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If I didn’t know better, I’d insist that Cades Cove
was designed, built and environmentally orchestrated for no
other reason than to inspire photographers. The area offers
wonderfully easy access to wildlife, great light that sweeps
across the pastures at even the best times of day, majestic
trees, plentiful wildflowers, and old barns and fences and houses
and so on. You could spend all your time at Great Smoky Mountain
National Park working just in Cades Cove and not ever get bored
or run out of opportunities for new photos. At the very least,
try to visit this area at all different seasons. A good photographer
could almost make a career of working here.
Despite the “photo ops on a silver platter” convenience,
a big problem the photographer faces in Cades Cove is traffic.
The road through the valley is an 11-mile, one-lane, one-way
loop. Despite multitudes of signs asking that drivers divert
to pull-offs to stop, the signs are largely ignored. A deer
in a field (about the most common sight in Cades Cove) can stop
traffic for ten minutes or more. Driving the loop can easily
take at least two hours.
Therefore, I highly recommend walking or biking. This offers
one other tangible advantage: Access in near solitude. From
late spring to early fall, on Wednesdays and Saturdays the Cove
is open only to cyclists and pedestrians until 10 a.m. This
is perfect for photographers, as these no-traffic hours let
you work free of noise and congestion during some of the best
light of the day.
Bears
The Smoky Mountains are home to a lot
of black bears, and Cades Cove is the best place to spot them.
(However, do not approach them; they’re wild and dangerous
and should be photographed only with a telephoto lens.)
The Cove is also a great place to photograph other Smoky
Mountains wildlife, especially deer.
Specific Spots
John Oliver Place is a cabin set against
a backdrop of forest in the corner of an uphill field. There’s
forest on either side, mountains in the background and in mid-afternoon
the light hits it great. (The cabin will be in shadow during
magic-hour light, so your best shooting opportunities may be
on slightly overcast days.)
The Primitive Baptist Church is in a clearing that includes
an old cemetery, but be prepared for the church itself to be
backlit almost all day.
Hyatt Lane is a cross-over
road between the north and south ends of the Loop Road; this
country dirt road offers great opportunities for photographing
in quiet, even when the Cove is busy. Fences, lone trees, etc.
Also, the lines of trees beside the country road offer possibilities
for great scenes either in late afternoon (when the shadows
cross the road) or morning.
Tipton Place: An 1870s-era house best photographed in morning.
A great spot for shooting the sun rising over the valley is
where the Loop Road bends left after the junction with Rich
Mountain Road. You'll see a parking lot overlooking a huge pasture
in front of the rising Smoky Mountains, and anywhere along there
is great to set up at dawn. Bring wide angle lenses for the
landscapes, and telephotos for the wildlife you're sure to see.
Also, check out the old grist
mill at the Cable Mill Historic Area. Lots of opportunities
for rustic images, and if there's anywhere in the park you might
want to shoot some black and white film, it's here.
Roads out
Parson Branch Road is a nice, long 4-wheel-drive
ramble that provides some good scenery, but it was washed out
in the spring of 2003. You can drive about 2 miles of it, which
brings you past an old cabin and some stream views that are
best photographed on overcast days.
Ditto for Rich Mountain Road, except none of it is open. As
of spring 2003, it's completely closed until further notice.
Also, even when the roads are in service, they're closed in
winter.
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