Cades Cove

 

Cades Cove is a driving loop at the end of one of the main highways that takes you up towards the top of one of the mountains. There's a gift shop there with your typical tourist items (and some pretty amazing soft serve ice cream), there's a picnic area, and you can even reserve a camping spot here as well. 

The loop is a 13 mile, one way driving loop that spits you out a few hundred yards from where you enter. There are old cabins along the way and churches that you can pull over and park next to and get out and wonder around. There are some lookout points you can stop at, and even some trails you can spend the day walking. There is also a little old timey section where you can wonder around the old style buildings and just enjoy the surroundings. It is a beautiful section to drive.

But because it is a small one way road, if the person in front of you decides to stop and take pictures (which they ask you not to do- use a turn out so you don't stop traffic), everyone behind you has to wait. The point to my ramblings - this is a slow drive through some beautiful scenery. 

You don't want to rush through it. Stop often to take pictures and just breath in the fresh air. We drove this loop many times because it was just lovely. It is closed to traffic one day a week so just walkers and bicycles can enjoy the road without worrying about traffic. I think it's a great idea. I also think this would be perfect for a half marathon race. The most beautiful setting to run ever. 

By the afternoon this is a very busy place with people and lines of cars. The earlier you get there, the less traffic and people you have to deal with. I thoroughly enjoy being in nature with no one around. 

The other reason why this is such a beautiful drive is that if you are someone who cannot get around on foot very well, or have a disability and can't manage the hiking aspect of uneven trails, it's something that can be driven without feeling like you are missing out. I love Cades Coves. Apparently black bears like to hang out here so there is a good chance of sighting them in this area. Though we never were able to see any here.

Hiking in The Smoky Mountains

Hiking in the Smoky Mountains is beautiful. All the great parts of nature that you crave and want to get lost in are here. As I mentioned previously, August here is hot and muggy. For us, we were finished with all the hiking aspects by about 1pm. It was just too hot for us to be hiking after that. Maybe we just don't have a tolerance for the heat, which is true. But calling it a day by 1pm was fine with us. We'd spend the rest of the afternoon driving through the wonderful scenery, and stopping at whatever shops or neat things we saw along the drive.

A few tips - this place is BUSY in August. As in, if you don't get to the trail you want to hike by about 8am, you're not going to find a place to park. Because my partner and I are ridiculous early morning people, we tended to get to whatever trail we planned to hike by about 6am. At 6am there were plenty of parking spots available, but we were not the first car there. It also means hiking in the early morning is a bit cooler weather than later in the day. And the higher up you get on the mountains the cooler the weather is going to be. It's wonderful.

We made sure to carry some rain ponchos with us just in case the rain hit while hiking. We actually used them more than once. Part of the reason the mountains are called the smoky mountains is that every morning they are covered in mist. It's so stunning. That also means it rains every day - which is why it's so green and beautiful. Umbrellas, ponchos, mosquito repellant, sun block, and LOTS OF WATER are all good things to make sure you have on hand. In addition, I did have to use a jacket a few times. It was fabulous to need a jacket in August.

Another tip is that the trail head signs saying how far the hike is to the waterfall - it lies. We went to do the rainbow waterfall hike (I'm obsessed with waterfalls and streams and rivers so be prepared to see a lot of these). The trail head said the waterfall was 2.5 miles to it. According to my fitbit, it was 4 miles there. 4 miles of climbing up a mountain. When you live in a city that has no elevation or hills, you get a bit over zealous on your first hike in years into actual nature. So a 4 mile hike up a mountain, and then the 4 mile hike back down the mountain, reminded us that we aren't 21 anymore. We may have overdone it. Don't do that. Moving was really hard the next morning.

Totally worth it, but we could have planned a bit better. Also, by the time we starting hiking back to the car (around 9am) the crowds of people beginning the hike was rather crazy. So glad we got to enjoy the trail in the early morning without hoards of people around. 

Sigh. How I miss this place. It's so pretty. I could live here.

The Smoky Mountains In Tennessee

 It's been a long time since I've had much to post. With Covid and the entire world getting put on hold, there didn't seem much to say, as there wasn't much to do. Luckily, I have been able to have a few state side adventures in the meantime. While I still am itching to get back to traveling overseas, I know it's time to be patient. It will happen, but going right now is not something I'm comfortable with yet. While waiting for those opportunities, I have done some sightseeing in the states, and found a new favorite vacation spot.

In August of 2020, I was of course disappointed my initial planned trip to Iceland was not going to happen. But I needed to get away from work, from my town, and just find somewhere new to see. My partner in crime and I  decided to go to Tennessee and experience the Smoky Mountains. It seemed like the perfect place - it's out in nature so we could avoid people, see some amazing scenery, and not have to be around loads of people. 

Turns out, August in the Smoky Mountains is FULL of people. With the pandemic, it actually made the area busier than ever. Everyone it seems wanted to escape to the beauty of nature. I can't say I blame them. It was stunning.

This is the scenery you get in August when you drive through the mountains. We NEVER got sick of driving through the mountains, surrounded be glorious green trees. Don't get me wrong, it was hot and muggy, and always lots of traffic around. 

But when you put your head out the window, it smelled like trees, and fresh water, and flowers, and just like nature. It's been so long since I've been in an environment where I smelled actual nature. Not smog, or cars, or garbage. It was exactly what we needed.

I'll do subsequent posts about what all we did and saw while here. Let's be honest, I took about a thousand pictures of everything, so I have a lot to show. I didn't realize how much I was craving nature until we got here. I'm just easing you in for now on the initial parts we saw just driving through.

If you plan to visit, the earlier you can get up and moving to wherever you want to go the better. Traffic gets packed and frustrating later in the day with all the other thousands of people doing what you want to do. Most of the roads we were on were only two lane roads as they curve around the mountains. And the main road in and out of town got very packed beginning about 2 pm. This is definitely a busy part of the country. But also, the earlier you get up and moving the more you can beat the heat. Did I mention it's very hot and muggy?

From the research I did, the closest spot to stay was going to be Gatlinburg or Pigeon Forge. They are about 5 minutes from the official part entrance. Gatlinburg was just a bit more pricey than I wanted to spend, so we opted to stay in Pigeon Forge. This is a very small town (I'll do a separate post just on this little town), about 3 miles long. And it is ALL for the tourists. Packed with kid things to do, hotels, and restaurants (though I'll be honest, the restaurant selection was very disappointing). Luckily we got a hotel room with a fridge, microwave, and my partner in crime travels with a portable single electric burner. We did a lot of our own cooking in the hotel room. 

But enough of that tangent. First impressions of this place - Amazing.