About the Cades Cove Loop Lope
The course runs inside Great Smoky Mountains National Park, along the road that loops through Cades Cove. The terrain is paved and mostly flat, passing open meadows and historic homesteads with mountain ridges on all sides. There are two distance options, a shorter loop and a longer one, both following the same scenic valley road. The race benefits park conservation and preservation programs.
Getting there takes some planning. Parking inside the cove on race day requires a reserved vehicle pass purchased separately during registration, and those sell out quickly. Everyone else catches a shuttle bus from the Townsend Visitor Center early that morning. Packet pickup happens the evening before at a running store in Knoxville, or the afternoon before at the Townsend Visitor Center. There is no race-morning pickup.
Free race emails
Get the Weekly RunSesh
In for this one or still deciding, keep race season near Townsend on your radar: a Monday look ahead and a Thursday rundown of the weekend's races.
Two helpful emails per week. No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Finish-Time Stats
Going by the 2025 results, this is a decent-sized field, with a competitive front end and a big recreational middle.
10 Miles · 2025 results
403finishers
1:01:12winner
1:53:57median
2:59:36cutoff
Top 3: Zimri Kuhn (1:01:12) · Jordan Webb (1:04:15) · Jeremy Donahue (1:04:33)
5K · 2025 results
301finishers
21:34winner
49:45median
2:35:00cutoff
Top 3: Avery Vanlandingham (21:34) · Ashlyn Vanlandingham (21:34) · Nolan Smith (23:51)
The Cades Cove Loop Lope has been held every year since at least 2017. That is as far back as RunSignup's records for this race go, so it may well be older.
How we calculate these stats: RunSesh calculates these figures from the most recent published results of past editions, sourced from RunSignup. We show aggregates only: field size, winning and median times, and the cutoff. We never publish individual finisher tables. Last updated Jul 27, 2026.
Distances & Start Times
10 Miles11/8/2026 07:30$100
5K11/8/2026 07:45$100
Going for a Time?
Set a goal and get a pace band: every mile split on a card sized for your phone lock screen, so race morning needs no math.
Where to Stay
Traveling for this race? The map shows hotels and rentals in and around Townsend — pan or zoom to compare what's nearby.
The map is provided by Stay22. If you book through it, RunSesh may earn a commission at no extra cost to you — it never affects the races we list.
