Walland to Chilhowee - Foothills Parkway - Great Smoky Mountains National Park

One afternoon during the second week of November 2020, we took a scenic drive on the western-most segment of the Foothills Parkway between Walland and Chilhowee Reservoir in eastern Tennessee. The parkway is part of Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

Smoke from a prescribed burn in Cades Cove

There is no entrance fee at Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

The park website is https://www.nps.gov/grsm/index.htm.

Wears Valley to Walland - Foothills Parkway - Great Smoky Mountains National Park

Leaving the Metcalf Bottoms picnic area on our scenic drive, we exited Great Smoky Mountains National Park via Wear Cove Gap Road. Just outside the park boundary, the road changes names to Line Springs Road. From the bridge over the Little River north to the US 321 intersection in Wears Valley is only 2.7 miles. Turning right on US 321, we drove another 0.8 miles to the Wears Valley entrance to the Foothills Parkway. This new section of the parkway opened in November 2018 and connects to the section from US 321 in Walland to US 129 at Chilhowee Lake that opened 52 years earlier in 1966. The Foothills Parkway is part of Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

The new section is 14.7 miles long and has over a dozen pullouts. Most of the pullouts provide scenic views, but a few seem to be solely for slower traffic to allow others to pass. The only named pullout is Caylor Gap Overlook which has parking on both sides of the road. We drove this section of the parkway in late October 2019.

There is no entrance fee at Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

The park website is https://www.nps.gov/grsm/index.htm.

Look Rock Trail - Foothills Parkway - Great Smoky Mountains National Park

 

We hiked the one-mile roundtrip, paved trail to the Look Rock Tower in late October 2019. The trailhead is located on the Foothills Parkway (West) in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The parking area for Look Rock is located at mile marker 7.3 as measured from the Chilhowee or Southwest Entrance. Paved parking is provided for over 50 passenger vehicles and includes three accessible spots. From the parking area, follow the sidewalk northeast to the crosswalk on the parkway. The trail climbs about 180 feet from the crosswalk, giving an average grade of about 6%. 

Crosswalk

Typical trail conditions for the lower section

Still plenty of green at the end of October

A few reds and golds

Turn left onto the one-lane road and keep climbing

Pass the Look Rock Air Quality Station

Typical upper trail conditions

Approaching the ramp to the observation tower

Look Rock Tower

Murray Gap and Chilhowee Mountain

Maryville, Alcoa, and the Great Valley with the Cumberland Plateau on the horizon

Thunderhead Mountain

Devils Tater Patch

Another view of Thunderhead Mountain

Gregory Bald

There is no entrance fee at Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

The park website is https://www.nps.gov/grsm/index.htm.

Walland to Look Rock - Foothills Parkway - Great Smoky Mountains National Park

Continuing our late October 2019 trip to Great Smoky Mountains National Park, we drove the scenic Foothills Parkway from Walland, Tennessee west to Look Rock.

There is no entrance fee at Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

The park website is https://www.nps.gov/grsm/index.htm.