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Great Smoky Mountains National Park

Visitation Decline at Great Smoky Mountains National Park Has Area Businesses, Residents, and Governments Worried

Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the busiest of the flagship National Parks, reports 5% lower visitation at its main entrances and anticipates 250,000 fewer visitors this year. The related decline in visitor-based income and tax revenues has area businesses, employees, and governments fretting.

Sky-High Ginseng Prices Boost Illegal Harvest in Blue Ridge Parkway and Great Smoky Mountains National Park

With ginseng fetching record high prices, illegal harvesting has increased in Blue Ridge Parkway and Great Smoky Mountains National Park. This is a serious federal crime. Convicted ginseng poachers get hefty fines and jail time.

Vets To Determine Whether Bear That Attacked Father and Son in Great Smoky Mountains National Park Had Rabies

Veterinarians at the University of Tennessee are performing a necropsy on a black bear that attacked a boy and his father in Great Smoky Mountains National Park to determine whether the bruin had rabies or some other health problem.

Traveler's Picks for Where to Get Wet in the National Park System

We definitely are in the dog days of summer. In Great Smoky Mountains National Park the temperature's been well into the 90s, and with the high humidity, well, you really do need to find a place to cool off. With that understood, here are Traveler's Top Picks for where to get wet in the National Park System.*

Why You Should Not Store Food in Your Car at Great Smoky Mountains National Park

Travel to just about any park with black bears and you'll either be handed information or see signs clearly detailing how to protect yourself and your belongings in bear country. While the accompanying video of a bear breaking into a car at Great Smoky Mountains National Park is nine years old, it could have been taken yesterday.

Rainbow Falls, Great Smoky Mountains National Park

The Rainbow Falls Trail is a long-time favorite in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. In fact, it's thought to be the first route that led to the top of Mount LeConte. Found off the Cherokee Orchard Road just beyond downtown Gatlinburg, the Rainbow Falls Trail follows, and occasional hopscotches, LeConte Creek on the way to the 80-foot waterfall.

Kurt Repanshek
www.nps.gov/grsm

There’s a New National Park Service Website for Visitors with Disabilities or Special Needs

The National Park Service has launched a website for visitors with disabilities or other special needs. It’s a great new way to find information about accessible trails, vistas, programs, activities, and educational opportunities at the national parks.

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The easiest way to explore RV-friendly National Park campgrounds.

The Essential RVing Guide to the National Parks

Here’s the definitive guide to National Park System campgrounds where RVers can park their rigs.

Our app is packed with RVing- specific details on more than 250 campgrounds in more than 70 national parks.

You’ll also find stories about RVing in the parks, tips helpful if you’ve just recently become an RVer, and useful planning suggestions.

The Essential RVing Guide to the National Parks

FREE for iPhones and Android phones.