The Smoky Mountains are part of the Appalachian mountains which pass through Tennessee and North Carolina.

The Smoky Mountain winters are mild and the summers are hot and humid.

There are a variety of adventures and vacation attractions in the Smoky Mountains. There is the theme park Dollywood, and River Rafting in the mountain rivers as well as the production of the Trail of Tears in Cherokee North Carolina. Historic towns such as Townsend are available for tours. While towns such as Gatlinburg, Sevierville and Pigeon Forge provide a variety of activities to fill your days and nights.

The elevations in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park range from 800 feet to 6,643 feet and can affect the temperature based on the elevation differences.

In the mid to late 1800's european settlers began to move into the mountain of Tennessee. They settled in the fertile lowlands and created self contained communities like Cades Cove. The latecomers that were forced into the highlands were known as Hardscrabble farmers.These farmers grew crops of corn on the rocky slopes and infertile valleys. They too formed communities and an example of this life is at Roaring Fork.

Both types of farming communities harnessed power from the rapid moving streams and rivers to turn the grinding stones that ground the corn into mill. This provided a means to being self sufficient as well as earning a living by grinding for those that had no mills of their own.

The Southern Appalachian people have kept and handed down through the generations their pioneer spirit, arts, crafts, and music.The Cities and towns of the Smoky Mountains are where they have chosen to share their heritage with tourists from all over the World.

Dollywood The Theme Park Owned by Dolly Parton located in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee

Ripleys Aquarium of the Smokies Ripley's has several attractions located in Gatlinburg including Ripley's Believe it or not museum.

Cades Cove, Tennessee is where you can take a step back in time and see how life really was for the first settlers in these mountains.