First, I will describe the campground. The best way to enjoy the cataloochee valley is if you are camping at the campsite, because then you will only have to make the trip from the interstate to the valley once. It is not a fun drive and it takes half an hour, so it is important to minimize the number of... More

From Gatlinburg, this was about a 2 hour drive on very twisty road. It was beautiful for sure but 2 of our kids got car sick (one episode of vomiting). Luckily, we were rewarded with the awesome site of Elk just off the road as we entered the valley. We got great pictures! We hiked the Boogerman trail (7.6 miles)... More

The extra drive was definitely worth it. You feel like you are away from it all. Outstanding views and wildlife. More

Love visiting the cabins and barns, and watching the elk is always fun! You might also see turkey while you are there. Autumn is the best time, especially in October, for seeing elk. More

This is a great place to view Elk! It is well out of the way, and the road in is very narrow and steep. Parts of it are dirt, and you often have to stop to allow larger vehicles (including campers and horse trailers) to pass going in the opposite direction. It does take 45 minutes or more to get... More

Don't let the long and curve drive stop you from visiting. Take a picnic and relax in the field at the of the valley road and enjoy the Elk as they wonder about. A great time to visit is in September when the bull's begin to bugle. This will be an all day event. Reaching the valley will take one... More

My husband, daughter, son-in-law and 2 grandchilden (ages 4 and 8) went in mid-October and I have to tell you, it was a bit of a scary ride on the unpaved road (only about 10 minutes), but with the leaves changing, at least we had something to take our minds off of that part of the trip. Once we got... More

We are a couple from Sweden. And despite of a somewhat choking car tour in the mountains due to the arrival - bring a good car for extreme hights - this (and the actually memorable way up to the village, I confess) will be a memory of a lifetime! We only saw the places available with car, but we loved... More

They closed most of the Park at same time as they had to spend the Stimulus money all at once but a very helpful Ranger suggested we go to Cataloochee , where we had a wonderful day including seeing a herd of elk at dusk. More