After the first of the year i get another vac.and im thinking of doin the smokys .i dont wanna go in when its 95 out or when the high for the day is 35. crowds dont concearn me either....would i have to resupply? just a little preplanning i guess.
After the first of the year i get another vac.and im thinking of doin the smokys .i dont wanna go in when its 95 out or when the high for the day is 35. crowds dont concearn me either....would i have to resupply? just a little preplanning i guess.
september is pretty much the best time to hike anywhere.
This year, the middle of october was perfect so you never know.
I day hiked in a couples miles north of Newfound Gap one cold Valentines morning. About a mile in, I encountered a 100 foot section of foot thick ice on trail on a slight up hill grade. I was walking on any fresh snow or dirt to get some traction but ended up falling on my butt a couple times. On the way back out, I decided to take it easy, and sat on my butt and slid back to exposed trail. The up hill was bad, but the butt sliding was fun.
''Tennessee Viking'
Mountains to Sea Trail Hiker & Maintainer
Former TEHCC (AT) Maintainer
Right Now this very minute !
Fresh snow and plenty of it.
"Going to the woods is going home" - John Muir
"Only by going alone in silence, without baggage, can one truely get into the heart of the wilderness" - John Muir
I hiked for the first time ever in early October this year, and it was awesome. The first night at Double Springs Gap Shelter was pretty cold, but I wasn't prepared enough with it being my first hike. I'd say mid Sept. to early Oct. would be ideal. Hope that helps.
Firedad,
Yeah, baby! I just got back. Rained on us all afternoon, then turned to snow in the evening. Snowed all night and into the morning. Beautiful. Cold. When I got back home and dumped out my stuff several hours later, I still had enough snow to make a couple of snowballs.
If not NOW, then WHEN?
ME>GA 2006
http://www.trailjournals.com/entry.cfm?trailname=3277
Instagram hiking photos: five.leafed.clover
I'm jealous. I was in the Smokies last week and got nothing but cold and wind. The clouds threatened snow one day, but nothing came of it.
We hiked it the first week of June 2006 and had a ball. We had water, the bugs weren't bad and we started on Monday ans came out Saturday.
I wished that I'd ducked into Gatlinburg for a quick resupply instead of carrying all my food.
--Jack Frost
in my opinion the best time to hike the smokies is around christmas
I always hike in May while the kids are still in school. I started at the northern end on Monday morning and finished Friday afternoon. There'e very little water up there other than springs. I did wash some at New Found Gap in the public bathrooms.You'll have to carry everything when you enter the park unless you're going to meet someone. This was before Memorial Day and the weather was very suitable for hiking.
"I wonder if anyone else has an ear so tuned and sharpened as I have, to detect the music, not of the spheres, but of earth, subtleties of major and minor chord that the wind strikes upon the tree branches. Have you ever heard the earth breathe... ?"
- Kate Chopin
"I wonder if anyone else has an ear so tuned and sharpened as I have, to detect the music, not of the spheres, but of earth, subtleties of major and minor chord that the wind strikes upon the tree branches. Have you ever heard the earth breathe... ?"
- Kate Chopin
I went into Joyce Kilmer/Slickrock Creek Wilderness just south of the park.
I love winter weather...in the fall! I hope this was a sign of things to come. All four seasons have their own beauty but fresh snow offers a perspective to the same old scenery that keeps me happy.
I'm not sure that there's a bad time to hike in the GSMNP - even at the peak of tourist season there are still quiet trails and lonely backcountry campsites. The AT from Fontana to Newfound Gap (or vice versa) is sweet after some snow.
"Going to the woods is going home" - John Muir
"Only by going alone in silence, without baggage, can one truely get into the heart of the wilderness" - John Muir
If not NOW, then WHEN?
ME>GA 2006
http://www.trailjournals.com/entry.cfm?trailname=3277
Instagram hiking photos: five.leafed.clover
I agree that Sept and Oct are usually the best weatherwise: cooler temps, least chance of rain.
NOAA data shows the average number of days-of-precip falls steeply in Sept and Oct (8 or 9 days) and peaks Jan through March (12) and again in July (13).
East Tenn climate data:
http://www.weather.gov/climate/xmacis.php?wfo=mrx...has specific info for Clingman's Dome, Mt Leconte, Murphy, NC, Gatlinburg, TN, Lenoir City, and others
That being said, my favorite time to visit the Smokies is when the area's at its very beautifullest: late spring through summer. I do love some snow, but the smokies are all about the green, baby.