page_title: Foothills Parkway
section_title: The foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains
hierarchical_section_title: Foothills Parkway / The foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains
caption_attribution_description: Foothills Parkway approaching Look Rock atop the western flank of Chilhowee Mountain in Blount County, Tennessee (Southeastern U.S.). Look Rock is crowned by an observation tower.
context_page_description: The Foothills Parkway is a national parkway which traverses the foothills of the northern Great Smoky Mountains in East Tennessee, located in the southeastern United States. The 72.1-mile parkway will connect U.S. Route 129 along the Little Tennessee River in the west with Interstate 40 along the Pigeon River in the east.
  Portions pass through parts of Blount, Sevier, and Cocke counties. Large sections cross a series of high ridges running roughly parallel to the Tennessee boundary of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, and offer unobstructed views of the Great Smokies to the south and the Tennessee Valley to the north.
  The oldest unfinished highway project in Tennessee, the Foothills Parkway project has been continuously stalled by funding difficulties since Congress authorized its construction in 1944. As of 2018, just over one-half of the parkway has been completed and opened to vehicular traffic, although the right of way for the full length has been acquired.
  Sections 8E & 8F of the parkway was announced completed on November 8, 2018 and opened to the public on Saturday, November 10, 2018, adding 16.1 finished miles.
context_section_description: The foothills of the Great Smokies consist of a series of low mountains and hills lying roughly between the Great Smoky Mountains National Park to the south and the flatlands of the Tennessee River and French Broad River valleys to the north.  The most prominent of the foothills are characterized by long-but-narrow ridges, running parallel to the crest of the Smokies, similar to a circuit wall surrounding a medieval castle.
  Although the average elevation of the foothills is relatively low, a high topographic prominence is not uncommon among these ridges, due to their detachment from the main crest of the Smokies.  English Mountain (3,629 ft), one of the highest of the foothills, is the fifth most prominent mountain in Tennessee, and dominates the view south of Interstate 40 for a considerable stretch between Sevierville and Newport.  Chilhowee Mountain, located mostly in Blount County is the first major geological structure visible when approaching the mountains via Lamar Alexander Parkway (U.S. 321), and its eastern flank, known as "The Three Sisters", is visible from almost anywhere in Maryville.
  Geologically, the foothills largely consist of Cambrian Class III rocks of the Paleozoic period, a type known specifically as the Chilhowee Group.  Chilhowee Group rocks, which are mostly sandstones, siltstones, and shales, range in age from about 300 million to 500 million years old.  Thus, the rocks of the foothills are much younger than the billion-year old Precambrian Ocoee Supergroup rocks that form the crest and higher ridges of the Great Smokies range.
  The most prominent of the foothills include:
  Chilhowee Mountain — a narrow ridge stretching between the Little Tennessee River (specifically the river's Chilhowee Lake impoundment) and the Little Pigeon River valley to the east.  While the mountain is 35 miles (56 km) long, it rarely reaches a width of more than 3 or 4 miles (6.4 km).  Little River cuts a large gap in the middle of the mountain (near Walland), dividing it into eastern and western sections.  The highest point on eastern section is 2,843 feet (866m) and the highest point on the western section is 2,650 feet (807m) at a knob known as Look Rock.  35.73047°N 83.81993°W
  Bates Mountain — a low, bulky ridge between Miller Cove and Tuckaleechee Cove.  Bates' highest point is just over 1,700 feet (520 m).  Although Bates lacks the dramatic "backbone" formation of Chilhowee, a rocky gorge on its south flank cut by Carr Creek has presented numerous construction challenges for the parkway project. 35.7227°N 83.75161°W
  Cove Mountain — a large ridge situated between Wears Valley to the west, Gatlinburg to the east, and Pigeon Forge to the north.  The national park boundary traverses part of the crest of Cove Mountain.  The mountain's elevation reaches 4,077 feet (1,243m) at its summit. 35.72396°N 83.55905°W
  Webb Mountain — a long, narrow ridge stretching roughly from the Middle Prong of the Little Pigeon River in the west to the Cosby area in the east, a distance of roughly 10 miles (14 km).  Webb Mountain dominates the view north of U.S. 321 between Pittman Center and Cosby.  Its summit, near the middle of the ridge, is 3,100 feet (945m) above sea level. 35.78565°N 83.35071°W
  Green Mountain — a small mountain stretching between Cosby to the west and the Pigeon River valley to the east.  Its highest point is 2,785 feet (849m) above sea level. 35.8123°N 83.2014°W
  English Mountain, the highest of the Foothills at 3,629 feet (1,112m), stretches for nearly 15 miles (24 km) between the East Fork of the Little Pigeon and Newport, paralleling the shores of Douglas Lake.  Hall Top (Stone Mountain) rises prominently opposite Green Mountain above the Pigeon River valley.  The parkway will not cross any part of English Mountain or Hall Top, however.
caption: Foothills Parkway approaching Look Rock, on the crest of Chilhowee Mountain
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