Adventure Guide to the Great Smoky Mountains PDF
Preview Adventure Guide to the Great Smoky Mountains
dventure Guide to the Great Smoky Mountains 2nd Edition Blair Howard HUNTER HUNTERPUBLISHING,INC. 130CampusDrive Edison,NJ08818-7816 (cid:1)732-225-1900/800-255-0343/fax732-417-1744 Website:www.hunterpublishing.com E-mail:[email protected] INCANADA: UlyssesTravelPublications 4176Saint-Denis,Montréal,Québec CanadaH2W2M5 (cid:1)514-843-9882ext.2232/fax514-843-9448 INTHEUNITEDKINGDOM: WindsorBooksInternational TheBoundary,WheatleyRoad,Garsington Oxford,OX449EJEngland (cid:1)01865-361122/fax01865-361133 ISBN1-55650-905-7 ©2001BlairHoward Allrightsreserved.Nopartofthispublicationmaybereproduced,stored inaretrievalsystem,ortransmittedinanyform,orbyanymeans,elec- tronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the writtenpermissionofthepublisher. Thisguidefocusesonrecreationalactivities.Asallsuchactivitiescontain elementsofrisk,thepublisher,author,affiliatedindividualsandcompa- niesdisclaimanyresponsibilityforanyinjury,harm,orillnessthatmay occurtoanyonethrough,orbyuseof,theinformationinthisbook.Every effortwasmadetoinsuretheaccuracyofinformationinthisbook,butthe publisherandauthordonotassume,andherebydisclaim,anyliabilityor anylossordamagecausedbyerrors,omissions,misleadinginformationor potentialtravelproblemscausedbythisguide,evenifsucherrorsoromis- sionsresultfromnegligence,accidentoranyothercause. CoverphotobyMichaelH.Francis MapsbyKimAndré,©2001HunterPublishing,Inc. 4 3 2 1 Contents Introduction 1 TheNatureOfAdventure 2 Geography 3 Flora&Fauna 6 ThePeople 12 History 13 Climate 15 Basics 17 GettingAround 17 Safety 21 Adventures 27 Camping 27 Caving 32 FallColor 33 SpringWildflowers 34 SnowSkiing 34 Hiking 34 MountainBiking 37 BirdWatching 38 Hunting 38 HorsebackRiding 38 RockClimbing 40 Gliding 40 Watersports 41 Shopping 44 Antiquing 45 CraftHunting 45 SoutheasternTennessee 45 History 45 Sightseeing 47 Chattanooga 47 Ocoee 59 FortLoudounStateHistoricPark 60 TheLostSea 60 RedClayStateHistoricArea 61 Adventures 62 Boating 62 CanoeingTrails 65 Camping 67 Fall&SpringColors,ScenicDrives 67 Fishing 69 Hang-Gliding 73 Hiking 74 WhitewaterSports 83 iv (cid:1) Contents Shopping 84 Chattanooga 84 Cleveland 85 UpperEastTennessee 87 GettingAround 87 Sightseeing 87 CherokeeNationalForest 87 Elizabethton 89 Erwin 90 Gatlinburg 91 GreatSmokyMountainsNationalPark 93 Greeneville 103 Jonesborough 105 Knoxville 105 Morristown 107 Rugby 109 Sevierville 109 Townsend 110 Tri-Cities 111 RoanMountain 116 Adventures 117 Antiquing 117 Boating&Canoeing 117 Camping 119 CraftHunting 120 Fishing 121 Hiking 125 Off-RoadRiding 134 SnowSkiing 135 NorthwesternNorthCarolina 137 History 137 GettingHere 138 GettingAround 139 Sightseeing 139 Asheville 139 BlackMountain 143 BlowingRock 144 BlueRidgeParkway 145 Boone 150 HotSprings 151 Jefferson 152 Linville 153 LinvilleFalls 154 Marshall 155 PisgahNationalForest 155 Sparta 157 SprucePine 158 Adventures 158 PisgahNationalForest 158 Boating&Canoeing 162 CraftHunting&Fairs 165 Contents (cid:1) v Fishing 167 RockClimbing 168 Hiking 169 MountainBiking 172 HorsebackRiding 174 LlamaTrekking 178 SnowSkiing 179 Shopping 182 SouthwesternNorthCarolina 187 History 187 GettingHere 189 GettingAround 190 Sightseeing 190 Brevard 190 BrysonCity 192 Cherokee 193 Cullowhee 196 FlatRock 197 FontanaDam&FontanaVillageResort 198 Franklin 198 WayahBald 202 Hendersonville 202 Highlands 203 Murphy 204 NantahalaNationalForest 206 Adventures 215 Boating 215 Camping 217 CraftHunting&Fairs 218 Fishing 219 RockClimbing 220 Hiking 220 SnowSkiing 226 WhitewaterRafting 227 Shopping 227 Brevard 228 Dillsboro 228 Hendersonville 229 Highlands 230 Waynesville 230 NorthernGeorgia 233 GettingHere 234 Sightseeing 236 AmicalolaFallsStatePark 236 BlackRockMountainStatePark 237 BlueRidge 238 CloudlandCanyonStatePark 238 ChattahoocheeNationalForest 239 ChiefVannHouseStateHistoricSite 250 DahlonegaGoldMuseum&HistoricSite 250 FortMountainStatePark 251 vi (cid:1) Contents HartStatePark 252 Helen 253 JamesH.“Sloppy”FloydStatePark 253 LakeChatuge 254 MoccasinCreekStatePark 254 NewEchotaStateHistoricSite 255 RabunGap 256 RedTopMountainStatePark 256 TallulahFalls&Gorge 257 Traveler’sRestStateHistoricSite 258 TugalooStatePark 258 UnicoiStatePark 259 VictoriaBryantStatePark 259 VogelStatePark 260 Adventures 261 Boating 261 Camping 263 Canoeing 263 CraftHunting&Fairs 264 Fishing 266 Hiking 269 Shopping 274 CampingDirectory 275 WildernessCamping 275 StateParkCamping 292 CommercialCamping 305 AccommodationsDirectory 321 SoutheasternTennessee 321 UpperEastTennessee 322 NorthwesternNorthCarolina 323 SouthwesternNorthCarolina 324 NorthernGeorgia 325 InformationDirectory 327 Fish&WildlifeAgencies 327 BlueRidgeParkway 327 Fishing 327 GreatSmokyMountainsNationalPark 328 CherokeeNationalForest 328 PisgahNationalForest 329 NantahalaNationalForest 329 ChattahoocheeNationalForest 330 Rivers&Lakes 331 WhitewaterOutfitters&Adventures 331 Contents (cid:1) vii Maps GreatSmokyMountains 19 SoutheasternTennessee 46 LookoutMountain 51 UpperEastTennessee 86 GreatSmokyMountainsNationalPark 94 NorthwesternNorthCarolina 136 PisgahNationalForest 156 SouthwesternNorthCarolina 186 NantahalaNationalForest 207 MountainWatersScenicByway 209 NorthernGeorgia 232 Introduction I n t r o d u c MentiontheGreatSmokyMountainstomostpeopleandthey ti o immediatelythinkoftheGreatSmokyMountainsNational n Park. And so they should, for each year more than nine million people make it the most visited national park in the United States.ButtheparkisnotthebeallandendalloftheSmokies.In fact,it’sjustasmallpartofthewhole. The Smokies, for the purposes of this book, encompass an area thatrunsfromtheVirginiastateline,straddlingtheTennessee/ North Carolina border, all the way down into northern Georgia. AlongthewaytheyembracethegreatNantahala,Pisgah,Chero- keeandChattahoocheenationalforests–fourvastoutdoortracts ofwilderness. Althoughcivilizationcamehereincolonialtimes,theareais,for themostpart,stillaveryprimitivedomainthathasn’tkeptpace withtheoutsideworld.Greatpocketsofunspoiledwildernessex- istwithintheSmokies;someareasstilldon’thaveelectricity,and there are places where the locals are downright suspicious of strangers.Manypeoplehereliveouttheirlivesmuchastheiran- cestorsdidalmost100yearsago. Avisittothenationalparkwilltakeyoutothefamousmountain city of Gatlinburg, to Dollywood and Pigeon Forge, but the land whereDavyCrockettwasbornandraisedhasmuchmoretooffer. Overadozenskiresortsaretuckedawayamongthehillsandval- leys; there are plenty of unspoiled fishing spots and hundreds of backcountrycampinggroundsofferthousandsofsites,fromprim- itivetofull-service.Thentherearethetinytowns,somenomore thanacoupleofclapboardshacksandacountrystore;townslike Tellico Plains, Sylva, Highlands, Sweetgum and Rainbow Springs. A network of backcountry roads, narrow and winding, joinonesmallwoodlandcolonytothenext.Hundredsofmilesof narrow trails, pathways and bridleways interlace the forest and criss-crossoneanotherinabewilderingspider’sweboffootpaths. It’s an area where careless travelers can get easily get lost, and staylostfordaysonend. The Great Smoky Mountains are also home to a diverse assort- mentofwildlife.Blackbear,white-taileddeerandwildboarroam 2 (cid:1) Introduction free;wildturkeys,eliminatedfromeasternTennesseebygenera- tionsofhunters,havereturnedtotheCherokeeNationalForest. Andeachyearinthefall,thegreathardwoodforestsprovidevisi- torswithspectaculardisplaysofcolor. TheSmokyMountainsrepresentoneofthelastrealopportunities forgreatadventureinthesoutheasternUnitedStates. (cid:1) The Nature Of Adventure Adventure means different things to different people. Tosomeitmeansthefar-offjunglesofAfrica,thesnows ofAntarctica,orthepeaksofthemightyHimalayas.To othersitmeansbeachcombing,hikingorhorsebackrid- ing.AdventureintheSmokiesmeansanexcursionintothegreat outdoors – hiking, rock climbing, snow skiing, fishing, hunting, andboating.TheAdventureGuidetotheGreatSmokyMountains covers all those activities and more. It takes you to the historic sitesinthearea,andtothehundredsofantiquestores,giftshops andcraftfairs.Itcoversfinediningandluxuryhotels,anddetails afternoondrivesoncountryroads. Wehavetakenthreeseparateapproachestotheorderofthisbook. First,eachtypeofadventureisbrieflycoveredonpages27to43. There,youwillfindoutwhat’savailableandwhere. Second,eachgeographicalregionisdescribedindepth,alongwith adetailedreportofattractionsandadventureswithinthatpartic- ularregion. Lastly,wehaveincludedthreeseparatedirectoriesatthebackof thebook–oneforcamping,oneforaccommodations,andonefor informationservices.Thelistingsinthecampingandaccommoda- tions directories are not recommendations, but they do include shortdescriptionsofthefacilities. So,ifyouwanttospendafewdayssnowskiing,you’llturntothat particularactivityonpage34,andthereyou’llfindthatsnowski- ing is available in upper eastern Tennessee and upper western North Carolina. From there, it’s simply a matter of turning the pagestoyourregionofchoicewhereyou’llfindalistofresortsand alltheinformationyou’llneedtomakeaneducatedchoice.
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