Archive for the ‘2010’ Category

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Visits up slightly for Smokies in May

Thursday, June 17th, 2010
Visits to Great Smoky Mountains National Park were up a half percent, or about 4,000 people, in May compared with the same month last year, according to the Park.

Visits are still down 1.8%, or 50,000 visitors, for the year-to-date.

* Visits in May were up at the Gatlinburg entrance 4.9%

* The Townsend entrance reported a 12.1% increase - likely due to the re-opening of Cades Cove.

* The Cherokee entrance down more than 10%.

* The 13 outlying entrances were down 3.2%.

* Visits to campgrounds were off 15.9% in May, and are down 20.9% for the year-to-date.





Jeff
HikingintheSmokys.com Detailed information on trails in the Smoky Mountains; includes trail descriptions, key features, pictures, video, maps, elevation profiles, news, and more.

Posted in 2010, May, Smokies, visits | Comments Off

National Trails Day

Sunday, May 16th, 2010
American Hiking Society's signature trail awareness program, National Trails Day, will take place on June 5th this year.

One of the goals of National Trails Day is to inspire the public and trail enthusiasts nationwide to seek out their favorite trails to discover, learn about, and celebrate trails while participating in educational exhibits, trail dedications, gear demonstrations, instructional workshops and trail work projects.

There will be many events all across the country. The Smoky Mountain Hiking Club will utilize the day as a trail repair and construction event. They will meet in Gatlinburg at 7:30 a.m. that morning.

The Carolina Mountain Club will host a couple of hikes, including the Lakeshore Loop near Fontana Lake in the southern Smoky Mountains.

Chimney Rock State Park will be offering free guided hikes on the hour from 11am to 3pm with park education staff and rangers who will discuss the plants and wildlife at the park.

The Tennessee Eastman Hiking and Canoeing Club and will host a hike to Grassy Ridge Bald on Roan Mountain.

These are just a couple of examples. You can get more details on each of these, and see the complete list of events across the country, by clicking here.


Jeff
HikingintheSmokys.com Detailed information on trails in the Smoky Mountains; includes trail descriptions, key features, pictures, video, maps, elevation profiles, news, and more.

Posted in 2010, American Hiking Society, Fontana Lake, Great Smoky Mountain National Park, Lakeshore Loop, National Trails Day | Comments Off

More fee-free days on public lands in 2010

Thursday, May 6th, 2010
To help celebrate the 40th anniversary of Earth Day, Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar recently announced the schedule of 2010 free admission days to many of the lands managed by the Department of Interior.

All national parks, national wildlife refuges, and many areas managed by the Bureau of Land Management will offer free admission on the following days this year:

* June 5-6
* August 14-15
* September 25 (Public Lands Day)
* November 11 (Veterans Day).

More details about fee free days and some special offers are available:

* National Parks
* National Wildlife Refuges
* Bureau of Land Management Areas


Jeff
HikingintheSmokys.com Detailed information on trails in the Smoky Mountains; includes trail descriptions, key features, pictures, video, maps, elevation profiles, news, and more.

Posted in 2010, National Parks, fee-free days, public lands | Comments Off

Visits to Smokies down 28% in February

Tuesday, March 23rd, 2010
Visits to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in February were down 28% as a result of winter weather and the large rockslide that continues to block all traffic along Interstate 40 near the North Carolina-Tennessee line.

The sharp drop translates into 100,000 fewer visits, park officials said.

Snow and freezing rain during February caused Newfound Gap Road (U.S. Highway 441) to be closed on 15 occasions. The road was closed only five times due to bad weather in February 2009.

The Cherokee, N.C., entrance was down 20%; Gatlinburg, 19%; and Townsend, 7%.

Also, the 13 outlying points of entry were off 62% from 2009. The sharpest drop in travel occurred on the Foothills Parkway-East, in Cocke County, which recorded a 97% drop in travel over last year due to the rockslide on I-40.

With the Cades Cove Loop being shut down for repaving, and the recent rockslide on the Little River Road, my guess is that visitation will be down in March as well.





Jeff
HikingintheSmokys.com Detailed information on trails in the Smoky Mountains; includes trail descriptions, key features, pictures, video, maps, elevation profiles, news, and more.

Posted in 2010, February, Smokies, visits | Comments Off

Southeastern Foot Trails Coalition Biennial Conference

Saturday, March 20th, 2010
The Southeastern Foot Trails Coalition will hold its biennial conference in Tennessee the weekend of May 20 - 23, 2010. The conference will be based at the DuBose Conference Center in Monteagle, TN.

Members of hiking and trail building organizations from across the southeastern United States, partners of the coalition and any other interested parties will gather in Tennessee for a weekend of hiking, education, fun and celebration of the foot trails experience. Several guided hikes of varying length and difficulty will be offered in nearby locations. Simultaneously, at DuBose Center, there will be a series of educational sessions of varying length on tracks which address needs and interests of the hiking and trails community. Social activities will provide opportunities to share in fun with other participants and make new friends in the "trails community".

The DuBose Center is located about an hour northwest of Chattanooga, a mile off Interstate 24.

The following are the hikes scheduled in conjunction with the conference:

Thursday 1:00 pm

1 - Grundy Forest Day Loop...Sycamore Falls, 3 miles

2 - Savage Gulf Day Loop...Savage Falls, 4.2 miles

3 - Bridal Veil Falls and University of the South Campus, 4 miles


Friday 8:00 am

1 - Fiery Gizzard, 12.8 miles

2 - Raven Point, 9 miles

3 - Grundy Forest Day Loop, 3 miles

4 – Cloudland Canyon State Park, GA...Rim Trail, 5.0 miles

5 - South Rim Trail, Savage Gulf, 5.8 miles


Saturday 9:00 am

USAF Arnold Engineer Development Center
Hike/Ride to several natural and historic features


Sunday 1:00 pm

1 - Sewanee Perimeter Trail, Length TBA

2 - Franklin Forest...Tom Pack Falls, 5.5 miles


Please click here for more information.





Jeff
HikingintheSmokys.com Detailed information on trails in the Smoky Mountains; includes trail descriptions, key features, pictures, video, maps, elevation profiles, news, and more.

Posted in 2010, Biennial Conference, Cloudland Canyon State Park, Fiery Gizzard, Grundy Forest, Savage Falls, Savage Gulf Day Loop, Southeastern Foot Trails Coalition, Sycamore Falls, Tom Pack Falls | Comments Off

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