Quote Originally Posted by TNhiker View Post
i did not list all the reasons......
"ALL" the reasons aren't important.

But what is really interesting is that I've been visiting the park for over 20 years, I'm a member of the 900 Miler Club, and I'm only just learning that GSMNP has some forest that depends upon wild fires just like the forests I've heard about in documentaries about fires out west.

I guess since I'm not local, I never hear about all the "regular" fires that occur in GSMNP, only "the big ones" that make national news.


Sort of reminds me how I only recently learned that drowning was the second leading cause of death in GSMNP. I already knew that motor vehicle accidents were #1. But not until the subject came up here in WB several months ago did I learn about the numerous drownings that occur. Similar to these frequent small fires, I generally don't hear about "yet another drowning" in GSMNP. The only time I've ever seen a new story about someone drowning was about 15+ years ago when a boy drowned around Abrams Falls during a school field trip. In that case, I guess it made national news because "a child died during a field trip to a national park" rather than "another person drowned in GSMNP".


Speaking of Abrams Falls, I've mentioned before in WB that I found it laughable when I read a new story about the 10 most dangerous hikes in National Parks, and the trail to Abrams Falls made the list. From my point of view, it's a pretty simple and safe trail with numerous other places in the park being more dangerous. But from the point of view of the park service... several drownings have occurred making it one of the most frequent places people die in the park (again, after traffic accidents).