Visiting Two More National Parks
Our timing was a little off for seeing leaves at their peak fall color while visiting New River Gorge National Park and Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Of course, when planning a trip several months in advance, it’s impossible to know exactly when fall will be in its full glory. This year we strayed away from our annual trip to New England, opting instead to cross two more national parks closer to home off of our list. We were about a week too late to see forests exploding in yellows, oranges, and reds; and instead it looked more like a thick layer of dust had been spread across the formerly brilliant colors.
Interestingly, the prettiest fall leaves we saw were along I-77, stretching between New River Gorge, West Virginia and Bland, Virginia – a beautiful contrast we admired from the window of our speeding SUV.
Overview of the Week
Before getting into each day’s workouts, here’s an overview of my workouts from this past week. Scroll beyond the infographic for daily details…
Sunday
Road trip: Day 2: Charleston, West Virginia
Hiking: 3.02 miles
• Average pace: 20:11 minute/mile
• Elevation gain: 548 feet
• Start time: 12:32 PM
• Location: Hawks Nest Trail along the New River
• Weather: 69° and drizzly, dropping to 64° and rainy
• What I wore: capris, s/s shirt, and rain jacket
When rain and high wind tried to dampened our plans for the day, we regrouped, hopped in our SUV and drove around exploring the park looking for some interesting hikes. A part of me had really wanted to do the bridge walk – a guided tour that takes you across the entire length of the New River Gorge Bridge on a 24-inch wide steel catwalk 876 feet above the New River. Another part of me, though, was afraid I’d chicken out at the last minute and maybe, just maybe, I was grateful for the wind and rain. LOL
Our first hike took us along Hawks Nest Trail (pictured in the first collage) and while it drizzled much of the time, we stayed dry in our rain gear and had a delightful time. In additional to the this hike, we took a few other shorter hikes to see Kanawha Falls and Sandstone Falls (both pictured in the second collage). While in the Sandstone Visitors Center the wind picked up blowing leaves and small sticks off the trees as the sky opened up, pummeling the building’s skylights with rain. We tried to wait out the rain, but eventually raised our hoods and sprinted to our SUV to drive to Sandstone Falls for a hike. The hike is about at half mile roundtrip and on a boardwalk which was nice since it was still pouring rain.
Monday
Road trip: Day 3: Drive from Charleston, West Virginia through Virginia to Pigeon Forge, Tennessee
Strength training: 1 hour of total body
I got up early to workout in the well-appointed hotel gym. Once again, as I often find while traveling, I was the only person in the gym.
When the sun came up, we were treated to a beautiful bluebird sky, quite the contrast to the previous day. Once on the road we stopped at Grandview Main Overlook in New River Gorge National Park where we watched the New River snake around in a horseshoe formation reminding us of Horseshoe Bend State Park in Arizona… minus the barren desert.
Tuesday
Road trip: Day 4: Pigeon Forge, Tennessee
Hiking: 1.18 miles
• Average pace: 23:57 minute/mile
• Elevation gain: 389 feet
• Start time: 12:42 PM
• Location: Appalachian Trail in Great Smoky Mountains National Park
• Weather: 55° and cloudy
• What I wore: capris, s/s shirt, nylon shell, and down vest
Hiking: 1.58 miles
• Average pace: 18:57 minute/mile
• Elevation gain: 400 feet
• Start time: 2:02 PM
• Location: Kuwohi Observation Tower in Great Smoky Mountains National Park
• Weather: 50° (feels like 43°) and cloudy, with rain starting just before reaching the tower
• What I wore: capris, s/s shirt, nylon shell, down vest, puffer coat, gloves, and visor
We set out with a few hikes in mind, but hadn’t anticipate rain moving in during the afternoon. Our first hike went off without a hitch (pictured in the first collage), but rain started shortly after starting our second hike (pictured in the second collage). Unfortunately, I wasn’t wearing my trusty rain jacket (I’d layered for warmth not expecting rain) and finished the hike feeling like a drowned rat.
The day’s activities put me in position to earn Garmin’s Active October badge for recording 20 activities of at least 20 minutes each.
Wednesday
Road trip: Day 5: Pigeon Forge, Tennessee
Strength training: 1 hour of total body
Once again I was up early and working out by 5:30, only this time joined by my husband and eventually another guy who came in just before we left.
We spent the day driving all through the Great Smoky Mountains and into North Carolina along the 43-mile scenic Cherohala Skyway. The leaves were a little past their peak, but it was pretty. We also squeezed in lunch with my brother and cousin.
Thursday
Road trip: Day 6: Pigeon Forge, Tennessee
Hiking: 5.04 miles
• Average pace: 19:55 minute/mile
• Elevation gain: 849 feet
• Start time: 9:46 AM
• Location: Abrams Falls in Cades Cove in Great Smoky Mountains National Park
• Weather: 43° and sunny, climbing to 65°
• What I wore: capris, s/s shirt, fleece jacket, down vest, and mittens over gloves
Top on our list in Great Smoky Mountains National Park was to visit Cades Cove. We left our hotel at 7:30 AM in order to beat the crowds and find a parking place at Abrams Falls trailhead. Before our hike we snaked slowly partially around the 11-mile one-way single-lane road, slowing often to 15 MPH or less as everyone scoured the landscape for black bears and elk. By the time we left the park we had seen three huge turkeys, several deer, a squirrel, and a bear! When we spotted the bear, I quickly grabbed my husband’s long-lens camera and snapped a picture of it foraging far up in the field, all from my window as we drove by.
Friday
Road trip: Day 7: Drive from Pigeon Forge, Tennessee through Asheville, North Carolina to home
Strength training: 1 hour of total body
I was up and in the gym by 4:40 AM so I could fit in a strength training workout before hitting the road for home. After a long day on the road (almost 14 hours) with lots of stops for pictures as we left Great Smoky Mountains National Park (pictured in the first collage) and while on the Blue Ridge Parkway in North Carolina (pictured in the second collage), we made it home, exhausted. While my husband stayed up to watch our Hokies win in double overtime, I fell asleep instantly when my head hit the pillow.
Saturday
Cycling: 32 miles
• Bike: Life Fitness Lifecycle GX Spin
• Average speed: 16.4 MPH
• Surface: N/A
• Elevation gain: N/A
• Start time: 10:33 AM
• Location: basement
• Weather: 66° in the basement, 50° and partly cloudy outside
• What I wore: bike shorts and sports bra
Gardening: 30 minutes
After my ride I started a tiny bit of fall clean-up in my rock garden and finished the day by attending 5;30 PM mass. It was nice to be back at my home church.
Last Week’s Blog Posts
In case you skipped checking in on my blog this past weeks, here’s what you missed…
- • Sunday – Weekly RunDown: October 12 – 18 / Hiking and Leaf Peeping
- • Tuesday – Cycling Along the Bonneville Shoreline into Logan Canyon
Questions:
- • Have the leaves peaked where you live? ~ Our hickory tree leaves in our back yard are a brilliant yellow! The oaks are still green, but they usually change to a dull red and then brown. Most of the other trees have started dropping their leaves.
- • Have you ever seen a bear in the wild? ~ I had not until driving across the mountain near the farm three years ago when I saw a momma bear and two cubs along the road. Then last winter we saw a huge bear near the farm. This summer we saw six grizzlies in Montana and this past week we saw a black bear in Tennessee.
- • Which workout did you enjoy most this past week? ~ Thursday’s hike to see Abrams Falls was super fun.
And that’s my rundown… Have a great week!
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I’m linking up with Deborah at Confessions of a Mother Runner and Kim from Running on the Fly for their Weekly Run Down. Be sure to check out not only the hosts’ posts, but those of the other great bloggers joining in on the fun!
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What a fantastic trip, Debbie – even if the timing was a week late for the perfect colours!
I had to laugh at your “maybe grateful” line about skipping the bridge walk – I’d be right there with you. And you saw a bear! That alone makes it epic.
And I’m so impressed with your 4:40am wake-up and to the gym routine – that’s serious dedication!
Thanks, Catrina! The older I get, the more important strength training becomes to me.
How fun! I am just finishing up a photo book for my kids from our trip to New River Gorge NP this past year. I’m glad that the bridge walk tour decision was made for you 😉 We had an amazing clear day when we did the bridge walk. I’m not sure it would be half as good if the weather was not ideal! The most amount of bears that we have seen have been in the Smokies. We saw a ton of them! We drove right next to one while we were in town too (which made me sad because that bear should not have been there and was probably looking for a tasty garbage can to riffle through!).
I love that you make photo books after your national park trips. Your kids will cherish those for years to come. Wow on seeing so many bears in the Smokies!
Looks like another fab adventure for you too! Glad you caught some beautiful leaves and trees. I felt like our season here was not as vibrant as usual. Love all your adventures!
Thanks, Deborah! I agree, this has definitely been a less than stellar year for pretty fall leaves.
This is so, so beautiful. I’ve mentioned how I want to move away from Florida (eventually- it’s a five year plan at this point) and one of the places I have my eye on is Knoxville, TN. I would LOVE to be near mountains!!! Your photos are getting me excited to explore the area.
Planning a trip to see fall colors can be tricky- it’s hard to predict the weather and all the factors that go into it. You had some gorgeous scenery regardless- it looks amazing.
The Knoxville area is very pretty – you’ll have to get used to running hills, though!
Like you, the Garmin 50K Indoor Cycling badge was a nice surprise! Sadly, I’m not sure if it’ll ever happen again, as that’s a LONG ride inside, LOL (unless I have “virtual” company sometime?). Your trip sounds fabulous, and all the pics are beautiful. I’d be leery of spotting bears, and would definitely be taking any pics of them for inside a vehicle also.
I’ll have to tell you about that indoor cycling badge when we talk on Thursday! Yes, bears are better seen from the safety of a vehicle.
You saw some great views even without peak fall colors. Love the bear — from a distance!
I’m not sure I’d get up for a 4:40 am hotel gym workout, but I will think of you on my next road trip.
Yes, the scenery was beautiful and would have been even better with prettier leaves. I was super happy to see the bear. Apparently, we just missed another one later that same morning.
What a great trip! I’m so jealous and Amazed by the fact that you make photo books right away. I try to do one every year, but I always seem to save it for the last minute and have to pick a select few. I tend to wake up early to get in workouts too, but usually on vacation I don’t want to wake anyone up.
I believe you are confusing me making the photo books with the comment from Lisa. I would love to make photo books from our adventures, but haven’t so far…
LOve the leaf framing the bear. I feel like autumn is so hit or miss now, but hoping to catch some colors in the next week or so.
Thanks, Cari, that was just dumb luck capturing the bear with the leaves in the foreground.
What a beautiful trip! Great Smoky Mountains is on my list. To answer your questions, leaves are near peak where I live–not quite there yet. We’re in northern WIsconsin, and they are past peak, but still beautiful. And yes, I have seen a bear in the wild–on another trip up here in Wisconsin, a black bear, and once in Yellowstone, my sister and I saw a grizzly bear. So exciting!
It’s so cool seeing bears in their natural habitat, isn’t it?
Ok, now we’re talking! I’ve been to some of these places!
Everything is still green. Because it’s Florida, so of course it is.
Yes, I’ve seen bears in the wild. They are terrifying and beautiful, and I love them so much.
I had a really fun race on Sunday that was my favorite.
Do you have a graphic or a map where you are marking off all these parks? That would be so cool to see.
Awesome that you’ve been to some of the places we visited! I do enjoy reading recaps when I can visualize the place being discussed.
A couple of months ago I ordered the cutest wooden national parks wall map from Etsy. After visiting each park, we place an evergreen tree in the open spot. You can see it here.