Hiking the Smokies: Andrew’s Bald & Clingman’s Dome

We planned to return to Clingman’s Dome for sunset since our last sunset viewing there was so spectacular.  We also wanted to hike to Andrew’s Bald, a short 1.7 miles from the parking lot.

Clingman’s Dome was so crowded that we had to park on the road down from the parking lot and hike in.  Once we got there, we took the trail (downhill most of the way) 1.7 miles to Andrew’s Bald.  It was so serene & peaceful here!  The view was somewhat obstructed by the tree line, but it was still gorgeous.  We rested a bit before heading back.

(Who wears short shorts?)

From Andrew’s Bald, we hiked 2.5 miles up to the top of Clingman’s Dome.

We reached the top of Clingman’s Dome at about 6 pm, 1 hour before sunset.  We quickly realized that we were in the clouds again.  It was VERY COLD!!!