Great Smoky Mountain Annual Festival Of Christmas Past
Great Smoky Mountain Annual Festival Of Christmas Past Saturday, December 14, 2019. The event will be held at Sugarlands Visitor Center beginning at 9:30 a.m. until 3:00 p.m.
This event is family friendly so make plans to bring your entire bunch. Many activities are planned including mountain skills demonstrations, Christmas caroling, shape note singing, live traditional mountain music, and a fascinating living history walking tour. Park staff and visitors have developed a unique, immersive experience allowing you to make a journey through different holiday traditions from the last century. These traditions will be displayed in exhibits of hand made decorations, Christmas toys and more! Hot apple cider will be available to take the chill off your bones so come thirsty!
“This year we wanted to connect our visitors to Christmas through the decades with the creative vision and talent of our staff, volunteers, and local decorators Barry Phillips and Tracie Story,” said North District Resource Education Supervisor Stephanie Sutton. “The Festival of Christmas Past allows us to pause and remember some of these valuable holiday traditions.”
The ‘Christmas Memories Walk’ will begin at 1:00 p.m. Costumed interpreters will bring the history of the Smokies to life shining light on significant moments leading to the park’s establishment.
Program Schedule:
9:30 a.m. – 10:30 a.m. Traditional Shape Note Singing
11:00 a.m. – 12:00 noon Music by Boogertown Gap
12:00 noon – 1:00 p.m. Music by the Lost Mill String Band
1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m. Smoky Mountain Historical Society
1:00 p.m. – 2:30 p.m. Christmas Memories Walk
2:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. Music by Mike and Kathy Gwinn
Sugarlands Visitor Center is located on Newfound Gap Road, two miles south of Gatlinburg, TN. For more information, call the visitor center at 865-436-1291.
Great Smoky Mountains Music Of The Mountains Event
Great Smoky Mountains Music Of The Mountains Event will be held Saturday, September 7, 2019 from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. This fun, free family event will feature traditional mountain music, sing alongs, storytelling and clogging.
HeySmokies’ friends Boogertown Gap will be performing in a must see performance. Boogertown will also be demonstrating how to play not so everyday instruments of Appalachia like wash tubs, spoons and wash boards. Plan on trying your had at making music with them at the “instrument petting zoo” between 11:30 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. Children will have a chance to show their creativity making their very own instruments.
“We are excited to host some of the best and most knowledgeable musicians, dancers, and storytellers for a day of fun and hands-on education,” said Stephanie Sutton, Supervisory Park Ranger.
Free Smoky Mountain Ranger Events
Find all the free Smoky Mountain Ranger events on the HeySmokies.com daily events calendar!
Free Smoky Mountain Ranger Events occur each day all summer long. 2019 is the perfect year to enjoy some quality time with a ranger in Great Smoky Mountains National Park! All the free events can be found on our HeySmokies.com daily events and special events calendars year round! Your favorite places in the Smoky Mountain like Sugarlands, Cades Cove, Elkmont, Oconaluftee and Cataloochee all offer fun and informative ranger events that the entire family will enjoy.
Bring out the Junior ranger in yourself and your kids with a fun program like Stream Splashers. This is your chance to get wet and wild with a ranger.
You won’t have to guess what all those crazy critters are that you find in our cool, clear mountain streams. Tadpoles, salamanders and more slimy things than you can shake a stick at are waiting to be discovered.
Got a hankerin’ to do some hammerin’? Regular blacksmithing demonstrations will introduce you to the ways of the anvil. Cades Cove blacksmith shop will be stoking the fires and creating useful tools and decorative works of art. Once the blacksmith was an integral part of every community forging everything from nails to build homes to horseshoes to keep the farms and mountain commerce moving. Discover the mysterious art of working metal.
Ranger campfire talks are your chance to discover secrets of the Smoky Mountains. Topics discussed are bear safety, what kind of snakes and reptiles inhabit the park, what is an elk rut and much more! Kick back and relax under the stars with a cozy fire burning bright and let your imagination run wild through the hills!
Cades Cove Car Ban
Cades Cove car ban is under way.
Cades Cove Car Ban began May 2019. Cades Cove Loop Road will be closed to motor vehicles from sunrise until 10:00 a.m. on both Wednesday and Saturday mornings to allow bicyclists, runners, and walkers time to enjoy the cove without having to worry about heavy traffic. This special experience on the 11-mile paved loop road will last until late September.
During the season, bicycles can be rented at the Cades Cove Campground Store. For
pricing info, give them a call at 865.448.9034. Of course, you can bring your own bikes and helmets to enjoy the scenic ride through this historic landscape. Be mindful that Tennessee law requires cyclists under the age of 16 to wear a helmet. HeySmokies and the GSMNP recommend anyone of any age wear protective head gear…just sayin’!
You won’t find any mountain biking trails within the interior of Great Smoky Mountains National Park. There are only 3 trails in the National Park that allow bicycles:
-
Gatlinburg Trail
Begins at Sugarlands Visitor Center and travels 1.9 miles one-way toward the outskirts of Gatlinburg along the West Prong of the Little Pigeon River. Leashed pets are allowed on this trail.
-
Oconaluftee River Trail
Begins at Oconaluftee Visitor Center and travels 1.5 miles one-way toward the outskirts of Cherokee along the Oconaluftee River. Leashed pets are allowed on this trail.
-
Deep Creek and Indian Creek Trails
From the Deep Creek Campground, cyclists can access both Deep Creek and Indian Creek Trails. Bicycles areProng of the Little Pigeon River. Leashed pets are allowed on this trail. allowed on both trails until the point where the old roadbed ends and the hiking trails begin. Pets are not allowed on this trail.
-
Bicycles are allowed on most roads in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, so drivers need to be alert of cyclists when driving through the park. Due to the narrow, steep, curvy conditions of park roads the HeySmokies cycling team recommends avoiding biking park roads in the interest of the safety of all park visitors.
Bonus Biking Tip! – Tsali Recreation Area has over 40 miles of mountain bike trails with varying degrees of difficulty. Tsali is located on the Southern border of Great Smoky Mountains National Park on the southern shore of Fontana Lake near Bryson City, North Carolina.
