Great Smoky Mountains National Park was the first World Heritage Site I visited, part of a family vacation when I was six. I have fond memories of the trip and the blue-grey mist over the mountains, but much time has passed since then, so I decided to revisit the park in the summer of 2016 while on a road trip to Atlanta, Georgia. The park is a wonderful encapsulation of Appalachian culture, with small settlements and mills scattered throughout the forest. There are many other similar state and national parks throughout the Appalachian Mountains, but Great Smoky Mountains (and likely its family-oriented gateway towns) retains a mythos that continues to draw vacationers from all over the East Coast of the United States. During my visit, I toured an old farmstead off the Roaring Fork loop road and hiked up to scenic Grotto Falls, an easy and beautiful trail. I later traversed the park via Newfound Gap, which offered memorable viewpoints of the surrounding mountains. I also drove up to Clingman's Dome, the highest point in the park, to take in the views from the observation tower. The Great Smokies are definitely worth a visit (be sure to allow time for hikes), and, if one has extra time, I'd also recommend visiting some of the other parks in the Appalachian Mountains.

Logistics: An automobile is necessary to travel to the many trailheads in the park, but from there the Great Smokies are a hiker's paradise.