Great Smoky Mountains National Park

The Smokies might lie pretty far south—but no other mountains lie to the west to sap the snow from storms. The Smokies’ ridge is so abrupt and massive—rising from 1,000 feet near Gatlinburg to nearly 7,000 feet—that the highest peaks can get hammered by big snow in even marginal conditions.

Snowstorms often interrupt travel across the park on US 441, the Newfound Gap Road, but the public highway is such a critical transportation link that plowing is routine.

via Winter: A “Secret Season” in the South’s Loftiest National Parks | National Parks Traveler.