great smoky mountains national park

I realize that it has been just over two weeks since my last post, and while I find serious discomfort in letting my blog go dormant for any length of time over a week, I was on a much needed vacation. And this wasn't a fishing trip but more of a chance to get the family out and explore a landscape that is quite foreign to us flat-landers. For those who visit this blog just for fishing reports, sorry to disappoint, the next few posts are purely about hiking the Smoky Mountain National Park.


This post is dedicated to just some of the sites we found while traveling 441 that runs through the heart of the park connecting Gatlinburg, Tennessee with Cherokee, North Carolina. From the very first mountain sunrise, I knew we were in for something special.

sunrise over the smoky mountains

On the Tennessee side, 441 hwy follows along the West Prong of the Little Pigeon River. In its upper elevations, it’s everything you could expect from a high gradient mountain stream.

west prong of the little pigeon river

As the river approaches Gatlinburg and beyond it flattens and widens dramatically. On our journey up the mountain, the Little Pigeon provided some excellent scenery.

a lower gradient section of the river

Driving through the park, there are so many countless pull-offs and hiking trails to explore. While this post won’t have enough room to go over every place we set foot, the view from Newfound Gap was one of my favorites.

newfound gap

And to give you just a small taste of the wildlife here, I will leave you with these few shots. Coming down from the mountains on the North Carolina side we had the pleasure to come up on a herd of grazing elk. While they weren't so much bothered by our presence we were able to capture a dozen or so excellent photos before the rangers felt it was best we moved on.

a herd of grazing elk in the national park

the largest bull in the bunch

Stay tuned for some of my favorite shots from Cades Cove and the Pisgah National Forest.