Tag Archives: Great Smokey Mountains National Park

Vacation should be a 365 day Project

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As I plan my list of “must-bring” items for my vacation my hiking boots are staring at me accusingly. They are a heavy item but necessary if I’m going to do any hiking. I’m going to the Great Smokey Mountains. What else do you do in a National Park?

park_sign

Maybe I’m being too optimistic. After all its been only about 2 weeks since my right hip finally seemed to be healed from my nose dive off the Southwest plane in January. Even so. Having 2 “bad” hips has done a number on my lower back. Aleve is my new best friend.

The doctor suggested physical therapy. I’m willing but thanks to my insurance I won’t have a chance to get started until after my vacation so back to the question facing me… do I pack those boots or face the fact that I’m no longer as young and fit as I once was?  Nah! I’ll take them along…just in case.

I think fondly of the days when a carry on was all I needed to travel. Undies , couple of  “T’s”, pair of jeans and toiletries and I was good to go. Now I need a bunch of Sherpas to get my luggage stowed.

 

guide

Since I’m going to the Great Smokey Mountains I will need my camera gear. I want to get some low light shots so I need the tripod. I also want to go look for wildlife Week-in-wildlife-Pygmy-Ow-005 (the animal kind) so I will need the big telephoto.

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And of course I need my laptop. I want to be able to stay in touch with the world.

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As I heft my bags for a weight check I groan. I am so out of shape. So a germ of an Idea

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has begun to form in my simple brain. If I can do a 365 day photo challenge, why can’t I do a 365 day physical challenge (Shhhh..don’t tell my doctor I’m thinking about the “E” word)

But seriously, at this rate I’ll need a Palanquin (that’s a sedan chair) to get around.

palanquin

 

Maybe if my carry on had wheels I could improve the experience but that one was destroyed by the Southwest Baggage handlers and I haven’t replaced it yet.

Yes I have to get serious about this exercise thing and maybe a little Diet too. Once I get back from this vacation I can think of it as 365 days until my next vacation. ( A slight exaggeration but you get the idea)  Time to make a major dent in the fat cells.

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In the meantime I will take along the hiking boots. Even if they don’t get used this trip the extra weight should be good for burning some calories.

boots

The Real Reason To Go To Gatlinburg

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I touched on this yesterday in my post about Cade’s Cove. When all the moonshine and whiskey, train rides and Dollywood are said and done, the real reason I want to go to Gatlinburg is the Great Smokey Mountains National Park.

Great Smoky Mountains National Park Sign

The  Park Services page turned out to be an awesome resource for planning my visit. Since I’ve been struggling with arthritis and recovering from my spill in San Diego, I don’t know how much stamina I’ll have for hikes. I hope to be able to do some but it’s too soon to tell. My right hip still acts up quite a lot. Just in case hiking is not an option the website lists the auto tours.

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An auto tour of the park offers a chance to see panoramic vistas, cascading mountain rivers, weathered historic buildings, and majestic forests stretching to the horizon.

We know there’s one though Cades Cove but there’s a whole list of others:

  • Cataloochee Valley
  • Newfound Gap Road
  • Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail
  • Upper Tremont Road

In addition, the book Smokies Road Guide covers main thoroughfares and scenic backroads in the park. This book and the self-guiding auto tour booklets listed above are available at park visitor centers and online. Self-guiding tour booklets are also available from dispensers at the start of the roads they cover.

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I have my National Parks Pass and my “Passport books” to get stamps but there’s no entrance fee to the park anyway! Yup one of the most visited parks in the US is free.

I’m heading to the park in the spring. Anytime is beautiful in this park but the Great Smokey National Park is knick named the Wildflower National Park. Spring and summer are renown for spectacular displays of wildflowers along roads and trails.

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And along with the wildflowers are wildlife. The Site offers tips for wildlife viewing. Some are standard like view early or late in the day but I especially liked this advice: Viewing wildlife in the Smokies can be challenging because most of the park is covered by dense forest. Open areas like Cataloochee and Cades Cove offer some of the best opportunities to see white-tailed deer, black bear, raccoon, turkeys, woodchucks, and other animals. The narrow, winding road of Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail encourages motorists to travel at a leisurely pace and sometimes yields sightings of bear and other wildlife.

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I’m so ready to go check this out! I’m polishing and cleaning the camera, lenses and filter. I hope I can get some photos that come close to the beautiful ones I get to see when I search online.