guys, can you give your personal lists of places on the AT that you must see in the park? (overlooks, etc, water falls, etc)
guys, can you give your personal lists of places on the AT that you must see in the park? (overlooks, etc, water falls, etc)
the whole AT should not be missed, esp the section from Clingmans to pecks
Mt Cammerer side trail
the Boulevard trail up to Mt LeConte
the Rainbow Falls Trail
Cades Cove
now that I think of it....all 900 miles of the smokies should not be missed!!
http://members.aol.com/gs900miler/
i would certainly hike all 900 if i lived closer
The part I loved the most was going over Rocky Top and through the Spence Field area. Rocky top is absolutely beautiful, IMO.
HAPPY TRAILS TO ALL AND TO ALL A GOOD HIKE!
For a great dayhike that includes the AT and Cades Cove, take Bote Mountain Trail from the parking lot at the campground up to the AT, go north to Rocky Top and Thunderhead, back to Spence Field shelter for lunch, head south to Russell Field shelter for a rest and a snack, then back down Russell Field trail to Cades Cove. If memory serves, it's about 15 miles but you can see quite a bit in a day. The family can visit Cades Cove if they're not hikers and pick you up at the campground, hopefully with hot dogs and burgers grilling!
we are allowing 7 to 8 days for the trip. should that be enough?
Go over to Gregory Bald too, its a little ways off the AT
If you have 7-8 days and are in decent condition, try the entire AT thru the park. You will stay up high, have some great views at some point because the weather probably won't be bad for a week solid. In the future you can piece together all of the other trails connecting to the AT.
Just an idea.
geek
Go east past Charlies Bunion and take a side trail to the left up a grassy clearing to a quiet, most beutiful view. Its similar to the Bunion, but without the crowds. You'll have solitude and there is nice rock to hang out on directly down through the bushes just off the summit up there.
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Shuckstack tower has an AWSOME view!!! It may be the best view in the park.
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Hey! Uh....I thought it was a tradition. (Yeah, that's it, they'll buy that one)
Mt. Cammerer's watch tower is a great spot for lunch with a view.
Rocky Top, Spence Field, Clingmans Dome, Shuckstack and many more. We did the GSMP in 5 days and there are many great views.
My favorite views on the AT in GSMNP:
Shuckstack
Rocky Top
Clingmans Dome
The Jumpoff (on the Boulevard Trail just off the AT)
Charlies Bunion
The Sawteeth
Mt Cammerer (my personal favorite in GSMNP)