A couple noteworthy things happened during my last 24 hours in Great Smoky Mountain National Park.

First of all, I met Trevor. He is only 2 parks away from visiting every single national park. That’s incredible! I was able to ask him a ton of questions about his journey thus far and gleam some wisdom.

Secondly, I volunteered at the Tremont Institute, an environmental education center located within the Smokies. Throughout the summer, they have regular citizens (such as myself) show up in an attempts to monitor and assess bird populations. The staff and interns are incredibly passionate about their work. It was refreshing to chit chat with people who dedicate their lives to studying the ecology of a national park.