GSMNP – Page 4 – Smokies Guide

Lead Cove Trail

Spence Field has become one of the most visited sites in the Great Smoky Mountains for its majestic views and vistas. There are a number of ways to get there including by way of the Lead Cove Trail – a 1.8 mile hike from Laurel Creek Road to the Bote Mountain Trail.

Not only does the Lead Cove Trail put you on the way to Spence Field, it also takes you by an old cabin site. To get there, by way of Big Spring Cove on Laurel Creek Road to Cades Cove, keep your eye out for a trail sign on the east side of the road. There is limited parking there (under 10 spots), so fair warning.

As the upper loop of a 7-mile trail to Spence Field, which also includes the Finley Cane and Bote Mountain trails, the Lead Cove Trail starts out following Laurel Creek Road before turning into the Smoky Mountain backcountry. You’ll find hemlock, tuliptrees, and a variety of hardwoods as you move along this first part of the trail. You’ll soon cross Sugar Cove Prong as the trail continues to rise. Sugar Cove follows the trail and you’ll see the ruins of an old chimney and stone foundation soon thereafter. The cabin that at one time stood here belonged to Gibson Tipton whose family were some of the first white settlers of Cades Cove.

Continuing your ascent, several areas with prevalent wildflower growth are hiked. Wildlife including bears are said to frequent these paths because of the appearance of the wildflower squawroot. Black cherry trees are also found in this area – a favorite of bears, as well as the chestnut oak.

You’ll come upon the trail’s lone overlook as you approach the junction with the Bote Mountain Trail. In the distance, Scott Mountain makes an appearance. Hiking on, you’ll reach the Bote Mountain Trail after a few hundred yards. Enjoy your time in the Smokies!

Hemphill Bald Trail

If you’re going to be taking in the outdoors from the North Carolina side of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, one of the great day hikes is the 8.4 Hemphill Bald Trail – a horse and hiking trail with some great views of the Smokies, as well as an area where elk are known to roam.

To reach the trailhead, take the Blue Ridge Parkway and follow the signs to the Balsam Mountain Campground. Once you reach the campground, park at the Polls Gap area. You can actually hike the Hemphill Bald Trail as one part of a 13.6 mile loop and comes back around to Poles Gap, which many people do. However, if you’d rather just as soon back track, turn around once you’ve reached the junction with the Caldwell Fork Trail.

The Hemphill Bald Trail is the furthest trailhead on the right at the parking area. Once you’ve started hiking, you’ll notice the Caldwell Fork Valley to the left of the trail. Sugar maples, ferns, and a few remaining chestnuts can be found on this part of the hike as you reach Whim Knob a mile in.

Following a descent toward the boundary of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the trail begins its climb up Buck Knob, which is lined with yellow birch and various mountain wildflowers. If you notice it coming down, you’ll even pass a spring, and a slew of other wildflower species.

Once you’ve hiked four miles, you’re likely making the up Hemphill Bald. Take in the majestic views to your right. Hopefully someone has packed a camera. Hemphill Bald gets its name because it is literally bald of trees from when sheep and cattle used to graze there. It’s a large grassy opening that is now sought out by many a Smoky Mountain hiker. Not only that, it’s an amazing place to do a bit of bird watching if that’s what you’re into. Meanwhile, the wildflowers, herbs, and various plants seem to outnumber the blades of grass in some areas.

Hikers approach the summit of Hemphill Bald at 4.7 miles on the trail. From there it’s a downhill hike to Double Gap then a number of water crossings over Double Gap Branch – 6 miles on the trail until you reach the junction with the Caldwell Fork Trail at mile 8.4. Now, if you’re looking for a spot out camp out, backcountry campsite No. 41 is just up the Caldwell Fork Trail from this point. Enjoy the Smokies!

Indian Creek Motor Trail

A connector trail if there ever was one, the Indian Creek Motor Trail stretches for all of 1.8 miles on the North Carolina side of the Great Smoky Mountains. What it connects are two larger trails – the Thomas Divide Trail and the Deeplow Gap Trail. To put it simply, it’s a quick trip through the forest.

To get to it, make your way on over to Bryson City, NC. From there you’ll follow the signs to the Deep Creek Ranger Station, then drive a mile up Tom Branch Road to the trailhead for the Thomas Divide Trail. After a 3.2 mile hike on the Thomas Divide Trail, you’ve reached the Indian Creek Motor Trail.

This was at one time the proposed site of a scenic auto tour, hence the “motor trail” portion of the name, until the project was abandoned totally. And just so that everyone is on the same page, automobiles are not allowed on this trail.

The Indian Creek Motor Trail makes its way downhill through tulip trees, yellow birches, and red maple, among various other species. Spring wildflowers can be found in abundance along the trail as well.

Moving on along the trail, a small waterfall can be seen to the right especially during the wetter months and in the spring. A small creek is even seen following the trail on the left as you walk on. In mid April this is a great place to spot the popular dogwood tree which bloom out in magnificent white.

More tulip trees can be seen before you reach mile 1.8 and the junction with the Deeplow Gap Trail.

Otters in the Smokies

Classification – Animalia – Chordata – Mammalia – Carnivora – Mustelidae – Lutrinae – Lontra – Canadensis

Who doesn’t love an otter? I am sure that we have all spent time at the zoo watching these delightful creatures cavorting in the water. There almost human reactions and interactions make them a joy to watch and the easy way they move from land to water is completely captivating. And though they are hard to find in the wild, if you happen to see them you will be amazed to see that they play and splash in the water in the wild the same way that they do in an artificial habitat.

Behavior and Diet
The North American River Otter is the otter that you will find in the Smokies. They range throughout the lower elevation of the park and inhabit those areas around the various creeks and rivers. The river otter lives in a family unit consisting of the mother and her offspring, until the offspring become mature. The adult male river otter also lives in social groups of other males and there have been sightings of some of these groups numbering more than 15 in the wild.

It is this social structure that produces the playfulness that you see in the river otter. Their play as young – learning how to swim and hunt – is carried over into adulthood and is evident in the wallows that they make as they slide down into the water to swim and splash with each other. The wallow is the easiest way to find a group of otters. If you are roaming through the mountains and you see a wallowed down area near the river bank that is devoid of grass and looks like it would be fun to slide down, you have probably just found one of the play areas of a romp of North American River Otters.

River otters eat the small aquatic and amphibious animals that live in and around rivers. In the Smokies, that means that throughout the year these graceful creatures feast on trout and rock bass, on salamanders and frogs. Otters hunt in the water for their prey. They swim through the water and after spying something that looks particularly good to eat, they use their tail to produce a surge of speed. They catch their meal and then roll over on their back in the water to eat their newest catch.

Reintroduction Program
The river otter had almost been moved out of the Smokies altogether and then in the early 1990s, the Park Service began to reintroduce otters to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. These otters were placed in areas where the rangers knew they would find plenty of food and have the best chance for reproducing and growing their numbers. Since the first reintroduction, the numbers of river otters in the Smokies of doubled several times. The park service anticipates that these thriving creatures have rediscovered their home in the southern Appalachians.

Fall Foliage

Fall officially begins in September and, though it’s a little early to know for sure, foliage should put on quite a show this year. Though it has been dry lately, usually a negative when it comes to fall color, the next few weeks will determine just how much color we will have.

We need bright sunny days and cool nights–without too much frost or freezing temperatures–to trap the sugars in the leaves, which give us the best reds and most vibrant colors. However, small pockets of color will remain into November–something to consider when deciding whether to fight the unbelievable crowds in certain areas of the Park.

Nature At Its Best – Fall Color Guide To The Smokies

Leaves change colors when trees stop producing chlorophyll–the food producing stuff that keeps the leaves green all summer. When the chlorophyll is gone, the other brilliant colors emerge.Elevation plays a key role in determining when the fall spectacle occurs. At the highest elevations–4,500 to 6,000 feet–colors can begin turning in mid-September, when the yellow birch, American beech, and mountain maple begin to turn. During the first two weeks of October, leaves are at their peak colors above 4,000 feet. The remaining weeks of October present the Smokies at their very best for color. The sugar maple, scarlet oak, sweetgum (our favorite), red maple, and dogwood explode with color.

Though most people don’t question why the Smokies are so beautiful in the Fall–they just enjoy it–it’s interesting to know that the remarkable variety of trees are responsible for the autumn show. Nearly 100 species of trees–most deciduous–offer up their contribution to the timing and palette of the Fall spectacular.

A Sample of Tree Varieties and What They Have To Offer

The sweetgum is a favorite because it offers several colors including reds, purples, and yellow. These trees are found mostly in the lower elevations along streams and will peak mid-to-late October.

The scarlet oak gives us a brilliant scarlet color and can be found in the low-to-mid elevations.

The sugar maple can be found all the way to 4,000 foot elevations and presents yellows and oranges for our enjoyment. These trees proliferate in the Sugarlands Valley, where pioneers tapped them for maple syrup.

The red maple gives us reds and yellows and ranges up to 6,000 feet. The Park boasts the world’s largest red maple, which is 23 feet in circumference and is 135 feet tall.

The flowering dogwood evolves to a deep red color and can be found anywhere in the lush woods below 3,000 feet.

Where To Find Them

You can find the brilliant Fall colors everywhere in the Smokies. In fact, you can find your Fall “fix” of color on the way to the Smokies–something done by many because of the bumper-to-bumper traffic in certain areas of the Park. For example, the most popular spot in the most popular national park is Cades Cove, which might be the major spot to avoid if you don’t like muffler exhaust with your Fall colors.Cataloochee, on the eastern side of the Park, is much less crowded at any time because its away from the most traveled routes to and from the Park. It’s on the North Carolina side of the Park and is a little harder to reach than popular spots like Cades Cove. If you are coming from the north and places like Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge and Sevierville, take Highway 321 north to Interstate 40, and then east towards Asheville. Get off at exit 20 and take Cove Creek Road. Follow the signs 11 miles to Cataloochee.

If you are coming from the south or from Cherokee, North Carolina, take I-40 to exit 20 and follow the signs 11 miles to Cataloochee. The trip from Cherokee is estimated by Park officials as being 82 miles round-trip and can take up to four hours.

From the Gatlinburg, travel through the Park via Newfound Gap Road (the major road which traverses the Park) nearly to Cherokee (approximately 32 miles), and take the Blue Ridge Parkway (just after the Oconoluftee Visitor Center and the Mountain Farm Museum but before leaving the Park for Cherokee) for about 13 miles. Exit the Parkway to U.S. 19 and turn towards Asheville. Follow U.S. 19 through Maggie Valley and then north on Highway 276. Just before the entrance to I-40, turn left and follow the signs 11 miles to Cataloochee.

It’s worth the trouble getting to Cataloochee because it will be a new experience even for those who visit the Park
on a regular basis; it offers the same spectacular color show you will find elsewhere in the Park; and it’s bound to be less crowded even during peak color periods.

Rich Mountain. From Townsend, follow the signs to the Great Smokies and Cades Cove. You will dead-end. Turn right and you will be headed to Cades Cove on Laurel Creek Road. It’s approximately 7 miles to the entrance to Cades Cove.

Cataloochee

Cataloochee is a lesser known auto tour in the GSMNP. Much like Cades Cove, it was a valley community in the mountains that was self-sufficient with churches, farms and clusters of mountain homes. When the park service came in and started to establish the Great Smoky Mountains National Park they people were forced to leave and the park took over the buildings, making them into living history that you can now drive through to experience a taste of what their lives might have been like. Now, Cataloochee grows in popularity each year and with the establishment of a herd of elk in the valley, it is no wonder that people are visiting it more and more.

The Cataloochee Valley derives its name from the Cherokee word Gadalutsi which most likely referred to the trees that line the ridges surrounding the valley. The Cherokee used this valley as a hunting ground for elk and deer before the European settlers came to the area. When the first settlers saw the beautiful valley of Cataloochee they knew that they had found a home in the Smoky Mountains. From using the fields around the ridges for free range cattle to graze to actually moving into the valley itself to establish communities, Cataloochee became a thriving town in the Smokies complete with churches, a schoolhouse and much more. The people of Cataloochee were the first to embrace the sound to be founded tourism industry in the mountains. City Folk came to the area to experience the mountains and the town embraced them and their money.

When the Great Smoky Mountains National Park was established, it was decided that Cataloochee would become a part of the National Park. The people of the valley protested the inclusion and though some of them choose to fight, by the 1940s most of the people had moved out of the valley. The Department of the Interior gave the people that wanted to stay lifetime leases and all of these have since expired and there are no longer any people living in the valley of Cataloochee. Cataloochee is now the least known auto tour in the park but though it is not as traveled, it is just as beautiful as Cades Cove.

In 2001, the Park Service began a program of reintroducing elk into the National Park. The elk herds in the park are doing well but none of them are doing as well as the herd in Cataloochee. It is possible to see dozens of these majestic creatures as they roam the fields in and around Cataloochee. During the rut in the fall, the bull elk begin to bugle as they try to court a mate for the season. There are many people that bring a lawn chair and a picnic lunch so that they can sit in the great outdoors and enjoy the elk of cataloochee.

Cataloochee needs to be on your list of places to visit the next time you are in the Smokies. Take a day and head into the mountains. You can reach it by going to I-40 and driving into North Carolina or you can go to Cosby, TN and follow Hwy 32 into the mountains following the signs on a very rustic road. Either way you are in for a treat once you make it to Cataloochee.

Cataloochee Divide Trail

The 6.4 mile Cataloochee Divide Trail is excellent hiking trail for seeing some of the majestic views and vistas offered in Great Smoky Mountains.

To get there, travel Interstate 40 to North Carolina 276, exit 20, and drive west to Cove Creek Road. From there, you’ll turn north and travel 3 miles to the Cove Creek Gap where you find the trailhead.

Climb through the white pine grove as you begin on the trail, pass a rock outcropping, and walk along the fence line. You’re well on your way on the Cataloochee Divide Trail. It levels out at 1.2 miles in. You’ll notice a green cove to the right – the perfect spot for a bear sighting. If you look through the trees further down the trail on the right, you might even get a glimpse of the Cataloochee Valley.

Hikers will come to another clearing on the left. From there, hikers will be able to make out Interstate 40 and Cove Creek Valley. When you reach 1.9 miles on the trail more climbing begins through oaks and maples and hickories before heading downward again and leveling off

Hiking Trails

Hiking is probably the most popular activity in the Smokies. There are hikes for every level of hiker. Strenuous to easy, leisurely walks in the woods to all day and overnight hikes that require permits to stay in the backcountry the Great Smoky Mountains National Park has everything a hiker could want in a trail.

Make sure, if you are going to spend a lot of time hiking in the Smokies that you pick up their little brown book. Titled “Hiking Trails of the Smokies” this book has every trail in the Smokies and gives pertinent information like, elevation, length, highlights and even landmarks so that you track your progress along the trail.

Abrams Falls Trail – This is the trail that starts at the Abrams Creek Trailhead in Cades Cove and runs to Abrams Falls. This is a highly trafficked trail and one that is wide enough through the majority of its length to walk two or three abreast. Rolling hills add a touch of difficulty but the payoff of the beautiful Abrams Falls and the swimming hole around it is spectacular.

Kephart Prong Trail – Named after one of the people that helped the Smokies become a national park, Horace Kephart, the Kephart Trail is 2 miles into the mountains from the North Carolina side of the park. At the end of the Kephart Prong Trail, you come to the Kephart Shelter, which you can reserve for backcountry camping before you make your choice of the other trails to branch off from after a night spent in the shelter.

Gatlinburg Trail – This trail connects Gatlinburg and the Sugarlands Visitors Center. A well maintained, easy trail with no steep grade or elevation change, the Gatlinburg Trail is an quick 2.5 mile hike through lush forest along the side of a bubbling mountain river. Within the first mile and a half from Gatlinburg, you cross a foot bridge and then began a slow assent past a former CCC camp.

Laurel Falls – This is the most popular trail in the Smokies. Easy is the best word to describe this trail. Paved, wide and short, you can hike this trail in an afternoon. At Laurel Falls you get to experience the fun of hiking in the Smokies while not having to get off road and hike on a dirt trail. And the payoff is a beautiful view of Laurel Falls – one of the most photographed waterfalls in the Smoky Mountains.

Abrams Falls Trail

4.2 miles in length – 2.5 miles to Abrams Falls
Starting Points – Abrams Falls Trailhead parking area (halfway around the Cades Cove Loop Rd)
Points of Interest – Abrams Creek & Abrams Falls
Difficulty – 1

When you are driving around Cades Cove you are going to notice a pull off the main road about halfway around, right past a bridge. You will see a sign for Abrams Falls. Pull into the parking area, get your hiking gear out of the car and prepare for a journey. This is an easy hike on a well maintained trail. The pay off, about halfway down the trail is Abrams Falls – a gorgeous waterfall and a great place to take a dip in a mountain stream.

The trail itself is great. From the start until almost the revelation of Abrams Falls this trail is wide enough to walk side by side with your hiking buddy. The 2.5 miles to the falls is gently rolling with no huge increases or decreases in elevation. Remember this is not a loop trail so you are going to have to hike back out from the falls as well. The remaining 1.7 miles to the junction with Hannah Mountain Trail and Hatcher Mountain Trail is downfall and the trail is considerably more narrow.

The trail follows Abrams Creek from the trailhead where it is a wide creek to the falls were it plunges down the mountain. The creek, at the trailhead, provides great opportunities to wade and frolic in the water. The kids can get some of that restless energy from riding aroud the cove out as the splash each other and everybody else around them. Further along the trail the creek offers some great chances to chase the elusive trout. Abrams has some great fishing. The first mile of the trail stays right next to the water and you can easily walk to the creek and cast while you hope to land that trophy trout in the Smokies.

The falls, though, is the highlight of the trail and the payoff for the hike. The falls drops 20 feet into a huge round swimming hole. Crystal clear, unless it has rained a lot recently, the water is cool even during the summer but after a brisk hike into the mountains it feels great whether you choose just to dip your feet in the water or go swimming. The falls are one of those iconic images in the Smokies, being photographed thousands of times a year. Remember though, even though the water is clear it is not safe to dive into the water at Abrams falls, serious injuries have occurred when people dove into Abrams Creek at the falls.

Curry Mountain Trail

A great little history hike in the Smokies can be had on the Curry Mountain Trail, a 3.3 mile jaunt from Little River Road to the junction with the Meigs Mountain Trail.

To reach the trail, travel to the Metcalf Bottoms picnic area on the Tennessee side of the Smokies near Gatlinburg and along Little River Road. Wlaking 100 yards eastbound, you’ll come to the trailhead, as well as an orange gate on you right.

You’ll traverse two 3,000-foot peaks on this hike – Curry He and Curry She. Hikers will climb along the side of Curry He, cross a gap, then climb by Curry She to reach the intersection with the Meigs Mountain Trail. You’ll also come to a small cemetery that once served the community that lived in the vicinity of the trail.

As you set out on the trail, notice the various hemlocks and other hardwoods as you parallel Little River Road to begin. The trail turns from grassy to rocky before you come upon a switchback that leads the hiker into a more open forest with wildflowers that bloom in abundance during the spring months.

The next marker on this trail are the stone walls that align the next part of the trail. You can see where these might indicate old homesteads.

Curry Gap is crossed at 1.9 miles on the trail. You’ll continue to climb for 0.3 miles more before leveling out on Long Arm Ridge.

As you near the end, the trails widens and you reach the end with the junction of the Meigs Mountain Trail. You can hike on to the right to reach the aforementioned cemetery. Go left and you’ll eventually reach Elkmont.