Gatlinburg Trip Help

Hi all! I%26#39;ve been to Gatlinburg once when I was 16 and have not been back because my mom doesn%26#39;t like mountains (I however LOVED it!). Anyways, I want to take my nephew (he%26#39;s 11) there this summer after school lets out because he%26#39;s doing great in school. He gets out May 22. I was wondering how the crowds are around that time. I%26#39;m debating whether or not to take him at the end of May or early June.

Also, we%26#39;re going to spend a good amount of time in the National Park and I wanted to know what some good trails/waterfalls are. I%26#39;ve only been on one, Laural Falls and LOVED it. I was also wondering about Clingman%26#39;s Dome. How bad is the walk up there?

I know there is a lot of wildlife around, but where is the best places to see them. I%26#39;m really looking for deers and small animals (I don%26#39;t do well with bears and wolves...).

One thing we did was Ober Gatlinburg and I had a lot of fun. But I%26#39;m not sure if it%26#39;s worth going there in the summer. Is there anything interesting up there during the summer??

Thanks in advance. Sorry for all the questions!!

Gatlinburg Trip Help

sorry for the double posts.

Gatlinburg Trip Help

Late May is a great time to see the Smokies. The hike up to Chimney Tops is interesting but strenuous, same goes for Clingmans Dome. If you like deer and small animals you should go to Cades Cove.

The area fills up with tourists fast during and after Memorial Day; May is in my opinion the best time to visit the area.

The trail to Clingman%26#39;s Dome from the parking lot is a full half mile of paved pathway with benches every few yards. I would not describe it as strenuous, even though the path is continuously uphill from the parking lot. There are other trails you could take that start farther away that would no doubt be very strenuous.

I have heard that there are a lot of deer sightings in the open fields of Cade%26#39;s Cove, especially early in the morning. Abrams Falls is a 5 mile round trip hike from a parking area in the cove.

Another area you might want to visit is the Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail; Grotto Falls is a 2 1/2 mile round trip hike from a parking area on this road.

tigerchic1,

Hello. I see you are from La. so am I and not for from you. You were asking about Ober Gatlinburg. In the summer it has a full amusment park you can check it out on www.obergatlinburg.com . then click on amusement park. Hope this helps

gatlinburglover

Vickie

I wouldn%26#39;t call the attractions at Ober Gatlinburg a ';full amusement park'; by any measure. Some great hikes you might want to consider are:

Charlies Bunion- about 4.5 miles each way from the New Found Gap parking lot. Moderate with changing terrain and beautiful views.

Little River Trail- 2.5+ miles depending on how far you want to go. Easy walk beside Little River along the old road bed from Elkmont.

Ramsey Cascades Falls- 4.0 miles each way from the LIttle Greenbrier area. Moderate.

Abrams Falls- about 4 miles each way from Cades Cove. Easy.

Rainbow Falls- 3 miles each way from the Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail in Gatlinburg. (It%26#39;s the 2nd and larger falls on the trail). Moderate.

These are all suitable for an 11 year old. Just don%26#39;t let him climb on the rocks at any of the falls especially at Ramsey Cascades. I suggest you get a trail map of the park. You can get all the info on trails you need from the parks web page.

http://www.nps.gov/grsm/pphtml/maps.html

Thanks so much everyone! We%26#39;re already planning a small agenda because we can%26#39;t wait to get going. lol.

gatlinburglover, I%26#39;m living in Baton Rouge now since my town was washed away. My cousin lives in Prarieville though. That%26#39;s where my parents are going to probably move in a few years.

Anyways, thanks again for all the information!!!

tigerchic1,

Sorry to hear about your town. I know what you mean though....of course we saw all the devistaion on TV. Although we didn%26#39;t suffer any major damage Thank God. We were withouth lights for over a week. I can%26#39;t imagine how hard it has been for you all.Thank God ya%26#39;ll made it through though.Things can be replaced. But love ones can%26#39;t. This is one of the reasons we are selling our house and moving to Tennessee.Can%26#39;t do the hurricanes anymore.This was a wake up call.I hope you all Have a very Merry Christmas and a very prosperious New Year !....and please know that you and your family will be in our prayers.

gatlinburglover

Vickie

June is very busy, so if you can, go in May.

Cades Cove is a beautiful place to see wildlife, I just got back from there and there were deer everywhere! I have seen owls sitting in hollows of trees, turkey and canadian geese.

Have a great time!