The Great Great Smoky Mountains

The unofficial last stop of my whirlwind tour of the country was Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Before heading back to Florida to plan anymore of my trip, I stopped here for a few days. I have been to the Smokies a few times before this trip and I have always loved it. It is known worldwide for its biodiversity and is the salamander capitol of the world. I have always liked it because of its abundant and beautiful wildflowers and its power to be peaceful amongst so much life - animal, plant, and human. The Smoky Mountains is the most visited national park and the instant you see the mountains in the distance as you are driving to the park, it's not hard to figure out what draws people in.

My first day at the park I arrived on a beautiful spring afternoon. I drove into the Elkmont campground to claim a campsite. The surrounding woods were just thick with beautiful green trees. I picked a spot next to Little River so I could listen to the babbling water sounds. There were some perfectly placed trees on the site, so I decided I would hammock camp. I ended up really like hammock camping. It's a lot faster to set up and take down than a tent and it was very comfortable. I didn't have to use a sleeping pad or pillow, just my sleeping bag was all I needed. After camp was set up, I went to the Sugarlands Visitors Center. I needed to plan my visit. Great Smoky Mountains has over 830 miles of hiking trails, much more than any other park I've been to, so I needed to narrow it down. I left the visitors center with a couple of postcards and a plan, and I headed back to camp to read and relax by the river.

The next day was a busy one. I started off at the Laurel Falls trail. Laurel Falls is the most popular waterfall in the park and I remember really enjoying it the previous times I had visited. The trail to the falls was so peaceful. There was flame azalea blooming and the super pretty mountain laurel blooming. And of course the falls were amazing. The water falling into a small mountain stream as a bridge crossed over made a great scene. After enjoying the falls, I headed to another popular trail, Clingmans Dome. This is a steep but short hike up to the highest point in the park. It is also the highest point of the Appalachian Trail, which passes through the park. At the top, there is an observation tower that gives a great 360 degree view of the park. I had a birds-eye-view of Mt. LeConte, Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge, and a river. They say on clear days you can see 100 miles, but air pollution from most of the eastern U.S. collects in the mountains, so that doesn't happen too often. At the top of Clingmans Dome, it was interesting to see a group of Appalachian Trail thru hikers. They had their big packs and their dirty clothes, but they were happy as could be. I wanted to join them on their way up to Maine, but I resisted. When I made it down the mountain, I headed to the Alum Cave trail. I had a good time on this trail. It followed along a stream and it was a beautiful sunny day. I kept checking under rocks for salamanders, I was really hoping to find one. The trail went through Arch Rock, which was basically a hole through the mountain. The trail led higher and higher up the peaks so I kept seeing great views of the mountains. I hiked until I got to Alum Cave, a concave bluff naturally carved into the mountain. It provided a nice shady place to rest and take in the scenery. I met a great group of people there that were very interested in my trip and they wished me good luck. I hiked back down the mountain, past all of the rhododendron that wasn't quite blooming yet. Then, I had the brilliant idea of going back up to Clingmans Dome for the sunset. My suspicions were correct, it was an amazing place to be for sunset. The light of the setting sun just made everything look so interesting. The trees and mountains were hazy but still colorful, it was wonderful. And to top off the evening, on my way back down from the observation tower, I got to see a mama bear and her three cubs. The mom was waiting while the tiny and super cute cubs were climbing trees. It is so fun to watch nature up close like that. A good day!

The next morning I got up early to get to Cades Cove for sunrise. Once again, it was beautiful. Cades Cove is a valley that was once home to many villagers and small businesses. The park has preserved many of the buildings and now you can drive a loop road around Cades Cove to see the buildings, get great mountain views, and it's a busy place for wildlife watching. While I was driving the loop road, I stopped at an old one room family cabin, the old Baptist church, and I pulled over just to stop and stare at the mountains springing up from the fields. Also, I saw a big tom turkey and plenty of deer. I stopped at the Cades Cove visitors center, which is also where the old saw and grain mill and some old farm buildings are. I went to see the water powered mill that they still keep running today to make flour and corn meal.

After Cades Cove, I went over to the Rainbow Falls trail. This trail is in the eastern side of the park near Gatlinburg and it was hit by the wildfires that occurred last year. But even though a lot of the forest was charred, it was still a great hike. The beginning of the trail was along a stream and the rest was up the side of the mountain. I crossed some bridges over streams and passed some mini waterfalls. I still didn't find any salamanders but I did see plenty of chipmunks. Then I rounded a corner and saw Rainbow Falls. It was really pretty, tucked into the side the side of the mountain with the water slowly falling into the pool below. I climbed around some boulders to get a closer look and relaxed while I watched some kids play in the pebbles. I'm glad I ended my visit with a waterfall; if you haven't been able to tell, I love waterfalls and have visited a lot of them. There's just something so interesting and powerful about them.

As expected, I really enjoyed the Smoky Mountains. It's just so great for hikers and full of many different things. Like what was said in the park movie, because the mountains are so old and been through ice ages and other dramatic cycles, all of the different ecosystems that exist between eastern Canada and the southern U.S. are present. Some of these habitats are high altitude fir and spruce forest, deciduous forest, swamp, plus all of the variety of animal life that goes with them. It's truly an amazing place.

Visit the Gallery to view my pictures of the park.

Learn about air pollution in the Smoky Mountains here.

Want to help reduce air pollution? Follow these tips. Also, contact your state and federal policymakers about retaining and increasing pollution regulations. Federal regulations are being rolled back left and right, so citizens and states need to step up and we need to speak up to bring the federal regulations back.