Fall’in for the Smokies
This year I really wanted to make a trip out to the Smokies in order to see the changing leaves! I decided on a whim to take a long weekend and see if I could catch the colors. I couldn’t have timed it better! I spent 3 days in the Smoky Mountains and was blown away by their wealth of color.
Nick did not have enough vacation days to make the trip, but I had lots to burn. I decided to invite my dad along, and I’m so glad I did. That being said, a trip with him is a lot different than the trips Nick and I take haha.
I took Thursday through Monday off (November 1- 5, 2018). We drove to the park in one day. Leaving St. Louis at 6 am Central time, and arriving at our campsite at about 3 pm Eastern time. This is was one very different aspect of the trip. Nick and I always car camp or tent camp. My father had borrowed a pop-up. This was my first time ever camping in one and boy what a luxury!
Friday morning we decided to drive the Cades Cove Loop! Be very certain you will be sitting in traffic. It was rainy, cold, and very early in the morning, but there was still lots of traffic. I was surprised by how far we had gotten into the park without seeing a check-in or visitors center. I later found out the park is Free!
The reasons for free entry to the national park date back at least to the 1930s. The land that is today Great Smoky Mountains National Park was once privately owned. The states of Tennessee and North Carolina, as well as local communities, paid to construct Newfound Gap Road (US-441). When the state of Tennessee transferred ownership of Newfound Gap Road to the federal government, it stipulated that “no toll or license fee shall ever be imposed…” to travel the road.
Learned this from a local on the AT, and later confirmed it with the National Park website!
We decided to stop in the Cable Mill visitors center. We were able to see the mill, which is stunning! It is still in working order & can produce 150 lbs an hour! Definitely worth checking out.
We didn’t want to get back into traffic and we had passed a sign for Abram’s Falls trail. We asked about it at the visitor’s center and they said Cable Mill had a trail that lead to Abram’s Falls trailhead. It only added a half mile (1 mile in total) onto the hike. We absolutely loved Abram’s Falls trail. With our small addition the hike totaled out to be 5.5 miles long and 778 ft in elevation gain. On the Smoky Mountain website and on AllTrails it is rated as a moderate hike. It is not technical or too much elevation, but near the waterfall is narrow and slick!
When we got back to our car at Cable Mill we finished out the Loop, and headed back to camp. We were excited by the beauty we had seen in the park, and wanted to avoid further traffic. My camera had also shut off (it does this on occasion), so we decided we would make use of our bicycles we had brought.
Since we were staying at Little Arrow Resort we were right next to the Townsend Trailhead. It is a 9 mile (loop) bike path through the quaint town of Townsend, Tennessee.
The Townsend Bike Path is great for beginners or someone who has just hiked 5 1/2 miles and wants to still see the beautiful mountains surrounding them. We were able to stop into wildlife galleries, fudge shops, and t-shirt shops!
Saturday morning we headed to Newfound Gap where Charlie’s Bunion trail was accessible. We headed out before sunrise and as we were driving through the park we started noticing snow on the ground. We made it to Newfound Gap just as the sun was rising and the snow was falling! We were not prepared for a snowy hike. We watched the sunrise light up the colorful mountains as snow fell around us. It was absolutely beautiful. Since we were unprepared and having camera troubles we decided to ditch the hike and head into town.
Specifically, Gatlinburg to check out their cameras. Unfortunately, Gatlinburg has a Ripley’s Believe it or Not, a Hollywood Car Museum, and about 50 Pancake houses but no Best Buy. We then drove into Knoxville and got ourselves a point and shoot camera. Since we were in the area we decided to bike the Knoxville Greenway.
Sunday we were back on track to hike! Back to Newfound Gap road. We watched another beautiful sunrise and then hit the trail. I had downloaded an offline map from Alltrails and that proved to be super helpful. Charlie’s Bunion isn’t actually a trail. You reach the bunion via the Appalachian Trail so there are no signs about Charlie’s Bunion. This means at the beginning of the trail or at any split of the trail there will be no arrows pointing you toward said Bunion. We took one wrong turn, but I was able to look at the map on my phone and it showed we were off the desired route. Later on, we intentionally took a split off to see the Jump Off! It was listed as 0.3 miles
The Great Smoky Mountains did not disappoint! They were stunning from the smoky sunrises to the vibrant fall colors in the afternoons. The colors come and go quickly so make sure to time your visit accordingly! The park is free and there is a lot of history in these beautiful mountains. Get out and explore them!
