From Routine to Remarkable
Last week, I found myself in a peculiar situation in the middle of Great Smoky Mountains National Park. I was photographing elk when one started walking my way. At first, it was a couple hundred feet in the distance but it started picking up speed. And before I knew it, this elk was within feet of me despite my backpedaling to the safety of the Jeep. At the time, I didn’t realize it but this one unexpected moment was just one of many in a memorable trip to the mountains of North Carolina.
The Great Smoky Mountains would not have been my top choice for national parks to visit. When I started looking for places to take a quick camping trip, I searched for spots within a couple of hours of Atlanta that could offer some remoteness and potential for wildlife viewing. National Parks are usually my go-to choice, but when you live in the Southeast, the options are limited, unless you want to visit the mosquito-infested swamps of Congaree. So when I ultimately decided to visit a lesser-traveled portion of Great Smoky Mountain National Park, I did not have high expectations.
Unexpected Adventures
After driving the long, winding road through the mountains and into Cataloochee Valley, I was pleasantly surprised with the remoteness this portion of the park had to offer. The roads were tight and there were far fewer people than what I had previously experienced along the section of the park the lies along US-441. And while my campsite was full, it was quiet and deeply embedded in the forest — a perfect place for my overwhelmed mind.
After arriving, I started setting up camp and preparing to make dinner. That is when I ran into my first obstacle — none of my lighters made the trip with me. To complicate matters even further, the use of outside firewood was prohibited to prevent invasive insects from getting into the environment. Luckily for me, an unexpected encounter with my camp neighbor led me to a lighter and some dead trees suitable for firewood. So I gathered the wood, made a fire, and enjoyed a relaxing evening under the stars before getting some rest prior to the morning's main event — wildlife viewing.
One of the things I was looking forward to most about this trip was the possibility of getting some great photos of elk in the park. It was the primary reason I chose Cataloochee Valley as my destination. So despite only getting a few hours of sleep, I was filled with anticipation when I woke up the next morning and headed straight to the valley. Within moments I was among dozens of elk. But it was not long before things took an interesting turn.
As I rode along the main roadway, I would stop and hop out of the Jeep to take a few shots of elk off in the distance. The elk were all around, but for the most part, they were grazing in the tall grasses of the valley until they decided they were done, at which point they would cross the roadway and head up the hill into the mountains. But one particularly photogenic elk decided to approach me head-on.
I was obviously a bit startled at the distance being closed, so I began backpedaling towards the Jeep to maintain a safe distance. There was only one problem — the elk was moving faster than I was. At one point, it was within ten feet... way too close. After I reached the Jeep, it finally decided to leave me alone and head back up the mountain with the rest of the pack. This would not be my last wildlife encounter.
During my single day within the park, I came across turkeys, much larger elk and even a black bear. Even though these encounters were not nearly as eventful as the one with the elk in the valley, they were all unexpected, suprisingly enhancing my park experience.
The Great Smoky Mountains offered much more than I expected. As I continued to explore, I found myself in constant awe. The wildlife was magnificent, the views lovely, and the people quite kind.
To cap the entire experience off, I rode over to US-441 where the road was teeming with elk. Since I hadn’t quite learned my lesson from my previous close encounter, I got out and started taking pictures again. Only this time, when I returned to my vehicle, I found another unexpected surprise — a rubber duck left by a fellow Jeeper.
Exceeding Expectations
I have been to the Great Smoky Mountain National Park nearly a dozen times in the past. So when I set out on this trip, I tempered my expectations. Why would I expect to have more than a routine experience, right?
But when I got to my destination, the experience was anything but routine. From close encounters with elk to surprising a black bear, and capping it all off with a Jeep 'ducking', the unexpected moments turned my routine trip into an amazing adventure. Maybe the true gift of this trip is a lesson — Embrace the Unexpected.
