Trees, Tail of the Dragon and the Cherohala Skyway

Cheoah Point in the Nantahala National Forest, North Carolina

Santeetlah Lake at Cheoah Point

 

After leaving Georgia we entered into a couple of national forests – first in North Carolina and then Tennessee.  Often national forest campgrounds are remote and that was definitely the case for these two forests near the Great Smoky Mountain National Park.  We’ve been without phone or computer for over a week so a blog post is long overdue.

Joyce Kilmer Memorial Forest, North Carolina
 

"I think that I shall never see

A poem as lovely as a tree..."

Our first stop after leaving Georgia was in the Nantahala National Forest in North Carolina.  We stayed at beautiful Cheoah Point Campground on Santeetlah Lake south of the Smoky Mountains.  Just a few miles west of our campground and almost to the Tennessee border we discovered the Joyce Kilmer Memorial Forest which is located in over 17,000 acres of designated wilderness in a remnant of the original Appalachian forest.  The forest is named for Joyce Kilmer, the poet who wrote "Trees," that poem everyone memorized in elementary school.  Being a wilderness, hiking is the only way to see this beautiful old-growth cove forest with towering trees as old as 450 years.   

 

 

"...A tree that looks at God all day

And lifts her leafy arms to pray..."

Cove forests are located in sheltered valleys (coves) with deep, rich soils and abundant moisture.  They are some of the most biologically diverse plant communities in the world and where old-growth forests missed by loggers are most likely to exist.  We walked the two mile Joyce Kilmer National Recreation Trail and both agreed it was one of the most beautiful forests we had ever seen.

One of the 318 curves on US Hwy 129

US Highway 129 was the road we took to our next destination, the Cherokee National Forest in southeastern Tennessee on the edge of the Great Smoky Mountain National Park.  We did not realize what a famous stretch of road Hwy 129 was.  Named ‘Tail of the Dragon’ for its 318 curves in 11 miles, it may be America’s favorite two-lane tourist road.  It was pretty funny being on the road in our RV with all the Corvettes and Harleys passing us when they could.  Maybe if we had known what we were getting into we would have reconsidered and gone another route, but it was an amazing road and our RV handled it pretty well.  David’s quite the driver you know.  Maybe a sports car is in our future!

 

View from high on the Cherohala Skyway

 

Near white-out conditions on the Skyway

 

Once we finished our ‘grand prix’ on US Hwy 129 and crossed into Tennessee, we camped in the Cherokee National Forest at Indian Boundary Campground.  Indian Boundary is located about one quarter of the way on another amazing road, the Cherohala Skyway. The ‘Skyway’ crosses through the Cherokee and Natahala National Forests connecting Tennessee and North Carolina and its name comes from the combination of the two forests it passes through. 

There are places on the Skyway that are over a mile high and plenty of curves to be had as well.  The day we drove it, the weather made it a little scary.  It was raining and there were places we were in the rain clouds and almost in white-out conditions.  But then there were times we drove out of the clouds and rain and had some fairly clear views.  All in all it was an amazing drive.  Our week off the grid was sure filled with beautiful scenery, amazing trees and a few rather exciting drives.

David's Stats:
Days Hiked       3
Total Miles Hiked   7.52   
Ave. Miles per Day      2.51
Total Elevation Gain       674
Ave. Elevation Gain per day  225

 

Smoky Mountains