Spring has come to the Mountains!

After a Winter that was here, then not here, then here again, Spring has finally arrived.  Cataloochee Ski Area has closed for the season, but the Summer visitors are not here yet.  This is a great time to be in the mountains.  Wild flowers are starting to bloom with the arrival of Spring.  The crowds and traffic are light this time of year.

I was asked to speak about my favorite wildflower trail.  This time of year, that would be an easy choice, although there are many from which to choose.  My favorite this time of year would be Porters Creek Trail, in the Greenbrier section of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, just north of Gatlinburg (a little over 3 miles) off highway 321.  There are beautiful flowers all along this trail.  Dwarf Crested Iris, Bloodroot, Hepaticas, White Fringed Phacelia (shown in the picture above), Violets, Trillium, and others.  About 2 miles up the trail is a 60 foot waterfall, Fern Branch Falls.   Most of the trail follows Porters Creek, a beautiful, rushing mountain creek strewn with boulders.  This is probably the most prolific wild flower trail in the park for April.

Another trail I like from late April into May is the Big Creek Trail that begins at the Big Creek Campground in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.  To get to this trail, take I-40 from Waynesville west toward Tennessee.  As soon as you cross the line into Tennessee, it is the first exit.  Take exit 451, turn left across I-40, then left again at the bottom of the hill.  Follow the river up to the Waterville Power Plant, then on into the national park to the Big Creek Campground.  Park there, and take the trail that begins near the campground restrooms, then goes up the hill to meet the main trail.  This is an easy trail, with loads of Trilliums just past the campground.  The trail follows on the right side of the creek all the way up to and past Mouse Creek Falls on the left.  About a mile and a half up the trail, there is a large swimming hole in the creek called Midnight Hole.  I have seen lots of trout swimming in this hole, and fished for them to no avail.  They are extremely wary.  About a half mile past Midnight Hole, look for a horse hitching post on the left.  Just past the hitching post you will find Mouse Creek Falls on the opposite bank.  This water fall seems to emerge from the forest and feeds into Big Creek.  This is a nice spot for lunch.  If you are really into hiking, about 3 miles past Mouse Creek Falls, you will come to Walnut Bottoms.  There you should find lots of Spring wild flowers.

Happy hiking, and be sure to take your camera.