Hotdish and highways

Great Smoky Mountains National Park, NC/TN border

Driving through the Blue Ridge Parkway was like driving through an enchanted forest–winding roads canopied with lush trees on either side of the road. It was a bit early for colors, but you could see the occasional hint that fall would soon be there.

We drove through the Oconaluftee entrance, and we were disappointed that there was no official park sign, as we like to take photos with the signs when we enter the parks.

A quick stop at the visitor center elicited a question of whether we had seen any elk yet. We said no, bought a couple of t-shirts, and continued on our way.

Not five minutes later, this was our view on both sides of the road:

An entire herd of elk! Sadly no bucks, but still super cool. Neither of us had seen elk before.

A quick map check and we decided to head to Clingman’s Dome.

The views are stunning. It was foggy/cloudy that day, and viewing the clouds from above as they settled over the lower mountains was super cool.

We exchanged photo ops with another couple, donned sweatshirts to combat the brisk air, and started our journey upwards towards Clingman’s Dome.

The Dome is more of a 360-degree observatory than a dome, but once you get to the top, you can see everything for miles, including the nearby cities of Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge off in the distance.

Another gift shop stop brought us as close to a park sign as we would get.

We drove around a bit more, and then stopped and had lunch (Publix subs!) at a large picnic area.

The park was beautiful and expansive–I can see why it’s the most popular National Park in the country.

Overall Rating: 4/5 – Nacho-Ordinary