Do you love creeks, beautiful trees, rock formations and panoramic views! If so this hike is for you. It starts out gentle but increases to a strenuous hike and the views are worth it! We will be going back to hike it again so we can go all the way to the top.
My first hike of the year was in early spring. March 24th, 2019 to be exact. My husband and I were on a get-away in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. We had a variety of activities planned. On the day of the hike we did not have the full day so we chose a hike that we could do in a couple hours. Although in hindsight we both wish we would have allowed the entire day. It was one of my favorite hikes I’ve taken in the Smoky Mountains even though we only completed just a portion of the trail. We definitely will come back and complete the full hike. One of the primary reasons I’ve chosen to write about our hiking experiences is so hopefully others can benefit and make the most of their hikes with the information I provide.
Trail Head: Newfound Gap Road (Great Smoky Mountains National Park) Tennessee.
Difficulty Level: Gentle grade at first, increasing to strenuous
Distance: 4 Miles
Elevation: 4950 feet (These stats apply only to the portion we completed)
Features: Creek, Arch Rock, Golden trees and Panoramic views
We only did a portion of the Mount LeConte trail, to the bluffs/ Inspiration Point. You can get details of the full Mount LeConte hike here: http://www.hikinginthesmokys.com/lecontealum.htm
The beginning of the hike follows a beautiful creek (Alum Cave Creek). The creek flowed strong over large rocks. There was a lot of shade and we stopped several times to take in the sites and sounds. I chose to stop and sit by the creek so that caused us to loose a lot of time. Everyone has a different hiking style. That day I wanted/needed the serenity of the sound of the rushing water. The path was easy walking with a gentle grade at this point.
Most of the rocks on the trail have a metallic sheen to them. Some of the trees reflected a golden sheen off the bark as well. This made for a stunningly beautiful hike. It felt like we were walking in a fairy tail. Since it was very early in the spring we did not see any wild flowers in bloom.
The trail started to pick up the grade a bit. We reached the steps of the Arch Rock 1.3 miles into the hike and took the chance for a photo op. The trail actually goes underneath the arch.
We continued up the strenuous grade and made our way to the bluffs/inspiration point where we took in the beautiful panoramic views. The views were amazing at 4950 elevation at this point in the hike, overlooking Little Duck Hawk Ridge and Myrtle point. We sat down for a bit on the rocks allowing our self to feel humble and grateful for this experience. The air was fresh and rejuvenating. We could see Alum Cave up the Mountain from where we sat but had to go ahead and turn back due to our time constraint. It was an additional 2.5 miles to the top of Mount LeConte which will be our goal for next time
This hike was one of my favorites for many reasons. I love how it follows the creek so that you can hear the water flowing as you walk. The beauty of the golden trees (I took a picture but it did not fully capture the golden color) and silvery rocks are a visual delight especially on a sunny day. You begin to get a workout as the grade increases and allows you to challenge your body. We even encountered ice and snow still on the ground and on the low lying plant life as we got up into the higher elevation which required careful attention to our footing. Overall an awesome hike!
Please feel free to give me feedback of your experiences on this or other hikes you have taken! I am always looking for the next hike.
Remember to enjoy the journey and always be true to yourself!
Jen to the Zen