These pictures are some of my favorites from a Memorial Day, 2013, afternoon drive along the Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail. Although there were many vehicles and lots of people, it was very easy to find locations for beautiful pictures without crowds by walking just a few feet away from the road. Most of these pictures were taken while standing on the pavement at a parking pullout and all of them were taken within forty feet of the pavement, so almost anyone can enjoy these views in person. From the Parkway (U.S. 441) in Gatlinburg, turn at traffic light #8 onto Airport Road and follow it as it becomes Cherokee Orchard Road and then enters the national park. Once on the one-way loop portion of Cherokee Orchard, turn right onto the one-lane, one-way Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail. A left turn at the end of the motor trail onto Roaring Fork Road will bring you back to Gatlinburg on East Parkway (U.S. 321).
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| Shadows and light on the mountains |
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| Multiple ridges |
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| Rocky Spur Branch (on right) flows into Roaring Fork |
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| Roaring Fork |
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| White water on Roaring Fork |
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| Water flows between, over and around rocks, but always rushes down |
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| Place of a Thousand Drips |
The park website is http://www.nps.gov/grsm/index.htm.