Cades Cove Loop Road
Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Tennessee · 1,712 ft
An 11-mile one-way loop around a valley floor at about 1,700 feet, with log cabins, the John Oliver place and split-rail fence lines running against the ridge wall. Because the cove sits so low it peaks late, often two weeks behind Newfound Gap directly uphill.
Typical peak
Oct 21 – Oct 29
Long range. Treat as a planning estimate only.
Best light
Best at sunrise
Crowds
extreme
Gridlocked at peak weekends. Go on a weekday, or be there an hour before light.
Getting there
Enter the one-way Cades Cove Loop Road at the end of Laurel Creek Road, about seven miles west of Townsend off TN 73.
What turns here
- sugar maple
- tulip poplar
- black gum
Color progression
Typical peak Oct 25Typical color progression for Cades Cove Loop Road. No change from Sep 17 to Oct 4. First color from Oct 4 to Oct 13. Approaching peak from Oct 13 to Oct 21. Peak from Oct 21 to Oct 29. Past peak from Oct 29 to Nov 8. Bare from Nov 8 to Nov 22.
Color starts around Oct 4.
Light at peak
Cades Cove Loop Road on October 25, the day it typically peaks. Knowing when color arrives is one thing. Knowing where the sun will be is another.
| Event | Time |
|---|---|
| First light (blue hour) Sun 6° below horizon | 7:24 AM |
| Sunrise Rises ESE · 104° | 7:50 AM |
| Morning golden hour ends 35 min of low, warm light | 8:25 AM |
| Solar noon Highest sun, flattest light | 1:19 PM |
| Evening golden hour starts 35 min before sunset | 6:13 PM |
| Sunset Sets WSW · 256° | 6:48 PM |
| Last light (blue hour) Sun 6° below horizon | 7:14 PM |
Times in America/New York · day length 10h 58m · computed from NOAA solar equations
Which way to point the camera
Sun rises ESE, sets WSW.
Aim within 45° of those and the canopy glows translucent. Turn your back to them for flat, accurate color.
Location pages name the light directly.
Shooting conditions
Glassy water, wind blur, and what the cloud will do to your light.
Recent reports
What people actually saw here. Been recently? Add yours.