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Great Smoky Mountains National Park Vacations
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The 57th Annual Spring Wildflower Pilgrimage in Great Smoky Mountains National Park will take place
April 23-29, 2007. Nature walks, hikes, art classes, flower identification walks, birding trips, photographic tours, and lectures scheduled throughout the week will offer participants an opportunity to experience the national park to its fullest. The event, based in Gatlinburg, Tennessee will include over 150 programs led by botanists, zoologists, park rangers and other professionals, covering a wide assortment of natural & cultural history topics.
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Great Smoky Mountains National Park Facts
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- Location: Latitudes 3S" 26' 15"N & 3S" 47' N
Longitudes 83O 45' and 84O 0' W
- Tennessee: Cocke, Blount, Sevier Counties
- North Carolina: Haywood, Swain Counties
- Gross Area Acreage: 521,752
- Visitors: 9+Million Per Year
- Structures Dating from the Middle 1800's to 1920, with
the finest collection of log buildings in the U.S.A.
- Home to More Than 3,500 Plant Species
- Probable Greatest Variety of Salamanders in the World
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Auto Touring the Great Smoky Mountains National Park
Recommended Tours
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Newfound Gap Road
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A trip over Newfound Gap Road will show you a variety of forest ecosystems in one experience. Beginning from either Gatlinburg or Cherokee, NC., you'll climb approximately 3,000 feet through cove hardwood, pine oak and northern hardwood forests to the 5,046' evergreen spruce-fir forest at Newfound Gap. At the parking area, you can straddle the Tennessee and North Carolina state line or stroll along the Appalachian trail. Just south of the gap, the seven-mile Clingmans Dome Road climbs to within .5 mile of Clingmans Dome, the highest peak in the Smokies at 6,643'. At the end of the parking area here, walk the .5 mile trail to an observation tower at the "top of old Smoky." Clingmans Dome Road is closed December 1 - March 31.
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Blue Ridge Parkway - www.ncbbi.org
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Roaring Fork
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The Roaring Fork area offers rushing mountain streams, old-growth forest, and numbers of historic buildings. Start your tour from the Cherokee Orchard entrance to the National Park, found by turning on Historic Nature Trail Road, light #8 in Gatlinburg.
Roaring Fork is one of the larger and faster flowing mountain streams in the park. Just beyond the Rainbow Falls trailhead, to take the 6-mile Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail road. This road twists and turns beside forests, waterfalls & mountain streams. 'Place of a Thousand Drips' waterfall is at stop #15. Buses, trailers, and motor homes are not permitted.
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Cataloochee
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This mountain valley is a lovely off-the-beaten path destination. From Oconaluftee or Cherokee, take the Blue Ridge Parkway to Highway 19. Follow 19, towards Asheville, through Maggie Valley and turn left on Highway 276 N. Just before the entrance ramp to
I-40, turn left and follow the signs 11 miles to Cataloochee. You will enjoy a variety of historical buildings, wildlife watching, and maybe even the Boogerman Trail, a 7-mile loop popular with hikers.
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Cades Cove
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An 11-mile, one-way loop road circles Cades Cove. Allow 1 to 2 hours to drive the cove, which offers some of the best wildlife viewing in the park that may include whitetailed deer, black bear, wild turkey, and other animals. You'll also see a wide variety of historic buildings featuring three churches, a working grist mill, barns, and log homes.
If you have a little more time, there are walking trails and Abrams Falls, located past stop #10 on the Cades Cove loop. Abrams Falls features a large volume of water, a 20' drop, and a deep base pool. It's a moderate 5-mile roundtrip walk to the falls.
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Balsam Mountain & Heintooga Ridge
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To reach this area, you must drive the scenic Blue Ridge Parkway. The parkway begins midway between Oconaluftee Visitor Center and Cherokee, NC. Exit the parkway near milepost 458 at the turnoff, towards Balsam Mountain Campground. Follow Heintooga Ridge for eight miles to the campground at 5,310'. Near the entrance, a short nature trail provides a good orientation to the northern hardwood and spruce-fir forest. Heintooga Picnic Area and Overlook are one mile beyond the campground. Campground Map.
From the picnic area, you can either turn around and return the way you came, or continue down the 1-way, gravel Balsam Mountain Road. Buses, trailers, and motor homes are not permitted.
This area provides an excellent high elevation escape from the crowds. Frequent overlooks offer sweeping mountain views and roadside stops provide some of the best displays of summer wildflowers.
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Balsam Mountain Views - www.kimanddennis.com
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Road Closures
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Closed from sunset to sunrise:
~ Cades Cove Loop Road
~ Parson Branch Road
~ Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail
~ Rich Mountain Road
Several of the park's roads are closed in the winter. As necessary, others may close temporarily due to 'mother nature.'
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Driving Tips
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Great Smoky Mountains National Park Campgrounds
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Cades Cove Campground
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