Fire Tower Area
Fire Tower Area in Tennessee has 5 climbing routes across 5 grades, offering bouldering and sport.
- 5 routes
- 5.6 – 5.9
- Sport · Bouldering
Is Fire Tower Area open right now?
Closure in the area
There's a closure order in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. It doesn't name Fire Tower Area, so check the source for the area it covers (3 listed).
Cherokee Orchard Road closed to pedestrian traffic
Park closure covering Great Smoky Mountains National Park · NPS · Great Smoky Mountains National Park
Straight Fork and the one-way section of Balsam Mountain Road closed.
Park closure covering Great Smoky Mountains National Park · NPS · Great Smoky Mountains National Park
Park Headquarters Road is closed
Park closure covering Great Smoky Mountains National Park · NPS · Great Smoky Mountains National Park
As of · Source: NPS · Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Agencies don't list every closure — check before you go.
Best time to visit Fire Tower Area
Best months: September–November. Best months have typical highs of 55–85 °F, lows of 30 °F or warmer (32 °F where the station doesn't record snow), at most one snowy day and no more than 12 wet days.
Jan
47° / 26°
14 wet
Feb
51° / 29°
13 wet
Mar
59° / 34°
14 wet
Apr
69° / 43°
13 wet
May
74° / 51°
14 wet
Jun
79° / 59°
14 wet
Jul
81° / 63°
16 wet
Aug
81° / 61°
13 wet
Sep
77° / 56°
10 wet
Oct
68° / 44°
10 wet
Nov
59° / 34°
11 wet
Dec
50° / 29°
14 wet
Typical high / low (°F) and days with rain or snow, 1991–2020. Measured at Townsend 5s, TN, 9.6 mi away at 1,893 ft. The station sits about 600 ft lower than this place, so expect it a little cooler here. This station doesn't record snowfall. Source: NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020.
Fire Tower Area is a climbing area in Great Smoky Mountains National Park in Tennessee, managed by the National Park Service. It sits within the park's land, and there is no fee to visit. The area has five routes, three of which are sport climbs and two are boulders. The sport routes run from 5.6 to 5.9 on the YDS scale, and the boulders range from V3 to V5 on the V scale. Archangel Arete, Rickamortis and Sandbagged are the sport routes. For timing, fall is the most comfortable season. Typical averages from a nearby weather station in Townsend show October highs around 68°F with lows near 44°F, and September and October have the fewest wet days of the year. That station sits about 600 feet lower than the area, so temperatures here run cooler. Look Rock Trail is just 0.2 miles away, and Little Bottoms Trail is about 1.4 miles off. Abram's Creek Campground is 1.6 miles away, and Abrams Falls Trail is about 3.1 miles away.
Routes (5)
Tree Wall(3)
White Wall(2)
Facts about this crag
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