Thomas Ridge in Great Smoky Mountains National Park

   Newfound Gap Road (US 441) bisects  Great Smoky Mountains National Park from Gatlinburg, TN to Cherokee North Carolina; the road climbs to its high point at over 5000' elevation at Newfound Gap before dropping down into North Carolina. Newfound Gap Road  follows a prominent ridge known as Thomas Ridge for a few miles passing several overlooks and trailheads. Some of the most spectacular views in the park are along this stretch of road, particularly to the southwest looking over the Deep Creek drainage.  Here are several images from the area:

Smoky mountain sunset from Thomas Ridge  along US 441 in Great Smoky Mountains National Park in North Carolina.   (next)

sunset from Newfound Gap Road overlook on Thomas Ridge in Great Smoky Mountains National Park.    (next)

evening light from Thomas Ridge  (next)

Oconaluftee River in Great Smoky Mountains National Park

this is autumn color along the Oconaluftee River in North Carolina in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. next

this is a view of the Oconaluftee drainage from just below Newfound Gap.  next

another view of this area.  next

this is another angle.

Cove Hardwoods Nature Trail is located  about 4.5 miles south of Sugarlands Visitor Center right off of US 441 in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The picnic area  is located along West Prong Little Pigeon River; there are restrooms and a phone here.  Besides putting on a great autumn color display, this area  is known for epic spring wildflower blooms also. The trail is an easy 1 mile loop. next

This  is the US 441 bridge at Cove Hardwoods Nature Trail in Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

sunset in Great Smoky Mountains National Park

this sunset view was taken from Newfound Gap Road in Great Smoky Mountains National Park in North Carolina. This view looks out over the Deep Creek drainage.here are some nearby spots: Image 1

Newfound Gap Road in mist

Newfound Gap Road (US 441) runs from Gatlinburg, Tennessee up and over the crest of the Smoky Mountains and then down to Cherokee, North Carolina. From Gatlinburg to the highest point, the road gains around 3500' of elevation; watch how the trees change from lowland hardwoods to high altitude firs and back again as you descend to Cherokee. You actually leave Great Smoky Mountain National Park just before reaching Cherokee; Cherokee, North Carolina is actually on a large Indian reservation and is a great area to explore. The view shown above is from the Oconaluftee Valley Overlook just below Newfound Gap; I arrived early hoping for a nice sunrise view; instead, the mountain was locked in thick mist with 30' visibility. After almost an hour, I was about to leave when the mist began to thin out a bit; I got several views down the valley. There are numerous scenic stops along Newfound Gap Road, I will be posting several more about these   areas in the future. One other view from below Newfound Gap is below.http://paulmartinimage.blogspot.com/2011/12/sunset-in-great-smoky-mountains.html