tagged w/ Smokey Mountain National Park
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When visiting Cades Cove as well as other parts of the Great Smoky Mountain National Park, be sure not to approach any of the wildlife too closely. GSMNP officials prohibit crowding, harassing and feeding wildlife in any part of the park. This they do to preserve a safe environment for the animals as well as a safe vacation for the Smokies tourists.
As a rule of thumb, if your presence in Cades Cove is altering an animals behavior, you are too close to that animal. This is never truer than when viewing the Smoky Mountain Black Bear. The Smokies bears are NOT pets, trained bears or well fed zoo animals. They are wild and only come out of their hiding places when they are hungry. Though park bears may appear cute and cuddly, even friendly at times, they also are capable of acting with aggression with lightning speed. Smoky Mountain black bears are omnivores eating mainly plant material, but they also eat animals and on rare occasions humans. Given the number of visitors to the Great Smoky Mountain National Park bear injuries are rare however bear related injuries do occur every year in the Great Smoky Mountain National Park. Given that fact and coupled with the recent bear related death in the park, it is wise to enjoy the bears briefly if you see them but watch from a safe distance or from the safety of your car. The woman who was recently killed by a mother bear and cub was found to have pictures to the offending bears in her camera. So again, enjoy the animals in Cades Cove and take comfort that they rarely attack humans, but at the same time respect their wildness and neither crowd nor feed them.When visiting Cades Cove as well as other parts of the Great Smoky Mountain National... more
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I went on a trip to the Smokey Mountains this past weekend. We had intended on making an early start that day, but did not get to the park until about 4 pm. With an overcast sky, drizzling rain, and fog it seemed that it may have been a bad day for a visit. However, after photos and videos along the way, we made it to Cades Cove at 7 o'clock that evening. Most everyone had left the Cades Cove area except for very few. We took our time and spotted deer and were occupied for some time making photos and videos of the wildlife. Before we could make it into the loop drive very much at all, darkness was upon us as fog rolled in from all around. We came upon this church which was used years ago by the settlers of that time and a graveyard where they were buried. I began to photo and video the church and graveyard as darkness grew upon us. I had to lighten the photos to get much view at all. There are unexplainable lights in the trees to the left as you see the video portion in the graveyard. A chilling wind blows and I sense someone is watching me. After entering the church, I immediately began hearing some odd sounds to the left side of the pews. There was an eerie feeling that a presence was in the church. Cold chills as I had never felt before were upon me. After exiting the church and viewing the front of the church there were moving shadows in the bell tower. One person with me became so scared, they demanded we leave the area at once. As soon as we left that area and drove on down the road on the Cades Cove Loop, I spotted three large wild black hogs just off the road. The experience was quiet startling and the fog became even worse as blackness engulfed us within the blankets of trees.I went on a trip to the Smokey Mountains this past weekend. We had intended on making... more
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Great Smoky Mountains National Park is one of the most pristine natural areas in the East. A tour through the park offers visitors breathtaking mountain scenery, including panoramic views, rushing mountain streams, and mature hardwood forests stretching to the horizon.
In the Smokies high country, over 85" of rain falls on average each year, feeding over 2,100 miles of rushing mountain streams and rivers that flow through the park. The park abounds with the two ingredients essential for waterfalls—water and an elevation gradient. Waterfalls dot the waterways throughout the park, attracting over 200,00 visitors each year to the park's better known falls.Great Smoky Mountains National Park is one of the most pristine natural areas in the... more
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I visited the Smokey Mountain National Park once again on yesterday October 17, 2009. This time we did not go up the mountain tops, but lingered around the foothills. On our way to Cades Cove, we stopped at this very beautiful waterfall sight. It is not a huge drop in elevation, but, it proves to be a very populated point of interest and you can see why.I visited the Smokey Mountain National Park once again on yesterday October 17, 2009.... more
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Have you ever seen a flower, a bug, a tree, a weed, a garden, an animal, or a human-being come to life, or sustain life without the existance of water? The answer is no. Anything, if to maintain life, must by all means, have water to live.
The human body is 75% water. Should we lose water, then we lose our existance.Have you ever seen a flower, a bug, a tree, a weed, a garden, an animal, or a... more
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