What a wondrous thing the Smoky Mountains National Park is to behold! The Smoky Mountains National Park is the most visited National Park in all the United States of America and there is no question why that is. Millions of people come to visit our iconic ecosystem each year – thousands and thousands of which are seeing it for the first time while the rest having been coming back every chance they get due to the wealth of natural beauty and resources the mountains provides as well as its very accommodating accessibility.
Built by the natural formations of the Earth itself and formally officiated and put under government protection in 1934, the National Park is over half a MILLION acres that are preserved by government agencies, local groups and other associations dedicated to making sure nature gets to conduct itself as unspoiled by man’s ambition and commercialism as possible. It would take somewhere close to a full year to see and experience all our park was to offer! We have dozens of hiking trails ranging from easy for virtually all visitors to enjoy to very challenging hikes that are recommended for serious hiking enthusiasts only, as well as many in-between. We have 16 mountains that reach over 5,000 feet in elevation and those mountains have incredible sights to behold while on and while looking at it from miles away each season of the year. It should come as no surprise to learn that people migrate from all over the WORLD to see our autumn foliage while others come to see the Spring flower colors, the overpowering Summer emerald glow of the hills and the snow-saturated peaks and ridges of Winter.
And with such a vibrant ecosystem, you can bet you’ll get to see a lot of wildlife while in your travels. Our mascot is the Black Bear for a reason and there is a good chance you might see one of them in the wild while driving, hiking or even getting back to your cabin. Other wildlife to look out for are deer, rabbits, fox, woodchucks (even in town), raccoons, and possibly the world’s greatest collection and variety of salamanders that includes the giant Hellbender salamander, and many, many more. We ask, for their safety and yours, that you never get close to any of our wildlife and only take pictures of them as you see them, but with responsible actions towards being within view of each other come unforgettable memories that you and your family/group will enjoy!
There is more to talk about the Great Smoky Mountains National Park than we have practical room for, so we invite you to get more information on the National Park at these links:
https://www.nps.gov/grsm/index.htm
https://smokymountains.com/park/
http://www.hikinginthesmokys.com/
We welcome you to the Smokies and hope you get a chance to come visit and then come back to visit us again!