The mountains are bursting with color. Chris and I went for a hike with some of the crew yesterday. We went a little ways down the Boulevard Trail. It took a while because I kept stopping at every corner to check out the amazing colors. The mountain ash berries are fire engine red. The mountain side looks like a patch work quilt made out of mountain ash berries. They are a brilliant red at the moment. The temperatures are dropping. The high yesterday was 53º with another low of 26º.  I found some evidence of the cold nights while hiking on the north slope of the Boulevard trail.

Seventeen guests were able to make the trek and enjoy the mountain over night. We saw a few day hikers as well. I am sure they enjoyed the beautiful hike up. The leaves seem to be at their peak color from the Alum Cave parking lot to the bluffs. I would predict the lower elevations are going to start seeing the best colors in the next couple of weeks. The temperatures are are not too bad for this time of year. The high yesterday was 57º with a low of 42º. We are currently experiencing sporadic rain showers. It is looking like this weekend is going to be a great time to get out and play in the woods. Hope you will come up and see us.

We made it back up the mountain. We are officially open for now. The way it stands, the states of Tennessee, North Carolina, and Sevier and Blount counties have agreed to pay for the park to be open through Sunday. If you have any questions in regard to reservations after Sunday, please call our reservation office at 865-429-5704.

It was great hiking back up today. The leaves are at their peak in the higher elevations. It is gorgeous. There were a few day hikers making their way up the mountain. Everyone seemed to be super excited to be out and on the trails.

We are back to posting our daily posts, I just ask one thing. Please keep all political comments to other forums. We would like to keep the comments to LeConte related information. I will delete any comments that do not fit that guide line. I think we all agree, this site is best when we are all getting a long and sharing our thoughts and favorite stories about our favorite mountain. Thanks and Happy Hiking.

Thanks to funding from Tennessee and North Carolina and Tennessee counties Sevier and Blount, the Great Smoky Mountains National Park will be able to re-open. The funding is only for a five day period from Wednesday, October 16 through Sunday, October 20. 

LeConte Lodge will host overnight guests from Wednesday, October 16 through Sunday, October 20. During this time period the Lodge welcomes all day hikers. Souvenirs and day hiker services will be available.  

We hope that the Federal Government shutdown will end during this time period.

Please call the reservation office at 865-429-5704 between 8 and 5 EDT, Monday-Friday to check on possible cancellations and availability during this time period.

What's Open                                                          Newfound Gap Road (U.S. 441) between Gatlinburg and Cherokee
 The overlook at Newfound Gap including restroom facility

 

Most of the scenic overlooks


 The Gatlinburg Bypass between the north side of Gatlinburg and Great Smoky Mountains National Park


 "The Spur" between Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg


 Great Smoky Mountains Association Visitor Centers outside the park as follows:

 

Gatlinburg Welcome Center
520 Parkway
Gatlinburg, TN

 

Townsend Welcome Center
7906 E Lamar Alexander Pkwy
Townsend, TN

   Sevier County Visitor Center
3099 Winfield Dunn Parkway
Kodak, TN  

 

What's Closed  

All hiking and horse trails
 All roads except those mentioned above
 All campgrounds
 All picnic Areas
 Cades Cove, Cataloochee, Clingmans Dome, Cosby, Big Creek, Greenbrier, Balsam Mountain, The Mountain Farm Museum, etc.
 All visitor centers
 All restrooms (except Newfound Gap)
 Historic grist mills
 The Foothills Parkway East and West
 LeConte Lodge
 All horse stables
 All horse camps
 All streams are closed to fishing
 Appalachian Trail shelters      "We ask that the public voluntarily respect the closure of the backcountry for everyone's safety," said Chief Ranger Clay Jordan.  "With less staff on duty, we do not have the personnel on hand to sufficiently respond to emergency situations in the backcountry.  We understand the desire of visitors to hike during this beautiful time of year and we are hopeful that the park will soon reopen." 
For more information about road closures, please call 865-436-1200.


Legislative Contacts   

Below is a list of legislative contacts for those who wish to voice their concerns about the closing of the park.  Hopefully, this matter will be resolved quickly.
List of Contacts                                                              US Senator Lamar Alexander 425 Dirksen Senate Office Building Washington, DC 20510 (202) 224-4944 Contact by Email                                                                              US Senator Bob Corker 425 Dirksen Senate Office Building Washington, DC 20510 (202) 224-3344 Contact by Email                                                                       Congressman Phil Roe Morristown Office: 1609 College Park Drive, Suite 4 Morristown, TN 37813 Phone: (423) 254-1400 (202) 225-6356 Contact by Email
Congressman Jimmy Duncan Maryville Office: 331 Court Street Maryville, TN 37804 Phone: (865) 984-5464 Contact by Email                                                                     The White House 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW Washington, DC 20500 Comments: (202) 456-1111 Switchboard: (202) 456-1414 www.WhiteHouse.gov  


courtesy of Pigeon Forge Chamber of Commerce

LeConte Lodge will reopen immediately following a resolution to the budget issue.

Due to the Federal Government Shutdown, all national parks throughout the country are closed. LeConte Lodge is closed, as we operate within  the Great Smoky Mountain Park boundary.  No overnight or day hiker  services will be available  during this time.  The lodge will reopen as
soon as the United States  government finalizes the spending plan, and authorizes the Department of  Interior to reopen the national parks. All guests holding overnight  reservations during the time the Lodge is closed  will have an opportunity to have a credit issued for the 2014 season  or receive a full refund within 30 days of their reservation date. We  sincerely apologize for the
inconvenience and thank you for your  understanding, as this matter is out of our control. 
 
Reservations for the 2014 season will continue to be taken during the shutdown.

Additional information as it becomes available will be posted on our website. If you have any questions, please call the LeConte office at 865/429-5704.


The High On LeConte blog will not be operating until the
Park is back up and operating. We will post as soon as we get receive official word to reopen our doors.