3 day/2 nights in Smokies with Beginner?

Honestly, based on your priorities, I would skip GSMNP and do the Grayson Highlands loop.  It looks like it would be less driving for you.  A 3 day loop of about 10 miles a day fits.  Grayson has open mountain views and camping spots that are much nicer than any part of the Smokies.  Another option for open mountain camping spots would be Slickrock Wilderness, which is just south of GSMNP.

If you really want to do the Smokies, remember that you must reserve a designated backcountry campsite or shelter.  There really are no open mountain sites.  My best recommendation would be to leave out of Big Creek; go up to Mt. Sterling (there is a fire tower there that you can climb for views).  From there you can follow the Benton MacKaye trail over to Laurel Gap.  You can take the Gunter Falls trail to a nice couple of waterfalls and down to Walnut bottom.  From there, you can go up to the AT, to Cosby knob, and back to Big Creek.  Don’t miss the side trip off the AT to Mt. Cammerer; it’s one of the best views in the park.  If you want more mileage, you can go further down the Benton MacKaye before cutting over to the AT.

There are plenty of other options for suitable loops in the park.  Have fun.

How do you feel about shelters?

The problem with coming mid-June is it will be hot and humid off the ridges.

You can stay high and cool on a loop similar to the one Ben mentioned by taking the trail that runs along the ridge to Tricorner Knob Shelter and then take the AT back to Big Creek via the Chestnut Branch a Trail. That’s all pretty easy ridge walking but a great summer hike.

It would require staying in at least one shelter though which some people don’t like (myself included but I tolerate it every now and then).

As mentioned before Grayson Highland is a great summer area and you can do a big loop via the AT and the Pine Mtn trail with a spur out to Whitetop Mtn and Buzzard Rock if you need more miles.

Sorry- I ran away from my own thread for a few days.

We are more or less locked into both the location and the time- location because we do want to visit the park itself (even if there may be nicer spots in the region), and the time is tied to when she’s both off of work (academic year) and has enough family around to help my brother-in-law look after my niece.

Shelters are fine- I’m a PCT alum, so I’m comfortable sleeping in large, stinky groups (albeit not usually in a “shelter” per se, but the point is that I know the drill.) My sister claims she’s fine with shelters, which seems a little out of character, but we’ll find out one way or another.

Right now, having gotten a better understanding of the park through finding some better maps, I’m trying to play around with either a loop (or separate individual trips) based around a few of the hiking highlights listed on the NPS page (Charlies Bunion, Rainbow Falls, Alum Cave bluffs (if we can schedule around the weekday trail closures)). Not sure I can make it work (the campsites aren’t wonderfully located for our itinerary), but it’s at least helpful to put some pictures to the spots on the map.

One question that I have from this is whether or not the Newfoundland Gap road is more or less safe for a few miles of roadwalking? That would at least open up some options.

Thanks for the comments so far.

You can walk Newfound Gap Road but its not the best; it will probably be pretty busy in June.  You can almost certainly hitch a ride though, especially if you are at an area that has lots of people, like Newfound Gap itself.

I assume from your comments that you are leaning towards a trip from Newfound Gap, to the Bunion, down the Boulevard to LeConte, and out Alum Cave Trail.  I don’t think you’ll have any problem hitching a ride to your car.  That’s a fine loop, but a bit crowded.

Brad makes a good point about the high hiking being the most pleasant that time of year.  Expect lots of traffic approaching to Newfound Gap, either from Gatlinburg or Cherokee.

^ That’s actually pretty spot-on to what I’m thinking (I came up with a more concrete route since my last post). I’d probably park at Newfound Gap, head up the AT briefly before switching to the side trails Sweet Heller Creek, Etc.) to get to Charlies Bunion, then camp at Icewater Spring on day 1.

Day 2, we’d head down the Boulevard Trail, head down to Rainbow Falls, then backtrack to Mt. LeConte Shelter. (I’d need to time this right, since the shelter is closed for most of the week for trail workers doing repairs.)

Day 3, side trip to Alum Bluffs, then back up Boulevard Trail and take the AT back to car. (Obviously involves some backtracking, but the AT section at least will be unhiked courtesy of the route on day 1. This would hit a decent array of popular sites, it seems.

Good to know about hitching. The odds of me getting my sister to actually be on board with that are pretty low (I’m fine with it), but I’ll keep it in mind. I’m reconsidering the roadwalk, since it’s not a ringing endorsement (I’ve seen it go both ways- Skyline Drive in SNP is no big deal if you have to link some trails, other places, not so much), but I also don’t want to accidentally end up with a 5-7 mile roadwalk.

Thanks again for the feedback- even if I’m not following some of it (seasons, crowds, etc.) because of how I have to structure the trip, I do appreciate at least knowing the less favorable stuff in advance.

I have done that exact route and was well worth it.  Honestly, the hike up the AT wasn’t really that crowded when I did it in May a few years ago.  The hike down Alum Cave was a bit crowded early in the morning.  I will say, the first 2 miles will probably be tough for the beginner.  Lots of high steps. It’s the toughest part of the loop, so just remind them of that!