Great Smoky Mountains National Park

Part of the Appalachian mountains, the Great Smoky Mountains National Park sits on the border between Tennessee and North Carolina offering visitors a stunning environment, wilderness encounters, and outdoor recreation. As a nationally protected park, visitors can experience the scenic beauty of of surrounding mountain peaks, unspoiled forests, historic sites, and wildlife along with sites for camping, hiking, swimming, biking, and various other activities.

The park offers many types of sites suitable for any type of visitor, including campers, day-trippers, and outdoor recreation enthusiasts.

Must See and Must Do at the Great Smoky Mountains National Park
Cades Cove is a valley surrounded on all sides by stunning mountains and an 11-mile paved loop that allows tourists to explore the view and a restored historical site featuring log cabins, churches, a grist mill, and barns of early settlers. Walking or biking is permitted before 10 a.m. on Saturdays and Wednesdays from May to September, otherwise cars are permitted in the loop from sunrise to sunset daily.

Hiking in the park is popular, and there are many trails of differing levels of difficulty and length. Clingmans Dome, Mount LeConte, and Chimney Tops are three of the most popular, but you should select a trail before visiting to ensure you pick one that matches your comfort level.

Camping at one of many campgrounds scattered throughout the parks offers family fun including hiking, biking, swimming, water tubing, and other activities for both tent campers and RV campers. The Cades Cove campground is open year round for tents and RVs.

Best and Worst Times to go to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park
The Great Smoky Mountains National Park offers stunning views year-round; however, to enjoy outdoor activities and peak wildlife, it is recommended to visit between early May and late September.

Though the park can be visited at other times of the year, inclement weather makes travel and recreation difficult and dangerous from December through early March.

Admission to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park
Admission to the park is free of charge year round.

Wildlife at the Great Smoky Mountains National Park
Cades Cove offers the best wildlife viewing in the area, featuring black bears, turkey, white-tailed deer, coyotes, groundhogs, raccoons, skunks, salamanders, and other creatures, though these and others can be seen throughout the park.

Internet Access at the Great Smoky Mountains National Park
Internet and cellular phone service is unavailable in most of the park, especially further away from the park entrances, so plan ahead for emergencies and alternative routes to and from destinations.

Insider Tip for the Great Smoky Mountains National Park
When visiting the Cades Cove loop plan a whole day to tour the site, and prepare for slow traffic, as tourists often stop to spot wildlife or other attractions. When slowing or stopping, try to use pull-off areas to allow traffic to pass.

Author's bio: Peggy Carouthers has lived in the Knoxville area for more than 20 years. She is a freelance writer and has been published in "The Daily Times" and on the "Brazen Careerist" blog.