Our third day we drove through Great Smoky Mountain National Park. What a beautiful park! We started outside Gatlinburg, Tennessee and drove south (we noticed we were going downhill for about half the trip so we would just put the car in neutral and roll down the mountain). We stopped at a few of the overlooks, including Chimney Tops (first picture below). The views are truly "Smoky"! Of course it was a little overcast the day we went through the mountains so the mountains were extra Smoky for us.
About halfway through the trip to Cherokee, NC (at the south end of the park), we took a slight detour at Newfound Gap and traveled up to Clingman's Dome. Clingman's Dome is the highest peak in the Smoky Mountains. The trail up to Clingman's Dome is only .5 miles. Okie Dokie Smoky, .5 miles is not a problem. HOWEVER, be forewarned, the .5 mile is a STEEP .5 mile. We had to stop numerous times on the way up (there are spots to sit frequently). It took us about 40 minutes to hike up to the overlook. On a clear day you are able to see 360 degrees. We were able to see the 360 degrees, but not very far.
This was looking towards Cherokee, NC.
Clingman's Dome overlook
Looking out over the trail up to Clingman's Dome.
Little Miss was a little un-interested on the way back down
After a stop in Cherokee, NC to get gas and eat lunch, we hopped on the Blue Ridge Parkway for a scenic drive and more gorgeous overlooks on our way to Waynesville, NC. We traveled north through the Cherokee Indian Reservation and drove from the end of the trail (470 mile marker) till mile 443 near the Balsam gap and got off to go to Waynesville (see a map here). Woolyback Overlook is at marker 452. Can you tell why they are called the Blue Ridge Mountains?
We stopped at mile marker 451 at the Waterrock Knob Parking Overlook. There is a small visitor's center here with maps and travel books. The boys hiked up the trail to the Knob while us girls stayed and played in the grass.
Silly family
On to Waynesville and our friends' cabin in the woods for the night. It is literally IN the mountains! 4 wheel or all wheel drive is a must up here. Here's a picture from our visit during Spring Break 2013:
We had a great time visiting and rocking on the porch.
It is so quiet and the view is amazing! (again from our April 2013 trip). This time it was just more green! I could sit out here for days just looking at the mountains.
After a relaxing rock and talk on the porch, we had s'mores. Jenna had her first one and she wore a lot of the marshmallow, but she loved it! So not a surprise because she likes to eat and she wanted more, but one was more than enough! So sad that we had to leave the next day, but it was so fun to see friends along the way!
No comments:
Post a Comment