increasing. When I reached the tower, it was cold, windy, and the clouds engulfed the tower. I climbed the spiral path to the tower platform, took four pictures (one in each direction), and started back down. It was a little anti-climactic, but I can say I’ve been there. By the time I was back at my truck the parking lot was full and cars were circling hoping to snag a spot. After seeing all the cars in the parking lot, I decided to head back to the campground instead of exploring more of the park, however, when I went by the lot for the Newfound Gap I found a parking spot, so I stopped to catch some more pictures. I then continued my way out of the park. As I got close to the park entrance there was a line of cars almost five miles long moving at about 5 mph trying to enter the park. I think I made the right decision.

The start of the half-mile trail to the Observation Tower

Line of cars, some trying to find spots, other like me, trying to exit.

A panorama from a stop on my way down the mountain.

Monday, October 23, 2023

On Monday I set out to visit another popular destination in the park, Cades Cove. Again, I left early trying to beat the crowd. Cades Cove is an isolated valley in the park that was home to numerous settlers before the formation of the park. It was another sunny morning, and the colors were really popping. Some low level, isolated fog made some dramatic views. The drive through the cove is an 11-mile, one-way loop with several pull-offs along the way and a visitors center about half-way through. As I started the loop the traffic was busy, but not over-bearing, I figure this is what a normal day probably looks like. I had two goals as I started the morning: 1) I wanted to spot some wildlife, and 2) I wanted a picture of a babbling stream. I stopped a couple times to take pictures of the fall colors. I could have stopped at some of the original settler’s buildings, but parking was very limited at most, so I skipped them. About half-way into the drive the traffic came to an almost stand-still. There was nothing to do but creep along, eventually a park ranger was walking along informing visitors that bears had been spotted. The wait was worth it. A mother and three cubs had climbed a tree next to the visitors center. I want to commend the park rangers and volunteers who directed traffic, kept people at a safe distance from the bears, and encouraged people to take their pictures and then move on to allow others to experience the wildlife. I was able to accomplish goal #1. Leaving the bear sighting the traffic was back to normal speed, for about two miles when it suddenly backed up again. It was another wildlife sighting; this time some deer were spotted in a field close to the road. After passing the deer I was able to finish the loop. As I traveled through the park, I was able to stop at pull-offs and capture some babbling streams with my camera. Goal #2 accomplished. And, with my goals achieved I headed back to the campground, happy with my visit to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

The line of cars really slowed down about half-way through the loop.

The ground fog created some dramatic scenes.

I had time to park, get out and take a couple pictures, and get back in line without losing much ground in the line.

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