The Sinks. Rock Overhangs. Creekside Drives. Valley Views.
Over 5 million people from all over the US come to visit Cades Cove each year according to Google. Its beauty is sought after all across America. To have the best experience, you need an open air vehicle, like a UTV.
In 2021, the Great Smoky Mountains National Park saw its busiest year to date, with 14,137,812 visits.
Visit My Smokies
An open air vehicle will allow you to not only to be able to feel the breeze or to be able to have a better view, but to feel part of the experience.
Riding in a car, SUV, or a truck takes away from the experience (sound dampening, limited visibility, and etc.). I’d like to add, the scenery the entire way to Cades Cove is beautiful and the drive out is just as pretty as the drive in Cades Cove. This is why a UTV is a must.
See for yourself below 🙂
UTV’s also allow you to stop along the pull offs and get in and out easier on the road to and in Cades Cove, where as with a normal vehicle, it’s a small task haha. You are not just jumping in and out of your car 🙂
How much time do you need?
To not be rushed, you need four to six hours to really take in Cades Cove.
If you drove out and drove back with no stops, you could make it in an hour down and an hour back. You don’t want to do that.
On the weekends in the on season, make sure you account for the traffic.
The best times to go to Cades Cove is on the weekdays,
How do you get there?
FROM GATLINBURG >>
Once you pick up your UTV rental, you’ll want to head to the main strip in Downtown Gatlinburg.
From Downtown Gatlinburg, you’ll want to head into the National Forest on 441 like you’re going to Cherokee, NC.
At the Sugarlands Visitor Center, you’ll want to take a right to begin your journey out. The name is the road is Little River road. This will take you all the way to Cades Cove Loop Rd.
The first part, you’ll climb the mountain. You can stop at a few of the overlooks.
Check this one out where we are about to run off the cliff (Ricardo yells watch out):
I recommend to keep driving.
The first stop I’d stop at is The Sinks.
The Sinks is…
Water fall. A place to swim. It’s a great place to walk around at.
From there, the drive for the next 10 minutes by the creek is amazing. I recommend pulling off at several of the stops on the way to the Townsend exit.
Check out a few of the pictures.
From there, it’s another 15 minutes to the start of Cades Cove.
One you arrive, it will turn to one lane. There are several turnoffs.
A few places that are popular to stop at before you get to the the visitors center:
At the halfway point, you’ll reach the visitors center.
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If you’ve made it this far, feel free to use this discount code to enjoy 12.5% off your rental. It has to be kinda odd.
