Every trek I make to Great Smoky Mountains National Park I try to take a hike on 'a path less traveled'. As you drive along the main road from Cade's Cove back to Gatlinburg, there are many pull offs. One pull off is the West Prong Trail which is part of the Bote Mountain Trail. I liked the looks of this trail as it was wide and flat, although after hiking a short way in you begin to feel the rise in elevation in your knees.
This visit to the Smokies brought the remnants of Hurricane Patricia so I had rain to contend with throughout my entire stay. Albeit, one minute there might be a sliver of blue sky with a few rays of sun peeking through white clouds and then a dark gray cloud moves in and drizzle in varying waves sets in.
After I parked my car at this trail head and gathered my walking stick, I set out. Not sure how far into the hike I would get before drizzle might set in and force me to turn back. I hadn't hiked more than a quarter mile when a serious drizzle started forcing me to turn back. UGH!
At this time of year black bears are foraging heartily for food to fill their fat reserves for the long Winter months so I was mindful of this before I had started on this trail. On Newfound Gap Road on Sunday I caught a few glimpses of a bear cub foraging, but that was the only bear siting I encountered. Perhaps on my next adventure to the Smokies I will get to walk further along this path as it really looked like a beautiful hike. I snapped a few images of the Fall leaves while walking along the path. This is my favorite image. I love the greens of the forest and the yellow Fall leaves. I hope everyone had a fun filled Halloween. Next stop, Thanksgiving! ENJOY!
This visit to the Smokies brought the remnants of Hurricane Patricia so I had rain to contend with throughout my entire stay. Albeit, one minute there might be a sliver of blue sky with a few rays of sun peeking through white clouds and then a dark gray cloud moves in and drizzle in varying waves sets in.
After I parked my car at this trail head and gathered my walking stick, I set out. Not sure how far into the hike I would get before drizzle might set in and force me to turn back. I hadn't hiked more than a quarter mile when a serious drizzle started forcing me to turn back. UGH!
At this time of year black bears are foraging heartily for food to fill their fat reserves for the long Winter months so I was mindful of this before I had started on this trail. On Newfound Gap Road on Sunday I caught a few glimpses of a bear cub foraging, but that was the only bear siting I encountered. Perhaps on my next adventure to the Smokies I will get to walk further along this path as it really looked like a beautiful hike. I snapped a few images of the Fall leaves while walking along the path. This is my favorite image. I love the greens of the forest and the yellow Fall leaves. I hope everyone had a fun filled Halloween. Next stop, Thanksgiving! ENJOY!
I love this wet-looking forest! That looks like a great trail, Carol - hope you can return and hike it further. I think (hope) our bears are in hibernation - it's quite cold here overnight.
ReplyDeleteprachtig ik hou hiervan.
ReplyDeleteThis looks like a very pretty trail but it's too bad the rain forced you to turn around. I'm glad you didn't run into a large bear!
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