the MAGIC of MOUNT LE CONTE

Perched on the third-highest peak in GREAT SMOKY MOUNTAINS NATIONAL PARK, a rustic lodge has been hosting hikers for 100 YEARS

- CAMERON BEALL

It was seven o'clock on a cool summer evening in East Tennessee as my mom and I grabbed extra layers and headlamps to make the short trek to Cliff Tops, an area known for extraordinary sunsets (if not also the best view in Great Smoky Mountains National Park), just a quarter mile from the LeConte Lodge. Since arriving in the afternoon, we'd been mostly enveloped in a blanket of clouds but were hopeful for a glorious evening show.

Just as we reached the rocky outcropping, the veil of clouds started to rise, revealing a vast blue-green horizon. The sky slowly began to fill with soft pink and orange hues; to the east, it took on a deep purple color. We settled in for the nearly hour-long sunset as I counted up to 10 ridgelines in the distance. That’s the magic of Mount Le Conte.

I've long reveled in the beauty of the Great Smoky Mountains, but there are few places within the park’s 552,427 acres more significant to me than Mount Le Conte—a 6,593-foot massif that stands more than a vertical mile above the tourist attractions of Gatlinburg. It’s not only the park’s third-tallest peak but also the home to the LeConte Lodge, an iconic spot that has welcomed hikers for 100 years. (At 6,360 feet, it’s the highest-elevation lodge east of the Mississippi.)

One night atop Le Conte, and you'll be itching to return. It might take a little more huffing and puffing to reach than your average mountain stay—it’s accessible only the old-fashioned way, on your own two feet—but it’s worth every step. You'll be rewarded with a sense of accomplishment upon reaching the summit and also the peace and calm that come with the undisturbed natural surroundings.