A. T.

Again, my UHH family I come in need of directions. My wife and I are planning our vacation in the Tennessee Smokie mountains. We will be staying in Pigeon Forge. We will be there for two weeks and would love to know the sites to see and photograph. This will be our first trip to Tennessee so we will have plenty of time to see as much as we can in our two week stay. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

AzPicLady Loc: Behind the camera!

Head down any road in the park, and enjoy what you find. If you like old houses, there are several. Vistas, waterfalls, creeks. . . it's all there. Get a map at the visitors center. Take some of the hikes. You may not see everything, but you'll enjoy the visit.

A. T.

Absolutely, thanks for the info.

kcooke Loc: Alabama

You will get many replies. To start with though what time of year are you going? This would help with suggestions for places to visit there. Please know that
The top 2 National parks by number of visitors are Blue Ridge Parkway
15.9 million and Great Smoky Mountains National Park. 14.1 million per year. Each with three times as many people as the Grand Canyon

A. T.

Please forgive my not giving the time of year....last week of September through the first week of October.

A. T.

Please forgive my not stating the time of year....last week of September through the first week of October.

kcooke Loc: Alabama

No worries. That will be a decent time for fall colors in the higher elevations of the park. The park will be congested for sure There’s not much you can do about that. Go to nps.gov and download the park map ahead of time so you can plan your days in the park. Depending on whether you are able to hike the opportunities are endless for hiking. There are lots of good driving routes with pull offs and parking.

You are going to want to go to Cades Cove. Fabulous photo opportunities. You will need to plan for probably a whole day. Do not go into the park through Gatlinburg to get there. The traffic is horrendous. Take Wears Valley Road (Highway 321) from Pigeon Forge to Townsend to head into the park and Cades Cove. This will save some travel time. Cades cove is a one way loop that is about 11 miles. There are two cut through roads to make it a shorter loop but you will miss stuff that you’ll want to see. You’ll have many opportunities for photography. Mountains, Scenic landscapes, old home places, churches, all sorts of animals. Think Black bear, deer, owls, horses.
Not sure about when you are going but in the summer the loop is closed to cars on Wednesdays. You can walk it or bike it. We usually bike it. Last time we biked it we saw like 14 bears plus owls and lots of deer. Abrams falls is beautiful there but it’s a 5 mile round trip hike

Also in the Townsend area there is spruce flats falls. It is beautiful. We hiked there last year. Spruce flats falls trailhead is at the tremont institute. It’s a 3 mile round trip hike but it Is kind of brutal. Very rocky and the trail ascends and descends a mountain each way. It’s about an 800’ elevation change. Other areas we like:

Laurel falls
Elkmont area
Old elkmont club and community
Clingman’s Dome
Little river gorge near laurel falls
Newfound gap
Chimney tops

Some of these places you will get to going into the park in Gatlinburg area
Have a great time. I don’t know which way you are coming from but the Blue Ridge Parkway is also outstanding

niteman3d Loc: South Central Pennsylvania, USA

You've already got many good suggestions for the Pigeon Forge, Gatlinburg, Smokies area. Ashville NC is about two hours and Biltmore Estate is worth seeing. There's also much to do in the Knoxville area. The Museum of Appalachia is in Clinton. Just make doubly certain you have reservations for everywhere you want to go. As mentioned, it is very, very busy that time of year. Enjoy!

runyanp

If you get sick of fighting crowds, head to Big Creek and the waterfalls there.

A. T.

I can't thank you enough for all of this wonderful information. We will be there from the last week of September through the first week of October. My bride and I will write down all of this information and begin planning for a wonderful time in the Smokies. Again, I can't thank you enough.

God Bless

A. T.

Thank you so very much for the information and suggestions.

A. T.

Okay, thanks, will do for sure.

foathog Loc: Greensboro, NC

Mt Mitchell is the highest mountain east of the Mississippi. It's in NC just across the border. Check out the Brevard area in NC. Transylvania county has lots of waterfalls. You are going to visit a truly beautiful part of the country.

foathog Loc: Greensboro, NC

Mt Mitchell is the highest mountain east of the Mississippi. It's in NC just across the border. Check out the Brevard area in NC. Transylvania county has lots of waterfalls. You are going to visit a truly beautiful part of the country.

A. T.

Thank you so much, from the few responses that I've received it seems that way.