When and Where Will You Find The Best Leaf Color in the Smokies This Fall?

It's the most often-asked question from people planning an Autumn trip to the Great Smoky Mountains — "When will the color peak?" The truth is, with the wide variety of trees, elevations and microclimates in the Smokies, our leaf season lasts for months. Of course, Mother Nature does not publish a schedule, and no two years are exactly alike. However, we usually begin to see color at the highest elevations, above 5000 feet, in late September. Yet at the foot of the mountains, along the Nantahala and Tuckaseigee rivers, the hardwoods usually wait until the end of October. Depending on weather and temperature, we've sometimes had our best color in November, lasting almost up to Thanksgiving. Just be comforted with the knowledge that no matter when you visit the Smokies in the Fall, you should be able to find beautiful leaf color. You just may have to get in your car to find it. And there's no better time of the year to enjoy our scenic roadways — to the Clingmans Dome at the peak of the Park; along the southern section of the Blue Ridge Parkway, with its dramatic changes in elevation; or just to explore the many scenic backroads throughout the area.   VISIT OUR COMPANION SITE This week's "Postcards From The Smokies is about Virginia Hill's special day in the Bryson City - Nantahala area. To receive Postcards by email, enter your email address   Please add "Postcards@GreatSmokies.com" to your email address book to insure delivery. Preview | Powered by FeedBlitz

ABC's Good Morning America Features the Deal's Gap 'Dragon' A "Weekend Adventure" segment on "Good Morning America" featured the Deals Gap "Dragon," a section of Western North Carolina highway that's popular with motorcycle riders. The section of U.S. Hwy. 129 has more than 30 turns per mile. Host Bill Weir drove a North Carolina-made Indian Motorcycle along the famed highway, and interviewed Dale Walksler, curator of the Wheels Through Time motorcycle museum in Maggie Valley, about what makes the mountains such a great place to ride motorcycles. View the segment. Big Brothers Big Sisters Raffle You Could Own a Vacation Log Cabin in the Smokies WIth Just a $100 Ticket Big Brothers Big Sisters of Western North Carolina is raffling off a new log cabin in the Smoky Mountains near Bryson City. Raffle tickets are just $100 and can be purchased on a special website, LogCabinRaffle.org. The deadline for purchasing tickets is October 7, 2010. Proceeds will benefit Big Brothers Big Sisters of Western North Carolina in its continued effort to recruit, screen, train and support caring adults who want to make a difference in the life of a child. Anniversary year The Blue Ridge Parkway Celebrates 75 Years As The Nation's Favorite Backroad The 469-mile-long Parkway began in the 1930s as a Depression-era public works project and was more than a half-century in the making. It was the nation's first, and ultimately longest, rural parkway, connecting Shenandoah National Park in Virginia with the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in North Carolina. The anniversary year kicked off in November with special events, including this one in Cherokee. For more info, visit the official 75th anniversary website.

Things To Do in the Smokies

Upcoming Events in the North Carolina Smokies

Ongoing Entertainment - Click here for more info about music and entertainment in Western North Carolina.

Music: Heaven Seekers, 9/11, Bryson City Train Depot; Dr. Ralph Stanley (9/17) and the Del McCoury Band (9/18) at Smoky Mtn. Arts Center, Franklin; and Crosby, Stills & Nash , 9/18 at Harrah's Casino.

Fri-Sun, September 10-12. Cherokee Survivors Motorcycle Rally at the Fairgrounds.

In the weeks ahead... Southeastern Tribes Cultural Celebration in Cherokee (Sept. 17-19), Mountain Life Festival at the Mountain Farm Museum Sept. 18), and Railfest in Bryson City (Sept. 18-19). Check the Events Calendar on this page for more information on these events.

Bryson City in Books, Music & film

Bryson City — Better Known Than You Might Have Thought

Bryson City and the North Carolina Smokies have been connected with numerous books, films and songs. One of our best-known authors was Horace Kephart, whose "Our Southern Highlanders" focused national attention on the Great Smoky Mountains. And much of the "The Fugitive" starring Harrison Ford was filmed in and around Bryson City. More about Bryson City in Books, Film and Music.

Recommended By The National Media

Charlotte Observer picked Bryson City as a Great Town to Walk. "Here's a picture-perfect place...Main Street is impeccably groomed, a flat and easy walk - and the horizon holds breathtaking mountain views."

The book "101 Best Outdoor Towns" named Bryson City the nation's third best whitewater paddling town. "If you can't find something exciting to do in Bryson City, you're not breathing," it says.

Paddler Magazine named Bryson City one of the "best paddling towns" in the US. Along with the multiple spots for great paddling, they focus on Tsali mountain bike trails, area adventure races and canoe camping on Fontana Lake.

Request Your Copy of the 2010 Bryson City - Great Smokies Vacation Planner

The Chamber of Commerce is now filling orders for the free 80-page Bryson City – Swain County – Great Smoky Mountains Vacation Planner for 2010.

You can request your own copy here. And if you'd like, you can also request information from area businesses and sign up for our monthly newsletter of upcoming events in the North Carolina Smokies.

As an option, you may also download a PDF of the 80-page Visitors Guide (13 MB)