Cade's Cove Camping Trip

June 22-24 2011

Location: Cade's Cove is at the end of Little River Road in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. You can also reach Cade's Cove by taking US 321 to TN 73 in Townsend, TN. Then following the signs into the park. Cade's Cove is about 9 miles from Townsend.

Our site: B71

Cade's Cove Campground is just like most of the campgrounds in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. It is pretty big and pretty busy. The store in the campground is much bigger than at the other campgrounds. There is also a snack bar and souvenir shop next to the camp store. Abrams Creek runs along side the campground and while there aren't riverside sites our campsite was very close to the water and we were able to walk down to the Creek and play in the water for a bit. The campground is very nice, it's just not anything really special.

The real draw here is Cade's Cove itself. The eleven mile loop is open daily from sunup to sundown. On Wednesday and Saturday mornings, the loop is only open to bicycles until 10 am; other times bicycles, vehicles and pedestrians are welcome. Plan to take 2-3 hours to drive the loop as traffic moves slowly and there's lots to stop and see. We drove the loop several times during our stay and saw hundreds of deer and lots of bears as well. I believe on one trip around the loop we saw 16 bears in about an hour and a half.

There are several hikes in the area. We were going to try one, but by the time we got there exhaustion and whininess had set in (plus

Mommy had a ditzy moment with the baby pack - thought we forgot it, searched everywhere only to find it in the front seat when we got back to the car, sigh...) So we walked a short way down the trail toward Abrams Falls, but didn't make it far before Tot sat down in the middle of the trail, completely done. Bawled her eyes out and refused to get up. Daddy was fishing down below the trail and Mommy walked a little ahead to try to encourage Tot to get up and walk just a little further to the creek. Tot was having nothing to do with this plan and continued to sit and cry hysterically until Mommy came back and took her by the hand to lead her to the water. As Tot got up she saw, out of the corner of her eye a mother bear with two cubs and in between sobs managed to cry out, "Look Mommy, it's a bear!" Sure enough here came momma bear followed by her cubs down to the trail, back up into the woods, down to the trail, back up into the woods, down to the trail and off into the woods for good. We figured she was trying to get the creek but wanted to avoid people even more. And of course, the ever fearless Tot was trying with all of her might to pull away from Mommy and chase after the bear. "I want to take a picture, Mommy!! I want to take a picture!"

For more information or reservations, click here.

Cataloochee Valley

Beginning in 2001, the National Parks Service began a program to reintroduce the elk that once roamed wild in this part of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Today the elk are once again plentiful and can be seen in the valley early in the morning and late in the evening. There are also wild turkeys that live in the valley and can usually be spotted in the fields as you drive through and you might see the occasional bear come out of the woods. The Cataloochee Valley is in the part of the Park closest to our home so we visit more frequently than other parts of the Park. We can easily do an afternoon for a picnic, a splash in the creek, and then drive through and see the elk as they come down from the mountains in the evening before driving home. The kids get in bed a little later than usual, but it's not ridiculous, and not even enough to throw them off the next day.

Camping June 4-5 2011

Our site: 21

There is a small campground in Cataloochee and this the location of our first family camping trip of the summer. Since it was our first trip, and we weren't sure how it would go, we decided only to stay for one night.

In the evening we drove through the valley and looked for elk. We saw a few elk and some turkeys and then headed back to our campfire where we made hotdogs for dinner and s'mores for dessert (not a hit, by the way, who'd have thunk it?) We loved the campground; it's small and quiet. In the morning when we woke up, we heard an owl; Daddy walked to the stream with me while Mommy started a fire and we saw the owl swoop down and catch a fish out of the water.

The next day after packed up and had lunch we drove to the other end of the valley and I splashed in the creek for a few hours while Daddy relaxed streamside and Mommy and Brother went hiking. When Mommy got back she said she saw a rattlesnake stretched out across the trail and a bear in the woods next to the road. We had planned to stay until dusk, but it started raining not too long after Mommy got back so we packed it up early and headed home. We still saw some elk even though we headed home early. 

Definitely one of our favorite places!

For more information and reservations, click here.

Roaring Forks Motor Nature Trail

The Roaring Forks Motor Nature Trail is a 6 mile, one way loop just outside of Gatlinburg, TN. The road is a beautiful drive and the location of several trailheads including Rainbow Falls, and Grotto Falls. To get there, turn at traffic light #8 in Gatlinburg, TN onto Cherokee Orchard Road. This road turns into the Roaring Forks Motor Nature Trail.

The "Place of a Thousand Drips" is at the very end of the road just before you start heading back into town. It is supposed to be amazingly beautiful when the weather has been especially wet.

Camping at Elkmont

Wednesday 7.6.2011 - Saturday 7.9.2011

Location: Little River Road in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.  From US 441, turn at the Sugarlands Visitor Center (we missed this turn, it looks like you are turning into the visitor center, but it is actually Little River Road!)

Our site: G20.
We made our reservation the week before we went, and as this is one of the more popular campgrounds in the park there were not many sites available. If we'd had our pick, we probably would have stayed at the other end of the campground closer to the hiking trails and the river. This was not one of our favorite campgrounds. Its prime location and popularity make it a very busy campground. We still had a lot of fun (hard not to have fun in the woods!) but the campsites are all very close together and small. The Little River runs through the middle of the campground and a good number of campsites are on the water. These fill up fast though, so if you want a riverside campsite plan to make your reservation towards the end of the 6 month reservation window, especially during the summer and fall and even moreso if you're hoping for a holiday weekend stay.

For information and reservations click here.

On this camping trip we did two hikes, Grotto Falls and Laurel Falls. Daddy also took me fishing in the Little River and we went to the aquarium in Gatlinburg. You can also go tubing or swimming in the Little River and you aren't too far from Cade's Cove which we skipped this trip, since we'd just been there two weeks ago and there were plenty of other things we wanted to see and do.
Like anywhere in the Smokies, you can expect rain at some point nearly every day. It may just be a light sprinkle, it may a storm that passes through quickly, or it may pour and pour. You never know what kind of precipitation you'll get, you just know that it will rain. We are always determined to have fun despite the weather, however. I splashed in puddles in my new rain boots, we have a rain shelter to keep our chairs and table dry and we bring cards to play when we're tired of getting wet (pretty sure Mommy is sick of playing War for hours on end). Usually the rain doesn't come until the late afternoon or evening and if you're really lucky it may just rain while you sleep.

I want to go camping and sleep in a tent every day!

Laurel Falls

About the Hike


Difficulty: Easy
Distance: 1.3 miles each way
Elevation Change: 450 feet
Location: Located in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park on Little River Road between Elkmont Campground and the Sugarlands Visitor Center. You can't miss it; there are cars parked along the road for miles on either side of the parking area. Laurel Falls is a VERY popular hike!

7.8.2011

We hiked to Laurel Falls this morning. It's a very good hike for my fellow tots. The trail is paved the entire way to the falls so there aren't roots and rocks to trip on. Lots of people try to bring strollers on this trail, though I wouldn't recommend that. The pavement is rough in places. Tell your moms and dads to hold you hand at the top though. The water is nice to play in, though cold, and there is a great bridge over the stream to get to the falls, however behind the bridge is a drop off over the lower part of the falls. There are warning signs everywhere telling people to stay back from the edges and parents to hold onto their kids. As long as you stay near the waterfall itself, and don't try to climb up the rocks, you can have a lot of good, safe fun at this waterfall.

On the way back down, several people hiking to the falls told us they saw a mother bear with her cub having a snack just off of the trail. By the time we got there, they'd moved on but you may get luckier and see some wildlife; this is, after all, the Smokies.

Grotto Falls

About the Hike

Difficulty: Easy
Distance: 1.3 miles each way
Elevation Change: 585 feet
Location: Just outside of Gatlinburg, TN on the Roaring Forks Motor Nature Trail. From Gatlinburg, turn at traffic light #8 onto Airport Rd. This becomes the Motor Nature Trail. Grotto Falls trailhead is about 2 miles into the one way loop.




7.7.2011



Crossing the river with Daddy.



Hiked to Grotto Falls this evening. The trail climbs very slowly and gradually until the very end and then slopes down toward the falls. A few things for fellow tots to beware of. The trail crosses the Roaring Fork several times (4 or 5, I believe) without a a bridge. The water is not deep, it didn't even completely cover Mommy's foot and there are rocks that bigger kids and grownups can hop across. I was wearing waterproof sandals, but still had Daddy help me over or through the water. The trail is wide and well worn most of the way, with a few rocky patches that made for great climbing and jumping (while Mommy and Daddy held their breaths) . Since the ground is packed down so well however, it gets a little slippery when wet. Also the end of the trail as go down to the falls has a lot of slate and is very wet and slippery, so you'll probably need a helping hand. The waterfall is cool and beautiful however and felt great on a hot, muggy, July evening. It is several degrees cooler at the falls than at the trailhead.

Since we hiked in the evening we saw a couple of bunnies along the trail having dinner. We also saw a tiny golden salamander, no more than half an inch long, in the middle of the trail that scurried away as we approached him.

This is another waterfall that you can go behind, it plummets 25 feet over a rock cliff and is very loud behind the falls. Brother thought it was hilarious! He giggled the whole time we were behind it. It was a tough hike, but worth it!

Almost there!

Behind the waterfall.