Appalachian Trail By State - Tennessee

Tennessee

Counties crossed: Blount County → Sevier County → Cocke County → Greene County → Unicoi County → Carter County (where it leaves the North Carolina border) → Johnson County → Sullivan County

Tennessee has 287.9 miles (463.3 km) of the trail, including more than 200 miles (325 km) along or near the North Carolina border. The section that runs just below the summit of Clingmans Dome in Great Smoky Mountains National Park is the highest point on the trail at 6,625 feet (2,019 m). The trail enters Tennessee from North Carolina atop Doe Knob, on the crest of the Smokies, and exits Tennessee into Virginia atop Holston Mountain.

The first 64 miles (103 km) of the A.T. in Tennessee follows the crest of the Smokies, and is largely shared with North Carolina. In the western Smokies, the trail traverses a young forest that replaced what was once a large highland pasture, most noticeable in areas such as Spence Field, Thunderhead Mountain, and Silers Bald. The trail reaches 6,000 feet (1,800 m) for the first time on the western slope of Mount Buckley (a sub-peak of Clingmans Dome), where it first enters the sub-alpine spruce-fir forest, and comes within a few meters of the summit of Clingmans. The trail crosses US-441 at Newfound Gap and traverses a series of rocky cliffs known as "The Sawteeth" en route to the high ridges of the Eastern Smokies. Here, the trail crosses Mount Chapman and Mount Guyot, and passes one of its most remote shelters at Tricorner Knob before gradually descending.

Just beyond Mount Cammerer, the A.T. exits the Smokies, crossing I-40 into the Cherokee National Forest. After traversing Snowbird Mountain, Max Patch Bald, and Lemon Gap (just south of Del Rio), the trail exits Tennessee atop Bluff Mountain and re-enters again atop Rich Mountain (in Greene County), some 10 miles (16 km) to the northeast.

After traversing the Bald Mountains, the Appalachian Trail crosses the Nolichucky River and enters the Unakas, gradually ascending to the Roan Highlands near the town of Roan Mountain in Carter County. Atop Roan High Knob, the A.T. again eclipses 6,000 feet (approximately 6,280 feet), and passes the highest shelter along the entire trail. After crossing Grassy Ridge, which is the longest stretch of grassy bald in the Appalachians, the trail descends to the Laurel Fork Valley, where it turns west away from the state boundary.

Just beyond White Rocks Mountain, the trail passes through Hampton, Tennessee before turning north again. At Watauga Lake at the TVA Watauga Dam, the trail turns northeast, crossing Iron Mountain before turning briefly to the northwest at the Carter County-Johnson County line. After passing over Cross Mountain, the trail again turns northeast and ascends Holston Mountain en route to Virginia.