"An inconvenience is an adventure wrongly considered"
Gilbert K Chesterton
Touché Great Smoky Mountains. I admit that my expectations were low for this part of the trip, but I was definitely wrong. The day started off with dad and my departure from Shriver's place in Charlottesville. We were only 30 minutes into the drive when the found flashing blue lights of a state trooper behind us. We got caught going 79 in a 70, or basically got caught with a Pennsylvania license plate in Virginia. Unfortunately we had a couple hundred miles left to go in VA and this ticket meant the we had to go the speed limit the whole way (that is until we got into Tennessee!).
Not letting that get us down, spirits remained high until we hit the town of Sieverville about 10 miles out of Great Smoky. The town of Sieverville is more like a collection of every awful tourist trap with tacky themed restaurants, dinner shows and "museums." Its just one long highway with tons of traffic lights and cars. It did not help that it was pouring rain and we could not even see the mountains in the distance. When we finally got in the park our campsite was a giant puddle. At this moment we realized it was either a night in the car or returning to the town of Sieverville.
Fortunately, we found another option. At the base of the mountain is the town of Gatlinburg, a vacation town catering to those who prefer to stay in motels rather than camp. It's also the only ski town in Tennessee. In the summer the ski lifts are used to take visitors high up to get a view of the mountains and town below. For $14, dad and I took a lift and got an amazing view that made up for all the set-backs of the day. The day was ended with a beer from the Smoky Mountain Brewery and a dry stay at a cheap motel.
The next day, we woke to the sun shining and made our way back into the park. The rain had turned the mountain creeks into white water rapids making the drive up and down the mountains even more amazing. The Great Smoky Mountains were made into a national park in the 1934 through the efforts of John D Rockefeller, both Tennessee and North Carolina's government and private citizens. Buying properties from homesteaders and loggers, they were able to amass over 500,000 acres of protected wilderness. The park is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site. We spent the day explorer Cade's Cove, an 11 mile loop through a valley that was home to many early settlers. Some of the original buildings still stand and date back to the mid-19th century.
After exploring the valleys and creeks below we headed towards the clouds a top Clingman's Dome. The drive was straight up with sharp turns and awesome views, ending about a half mile below the summit and required a steep hike to top. Dad stayed behind. Unfortunately, a cloud moved in just as I reached the peak at 6,643 feet (the third highest point east of the Mississippi River) obscuring the 360 degree views. Overall it was a great 3rd day. The pictures will not do this park a justice, but for anyone considering coming here, I highly recommend it. The rest of the pics will come at the end of the week. We are now just outside of Nashville and plan to explore it tomorrow.
Stats
Miles Driven: 1,020
Hours Driven: 16
Miles Hiked: 5.2
States: PA, MD, WV, VA, TN, NC
Pictures Taken: 330
Bug Bites: 18
Bears Seen: 1
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