great smoky mountains – Inside Townsend

Fall Colors in Townsend

The mornings are getting a bit cooler, football is beginning to creep back into everyone’s daily lives, and school’s starting back. If these all signal the onset of Fall to you, well you’re like many others in East Tennessee. And with autumn comes Fall colors. If you’re in the Great Smoky Mountains, you’re probably beginning to wonder about the fall colors and when the leaves will start changing in Townsend, as well as Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge, Sevierville and the surrounding areas.

The mornings are getting a bit cooler, football is beginning to creep back into everyone’s daily lives, and school’s starting back. If these all signal the onset of Fall to you, well you’re like many others in East Tennessee. And with autumn comes Fall colors. If you’re in the Great Smoky Mountains, you’re probably beginning to wonder about the fall colors and when the leaves will start changing in Townsend, as well as Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge, Sevierville and the surrounding areas.

Thankfully, this summer has not been extremely dry, and though there have been some hot days, it seems like prevalent conditions could produce a vibrant autumn season. In all, the Great Smokey Mountains National Park consists of 100’s of species of deciduous trees in a variety of elevations. What this means is that, no matter the summer conditions, there will still be an abundant amount of color to see since weather varies throughout… there is no such thing as a “bad” fall in the Smoky Mountains!

Once cooler weather starts to prevail, then leaves will start changing color at a more rapid rate. It starts off in the higher elevations with a number of tree species. Once you get to around mid- October, you’ll see mostly golden yellow colors mixed with some orange, and a hint of red. These colors will descend down the mountains into the valley as the vibrant reds slowly catch up and start to mix with the oranges, browns, and yellows. If cold weather sets in during these months, the colors will peak in the mountains and valley around the last week of October and into early November.

I’d highly suggest keeping track of the official Great Smoky Mountains National Park website to follow the fall foliage changing color. They even have a page dedicated to fall foliage at: http://www.nps.gov/grsm/planyourvisit/fallcolor.htm.

Also, take a look at their webcams:

http://www2.nature.nps.gov/air/WebCams/parks/grsmcam/grsmcam.cfm

http://www2.nature.nps.gov/air/WebCams/parks/grsmpkcam/grsmpkcam.cfm

Finally, be sure to check out the Park’s tips for fall hiking and scenic drives: http://www.nps.gov/grsm/planyourvisit/fall-suggestions.htm

Once again, the best time to see the fall colors in Townsend, Sevierville, Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge will be the last week of October and into early November. This is my favorite time of the year in the Great Smoky Mountains…I hope you enjoy it as much as the locals do!

Staying in a Smoky Mountain or Townsend Cabin for the first time?

So you have made your reservations and you are going to be staying in a cabin in the Smokies for the first time. You went online or you called a reservationist, you picked the cabin that had all the amenities that you wanted, you got the right number of bedrooms and you are packing the car to head to the Great Smoky Mountains for the best vacation of your life. So the question is: What do you bring, or what do you need to pick up for your week long stay in a cabin?

First things first, you are going to have a full kitchen in the cabin. This is completely different than staying in a hotel room. That first night you get in, you are not going to want to go to the store before you get to the cabin and settle in for the night. Bring enough food to cook breakfast for the next morning. Your vacation rental will have a refrigerator; bring the items that you need for breakfast without fear that they will spoil overnight. If you have the room, bring your food for the whole week and save that shopping trip the next day. Either way, remember this is one of the reasons that you got the cabin in the first place. Being able to cook some of your meals will save you money and bring your family closer together then eating out every meal while you are on vacation.

Another reason that you chose a cabin was for the entertainment that the amenities provide. If you got a cabin that has a theater room or a large screen TV, make sure that you bring movies with you to watch. If your cabin has a hot tub (most of them do) or a pool, bring extra towels for the many trips to the hot tub or pool that you will take. The cabin rental companies do provide towels in the cabins but you will find yourself washing all the time to keep up with the demand that a pool might put on the towels in the cabin.

And speaking of laundry and cleaning, most rental companies will provide a starter set of laundry detergent, dishwashing soap and dishwasher detergent. If you are staying for a week or more you are going to want to either bring some cleaning supplies with you or you are going to want to pick some up while you are in the area. As previously said, you will have towels but just like at home, unless you want to use the same one all week, you are going to wash at some point. If you have kids with you, there will be accidents and you will wash at some point. Also, before you leave the cabin, the rental company is going to ask you to leave it like you found it before you check out, so having some cleaning supplies is a good idea. Bring them with you or pick them up while you are out having fun in the area.

Remember that in a cabin you are staying in a home and there is no maid service like in a hotel. You are going to want to pick up after yourself and come prepared to have a good time while you stay in the Smokies. Stock up on food, bring plenty of movies to watch on the numerous TVs that are in most cabins, and bring extra towels if you are going to use the hot tub a lot and some cleaning supplies are a must. Making sure you have what you need when you stay in a cabin will make your vacation to the Great Smoky Mountains area that much more fun.

Troutfest 2012

Townsend plays host to another big festival in May (19 & 20), this time welcoming anglers of all ages to Troutfest 2012 – a flyfishing expo/fundraiser. Troutfest organizers say they expect another big crowd this year, upwards of 4,000 attendees.

The Great Smoky Mountains National Park Fisheries Department, Friends of the Smokies Fisheries Scholarship Fund or other youth educational conservation projects all benefit from the money raised through Troutfest. This year, the event looks to be one of the largest held for fly anglers in the Southeast United States.

Throughout the weekend, some of the best fly tyers from the region will be demonstrating their skill and imparting their knowledge on flyfishing. Demonstrations are FREE and the tyers specialize in flies for bass, panfish, saltwater, and trout. Get up close and talk with such notable fly tyers as Mike Adams, Walter Babb, Ray Ball, Troy Basso, Jack Gregory, Rex Wilson, and more.

Notables including Lefty Kreh, Bob Clouser, Jason Borger, Zach Matthews as well as other fly fishermen will be featured in free seminars both days. This is a great chance to meet and talk shop with a few of the legends in the sport.

All the year’s new fishing gear will be prominently displayed as national fly tackle manufacturers will be on hand in Troutfest’s national exhibition tent.

Also on hand in the exhibition tent will be local and national fly shops, artists, non-profit organizations and government fish and game agencies including Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

The Little River Chapter of Trout Unlimited puts on Troutfest every year. The Chapter entity provides funding with other sponsors to underwrite this event. The Chapter holds all funds and disperses profits to Great Smoky Mountains National Park Fisheries Department and Friends of Great Smokies National Park Fisheries Scholarship Fund. Profits will be also be used for youth education fishery programs. Some funds will be retained as seed money for next year’s Troutfest.

Many of the volunteers are LRCTU members but many more come from other non-profit organizations such as other TU Chapters, The Fly Fishing Federation and individuals who are not connected with non-profit organizations. You do not need to be a TU member to volunteer or participate. All donations are tax deductible.

Troutfest 2012 in Townsend, Tn will be held on the grounds of the Townsend Visitors Center.

Townsend Visitors Center
7906 East Lamar Alexander Parkway
Townsend, TN
37882
865-448-6134