One last day in the Smoky Mountains National Park

We drove to Waterrock Knob to hike the trail to the top.  At the parking lot, the altitude is 5,882 feet but at the end of the hike we would be at 6,292 feet.
 
The problem with being up that high is that many times that’s where the clouds are. As we got close to the top it was misting. When we pulled into the parking lot it started to rain, a very cold rain. The temperature fell from 82 at the RV Park to 62 on the mountain.  If felt pretty chilly.  So we sat in the truck and ate lunch and watched the rain.
 
On the way back down we found ourselves dropping below the cloud deck. It had stopped raining and the temperature started to rise. 

​We ended the day by taking a three mile bike ride at the Oconaluftee Smokey Mountain visitor Center. It is one of only a few fairly level paths for bike riding. We were hoping to see the Elk herd but instead we just had a nice ride along the river.  On the way out of the park we passed an Otter running along the side of the road.  He did not give us much time to take a picture.  Shy I guess.