It wasn't a race but time drove us eastward and so when we lost a day to a strong cold front, it meant we had one day less to visit the Great Smokey National Park., Our rig was too big to camp in the park and so Renita found a nice rv park near Cosby and we pulled in to a great spot for a two night stay.
The next morning found us at the visitor center where we bought way to many booklets but it provided us with info for three places to experience, Newfound Gap, Clingmans Dome and the Roaring Fork Motor Trail.
New Found Gap was so crowded that we barely found a place to park before strolling along the walkway. Artists were lining some of the good spots and we envied their ability as we imagined our friends Alan and Sharon among them.
Clingmans Dome is the highest point in Tennessee and any time we get to high point a state we just can't pass it up,(I did climb Mount Rainer years ago and we did hike up to the high point in South Dakota). Now the brochure promised a large parking lot next to Clingmans Dome and it was definitely needed as we had to make two circuits before I found a spot large enough for our truck.
It was cold and partly cloudy as we began our hike to the top. Visibility was limited but it didn't really matter as the whole purpose was to reach the top and so we started up the paved trail. Crowded with other hikers there were even people pushing their kids in strollers, even though it was not recommended.
Living at six thousand feet above sea level it was still a struggle for us to reach the top,( 6643' elevation), and so we stopped periodically and caught our breath. There were people a third our age who gave up and headed back down but you have to admire them for trying.
Reaching the top we were surprised to find that a cement tower had been erected to acomidate the throng and so we asked the volunteer where was true high point. He directed us to a spot next to one of the pillars and told us that we were now straddling the North Carolina/Tennessee border. He also told us that the geodesic marked had been removed.
After taking the mandatory picture we walked up the cement path to the viewing platform and squeezed in among the throng all trying to take a nice image. Strong winds gusted across the top and a cloud blanketed us so we could see about one hundred feet, (It reminded me of Rainer where we reached the summit the same time as a snowstorm and were trapped in a white out requiring us to retreat down the mountain and dig ice caves till the storm abated).
No ice caves were needed as we headed back down and of course it cleared off allowing us to appreciate the vast forest. The trees are just starting to turn and so we decided that some day we will return taking the Blue Ridge Parkway in a much smaller rig.
Still having a few hours we decided to drive the Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail. It was Renitas turn to drive and so I got to enjoy the deep and dark forest as she tried to avoid the rocks and trees lining the narrow road. Stopping to take some images we were blocked in by some other cars and we had to wait till they left before we could carefully back out.Still Renita artfully dodged the obstacles and we continued down the winding trail.
There were other places to stop but there were so many vehicles parked that we barely made it past them and in places we made it by with only a few inches to spare, (we would not have made it with a dually and we had to fold in our mirrors).Finally reaching the end of the trail we found ourselves back in Gatlinburg and its throngs of other tourists.
Now our visit to the park was so short that Renita didn't even get a chance to shop but she didn't complain as we had enjoyed a nice and steep but short hike and a challenging drive down a narrow obstacle filled trail., A good day in The Great Smokey Mountains national Park. Clear skies.
Nice post, we hope to hit the Smokies next summer.
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