Great Smoky Mountains National Park

     This spring there was one thing that I knew I needed to do: visit the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.  I am somewhat ashamed to admit that I had never been there before and it is not all that far from Carbondale, Illinois. 
     We set out Friday morning for the park.  Not really knowing that much about the park, we figured we would head to Gatlinburg and go from there.  We heard from wise friends that we wanted to avoid that area, as well as Pigeon Forge, and decided to start in Townsend.  What a neat little town that was!
     Before finding a motel, we decided to go to a Visitor’s Center to learn more about the park and mainly, to get a detailed map.  We proceed to Cades Cove and found ourselves driving the scenic loop.  It was a bit early in the year at that altitude and so we did not observe that much in that area, but we did stop at the small Visitor’s Center, which was a neat little log cabin.  On the way back around the loop we stopped to admire and photograph some old settler cabins, but it was getting dark so we went back to town.

Motel in Townsend, TN

     We found a motel to stay at for only $60 and it had a nice fire-pit area with wooden rocking chairs.  We joined the crowd around the fire and had interesting small talk until one of the participants told us a couple bizarre stories from his tenure as a police officer in Chattanooga.  I’ll spare you the details.  Another person told us to check out the trail at the intersection just south of town so we packed it in for the night.
     In the morning we drove a few minutes to the Chestnut Top trailhead and proceeded up the slope.  It was splendid indeed!  The cliffs along the trail were loaded with wildflowers.  We saw large patches of many wildflowers like Fern-leaved Phacelia (Phacelia bipinnatifida), Great Chickweed (Stelaria pubera), Early Saxifrage (Saxifraga virginiensis), Soloman’s Seal (Polygonatum biflorum), False Soloman’s Seal (Smilacina racemosa), Bishop’s Cap (Mitella diphylla), Stonecrop (Sedum ternatum), Meadow Parsnip (Thaspium sp.), Long-spurred Violet (Viola rostrata), Dwarf Crested Iris (Iris cristata), Fire Pink (Silene virginica), Toothwort (Dicentra lcacinata), Rue Anemone (Anemonella thalictroides), Foamflower (Tiarella cordifolia), and several species of Trilliums (Trillium spp.).  It was a splendid introduction to the spring wildflowers of the park, but we had lots to see so we turned around after a mile or so and went back to the car.

Yellow Trillium (Trillium luteum) and Fire Pink (Silene virginica)

     Next we drove the Little River Road in order to make our way up to Clingman’s Dome.  The road was lined with Wild Columbine (Aquilegia canadensis) blooming along the cliffs.  The road followed the river and it was an extremely winding road.  We drove slowly in the light rain, and traffic was light, allowing us to take in the views all around.
     There was some more activity around the Sugarlands Visitor’s Center, so we skipped stopping there and drove up Newfound Gap Road.  Traffic was light for the most part and I was beginning to wonder where all the people were, since we knew that this is the most visited national park in the United States.  All it took was a wildlife encounter to bring the people into visibility.  On our way up Newfound Gap road we encountered traffic and cars along the side of the road.  Our inquiry indicated a female black bear and her three cubs could be seen in the woods.  We responsibly drove up to a small parking lot nearby and went to observe the black bears slowly walk around foraging.  It was pretty cool.

Female black bear and view from Clingman's Dome

     After a couple more hilarious encounters with motorists, we arrived at the parking lot for Clingman’s Dome and headed up the short, steep path to an observation deck that had been erected on the summit.  Clingman’s Dome is the highest point within the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and the highest point in Tennessee.  Having completed Arizona’s highest point last November, we were excited to have completed another one.  On the way down we noticed some inappropriately dressed tourists make their way up, and I said, “You’re going to be cold up there!” to which they just awkwardly smiled.      

     

Clingman's Dome, 6643 ft, highest point in Tennessee

     It was cold, windy, and rainy up in the parking lot area, and visibility was reduced from the cloud cover so I snapped a few photos and we headed back down the mountain to one of the main Visitor Centers.  On the way, we stopped several times to look for salamanders under rocks in the smaller flowing streams.  Unfortunately, we didn’t find any, but they are reportedly usually everywhere.  However, we did stop to admire an area with old growth trees and huge mats of wildflowers, mainly Fringed Phacelia (Phacelia fimbriata) and Large-flowered Trillium (Trillium grandiflorum).  

Fringed Phacelia (Phacelia fimbriata)

     I was very impressed by some of the large trees here, mainly the huge Ohio Buckeyes (Aesculus glabra), probably because I had never seen ones so large before.  Before getting into the car at this spot, a young girl pointed out a curious mouse that was roaming around in the grass.  We went to observe it and it jumped on my boot!  

      I stopped along the road at a couple other pulloffs to photograph wildflowers, particularly the Trilliums.  I found some pink ones that were beautiful, and read in the guidebook that the white ones turn pink with age.

Blue Cohosh (Caulophyllum thalictroides), Ohio Buckeyes (Aesculus glabra), and Trilliums (Trillium spp.)

     Once at the Sugarlands Visitor Center, we asked for advice about visiting some of the better waterfalls and ended up buying a guidebook to the waterfalls in the park.  We decided to go to Porters Creek at the suggestion of a botanist who works in the park.  He told us to go at least a mile to get into the real good wildflowers.  The trail was wide and well-travelled with mostly flowers we had already observed and so we made quick time in the late afternoon rain.  

     I really liked an area with a small bridge that was loaded with Brook Lettuce (Saxifraga micranthidifolia).  It was a plant I had never seen or even heard of before!

Porters Creek and Brook Lettuce (Saxifraga micranthidifolia)

     Things got real cool when we came to the crossing over Porters Creek.  There were several large logs that were cut in half and lined up to form a single walkway across the cascading river.  The flat part of the logs were placed face-up and were covered with roofing tiles to increase traction.  There was also a wooden handrail secured with wires and some cement foundations anchoring the log bridge to some large rocks in the river.  It was so fun to cross, and I made a video of it that can be seen here.

Crossing Porters Creek and at Fern Branch Falls

     The vegetation became very interesting immediately after crossing Porters Creek.  All of a sudden, Fringed Phacelia everywhere!  The lightning was poor and the rain was falling, preventing me from getting any good photos, but it was a beautiful site.  After another short hike, we made it to Fern Branch Falls.  Although not a spectacular flow, the area was lush and colorful in the late afternoon rain.  We scrambled around the area, took a selfie, and headed back to the parking lot. 
     On the way, we ran into some folks who pointed out a neat plant called Little Brown Jug (Hexastylis arifolia).  It is in the Aristolochiaceae, along with Wild Ginger, and it was something I had not seen before.  

Wild Geranium (Geranium maculatum), raging river, and Little Brown Jug (Hexastylis arifolia)

     Another highlight was seeing several flowering Showy Orchids (Galearis spectabilis) along the trail.  Seeing orchids in flower is always a cool thing.       

Dwarf Crested Iris (Iris cristata), large rock cleavage, and Showy Orchid (Galearis spectabilis)

     Later on, we saw another orchid, the common Rattlesnake Plantain orchid (Goodyera pubescens), not currently in flower although the seed capsules could still be seen.  Another interesting shrub we observed that I had not seen or heard of before was Dog-hobble (Leucothoe fontanesiana).  Apparently bear hunters back in the day used dogs to chase bears and the heavy bears could penetrate the dense thickets of this shrub but the dogs would be hobbled.  Another plant that I enjoyed photographing was Blue Cohosh (Caulophorum thalictroides).  The delicate flowers are hard to capture and there was more of it here than I’ve ever seen in southern Illinois!
     It was getting late in the day so we decided to look for a place to stay, while also avoiding Gatlinburg.  The guide at the Visitor’s Center made it seem like little else was available outside of town, but we took our chances.  We were planning on camping, but the rain was a strong deterrent.  We found a place just outside of Cosby that was nice.  We had a living area with a full kitchen and wood stove for only $75.  We ordered a homemade pizza from an Italian guy in Cosby who told us many stories while we waited for our pizza.  I played guitar while Susan relaxed.  It was a nice evening.
     The sun was finally shining in the morning and the air was warm.  We were excited to get on the trail to enjoy a few more hours of the park before heading back to Carbondale.  We headed over to the Big Creek Campground and hiked up the trail to Midnight Hole and Mouse Creek Falls.

Midnight Hole

     One of the folks we spoke with (I have a habit of chatting up everyone I encounter), mentioned that Midnight Hole was a really nice spot, but wanting to see waterfalls, we didn’t think the picture in the guidebook looked too phenomenal.  Funny because when we came upon Midnight Hole, we didn’t realize at first we were there, but both immediately thought what a cool place it was.  It is was warmer, we would have jumped in!
     A short hike up the trail from Midnight Hole was Mouse Creek Falls and it was a pretty waterfall.  What was so nice was that this was supposed to be the most visited national park in the system, yet we had the waterfall all to ourselves for the half hour we spent there having lunch and taking it all in.  On the way back, we saw a lot of the same wildflowers we had been seeing, and a hiker pointed out a water snake and a black rat snake.

Mouse Creek Falls

     Hiking along Big Creek was so nice.  The surging crystal clear water was flowing over and through the large and well weathered boulders.  It sounded very peaceful.
     After getting back to the car, we split the last beer in our cooler and decided to hike a short way up the Baxter Creek Trail.  The most interesting thing observed along this section, besides lots of the neat plants we had already been seeing, was a plant called Yellow Mandarin (Disporum lanuginosum).  I had never seen it before and had fun pondering what it could be before I got out the guidebook and figured it out.

Baxter Creek Trail and Yellow Mandarin (Disporum lanuginosum)

     As we made our way back to the car we were sad our brief vacation to the Smokies had come to an end, but we knew we would definitely be back.  Although there were many plants I was hoping to see in flower, there was one thing I spotted flowering at some point along our travels that I wished /I had stopped to photograph.  On our last few miles of road before getting to the Interstate, I found what I was looking for: the Silverbell (Halesia carolina).  What a great way to end a great vacation.

Silverbell (Halesia carolina)