Sunday at Lake Vesuvius promised to see summer out in full force. As soon as we woke, the heat and humidity were oppressive. We quickly decided it would be a relaxing day – no long hike. We spent a little time driving around the region and then did one of the short hikes.
The Rock House Trail is only .42 miles long. It is paved and wheelchair accessible, at least in theory – roots have made much of the pavement rather rutted. Continue reading “Rock House Trail”
I think I read somewhere that of the more than 9million people that visit Great Smoky Mountain National Park every year fewer than 5% venture more than a mile away from the roads. I have often cited this statistic when we make our annual Memorial Day trip to the park and we have definitely found solitude during the peak season on Rocky Top or at Gregory Bald.
However, 5% of 9 million is still 450,000 people. And a significant portion of those people were on the trail to Abrams Falls the day we decided to take it on. This hike has been on our Smoky Mountain bucket list for quite some time. Frankly, we have avoided it because of its popularity and because access to the trailhead requires tackling the one-way Cades Cove loop road. To quote the official Cades Cove and You flyer, “Expect delays. During peak season it may take over 2-4 hours to travel the 11-mile loop.” Not very appealing to tackle when we are anxious to get on the trail or back to town to grab a shower. But this was our Cades Cove trip and we prepared ourselves to brave the crowds. Continue reading “Abrams Falls Trail”
