Here is why this national park trail is closed most days of the week

Spreading across the border of Tennessee and South Carolina, the Great Smoky Mountains has for many years been the country’s most-visited national park in large part due to the diversity of its plant and animal life.

Species native to the Southern Appalachia region that visitors can find in their native environment include everything from turkeys and raccoons to white-tailed deer, black bears and mountain goats.

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A common way to see all these animals in their natural environment as well as waterfalls and many different types of plant life is the Ramsay Cascades Trail. Spanning eight miles round-trip and nearly 2,200 feet in elevation, it is a moderately strenuous trail that is one of the park’s most popular. The presence of many trees, bushes and shrubs also means it can become a tripping hazard if not regularly upkept.

There are only a few days when you’ll be able to visit this Great Smoky Mountains trail

But as of April 15, this trail is closed to visitors Monday through Thursday as park authorities complete necessary rehabilitation work. Until mid-November, those who want to hike it will have to do so on Friday or the weekend as well as the few federal holidays during the next six months (the National Park Service chose to keep it open during those popular visitor days.)

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“Trail crews will repair tread surfaces, improve drainages, construct trail structures such as staircases, turnpikes, and retaining walls and remove trip hazards like exposed roots and rocks,” the NPS said in a statement. “The rehabilitation will improve overall trail safety and protect the park’s natural resources.”

The restoration is part of the Trails Forever program that the NPS launched to spread out work that needs to be done in the park. The restricted visitor schedule for the Rocky Cascades trail will be in place until Nov. 14 but will only affect weekdays; May 3 to 5 is the only weekend the trail will be closed as those dates have been set aside for replacing a footlog bridge along the path.

‘Significant flooding and storm damage…’

This type of closure schedule was the best way for the NPS to not shut the trail down completely and leave some days during which visitors to the park during the busy summer period can go on what is one of its most popular trails.

While the Ramsay Cascades is a beloved trail due to the waterfall, Great Smoky Mountains has at least 150 different trails across more than 520,000 acres as well as 10 full-service campgrounds and more than 100 backcountry campsites.

Unlike many other national parks across the country, Great Smoky Mountains does not have an entry fee but does charge extra for parking and camping which is another particularly popular activity in the park.

“Significant flooding and storm damage caused the NPS to close the trail completely for several months in 2022 and early 2023,” the NPS said further in the statement. “Trail crews rerouted 200 feet of trail, built and installed a new footlog bridge and built four new trail structures damaged by the flood.”