Great Smoky Mountains NP roads, campground remain closed, others open after 85 mph winds

Ryley Ober, Asheville Citizen Times
·2 min read
Park crews cut trees in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park after a high wind event overnight March 26 caused multiple road closures, some still in effect March 27.
Park crews cut trees in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park after a high wind event overnight March 26 caused multiple road closures, some still in effect March 27.

Some roads in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park have opened while many remain closed March 27 after a recent high wind event caused trees to fall over roads and trails.

Wind gusts peaking at 85 mph in the national park early in the morning March 26 resulted in the closure of 10 roads while crews began to clear trees and debris. Four roads and parts of others have since opened, including Little River Road, the Gatlinburg Bypass, Wears Gap Road and U.S. 441 or Newfound Gap Road, the main road connecting Cherokee in North Carolina to Gatlinburg, Tennessee.

Park crews clear trees and debris on Cades Cove Loop Road, which remains closed March 27 after a recent high wind event.
Park crews clear trees and debris on Cades Cove Loop Road, which remains closed March 27 after a recent high wind event.

A "significant number of trees" fell across Laurel Creek Road, Cades Cove Loop Road, and at Cades Cove Campground, which remain closed March 27, according to a news release from the park.

"The roads and campground are closed to all public access, including walking and biking," the release said. "Crews estimate it could take a few days to clear trees and debris before it is safe to reopen those areas."

More: Death of child in Great Smoky Mountains campground was 11th tree fall fatality in park

Downed trees are seen blocking Loop Road in the Great Smokies March 27 after a high wind event overnight March 26.
Downed trees are seen blocking Loop Road in the Great Smokies March 27 after a high wind event overnight March 26.

Some buildings and vehicles were damaged in the high wind event, but no injuries were reported, according to the release.

Great Smokies closures as of 10:30 a.m. March 27 include the following:

  • Cades Cove Campground

  • Cades Cove Loop Road

  • Laurel Creek Road

  • Greenbrier Road at the ranger station

  • Upper Tremont Road

  • Cherokee Orchard Road at the park boundary

  • Foothills Parkway West between Look Rock and US 129

Updates will be posted on the park’s website and social media.

In July 2022 a large red maple tree fell in the Elkmont Campground in the Smokies, a few miles south of Gatlinburg, Tennessee, killing a 7-year-old girl from Georgia, according to the National Park Service.

The park has said the tree was 2 feet in diameter but has released few other details about the tragedy, including the age and health of the tree and whether it was known to have been weakened in some way or whether other trees in the campground are at risk of falling. The child's death was the 11th known death by tree fall in the park's history, according to previous Citizen Times reporting.

The Great Smokies cover more than a half-million acres of heavily forested, rugged terrain sweeping across the border of Western North Carolina and Eastern Tennessee. It is the most-visited national park, with 13.3 million visitors in 2023, who come for the stunning mountain scenery, hiking trails, waterfalls, backpacking, fishing, and camping among other pursuits.

More: 7-year-old girl killed in Great Smoky Mountains National Park when tree falls on tent

Ryley Ober is the Public Safety Reporter for Asheville Citizen Times, part of the USA Today Network. Email her at [email protected] and follow her on Twitter @ryleyober

This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Great Smoky Mountains National Park road closures, openings March 27

  • Up next
  • Up next
  • Up next
  • Up next
  • Up next
  • Up next
  • Up next