The park is a big place and there aren't may roads in it. So beyond a few major sites one must hike. I stuck mostly to the major sites.
Yesterday I went to the Cades Cove area. The road to it winds through forest and is a pleasant drive. The weather was sunny and warm. The "cove" in name means valley. Up until the area officially became a park in the 1930s this valley had a few settlers. Some of their buildings, including a couple churches, are still around and one can buy a guide book and visit them while touring the scenic loop road. I ignored them all.
Instead, I asked a ranger for a moderately difficult hike of a couple hours. He suggested two and I missed the sign for the trail head for one of them. So I took the trail to Abrams Falls.
I don't think it was moderate. I would have rated it closer to strenuous. The trail follows the Abrams Creek, but not beside it. Instead, it wanders up and down the hills beside the creek. And a couple of them are steep.
At the end we are rewarded with a view of the falls, a pleasing display of moderate means, though not what I would have called spectacular (which a few fellow hikers did). In spite of warnings, many of the hikers got into the pool downstream of the falls. Several appeared to wear bathing suits, so this was their intent when they started. in spite of being quite warm, I stayed out of the water. The whole hike was about 4 hours.
At the entrance to the trail is a sign urging that hikers carry enough water. The sign shows 3 bottles. I took the bottle I had. It wasn't enough. Which left me wondering, if I don't have enough where do I get more? I had visions of having to go to the ranger station at the other end of Cades Cove (round trip 11 miles) though I don't remember if they sold water. After the walk I found there is a nearby visitor center with water (round trip 4 miles).
When I did get to that visitor center I drank lots of water. Also at that visitor center were signs saying Cades Cove would be a great place to see the eclipse. The valley was grassy and would have provided a beautiful view.
After 5:00 I headed back to Gatlinburg -- and hit a traffic jam. I think it took 45 minutes to do the last five miles of the single lane loop road. I'm not sure how the congestion melted away as we reached the main road. Perhaps most of those cars were people staying in the campground? So maybe Cades Cove was not a better place for the eclipse.
The news during this drive included a tidbit that the observatory tower at Clingmans Dome would be closed the next day for renovation. That made me wonder: When talking to a ranger that morning, he mentioned the next day may not be a good day to visit Clingmans Dome because of the rain in the forecast. He didn't mention I should visit it before it closed.
Back in Gatlinburg for supper and hotel.
This morning I asked a ranger for moderate trails near the road between Gatlinburg and Cherokee. The ranger suggested Alum Cave Trail. I didn't need to do the whole length, within a couple miles I would get to some pretty good overlooks.
Again, I think saying it was moderate was an understatement. Even so, over the next 3.5 hours I went up to the good views, then back down again. It had rained overnight, so the sky was overcast and at the overlooks the clouds hung low. Even so, it was pretty. And about halfway back to the car the sky cleared.
My next stop was Newfound Gap at the crest of the mountains (and the divide between Tennessee and North Carolina). The views out over the countryside were great!
Then on to Clingmans Dome (I didn't bother with the half-mile hike to the observatory tower). Here the views were fantastic! I think I could see eight ridges of hills, one behind the next. A sign implied I could see 50 miles.
So here I am in Cherokee. The town is part of the Cherokee Indian Reservation. So there are lots of amenities for the natives (tribal offices, arts and crafts center, various tribal services, and an outdoor theater for their telling of their story (look up Trail of Tears). I didn't go, feeling a bit too tired from two days of hiking.
What is missing from Cherokee are national chain hotels and restaurants (though there is one Baymont hotel and one KFC restaurant). The town doesn't seem to cater to tourists and doesn't seem to be the bustling service provider just outside a major tourist draw. It is in sharp contrast to Gatlinburg, which is all about the tourist.
I think I would prefer something halfway in between, perhaps leaning towards Cherokee though the food in Gatlinburg is definitely better.
Tomorrow is the Blue Ridge Parkway (unless I'm tired of winding roads through forest) and the Biltmore Estate in Asheville.
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