If You Go
At 6,593 feet, Mount LeConte is the third highest peak in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, behind Clingmans Dome at 6,643 feet and Mount Guyot at 6,621 feet. But of those three, Mount LeConte is the only one entirely in Tennessee; the others straddle the Tennessee/North Carolina state line.
If you've never climbed Mount LeConte, just southeast of Gatlinburg, I recommend adding it to your bucket list.
It epitomizes all the goodness of living in eastern Tennessee - exhilarating views, fresh mountain air, an opportunity to slow down and enjoy an incredible journey, and an escape from the breakneck pace of modern society.
There are five trails that most folks follow to the top, all long and moderately steep in places and all requiring the climber to be in reasonable physical condition. Most people take the 5.5-mile Alum Cave trail, the shortest but steepest. Bullhead, Rainbow Falls and Trillium (used by llamas to bring food up for overnighting guests) are between 6.5 and 7 miles with trailheads near Gatlinburg. The longest trail is Boulevard at 8 miles, which includes over 2 miles on the well-traversed Appalachian Trail.
All offer incredible views into steep mountain gorges, beautiful foliage and tall rocky ledges, as well as the joyful bubbling sounds of tumbling streams and the sweet fresh balsam aroma of dense fir forests.
Hiking on the mountain can be nothing more than a day trip, but to make it truly memorable, try to include an overnight stay at LeConte Lodge. Thousands of people climb LeConte every year, but only about one-fourth of them spend the night.
To get a cabin at the lodge, however, you'll have to plan far in advance. It's open from March 23 through Nov. 24, but all individual cabins are booked for 2015. And if you haven't already put yourself on the wait list, it's too late for this year, although there may be cancellations, so call the lodge office at 865-429-5704 or visit its website at lecontelodge.com.
Arriving at the lodge after my hike, my back aches from what seemed like a light pack five hours earlier. It is a great relief to take off my hiking shoes, but my legs still burn from the use of muscles not accustomed to clambering over rocks on a steep hillside. We are welcomed with a cool glass of lemonade and shown to our cabins, where we stow our gear and receive instruction for using our kerosene lanterns since there is no electricity atop Mount LeConte.
Dinner is delightful since we all burned far more than our daily recommended calorie intake and have no guilt as we happily ingest delicious roast beef, mashed potatoes, green beans, fried apples and cornbread followed by fruit cobbler. During dinner, everyone compares notes on the different trails and the experiences they had on the way up. Although our group is from all over the country, there are no strangers at the dinner tables and the mood is very upbeat.
After dinner, a short 10-minute hike takes me to Cliff Tops, near the very top and western side of the mountain. At 6,593 feet, La Conte is the third highest peak in the Smokies, so nothing blocks my view of the setting sun. The view is indescribable. I've seen it three times, and each time the effect is similar. It is so beautiful that I almost breath it as much as watch it. I want to capture it in my memory so I can recall it later, but I know it is too glorious and fleeting to recall in detail.
While watching the sunset, none of my fellow revelers speak aloud. Each person seems lost in his or her inner thoughts. As the sun sinks lower, the brilliant colors - pinks, reds, oranges, and purples - change their hues gradually, and dark shadows seep into a thousand valleys and ridges below me, each one becoming more distinct as the sun sinks slowly into the western sky. It is a sight too wonderful for me to put into words. I come away feeling as close to my Creator as if I just left a very moving worship service.
Back at the lodge, I join other travelers who watched the nightfall from the comfort of the many rocking chairs around the lodge and cabins. We are winding down, our senses sated from the sights, sounds, smells and tastes of the eventful day not to mention the effects of thin air and tired muscles. We crawl into our bunk beds and are soon in a deep, joyous sleep.
I wake at "0-dark-thirty" and quietly tug on warm clothes, grab my flashlight and hike 20 minutes to Myrtle Point on the east side of the mountain. An outcropping of rocks affords a fabulous view of the rising sun over the long, parallel ridges of the Smokies that blend into the hilly Piedmont of central North Carolina. The sunset of the previous evening was special, but the sunrise is equally spectacular.
Low stratus clouds are blowing rapidly atop the ridge immediately to the east of us and the red sunlight through the rolling clouds gives the appearance of billows of fire tumbling across the purple mountaintops, gradually removing the dark veil of night from the hollows below. A cool fresh breeze whispers through the nearby pines. It is as beautiful as any scene I've ever witnessed.
I return to the lodge to enjoy a breakfast every bit as good and hearty as the dinner previously. In addition to eggs, bacon, grits and gravy, they serve "cat head" biscuits (as big as a cat's head) that are incredibly delicious with warm apple butter.
We pack our gear, say goodbye to our new friends and hike down, definitely easier, but still strenuous. Our arrival at the end of the Boulevard Trail is an exhilarating event for all.
In the words of Julius Caesar, " Vini, vidi, vici!" We came, we saw, we conquered. But I'll bet he didn't have to take as much Advil as I did afterwards.
Lodge History
LeConte Lodge has no electricity, so everyone gets a kerosene lamp.LeConte Lodge itself is quite a story. It was the brain child of Jack Huff, who built the lodge in 1926. He and his wife, Pauline, who were married in a sunrise service on Myrtle Point, operated the lodge until 1960. Today it is managed by Stokely Hospitality Enterprises as a consignment for the National Park Service.
There are several cabins accommodating various numbers of guests, a dining room, restrooms and a large lodge room with games, memorabilia and journals of hikers and photos from days gone by. One man memorialized on the lodge wall recorded over 1,300 trips to the top of LeConte.
There's a photo of founder Jack Huff, whose mother wanted to see what it was like up there, so Jack strapped her into a straight-back chair, strapped it to his back and up the mountain they went. There's another journal of a lady who hiked the mountain many times even after she discovered she was dying of cancer. Her journal and her inspirational words describe beautiful scenes that became even more special as her days grew fewer are humbling.