Clingmans Dome

After we left Cades Cove we headed to Cligmans Dome.

This is where we ate supper.

Spectacular view and we hadn't made the hike to the top yet.

Chip bag expansion from the change in pressure from going up the mountain. 

This is the half-mile trail to the top of Clingmans Dome.

It's steep.

Three hundred plus foot change in elevation steep.

It's so steep they don't allow wheelchairs or bikes.

It's so steep this flat-lander felt like we were climbing a ladder.

The view from one of the many stops we made to the top.

That's the parking lot below.

Beginning to see the observation tower.

Clingmans Dome is the highest mountain in Tennessee.

It's the third tallest mountain east of the Mississippi.

Mount Mitchell is taller by 41 feet, but it's hike to the top is less brutal!

The ramp to the top is not for those who have issues with heights.

It's not that wide and takes a 360 degree loop which ends at the observation tower.

Connor taking pictures from the tower.

The boys walked up with Dan, while Dwayne and I took our time to the top.

Nolan is not so fond of the altitude.

It started to bother me about half-way up.

Thankfully it wasn't that cloudy.

The temperature was a bit chilly though.

It can be as much as twenty degrees colder at the top.

The views can speak for themselves.

Just a tad chilly.

Going down was much easier.

The Appalachian Trail crosses this mountain.

By the time we got back to the parking lot the clouds rolled in and the temperature dropped.

 

The mountains were no longer visible. :(

Just before we loaded back into the car, Connor's loose tooth finally came out.

How many kids can say they lost a tooth in the highest place in Tennessee?