In addition to the free admission being offered this Veterans Day to all public recreation lands managed by the National Park Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Bureau of Land Management, Bureau of Reclamation, and the U.S. Forest Service, all State Parks in Tennessee will be offering a free state park day for all Tennessee Veterans this Thursday
Earlier this week, Tennessee State Parks announced a new addition to its veterans’ discount policy, including a free state park day for all Tennessee Veterans on Thursday, Nov. 11.
Passed by the General Assembly earlier this year, the new policy calls for a yearly, special state parks day to honor Tennessee’s resident veterans. Tennessee State Parks chose each Nov. 11 as that designated day, offering one free night of camping and complimentary greens fees for 18 holes of golf with appropriate identification. The new free day will go into effect this Veterans Day and will occur on Nov. 11 each year.
The new free day on Nov. 11 is in addition to Tennessee State Parks’ current veterans’ policy, which includes a camping discount within the state parks system and is available annually beginning November 1 through March 31, offering a 15 to 25 percent reduction off the standard nightly base rates (depending on the type of site chosen). This camping discount is available to Tennessee residents showing proof of prior military duty.
A special state park discount also is in place for active duty military personnel and members of the Tennessee National Guard. This year-round discount is given to all U.S. military – regardless of their branch of service or where they are stationed. Disabled Veterans also are eligible for the Tennessee State Parks year-round ADA discount that provides a 25 to 50 percent discount for campsites. For more information about Tennessee State Parks’ Veterans and military discounts, please click here.
Jeff
HikingintheSmokys.com
Sunday, November 7, 2010
Video: Mountain Life Festival
Earlier this fall the Great Smoky Mountains held its annual Mountain Life Festival at the Mountain Farm Museum (next to the Oconaluftee Visitor Center).
Each fall, for almost 40 years, the Mountain Life Festival has provided visitors with living history demonstrations on how the homesteaders of the region settled the land that would become a national park. Visitors get a glimpse into the traditions of the past as reenactors and volunteers make sorghum molasses, apple cider, apple butter and cornbread. There are also live demonstrations on hearth cooking, blacksmithing, lye soap making, food preservation, broom making, quilting and chair bottoming.
The Great Smoky Mountains Association has recently published a video of the 2010 festival which highlights some of the sights and sounds from the day:
© GSMA 2010. All rights reserved.
The Mountain Farm Museum is a collection of farm buildings assembled from locations throughout the park. Visitors can explore a log farmhouse, barn, apple house, springhouse, and a working blacksmith shop to get a sense of how families may have lived 100 years ago. Most of the structures were built in the late 19th century and were moved here in the 1950s. The Davis House offers a rare chance to view a log house that was built from chestnut wood before blight decimated the American Chestnut in the 1930s and early 1940s. The site also demonstrates historic gardening and agricultural practices, including livestock.
The Mountain Farm Museum is located next to the Oconaluftee Visitor Center on Newfound Gap Road (US 441), roughly two miles north of Cherokee, N.C.
Jeff
HikingintheSmokys.com
Each fall, for almost 40 years, the Mountain Life Festival has provided visitors with living history demonstrations on how the homesteaders of the region settled the land that would become a national park. Visitors get a glimpse into the traditions of the past as reenactors and volunteers make sorghum molasses, apple cider, apple butter and cornbread. There are also live demonstrations on hearth cooking, blacksmithing, lye soap making, food preservation, broom making, quilting and chair bottoming.
The Great Smoky Mountains Association has recently published a video of the 2010 festival which highlights some of the sights and sounds from the day:
© GSMA 2010. All rights reserved.
The Mountain Farm Museum is a collection of farm buildings assembled from locations throughout the park. Visitors can explore a log farmhouse, barn, apple house, springhouse, and a working blacksmith shop to get a sense of how families may have lived 100 years ago. Most of the structures were built in the late 19th century and were moved here in the 1950s. The Davis House offers a rare chance to view a log house that was built from chestnut wood before blight decimated the American Chestnut in the 1930s and early 1940s. The site also demonstrates historic gardening and agricultural practices, including livestock.
The Mountain Farm Museum is located next to the Oconaluftee Visitor Center on Newfound Gap Road (US 441), roughly two miles north of Cherokee, N.C.
Jeff
HikingintheSmokys.com
Saturday, November 6, 2010
Smokies photographer featured at The Art Market Gallery
Award winning Sevier County photographer, Eric Gebhart, will be one of the featured artists at The Art Market Gallery from November 5th - November 28th, 2010.
Mr. Gebhart is a nature and landscape photographer who draws much of his inspiration from the Smoky Mountains. He endeavors to initiate the viewer to make a connection with the natural world around them.
Mr. Gebhart is best known for his breathtaking large format panoramic prints of The Smokies. Included in this exhibit will be his Fall 2010 limited edition release "Autumn Rush". A 30 x 80 inch print showcasing the vibrant fall colors of Southern Appalachia and rushing waters of a pristine mountain stream
The Art Market Gallery is located at 422 South Gay Street, Knoxville, TN 37902 (1/2 block south of the Mast General Store).
You can view some of Mr. Gebhart's work by clicking here.
Jeff
HikingintheSmokys.com
Mr. Gebhart is a nature and landscape photographer who draws much of his inspiration from the Smoky Mountains. He endeavors to initiate the viewer to make a connection with the natural world around them.
Mr. Gebhart is best known for his breathtaking large format panoramic prints of The Smokies. Included in this exhibit will be his Fall 2010 limited edition release "Autumn Rush". A 30 x 80 inch print showcasing the vibrant fall colors of Southern Appalachia and rushing waters of a pristine mountain stream
The Art Market Gallery is located at 422 South Gay Street, Knoxville, TN 37902 (1/2 block south of the Mast General Store).
You can view some of Mr. Gebhart's work by clicking here.
Jeff
HikingintheSmokys.com
Smokies Snow update
The upper elevations of the Smokies received their first big snow of the season over the last day-and-a-half.
Allyson Virden, resident manager at the LeConte Lodge, is reporting that Mt. LeConte has 8.5 inches of snow on the ground. At 8:30 this morning she reported a crisp 16 degree temp as well!
Clingmans Dome Road and Newfound Gap Road between Gatlinburg, TN and Cherokee, NC is still closed due to the ice and snow.
If you're planning to travel on US-441 through the park this weekend, it's a good idea to call 865-436-1200 for road and weather updates before making an attempt. You can also call 511 in either North Carolina or Tennessee to access the Department of Transportation Information Line for updates on US-441.
A little more snow is expected in the mountains of Western North Carolina and the Smokies throughout the morning. To keep up up-to-date with weather forecasts you can also click here.
Jeff
HikingintheSmokys.com
Allyson Virden, resident manager at the LeConte Lodge, is reporting that Mt. LeConte has 8.5 inches of snow on the ground. At 8:30 this morning she reported a crisp 16 degree temp as well!
Clingmans Dome Road and Newfound Gap Road between Gatlinburg, TN and Cherokee, NC is still closed due to the ice and snow.
If you're planning to travel on US-441 through the park this weekend, it's a good idea to call 865-436-1200 for road and weather updates before making an attempt. You can also call 511 in either North Carolina or Tennessee to access the Department of Transportation Information Line for updates on US-441.
A little more snow is expected in the mountains of Western North Carolina and the Smokies throughout the morning. To keep up up-to-date with weather forecasts you can also click here.
Jeff
HikingintheSmokys.com
McKittrick Canyon in the Fall
Several weeks ago I posted a couple of reports about our hikes up Guadalupe Peak and to the Devils Hall during our visit to Guadalupe Mountains National Park in West Texas this past September.
A blogger from Midland, Texas happened to see both those postings and commented that he enjoyed seeing what "outsiders" had to say about the national park just down the highway from him. He mentioned that he was planning a three-day backpacking trip in the Guadalupe Mountains in late October to enjoy the fall colors of McKittrick Canyon. I invited him to send a link to his report so that I could see and read about that section of the park that I missed on my visit.
McKittrick Canyon in the fall is considered by many to be the most beautiful spot in Texas. The canyon is renowned for the breathtaking fall color displays. Unlike most of the rest of the park, which is predominantly arid desert, the upper reaches of McKittrick Canyon is considered to be a riparian woodland oasis, containing pine, oak and maple trees.
Earlier this week, Steven from MyLifeOutdoors sent me the report he promised from several weeks ago.
Starting from the Pine Springs Visitor Center, Steven's three day trek took him up the Tejas Trail, over "The Notch," and then down into McKittrick Canyon, logging 16.5 miles along the way.
Steven has an excellent write-up. He also as several photographs that provide for an excellent visual documentation of his adventures. To read his article, please click here. You can also click here to see a map of the route he took.
Jeff
HikingintheSmokys.com
A blogger from Midland, Texas happened to see both those postings and commented that he enjoyed seeing what "outsiders" had to say about the national park just down the highway from him. He mentioned that he was planning a three-day backpacking trip in the Guadalupe Mountains in late October to enjoy the fall colors of McKittrick Canyon. I invited him to send a link to his report so that I could see and read about that section of the park that I missed on my visit.
McKittrick Canyon in the fall is considered by many to be the most beautiful spot in Texas. The canyon is renowned for the breathtaking fall color displays. Unlike most of the rest of the park, which is predominantly arid desert, the upper reaches of McKittrick Canyon is considered to be a riparian woodland oasis, containing pine, oak and maple trees.
Earlier this week, Steven from MyLifeOutdoors sent me the report he promised from several weeks ago.
Starting from the Pine Springs Visitor Center, Steven's three day trek took him up the Tejas Trail, over "The Notch," and then down into McKittrick Canyon, logging 16.5 miles along the way.
Steven has an excellent write-up. He also as several photographs that provide for an excellent visual documentation of his adventures. To read his article, please click here. You can also click here to see a map of the route he took.
Jeff
HikingintheSmokys.com
Friday, November 5, 2010
Snow and Ice closes Newfound Gap Road
In addition to yesterday's announcement about Clingmans Dome Road being closed, the Smokies website is reporting this morning that US Hwy 441 (Newfound Gap Road) between Gatlinburg, TN and Cherokee, NC is also closed due to ice and snow.
The website also has this posted warning:
A winter storm advisory is in effect for the mountains (above 3,000 feet elevation) through 5 AM EDT Saturday. If you are planning to travel on US-441 through the park this weekend, please call (865) 436-1200 for road and weather updates. You can also call 511 in either North Carolina or Tennessee to access the Department of Transportation Information Line for updates on US-441.
The National Weather Service said more snow (2-4 inches) above 3000 feet is possible.
As of early this morning, Allyson Virden, one of the resident managers at the LeConte Lodge, is reporting that Mt. LeConte has already received 1.5 inches of new snow.
Jeff
HikingintheSmokys.com
The website also has this posted warning:
A winter storm advisory is in effect for the mountains (above 3,000 feet elevation) through 5 AM EDT Saturday. If you are planning to travel on US-441 through the park this weekend, please call (865) 436-1200 for road and weather updates. You can also call 511 in either North Carolina or Tennessee to access the Department of Transportation Information Line for updates on US-441.
The National Weather Service said more snow (2-4 inches) above 3000 feet is possible.
As of early this morning, Allyson Virden, one of the resident managers at the LeConte Lodge, is reporting that Mt. LeConte has already received 1.5 inches of new snow.
Jeff
HikingintheSmokys.com
Friday's Video
Below is a video and photo collage of Shenandoah National Park from Photo Trekker.
The video includes beautiful scenes from places like Dark Hollow Falls, Hawksbill Summit, White Oak Canyon and Luray Caverns:
Jeff
HikingintheSmokys.com
The video includes beautiful scenes from places like Dark Hollow Falls, Hawksbill Summit, White Oak Canyon and Luray Caverns:
Jeff
HikingintheSmokys.com
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