Smokey Mountains Trip in April- May.

April 19 & 20 is free entrance into National Parks (for those parks that have an entrance fee)

If you are going to enjoy the mountains, and not for shopping, Townsend is the place for you. We have been going there almost every year since 1972. For a suggestion, drive the loop at Cades Cove, then start around for a second trip. This time turn right on Rich Mountain Road. This is a beautiful drive back to Townsend. We have seen bear on this drive many times.

Be aware of the Synchronous fireflies event that normally occurs during the month of June but since the whole world is upsidedown now it may come in May - who knows. This brings a bunch of traffic headaches into this area.

Just something to check on - you actually might want to witness this event first hand if you have never seen it before... The week long Synchronous fireflies event is located at the ELKMONT Camp ground inside the Natl Park each year around the June time frame.

We always stay at ELKMONT Camp (NO HOOKUPS), or TREMONT RESORT in Townsend, or RIVEREDGE in Pigeon Forge. Prefer the peaceful side of camping in the Townsend TN in this area. Of course we also like the on-goings of both Gatlingburg and Pigeon Forge but getting away from it is priceless haha

Roy Ken

Tremont Outdoor Resort is our favorite campground. It is in Townsend, TN, which is considered the "Peaceful Side of the Smokies". It is away from the tourist towns and borders the National Park. It's only 7 or 8 miles to Cade's Cove, which is a "must see" if you are in the area. Google it. We go there every day when we are in the area. Lots and lots of wildlife to see. There is a nice campground at Cade's Cove, but there are no hookups.

http://www.tremontcamp.com

For your stay in the Nashville area, Seven Points is a COE campground on J. Percy Priest Lake.

Thanks for the correction, I will sure look at the info, had not thought to do a search there.

If you do a search of this forum with the key words "Smoky Mountains" and "Gatlinburg", you'll pull up a boatload of suggestions.

Factoid: It's spelled Smoky Mountains not "Smokey". Yep, I've spelled it wrong too. In this case the wrong spelling for 'smokey' is the right spelling for the park.