![]() ![]() I recently went camping in Cades Cove with some old buddies from college. You have to enter the 11-mile Cades Cove loop to get to the trail head, but there is plenty of parking there. We went on Thanksgiving Day and it got very busy as we were hiking out, so I can only imagine that it is very busy on weekends and summers, so I would recommend going early. There are many great places to stop along the trail and walk down by the stream. This is a longer trail (5 miles round trip) and it is steep near the waterfall, but very fun for kids too if they can take the distance. We saw so many families with younger children as we were hiking out. The trail there follows a stream for most of the hike and as you hike down the last piece of the trail you can hear the roaring waterfall ahead. It is cool to be able to get right beside a waterfall. This is a very nice waterfall and you can walk pretty safely out on the rocks beside the waterfall and take pictures. We were the first ones on the trail that morning but once we arrived at the waterfall the traffic definitely picked up. It is a very nice trail, with several tree bridges along the way. My husband and I went to Cades Cove around 7:00 AM on Thanksgiving to hike this trail. After driving the Loop, there was no way I would bike the Loop with children.The Cades Cove area is obviously a very popular area of the park. We decided at the last minute not to bring our bikes and just rent. With respect to bikes: we had originally planned to bike the loop with our 9 year olds. On the Loop, we saw coyote, turkey, deer, and two bears. The shop was cute and had everything you could possible need (with inflated prices). They also said to be very careful about not having food or toiletries in your tent. I didn't see any at the campsite, but the rangers warned us not to leave the trunk open when loading/unloading because that is when bears show up. Regarding bears: I was pretty freaked out. I would stay again, but I would also consider somewhere else more secluded having experienced Cades Cove already now. There were numerous bear safe trash bins and bathrooms with running water. Noise was not an issue for us during our weekend stay. The campground itself was fine - definitely crowded and you're close to your neighbors but I didn't feel like we were on top of them I just didn't feel like I was in a secluded, private outdoor area. We did two tours - one in the evening and one as soon as it opened at 8am (saw more wildlife at dusk than in the morning) and didn't find ourselves in much traffic at all (September 2020, weekend). This is the place to stay if you want easy access to the Loop. Masks are required to enter the store - we didn’t bring one since we were biking so had to run back to the car and grab ours.… Recommendations: bring water, get to the store earlier for a bike/non single speed bike, enjoy lunch from the store right after. ![]() We saw a mama bear and 3 Cubs hanging out in a tree over the road! I would highly recommend going on Wednesdays if the loop is still closed to cars when you go. The park was beautiful and this was such a wonderful way too see it. The 9 year olds did better than the adults :) we had to walk the bikes 5-8 times on the second half. The first half was a moderate ride but just a few big hills that the single speed bikes were hard to go up on, the second half was HARD. It took about 2.5 hours - we stopped at one house, one church, and the visitors center to check out the the mill. If you don’t get a bike, they put you on a waiting list and say it’s about 2.5-3 hours. We decided to walk from the overflow parking lot to the camp store and check it out anyway, they were low on bikes but we got the last 4 single speed bikes. We arrived to the park at about 8:10 and were told by one of the volunteers there to park that the bikes had been rented already. We didn’t camp but did rent bikes for the loop ride on a Wednesday morning, reviewing here since we rented from the campground store. Lopesan Costa Bavaro Resort Spa & Casino.Hotels near Metcalf Bottoms Picnic Area.Great Smoky Mountains National Park Campgrounds.Great Smoky Mountains National Park Pet Friendly Campgrounds.Popular Great Smoky Mountains National Park Categories.All Great Smoky Mountains National Park Hotels.Great Smoky Mountains National Park Travel Guide.Great Smoky Mountains National Park Map.Great Smoky Mountains National Park Photos.Great Smoky Mountains National Park Travel Forum.Things to Do in Great Smoky Mountains National Park.Restaurants near Great Smoky Mountains National Park.Flights to Great Smoky Mountains National Park.Great Smoky Mountains National Park Vacation Rentals.Great Smoky Mountains National Park Hotels. ![]() Great Smoky Mountains National Park Tourism. ![]()
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