2 Best Performing Arts in Great Smoky Mtns. National Park, Tennessee

Each year in mid-to-late April, the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and the Great Smoky Mountains Association host the Spring Wildflower Pilgrimage. It attracts wildflower enthusiasts from all over the country for five days of wildflower and natural-history walks, seminars, classes, photography tours, and other events. Instructors include National Park Service staff, along with outside experts. Most of the activities are at various locations in the park, both on the North Carolina and Tennessee sides, but registration is in Gatlinburg at the W. L. Mills Conference Center adjoining the Gatlinburg Convention Center. Begun in 1951, the pilgrimage has grown to more than 150 different walks, classes, and events. Advance registration online begins in February of the year of the conference, and some events quickly sell out. Check the website for current details and dates.

Visitors are invited to bring lawn chairs and a picnic along to Old Timers' Day at Cades Cove. Held in late September at the Cable Mill area of Cades Cove, Old Timers' Day allows former residents of Cades Cove and their descendants, along with the general public, to reminisce about the old days in the valley. The Cades Cove event is now part of a two-day Fall Heritage Festival at the Great Smoky Mountains Heritage Center in Townsend, just outside the park. At Townsend you can enjoy bluegrass music, clogging and square dancing, arts and crafts demonstrations, and mountain food. Both events are free, though there's a park fee at Townsend.