Clingman's Dome
Summit elevation: 6643 feet
Distance: 0.5 mile one way
Elevation gain: 340 feet
Date: April 30, 2014
Clingman's Dome is the highest point in Tennessee (the summit is on the North Carolina border) as well as Great Smoky Mountains National Park. It is also the third highest point in the eastern United States (Mount Mitchell and Mount Craig in North Carolina are higher). Getting to the summit is fairly easy since a road goes from Newfound Gap to a parking area below the summit at an elevation of 6300 feet. A half mile long paved path gains 340 feet of in elevation as it goes from the parking lot to a 45-foot tall observation tower on the summit.
When I made the walk to the summit the mountain was enshrouded in clouds with some occasional light rain, and the temperature was in the 50s. Thus there were no views from the observation tower, and fewer than ten other people made the walk to the summit while I was there. However, there was a black bear just down the road from the parking lot.
© Copyright 2017 Matthew Pintar. All rights reserved.
Distance: 0.5 mile one way
Elevation gain: 340 feet
Date: April 30, 2014
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| The observation tower on the summit |
Clingman's Dome is the highest point in Tennessee (the summit is on the North Carolina border) as well as Great Smoky Mountains National Park. It is also the third highest point in the eastern United States (Mount Mitchell and Mount Craig in North Carolina are higher). Getting to the summit is fairly easy since a road goes from Newfound Gap to a parking area below the summit at an elevation of 6300 feet. A half mile long paved path gains 340 feet of in elevation as it goes from the parking lot to a 45-foot tall observation tower on the summit.
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| The view from the summit |
When I made the walk to the summit the mountain was enshrouded in clouds with some occasional light rain, and the temperature was in the 50s. Thus there were no views from the observation tower, and fewer than ten other people made the walk to the summit while I was there. However, there was a black bear just down the road from the parking lot.
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| The path from the parking lot to the summit |
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| The Appalachian Trail on the summit |
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| Observation tower on the summit |
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| Black bear |
© Copyright 2017 Matthew Pintar. All rights reserved.
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