Hiking Journal: Abram Falls

On the Saturday after Thanksgiving, we headed up the Cades Cove for a quick hike.  I only needed 5 miles to get my 100 mile pin (!), so we chose Abram Falls.  We had already been once, and last time I thought it was SO HARD.  This time ~15 lbs lighter with a year of consistent weight-lifting and two more LeConte trips under my belt, it was much, much easier!  I will go so far to say that it was EASY – a beginner hike for sure!  If you read the post from the last time, I was griping because I had read on the internet that some one said it was easy and I did not agree.  Ha!  Also, this time there was much less traffic on the trail.

Pictures from the hike:

After the hike, we drove through Cades Cove and back in to Gatlinburg, stopping at the Sugarlands visitor center on the way!  I got it!

  Our next stop was one of our favorites…….

….Best Italian!  We LOVE LOVE LOVE this place!  There is nothing in the WORLD like their garlic knots!

After eating, we did a little bit of shopping before heading back home.  Overall, an awesome hike!

The Long Way Home: Foothills Parkway & Look Rock

 

This morning we got up and headed out super early – we were planning to drive through Cades Cove and take the long way home down the Foothills Parkway.

We saw the sun rising over the mountains.  So beautiful!  Wish we were staying longer!

We saw a bear at Cades Cove!!!

We took Rich Mountain Road out of the park.  Neither of us had ever been this way before – it is a winding mountain road that comes out in Townsend, near the Foothills Parkway.  There was a gorgeous overlook!

We finally made it to the Foothills Parkway.  The fall colors were definitely peaking – the reds and oranges were so bright.  It was beautiful!

We made it to the Look Rock parking lot and hiked up to the observation tower (~0.3 miles).  Spectacular views of Maryville on one side and the Smoky Mountains on the other side.

Look Rock was the Grand Finale of our beautiful autumn weekend. After we left, we made a quick stop in Tellico (to see Tincie, who had to be hospitalized last week after a stroke!), then we went on to Chattanooga to meet my family for a mid-day meal at Souper Salad, and then on to Tuscaloosa. Whew!

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!!!