This guest post is by Brenda Richman, a Kansas City-based small business consultant.
Sunrise over Gatlinburg TN. Photo courtesy of Richard Weisser and SmokyPhotos.com
The Great Smoky Mountains National Park straddles the Tennessee/North Carolina border and encompasses over 500,000 acres. It is a wonderful place to experience the beauty and the rich cultural tapestry of Southern Appalachia. There are fun things to see and do to suit everyone’s taste. Below are six of my favorite activities around the Great Smoky Mountains.
Cades Cove, Smoky Mountains. Photo courtesy of Richard Weisser and SmokyPhotos.com
1. Bicycling the 11 mile loop in Cades Cove is truly memorable! Rent a bike at the Cades Cove store nearby the campground, and then pedal the loop at your leisure on Wednesday or Saturday morning. From sunrise to 10am the road is closed to vehicles and reserved exclusively for walkers and bikers. Stop along the way at the preserved, historic churches and homesteads, see wildlife, and enjoy the breeze in your face. For a mountain park, the road here is relatively flat, no big hills to tackle.
Hiking Chimneys Trail, Smoky Mountains. Photo courtesy of Richard Weisser and SmokyPhotos.com
2. Hiking – Choose from over 800 miles of trails ranging from paved, widely used walkways to more rugged, multi-day backpacking treks through the backcountry. My favorites are hikes to lovely waterfalls, and through “virgin”, also called old-growth, forests that were not logged when the park was still private land.
Biltmore Estate, Asheville, North Carolina Photo by JcPollock
3. Visiting The Biltmore in Asheville NC is a short, pretty drive from the Smoky Mountains. The incredible architecture, art and furnishings of this grand French chateau-style home are amazing as are the grounds surrounding it. After you have toured the estate, the winery, shops and restaurants are worth taking in as well.
4. Driving – You can explore a lot by car with over 270 miles of paved roads in the National Park.
5. Whitewater rafting – There are a number places to raft in guided groups. It’s great fun and the water is refreshingly cool during the summer.
6. Golf – There are a variety of very good courses in this area. We played one and checked out a couple more for next time.
If you have more time to spend or are interested in other choices, there’s plenty more to choose from here – camping, exploring caves, fishing, horseback riding, Dollywood or shopping.
When to go?
Since the Great Smoky Mountains National Park is one of the most visited US National Park with 8-10 million visitors a year, your trip may be more enjoyable by planning to avoid crowds. There are two peak times for visitors, Jun 15- Aug 15 and the month of October.
April through Jun 15, or Aug 15 through September are great times to visit the Smoky Mountains since they offer pleasant weather and smaller crowds. The spring season brings flowering plants. Late September brings the driest weather and sometimes the beginning of leaf turning, although peak leaf color occurs the first two weeks of October. Regardless of when you visit, early mornings before 10 am are the least crowded time of day in the park. For more information on visiting the Smokies, visit SmokiesInformation.org.
What National Park would you like to visit next? Please share below in Comments.
Entrepreneur Brenda Richman has a passion for experiencing the world through travel adventures.
Learn more about Brenda’s travel experiences here, and her consulting work helping businesses increase market penetration and enhance the quality of their client experiences here.
Other posts on National Parks that you might enjoy reading…….
- Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve
- “National parks “;truly special, truly American places. All of them can steal your breath and touch your soul.” A Travel Chat with a Business Owner and a Family Doctor.
- The Blue Eye and Saranda, Albania
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