Clingman's Dome, the highest point in the Smoky Mountains. We arrived at the Clingman's Dome Visitors Center in shorts & t-shirts. It was 55 degrees, 20+ degrees cooler than our campsite when we left. We had 700 feet to climb before reaching the summit. Scoured the truck to find a construction worker's coat and a men's XL rain jacket. My kids now have Great Smoky Mountains sweatshirts. Not the cheapest souvenir we could have purchased... ANYWAY...
The climb, while paved, is not for the faint of heart. I saw and heard others panting and needing breaks along the way. While we were walking up the mountain, we were very much up in the clouds. When we reached the pinnacle, we were in a cloud. The pictures I have are of us in a cloud. When we got back down to parking lot level, we were treated with breathtaking views of the mountains of North Carolina. I took a picture of my kids sorta reenacting the opening scene of The Sound of Music with Julie Andrews (LOVE that movie! I happened to read Forever Liesl by Charmian Carr on the trip).
Since Newfound Gap was on our way back down the mountain, we stopped there, too. I got pictures of us at the Tennessee/North Carolina state line. The Appalachian Trail also crosses right there and Husband spent about a week hiking the Appalachian Trail when he was in college. We got pictures with that sign, too.
You know, I'm staring at the picture I've put in this post, still just mesmerized by the beauty.
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