Anyone heading to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park this spring is being urged to rethink the idea that the park is "easy" wilderness. Rangers say March brought 38 emergency calls, 18 from the backcountry; at least six required rope or helicopter rescues, and a woman's fatal fall last week marked the park's fifth death of 2026. In an April 2 statement, officials warned that "rescue is not a certainty" and pressed visitors to plan and prepare before setting out, reports Outside Online. Guides say the Smokies lure in casual visitors who underestimate them. "People feel that because our mountains are so much smaller than out West, they don't have to take them as seriously as they would hiking out in Colorado or California," says Vesna Plakanis, a guide of nearly 30 years. "They don't have respect for what these mountains can do. ... There's a lot that can go wrong."
The mountains may be lower than Western peaks, but the terrain is punishing—steep "pointless ups and downs," dense forest that quickly disorients lost hikers, storm-damaged trails, and slick conditions in what's essentially a temperate rainforest. Weather can swing from 80 degrees in the valleys to snow and freezing temperatures on summits like 6,444-foot Kuwohi. With the park sitting within a day's drive of much of the eastern US, many arrive in worn-out sneakers and heavy packs—and no real plan. The NPS advice, per the
Knoxville News Sentinel: research your route, carry proper gear, know your limits, watch the forecast, and tell someone where you're going. "Do your homework," says Plakanis.
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