I have hiked several times from the Twenty Mile Ranger station up the mountain to Gregory Bald. It is on the Dragon
The thing to do is to go from the camp site up the ridge before sunset and look out across the valley below and see Maryville and Knoxville light up. You can see all the way over Rockwood to the plateau rising behind.
The quiet the stillness with all that light activity is unique..... and then there it is. The hum begins. The generators at the Chilhowee dam come on line.
I hiked To Gregory Bald a couple times from the back of Cades Cove when I was a teen. I also hiked into Eagle Creek down to Shuckstack Rock a couple of times for some fishing trips. First time was when the little kids was lost up there. We started up from Cades Cove next morning and didn’t know what was going on. Last hike I took was about 18 years ago up to Thubderhead via Spence Field & Rocky Top. My legs and feet wouldn’t get me but a couple miles on a flat trail now.