Food Feature: Range rover

Sampling the Smokies one view at a time

Great Smoky Mountains National Park is the most visited of all U.S. national parks, boasting 10 million visitors annually. Critics are quick to point out the park’s accessibility from so many major cities. (Atlanta is 250 miles south of the park’s southern boundary) After touring the park’s two hottest attractions — Clingman’s Dome and Cades Cove — and spending a night in the tourist mecca of Gatlinburg, Tenn., it isn’t hard to understand why so many tourists flock to these mountains, especially in October, to watch the spectacular autumn changeover.Clingman’s DomeOn top of ol’ Smoky ... at 6,643 feet, Clingman’s Dome is the second highest point east of the Mississippi. The views of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and beyond are outstanding. On a clear day, the dome’s observation tower offers a 360-degree panoramic view over 100 miles and into seven states. I estimate my view at less than half that distance. Still, the clouds and cold wind did not deter a large crowd armed with cameras from hiking up the half-mile promenade to witness the sunset.
Watching the clouds over the colorful autumn treetops become etched in purples, pinks and yellows with a display like the churning of a large kaleidoscope, I marked Clingman’s Dome as one reason for the park’s immense popularity. While the sun dipped into the horizon, families, couples and retirees made their way back down the steep promenade, out of the whistling wind, back toward the parking lot. This gave me the elbowroom to stroll freely around the small cement tower.
It was easy to distinguish the Tennessee-North Carolina border by following a humpback ridgeline. A 70-mile section of the Appalachian Trail follows this ridge. The 2000-plus mile trail (which extends from Springer Mountain, Ga., to Maine) bisects the park.
Once the spectacle of sunset passed, the views of the valleys turned grayish shades of blue in the evening haze. The Cherokee Indians called the Smokies “Shanconage,” or place of blue smoke. The almost ever-present haze is created by a combination of evaporation and transpiration; the forest exhales terpenes, or hydrocarbon molecules, from oils in the plants. The haze seemed more like dark clouds to me, which isn’t surprising. The annual rainfall is roughly 80 inches on the peaks and 50 inches in the valleys.
I soon surrendered to the biting wind, which sent me shivering on my way. Like most of the visitors at Clingman’s Dome, I was headed back to the tourist haven and park gateway community of Gatlinburg, Tenn.
GatlinburgLocated at the mouth of the park, Gatlinburg, Tenn., has dubbed itself “the Heart of the Smokies.” Of course, no charming Appalachian village would be complete without “Ripley’s Believe It Or Not,” Guinness Book of World Records wax museums or its own Hard Rock Café. For a town nestled into the beautiful foothills, this heart was clogged with tourist trappings — overpriced souvenirs, arcades and miniature golf courses.
After driving through the dark, wooded 15-mile stretch from Clingman’s Dome, the lights of town seemed like a neon billboard wonderland. U.S. 441, called Parkway in town, was awash with local teenagers cruising the main drag and families of tourists on the sidewalks enjoying the crisp mountain air, browsing the many sideshow attractions.
Finding a vacancy in Gatlinburg was no problem. There are more than 200 hotels, motels, cabins, lodges, resorts and B&Bs catering to the onslaught of visitors. I found a hotel at random, where I spent $100 for a single room with a fireplace and a balcony overlooking the Little Pigeon River.
Like Gatlinburg’s host of accommodations, there seemed to be no lack of restaurants, many purporting the best trout in the country. There were also numerous mountain pancake houses, saltwater taffy makers (stretching the candy before crowds) and soft ice cream vendors.
Outside in the carnival of activities, I discovered San Francisco-style trolley cars, which provided excellent service around town. There were little shops similar to Swiss chateaus on cobblestone walkways with wooden eaves dressed in flowers. There were also a few attractions of note, like the Space Needle, offering views from its observation deck, and the Aerial Tramway, with rides to the aptly named Ober Gatlinburg, a small resort and amusement park.
After negotiating town and reading through the many packets of tourist-friendly literature that were available in racks on every corner, I headed back to my rented digs. Gatlinburg could be nice perhaps, if one was travelling with an 8-year-old fascinated by skeet ball games. I looked forward to leaving this boardwalk of the mountains to head back into the park for a scenic drive around Cades Cove.
Cades CoveThere are more than a half-million acres of beautiful park terrain to choose from, but I was told Cades Cove is a must-see location. The route toward the cove rambled alongside a lazy river where the canopy of changing leaves shaded the road. The curvy roads throughout the park, I thought, would be ideal for a drop-top roadster. They zigzag through the forest, alongside rivers and waterfalls with infinite places to pull over and trails to investigate.
Signs eventually led me into Cades Cove Loop Road. Park literature claims this 11-mile, one-way circle takes about an hour to navigate. There could be nothing further from the truth I learned as I came to a completely hopeless, parking-lot halt. But I would be delighted to be stuck in this traffic jam each day.
Imagine a beautiful 6,800-acre valley with grassy fields of wildflowers surrounded by a picturesque horizon of the autumn-colored rolling Appalachians. People stopped frequently to look at white-tailed deer grazing or hawks circling the blue sky above the valley floor.
Cades Cove has many designated stops for viewing 19th-century log structures — a gristmill, cabins and churches. These remnants from the “hardscrabble farmers” offered an interesting peek into true Appalachia culture and helped designate the park as a World Heritage Site in 1983. But the wildlife was far more entertaining to the groups of tourists.
One of the more aggravating traffic jams occurred beside a row of cherry trees. A mass of tourists had gathered in a field, pointing their lenses skyward. High on the branches, two black bears were enjoying brunch. Another black bear appeared on its hind legs, some 100 yards away in the high grass. This bear lumbered away as the pack of people pointed and cheered.
Half way around the loop road is the Cades Cove Visitor Center. This is one of three visitor centers in the park where tourists will discover facilities and learn all sorts of impressive sounding facts and figures about the Smokies. Maps for 800 miles of backcountry trails are also available as well as camping permits. (There are more than 100 designated campsites throughout the park, including 15 shelters, that all require a free permit. Many also require reservations, as space is limited.)
In the 11th mile, at the mouth of Cades Cove, I found a small grocery store next to developed campgrounds where numerous families with RVs barbecued and fished for trout. I enjoyed some ice cream from the camping store and departed.
Halted by traffic once again on my way out of the park, I was tempted a dozen times by views and trails, making me long for another excursion. I realized that the carrot that draws millions to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park each year is tamed, accessible wilderness. Here travelers discover the charm of the Appalachians rolling along with the pace of lazy rivers and rounded ridges. This is a park for an ideal family getaway or honeymoon-style weekend. I know I’ll return next year, along with 9,999,999 other tourists, to further investigate one of our greatest national treasures.






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