The top of the Smokies, and the name it had first
At 6,643 feet, Kuwohi is the highest point in Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the tallest summit in Tennessee and the third-highest east of the Mississippi. Most maps and signs called it Clingmans Dome until September 2024, when the federal board that manages place names restored its Cherokee name at the request of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians. Kuwohi means “mulberry place.” It is a sacred mountain to the Cherokee and was a refuge for people evading removal on the Trail of Tears in the 1830s. You’ll still hear “Clingmans Dome” everywhere, and that’s what most people search for, but the park now uses Kuwohi for the mountain, the road and the tower.
What you actually do here is simple. You drive to the end of Kuwohi Road, park, and walk up a half-mile paved path to the observation tower. Built in 1959, it’s a 45-foot concrete column with a 375-foot ramp spiraling up to a round platform above the spruce-fir forest. It’s listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is an unusual piece of modern park architecture. When the weather is clear, the platform gives a full circle of ridges running off into Tennessee and North Carolina. Two long-distance trails, the Appalachian Trail and the Mountains-to-Sea Trail, cross near the summit.
The reason to go is the sense of standing on the roof of the range. The reason to be careful is that the roof is often in the clouds.
How to do it: timing, parking and the walk
Go early, and have a plan B. The NPS warns visitors to expect extreme crowding and limited parking, and says demand at Kuwohi often exceeds capacity. More than 650,000 people come each year, almost all of them into one lot at the end of one road. Arriving early in the morning is the best way to get a space. If the lot is full, don’t park along the road or in marked no-parking areas. Head back to Newfound Gap or another overlook and try again later.
Get there by Newfound Gap Road. From Gatlinburg, follow Newfound Gap Road (US 441) up through the park to the Kuwohi Road turnoff near Newfound Gap. Kuwohi Road itself is a scenic, paved two-lane road that ends at the parking area, a small visitor information center and seasonal pit toilets.
Buy the parking tag. Entry is free, but any car parked in the park for more than 15 minutes needs a parking tag (daily, weekly or annual). The walk and the tower take longer than that.
Take the walk at your own pace. It’s one mile round trip on a path the NPS calls “paved but very steep.” Stop as often as you need to on the way up; the tower ramp at the end climbs more gradually. If you want to avoid the crowd on the paved path, the bypass trail from the Forney Ridge Trailhead climbs towards the Appalachian Trail and reaches the tower by a quieter route.
Dress for a different climate. The NPS says the summit can be 10 to 20°F colder than the lowlands, and that clouds, rain and cold are common. Bring a jacket, even in July, and a layer for the kids.
The trade-offs: fog, cold, winter and who should skip it
The view is not guaranteed. Kuwohi sits high enough to catch whatever cloud is passing over the Smokies. Many visitors climb the ramp into white fog and see nothing past the railing. There’s no way to book a clear day. Check the mountain forecast before committing to the drive, and treat a good view as a bonus, not a promise.
Winter closes the road. Kuwohi Road shuts to cars every winter. It typically reopens in April and closes again in late November, and it can also close at other times for snow, ice or storms, or for a few half-days a year for Cherokee educational programs. Check the NPS seasonal road schedule and current closures before you go, particularly in shoulder season. Newfound Gap Road below is also closed at times for weather or road damage.
It’s steep, not long. For fit walkers the half-mile is a short workout. For anyone with heart or knee trouble, small children who won’t walk, or a stroller, it’s a real climb with a steep descent back. The pavement doesn’t make it easy: with a wheelchair or stroller, the NPS’s “very steep” means a hard push up and a braked descent, ideally with a helper. Dogs aren’t allowed on the trail.
Guided tours are optional. You don’t need a guide: the road, the lot and the path are all self-explanatory. If you’d rather not drive the mountain roads or hunt for a space, one small-group van tour from Gatlinburg stops at the Kuwohi parking area, but it lists the lot, not the tower climb, as the stop, so don’t count on time for the walk.
Who should skip it: winter visitors, anyone who can only come on a busy summer or October afternoon and doesn’t want to risk circling a full lot, and travelers with limited mobility. On a low-cloud day, a lower overlook along Newfound Gap Road or the Foothills Parkway will show you more of the mountains than the tower will.
