Each year, a suggested theme presents which sector of mountainous gratitude to celebrate. Peace, climate change and freshwater are a few chosen themes of previous years, and this year promotes mountain products to spark …show more content…
As the most visited National Park in North America with over 2 million people visiting each year, doubling the average of any other park’s guests in the USA (possibly because admission is free!), endless adventures entertain explorers of all ages such as the 550 trails adept for horseback riders, Cades Cove - a popular valley with pioneer homesteads, hiking trails and an old mill, and Clingman’s Dome, the highest peak reaching 6,643 feet.
Clingman’s Dome does not stand alone as a mighty mountain – 16 mountains reach over a whopping 6,000 feet! However, Clingman’s Dome holds the most popular and for good reason; on a clear day, the short, vertical hike to the precipice of the dome provides a 360 degree view of SEVEN states! The name ‘Clingman’s Dome’ came about in 1858, when North Carolina Senator Thomas Lanier Clingman helped measure the peak.
On the topic of names, the Great Smoky Mountains earned its title due to the heavy, blue fog sifting atop the mountains after a penetrating rainfall and in dewy mornings. The plentiful leaves of the Smoky’s breathe in carbon dioxide, exuding misty gleams of oxygen and energizing the