Newfound Gap
Rockefeller Memorial at Newfound Gap
Elevation5,048 ft (1,539 m)[1]
Traversed byNewfound Gap Road
Appalachian Trail
LocationNorth Carolina
Tennessee
United States
RangeGreat Smoky Mountains
Coordinates35°36′40″N 83°25′30″W / 35.6112063°N 83.4248814°W / 35.6112063; -83.4248814
Topo mapUSGS Clingmans Dome

Newfound Gap Road marker

Newfound Gap Road

Route information
Maintained by NPS
Length31.6 mi[2] (50.9 km)
Major junctions
South end US 441 in Cherokee
North end US 441 in Gatlinburg
Location
CountryUnited States
StatesNorth Carolina, Tennessee
CountiesSwain, NC; Sevier, TN
Highway system

Newfound Gap (el. 5,048 feet (1,539 m)) is a mountain pass located near the center of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park of the southern Appalachian Mountains in the United States. Situated along the border of Tennessee and North Carolina, the state line crosses the gap, as does Newfound Gap Road (which overlaps U.S. Route 441 through the park and ends at the park's boundaries near Gatlinburg, Tennessee, and Cherokee, North Carolina). The Appalachian Trail also traverses the gap, as do a few other hiking trails.

Newfound Gap is home to the Rockefeller Memorial, a popular destination within the national park and the site from where President Franklin D. Roosevelt formally dedicated the park on September 2, 1940.[3] According to the National Weather Service, Newfound Gap has around 19 snowy days per year. From 1991 to 2005, annual snowfall ranged from 43.5 inches (110 cm) to 106 inches (270 cm).[4]

History

Prior to the development of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Newfound Gap was an undiscovered pass two miles east of what was long thought to be the lowest mountain pass over the Great Smoky Mountains, Indian Gap.[5] Indian Gap Road, an unpaved, arduous trail frequented by traders, farmers, and even by the Confederate Army during the American Civil War, was completed in 1839 and named after the old Cherokee Indian trail that the road paralleled. Newfound Gap was not recognized as the lowest gap over the mountains until 1872, when Arnold Guyot measured many of the mountains in the area and determined the "Newfound Gap" to be a lower, more accessible mountain pass.

Climate

Climate data for Newfound Gap, Tennessee, 1991–2020 normals, extremes 1991–present
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °F (°C) 65
(18)		 68
(20)		 77
(25)		 80
(27)		 86
(30)		 92
(33)		 90
(32)		 85
(29)		 82
(28)		 87
(31)		 72
(22)		 70
(21)		 92
(33)
Mean maximum °F (°C) 55.2
(12.9)		 57.5
(14.2)		 65.8
(18.8)		 74.4
(23.6)		 77.6
(25.3)		 79.5
(26.4)		 81.7
(27.6)		 79.1
(26.2)		 76.3
(24.6)		 71.7
(22.1)		 63.6
(17.6)		 56.7
(13.7)		 83.4
(28.6)
Mean daily maximum °F (°C) 39.0
(3.9)		 41.9
(5.5)		 49.3
(9.6)		 58.3
(14.6)		 66.0
(18.9)		 70.9
(21.6)		 73.7
(23.2)		 72.3
(22.4)		 67.8
(19.9)		 59.3
(15.2)		 50.2
(10.1)		 42.7
(5.9)		 57.6
(14.2)
Daily mean °F (°C) 30.6
(−0.8)		 33.3
(0.7)		 39.4
(4.1)		 48.0
(8.9)		 56.4
(13.6)		 62.4
(16.9)		 65.5
(18.6)		 64.4
(18.0)		 59.6
(15.3)		 50.3
(10.2)		 41.2
(5.1)		 34.7
(1.5)		 48.8
(9.3)
Mean daily minimum °F (°C) 22.2
(−5.4)		 24.6
(−4.1)		 29.6
(−1.3)		 37.8
(3.2)		 46.8
(8.2)		 53.8
(12.1)		 57.3
(14.1)		 56.5
(13.6)		 51.3
(10.7)		 41.2
(5.1)		 32.3
(0.2)		 26.7
(−2.9)		 40.0
(4.4)
Mean minimum °F (°C) −1.8
(−18.8)		 4.4
(−15.3)		 8.9
(−12.8)		 19.4
(−7.0)		 31.2
(−0.4)		 43.0
(6.1)		 48.3
(9.1)		 48.0
(8.9)		 38.3
(3.5)		 24.3
(−4.3)		 13.1
(−10.5)		 6.7
(−14.1)		 −4.5
(−20.3)
Record low °F (°C) −16
(−27)		 −14
(−26)		 −6
(−21)		 7
(−14)		 21
(−6)		 35
(2)		 36
(2)		 41
(5)		 25
(−4)		 9
(−13)		 5
(−15)		 −14
(−26)		 −16
(−27)
Average precipitation inches (mm) 6.81
(173)		 6.04
(153)		 6.56
(167)		 6.00
(152)		 6.19
(157)		 6.12
(155)		 7.33
(186)		 5.07
(129)		 5.43
(138)		 5.43
(138)		 5.87
(149)		 7.01
(178)		 73.86
(1,876)
Average snowfall inches (cm) 11.3
(29)		 9.1
(23)		 4.1
(10)		 1.2
(3.0)		 0.6
(1.5)		 0.0
(0.0)		 0.0
(0.0)		 0.0
(0.0)		 0.0
(0.0)		 0.2
(0.51)		 2.6
(6.6)		 6.1
(15)		 35.2
(88.61)
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in) 13.5 12.8 13.2 12.2 14.8 15.8 16.9 13.6 11.1 10.3 10.0 12.2 156.4
Source 1: NOAA[6]
Source 2: National Weather Service[7]

Newfound Gap Road

Newfound Gap Road at approximately 4600 ft elevation near Thomas Divide Trailhead in North Carolina

With the development of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park came the construction of a highway from Tennessee to North Carolina, completed in 1932—this time crossing Newfound Gap, replacing the defunct Indian Gap Road. North of the park, it is known as Great Smoky Mountains Parkway. The Gatlinburg Bypass, originally intended to be a part of the Foothills Parkway, extends out from the park to connect Newfound Gap Road south of town to the parkway north of town.

Despite its heavy winter snows, the pass is kept open all year, except during and just after winter storms. When closed, the snow route is a long detour around the east-northeast end of the park, using U.S. 321 and Interstate 40. The Tennessee side typically has heavier snow because of its north and northwestern exposure. Even when valley roads are clear and there is little snow in Gatlinburg (and almost none in Cherokee), Newfound Gap may have far deeper snow and will be closed for several hours after significant snowfall ends. Additionally, being in a national park, Newfound Gap Road is only treated by snowplows and a gravel-sand mix, as no chemicals can be used for snow removal due to their harm to the environment.

The road was closed for days after the Great Blizzard of 1993, when 5 feet (1.5 m) of snow fell, and snowdrifts piled up to twice that.

References

  1. ↑ "Newfound Gap". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. Retrieved November 28, 2014.
  2. ↑ Google (November 28, 2014). "Newfound Gap Road" (Map). Google Maps. Google. Retrieved November 28, 2014.
  3. ↑ "Stories". nps.gov. Retrieved December 3, 2021.
  4. ↑
  5. ↑ "The New Blue Ridge Highlander". Theblueridgehighlander.com. Retrieved 2013-04-17.
  6. ↑ "U.S. Climate Normals Quick Access – Station: Newfound Gap, TN". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved April 30, 2023.
  7. ↑ "NOAA Online Weather Data – NWS Knoxville". National Weather Service. Retrieved April 30, 2023.
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