Typology Central - View Single Post - The Great Smoky Mountains (extremely image-intensive thread)

spirilis · 06-30-2008, 03:53 AM

Wednesday
Mingo Falls
Located on the Cherokee reservation (Qualla), Mingo Falls is the tallest waterfall in the Great Smokies and probably one of the highest on the east coast.

US-441, North Carolina
The route from Cherokee to Clingman's Dome (around the center of the park). These are just road pictures for fun

On our way up to Clingman's Dome we encountered a rather nasty traffic jam, as traffic was blocked for miles due to maintenance workers trimming the trees at the side of the road. We turned around, got out of there, and waited until after 4PM for the trimming to stop (at the suggestion of the rangers at the Oconaluftee Visitor Center). On the 2nd try, the road was clear. There's a nice overlook along the road where you can see several layers worth of mountains in the distance. So beautiful.

PS, I totally took these road pics for Jeffster

Zoomed in a bit-

Clingman's Dome
Clingman's Dome is the highest summit within the Smokies, and is also the highest point within Tennessee. There is a big observation tower up top built in the 1960's where you can see the surrounding landscapes. Link: Clingmans Dome - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Supposedly you can see mountains from 5 states all around, probably on clearer days. There was a lot of haze in the atmosphere when we saw it. Hell I bet that's there all the time...
A big problem all around this region, including Mt. Mitchell too, is a european insect infestation which has been killing many of the evergreen trees near the summits. Balsam woolly adelgid is its name, it's a small insect around 1mm in length which attacks the evergreen Frasier Fir and Balsam Fir, and according to the wikipedia page, it's eradicated around 90-95% of the Fraiser Firs in the Great Smoky Mountains, creating some of the ghost forests you see in these pictures.

First, a weird sign-

Second, the walkway to the top-

Views from the top
Southern view-

Eastern view-

Attempting to zoom in on Mt. Mitchell (it's barely visible, but there as a subtle shade of blue-

zoomed out-

Northern view-

Western view-

More random views-

(I think Pigeon Forge, TN is visible in these-)

Miscellaneous signs down at the bottom of the trail (near the parking lot)-

06-30-2008, 03:53 AM	#6 (permalink)
spirilis Senior Membrane Join Date: Jul 2007 Type: InTP Location: Hanover, PA Posts: 2,122	Wednesday Mingo Falls Located on the Cherokee reservation (Qualla), Mingo Falls is the tallest waterfall in the Great Smokies and probably one of the highest on the east coast. US-441, North Carolina The route from Cherokee to Clingman's Dome (around the center of the park). These are just road pictures for fun On our way up to Clingman's Dome we encountered a rather nasty traffic jam, as traffic was blocked for miles due to maintenance workers trimming the trees at the side of the road. We turned around, got out of there, and waited until after 4PM for the trimming to stop (at the suggestion of the rangers at the Oconaluftee Visitor Center). On the 2nd try, the road was clear. There's a nice overlook along the road where you can see several layers worth of mountains in the distance. So beautiful. PS, I totally took these road pics for Jeffster Zoomed in a bit- Clingman's Dome Clingman's Dome is the highest summit within the Smokies, and is also the highest point within Tennessee. There is a big observation tower up top built in the 1960's where you can see the surrounding landscapes. Link: Clingmans Dome - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Supposedly you can see mountains from 5 states all around, probably on clearer days. There was a lot of haze in the atmosphere when we saw it. Hell I bet that's there all the time... A big problem all around this region, including Mt. Mitchell too, is a european insect infestation which has been killing many of the evergreen trees near the summits. Balsam woolly adelgid is its name, it's a small insect around 1mm in length which attacks the evergreen Frasier Fir and Balsam Fir, and according to the wikipedia page, it's eradicated around 90-95% of the Fraiser Firs in the Great Smoky Mountains, creating some of the ghost forests you see in these pictures. First, a weird sign- Second, the walkway to the top- Views from the top Southern view- Eastern view- Attempting to zoom in on Mt. Mitchell (it's barely visible, but there as a subtle shade of blue- zoomed out- Northern view- Western view- More random views- (I think Pigeon Forge, TN is visible in these-) Miscellaneous signs down at the bottom of the trail (near the parking lot)-