Fireflies in Cades Cove: Great Smoky Mountains National Park Fine Art Photography
Everyone's heard about the Great Smoky Mountains synchronous fireflies that put on an orchestra in Elkmont Campground.
But what many don't realize is that there are 19 different species of fireflies, and you can see them many places that don't require a ticket or a coveted lottery win.
I came upon this spot in Cades Cove, Tennessee, essentially by accident.
Like many folks, I didn't have a pass for Elkmont, so I decided to check out a backup place that many people mentioned as a great spot to see fireflies. Cades Cove is a long loop drive with many historic buildings and open meadows. Worth a visit during the daytime or on that one day a week where only bikes are allowed.
I didn't have a real plan for where to stop, and as I drove around the loop I was running out of daylight. It's a one-way, one-lane road, so doubling back to earlier spots that looked promising wasn't really part of the equation.
So, as the sunset, I pulled off into a random parking spot. This large sentinel-like tree stood alone in a field. At the very least, I thought it'd be an interesting composition at sunset.
What I wasn't prepared for was for the tree to fill with glitter when the fireflies came out. The tree sparkled like it was alive. Lightning bugs winked on and off as far as I could see across the meadow. The field quite literally came alive as they surrounded me.
I was dumbstruck. And hooked. Every year I visit Great Smoky Mountains National Park, and I come back to this spot. But really, you can go anywhere in Cades Cove and see a similar display. I've witnessed the same phenomena in multiple places on this drive. If you're looking for a good way to spend a summer evening, you can't go wrong here.
This long exposure photograph was taken in the evening on my last day in the area during one of my guided trips. We arrived right around sunset after cutting our drive on the full loop short due to many, many photo breaks to see bears.
This photographic artwork is stacked with over a hundred layers of fireflies to showcase the density of the species.
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