Slowing down to chase the fireflies in Great Smoky Mountains National Park
This year was an exceptionally tricky year for the synchronous fireflies.
Every year is a test of my persistence. Getting a campsite, monitoring the lottery, analyzing the prediction and weather patterns as it gets closer are a big part of the planning to make sure we can see as many fireflies as possible.
I had everything all set, but then the prediction the park service put out in April was early. The earliest I've ever seen it. That left me scrambling to reschedule trips and help people adjust plans if they could.
After the dust settled, I found myself with three separate flights to the area over the course of three weeks.
Come on a trip to see the fireflies with me
Then the weather turned cold and dry.
My first visit was with my wife, we took a long weekend near Asheville to try and see blue ghost fireflies during their peak. Thanks to the intel of an amazing local photographer, we found a prime spot and headed over after a nice dinner to ourselves.
We got lost along the way, but eventually found the spot the photog recommended. My wife was a little skeptical as darkness fell, "Aren't the fireflies usually out by now?" she asked at sunset.
"Yes, but blue ghosts come out at 9:30ish."
"So we're just going to wait?"
"That's the plan."
When 9:30 rolled around and the first of the little faeries came out, her doubts were erased. Her and the other folks that had gathered around the creek were laughing like little kids as dozen points of fragile blue light roamed around the forest.
I flew home, and then back to Knoxville just two days later for my first set of synchronous firefly evening trips. Due to all the rescheduling, I had empty spots, but that just meant the woman and older couple were able to really settle into Elkmont camground and find the best place to view the blinking lightning bugs.
As it turned out, the NPS prediction was off. When they made it in April, the Smokies were hot. Then a cold snap and dry spell put the brakes on the emergence. So we were early.
But, there's a silver lining to everything. There were more blue ghosts in Elkmont than I'd ever seen, since their mating period is usually earlier. There were about 20% of the usual synchronous fireflies, and entire sections of the forest lay dormant. But, where they did emerge, they emerged in a concentration. There was one area where hundreds of them synced up and put on their display that we were able to enjoy.
We even got a surprise visitor. Just before sunset, the rangers called out that there was a bear. When someone says that in the middle of the woods, it's one of those things that doesn't really register. Then, when they get more urgent and insist that you really need to move and bring your food, you get kicked into high gear. We left the area just minutes before a black bear trundled along beside the path about 10 meters from the group of people.
We yelled. The ranger blasted her air horn. The bear could have cared less. It moseyed on its way and we went back to watching a fantastic (albeit subdued) display of fireflies.
A week later I was back, and hopeful. A ranger, myself, and the local photographer had all had a chat and we felt like the weekend of my 3-day trip would likely be the peak. I had one evening trip right before, so I had a chance to gauge what the conditions were like and where the good spots were.
We got the orchestra.
Fireflies in every direction. The entire forest synced up: it went dark for 6 seconds and then thousands all came on at once. People oohed and ahhed, and I was incredibly happy for them, and excited for my 3-day group.
These folks would spend several days exploring the park, seeing its different ecosystems and microclimates. In the group was a etymologist / firefly geek, an amateur botanist, and a birder. Plus a traveler that's come with me on several trips before.
It was such a joyful group.
We would take two hours to walk a half mile. Every few stops there was some new delight or species to find crawling around on the forest floor. Snails and flies and salamanders and fungi and orchids and spiders all went noticed.
Everyone was geeked out about everything. The park is a rainforest, and it is thrumming with life during the late spring. I usually try to hammer out as many miles as I can to see as many things as I can. This was a fantastic reminder to me to slow down and realize that I often miss a lot by going fast.
As you might guess, this group was enthralled with the synchronous firefly orchestra. I heard a lot of "I can't believe it" and "This is so beautiful" all night long. I truly hope their pictures are amazing. Even if they are, somehow images and even video just can't do it justice.
After two days in Elkmont, we headed over to the west side of the park with the plan to end in Cade's Cove. One of my folks really wanted to see a bear, and I'd heard reports of the place being lousy with them all week. Plus, there's a fabulous spot to take in heebee geebee, big dipper, and the occasional synchronous fireflies there.
The drive didn't disappoint. Our final count for the trip was 15 bears. We saw adults, teens, and spring cubs. We saw them from the car, and outside the car. We saw them play and feed and trundle along. In fact, we really didn't see much of Cade's Cove historic buildings or sights because we were all about the bears.
When we reached our firefly spot, each of us found a little place to set up that hopefully wasn't infested with poison ivy. The conditions in Cade's Cove are very different than Elkmont. Different kinds of fireflies, yes, but also Elkmont is very protected and shaded. The lighting conditions are much more stable. Cade's Cove is open, and the brightness of the sky (particularly when there are clouds) changes and shifts and is much more dynamic. One of my folks commented that it felt like a final exam. By this point, they were all up for it. I can't wait to see their pictures.
As for me, I'm usually experimenting with photos on these trips. My number one focus is helping my guests get a good shot. I usually set up my camera and forget about it. A lot of nights, I see the photos and think, "Well, that didn't work."
Not tonight. I wanted to get a picture of myself with the fireflies. So I had one of my people click the shutter for me on the base layer. And then I started up the continuous shooting for the fireflies, and forgot about my camera.
The next day, I began the editing process. When you shoot fireflies like I do, there's a moment when you blend all the layers and you instantly know if you have something or not. It's like magic, how Photoshop can analyze 100 plus photos and only show the brightest pixels.
When I hit "Lighten" on my firefly stack, I literally gasped.
