Scenic pullout · Great Smoky Mountains National Park
A quick mountain-view break on Foothills Parkway East.
Overview
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Plan your stop
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Great Smoky Mountains Tour Guide
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Great Smoky Mountains National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
See the Great Smoky Mountains audio tourRecorded for this place
Allen Grove and Greasy Cove Overlooks“Up ahead is Allen Grove Overlook on Foothills Parkway East. Pause here for a northwest-facing view across wooded foothills and mountain ridges, though vegetation can screen part of the outlook.”
Plays as you drive up to Allen Grove Overlook in the Parkwolf Great Smoky Mountains Tour Guide.
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“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Guide
Allen Grove Overlook is a roadside scenic pullout on the eastern Foothills Parkway, 3.6 miles from Cosby Highway. At 1,948 feet, it faces northwest across wooded foothills and mountain ridges. It’s an easy place to pause for a view and stretch your legs; parking is ample but undesignated. Vegetation can screen parts of the outlook, so enjoy it as a quick break rather than counting on an unbroken panorama.
This is one of four overlooks on the 5.6-mile one-way stretch from Cosby Highway to I-40 Exit 443. Starting from Cosby, plan to continue to the interstate rather than turning around on this segment. A Smokies parking tag is required if you leave your vehicle parked for more than 15 minutes. No restroom is listed at Allen Grove; the nearest is at Cosby Picnic Area, which is seasonal.
The pullout faces northwest. Tree-covered foothills fill the foreground beneath a long ridge; leave some of that canopy along the bottom of a photo to give the mountains depth.
Wildlife
1,569 sightingsBlack BearMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
900 sightingsElkMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
13 sightingsBald EagleMost seen around 9 AMSighting map
142 sightingsTimber RattlesnakeMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
26 sightingsBobcatMost seen around 8 PMSighting map
42 sightingsRiver OtterMost seen around 7 AMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Great Smoky Mountains. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
Keep exploring
ModerateGabes Mountain Trail to Hen Wallow Falls4.3 mi · 3.5 hr · 4.6 mi awayA rooty 4.3-mile out-and-back ends at a steep 90-foot waterfall.
ChallengingLow Gap Trail5.4 mi · 5 hr · 4.8 mi awayCreek crossings and a steep climb to the remote Walnut Bottom junction.
ChallengingLow Gap, Appalachian Trail and Snake Den Ridge Loop Trail13.1 mi · 9 hr · 4.8 mi awayA full-day loop links Low Gap, the AT, and Snake Den Ridge.
ChallengingMount Cammerer Trail11.1 mi · 7 hr · 4.8 mi awayA steep climb to a historic tower above the Smokies.
ModerateSutton Ridge Overlook Trail3.5 mi · 2 hr · 4.8 mi awayA short, steep spur reaches a north-facing view over Riding Fork.
ModerateAlbright Grove Loop Trail6.7 mi · 4.5 hr · 5 mi awayOld-growth trees reward the long approach to Albright Grove.
ChallengingMaddron Bald Trail7.2 mi · 6.5 hr · 5 mi awayA long climb from old growth to a brushy high bald.
EasyCosby Nature Trail1.3 mi · 45 min · 5 mi awayA wooded creek loop with log bridges and rocky crossings.
Scenic pullout · 1 mi awayGreasy Cove OverlookA quick northwest view before the parkway meets I-40.
Scenic pullout · 1.2 mi awayGreen Mountain OverlookA southeast-facing view worth timing for sunrise.
Scenic pullout · 1.9 mi awayCosby OverlookA short pullout with a southwest view over Cosby Valley.
Picnic area · 4.7 mi awayCosby Picnic AreaA shady 35-site picnic stop beside Cosby CreekSight · 4.7 mi awayHen Wallow FallsA 90-foot cascade makes the rooted climb worthwhile.
Campground · 4.9 mi awayCosby CampgroundA shady, tent-heavy base with hiking routes nearby.Parkwolf’s Great Smoky Mountains ranking
The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.
