Do not expect this major artery connecting Cherokee North Carolina with Gatlinburg Tennessee to open early on the morning as more snowfall is expected as it will take a while for the national park service to get the ice and snow under control.
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Main Road in GSMNP Newfound Gap Road Closes again due to snow and ice
As quick as it opened US 441 Newfound Gap Road which runs through the heart of the Smoky Mountains was closed again to day due to icy and snowy conditions.
Do not expect this major artery connecting Cherokee North Carolina with Gatlinburg Tennessee to open early on the morning as more snowfall is expected as it will take a while for the national park service to get the ice and snow under control.
Do not expect this major artery connecting Cherokee North Carolina with Gatlinburg Tennessee to open early on the morning as more snowfall is expected as it will take a while for the national park service to get the ice and snow under control.
So what happens to hikers when the road gets closed while they are on the trails? And what about the LeConte folks coming down the mountain?
ReplyDeleteYou wait in your car or you hike out of the park. I keep a sleeping bag in the car all winter long.
ReplyDeleteOften I call off a trip or have cut one short when the weather turns. It's just not worth pushing it.
It is easier going up hill in the snow than getting back down and I figure if it is that rough in the park it will be just as hard or harder to get back up my mountain.
Last year I was almost at the Newfound Gap parking area from the TN side when my care started to slide backward down the mountain. I crawled/slid my way down through a u turn and crawled my way downhill.
By the time I got to Sugarlands they closed the gate behind me. I am sure the other cars in front of me and what were behind me never made it out for hours of for the night.
We have to watch the weather carefully Friday as Newfound Gap Road can be open and Clingmans Dome Road can be closed.
Bottom line, if the weather can get bad, stay in low elevations in the park and out of Cades Cove, Cataloochee, Lake Shore, and deep in Roaring Fork.
Tremont is safe as there are no hills to get in and out, the same for Sugarlands, Deep Creek and Cosby.
When it comes to driving on the park, better safe than sorry. the roads are the #1 killer in the park.