February 8, 2021

Good morning folks,

Its another fine morning on everyone’s favorite mountain. The high yesterday reached 28 degrees. Our overnight low dipped down to 9 degrees. It’s currently 25 degrees with light winds. We received 0.07” of precipitation and 1” of new snow. The current snow depth is 12” with much deeper areas from winds racing through camp. Traction is most certainly needed in the lower sections of trails due to the freeze/thaw cycle as well as the amount of foot traffic on trail. US Hwy. 441 still remains closed which is day 9 of being not accessible. Remember, today is the start of the Alum Cave foot log projects. The trail remains closed with no access Monday-Thursday from February 8-25. Presidents Day is next Monday and the trail will remain open. Trails crews will be working to replace the foot logs that stretch across the creeks at Arch Rock and at Styx Branch. The parking area for Alum will be completely coned off and the bridge at the beginning of Alum Cave trail will be barricaded so there shouldn’t be anyone accessing the trail. These foot logs are staples to the Smokies trails. With fine craftsmanship from our local trail crew these projects are a true work of art! If you see your Smokies Trail Crew out working remember to give them a huge Thank You for the hard work they put in on the trails. Looking ahead into the forecast. Warmer temperatures with abundant sunshine before rain chances move in on Thursday. There is still plenty of snow up top folks. Come on up and enjoy the beauty that I witness and admire each day. . Have a great day folks. See you at the top!


The morning began with heavy snowfall amounting to quite a bit very fast. With 8” of snow already on the ground we ended up with a total of 12” once the snow stopped falling in camp. Heavy foot prints were covered by daylight as well as the LeConte Tubing lane. Mid afternoon skies cleared with bright blue skies and heavily frosted Firs. The back drop with blue and fresh snow is a spectacular day for pictures. The day progressed with warmer temps but drastically dropped on the trek to Cliff Tops for sunset. The golden light casting through the Firs with a heavy glow on the trunks coated in white made me stop and admire the evening. The blue and green hues towards Thunderhead and Gregory’s Bald in the Cades Cove section seemed so far away. The sunset had rich tangerine color after it went down. The walk back to camp High Top looked like it had a cotton candy backdrop. And who doesn’t like cotton candy...? It was a fantastic day spent on the mountain folks. What’s in store in for today. Stay tuned.

​PNUT