The Great Smoky Mountains Parkway runs 23.5 miles (37.8 km) from Interstate 40 at exit 407 in Sevierville, Tennessee, south to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. It traverses much of Sevier County, passing through the major tourism centers of Sevierville, Pigeon Forge, and Gatlinburg. It comprises the entirety of Tennessee State Route 448 and the southern segment of Tennessee State Route 66 as well as portions of U.S. Route 441/Tennessee State Route 71 and U.S. Route 321/Tennessee State Route 73.
The road is simply called "Parkway" in Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg, where most of the commercial land development has occurred in those two cities. Both have numbered each traffic light sequentially to make it easier for non-locals to find their hotels and other tourist attractions. Sevierville has its traffic lights numbered in miles and tenths, according to the mileage from the national park boundary.
Within the towns, the road is decorated with Christmas lights all winter. As a six-lane divided highway through Pigeon Forge, very tall multi-fixture street lights in the median are decorated with white LED snowflakes that "fall" down the poles. In Gatlinburg, white LED deciduous trees sprout from the lampposts, in addition to other displays, such as the large one that stretches across the road at the town's northern entrance. In Sevierville, the traditional and much brighter snowflake light sculptures are still in use.
From Pigeon Forge to Gatlinburg, it is a divided highway, running on either side of the northward-flowing Little Pigeon River. Where the river briefly diverts to the west and back east again, the southbound roadway on the west bank also curves around, while the northbound lanes go through a tunnel. The Gatlinburg visitor center is located just before entering the town from the north. The Gatlinburg Bypass, officially part of the Foothills Parkway, intersects the Great Smoky Mountains Parkway on each side of the town.
In Sevierville the Parkway has an east branch and a west branch, as well as a spur in both directions along U.S. Route 411.
Other articles related to "mountains":
... The Victory Mountains (72°40′S 168°00′E / 72.667°S 168°E / -72.667 168) is a major group of mountains in Victoria Land, Antarctica, about 160 kilometres (99 mi ... The division between these mountains and the Concord Mountains (to the NW) is less precise but apparently lies in the vicinity of Thomson Peak ... A Ross Sea aspect of the mountains was first obtained by early British expeditions of Ross, Borchgrevink, Scott and Shackleton ...
... Ika can be found in the names of places surrounded by mountains or located in foothills ta can mean "land" ... Ikata could therefore be "a place by the mountains" ... In the Ainu language, ika means "to pass through the mountains and cross the land" ...
... The mountains of the Northern Caucasus contain many other popular ski resorts, like Dombay in Karachay–Cherkessia ... waters and is surrounded by taiga-covered mountains ... geysers, Karelia with its many lakes and granite rocks, Altai with its snowy mountains and Tyva with its wild steppes ...
Famous quotes containing the words smoky and/or mountains:
“In vain thou kindlest all thy smoky fire,
For virtue hath this better lesson taught,
Within myself to seek my only hire,
Desiring nought but how to kill desire.”
—Sir Philip Sidney (1554–1586)
“Wachusett hides its lingering voice
Within its rocky heart,
And Allegheny graves its tone
Throughout his lofty chart.
Monadnock, on his forehead hoar,
Doth seal the sacred trust,
Your mountains build their monument,
Though ye destroy their dust.”
—Lydia Huntley Sigourney (1791–1865)