So glad I had the extra day to scout the area. Cades Cove in Great Smokies NP, where they are holding an eclipse party, has only a one lane road in and out, and space for 2000 cars. They will close the road as soon as they reach that limit, and if you are not there in line by 5 AM, probably forget it. The road opens at 7. Oh, and there may not be a place to turn around for 14 miles once they close the road, and it may take 3-4 hours to get back to the entrance.
That led to Plan B. I scouted a small town nearby still in the path of totality and found a beautiful park in Maryville, TN with a perfect river setting to show off the eclipse. Left the condo at 6 AM just in case, and found ample parking in the shade under a tree when I got there at 7 AM. No fuss, no muss, no crowd. In the meantime, gonna hike a few miles around the park, watch a movie on my laptop, read a book, catch up on emails, and spend a relaxing no stress day.
The first picture is my only connection with Great Smoky NP, taken yesterday at the Visitor Center. I was the 3234th guy with the same questions according to the Ranger. He was joking, I'm sure, or was he????
Sent from my iPhone waiting for the Eclipse😎🌕🌖🌗🌘🌑🌒🌓🌔🌞
