Great Smoky Mountains, byname Great Smokies or the Smokies, western segment of the high Appalachian Mountains in eastern Tennessee and western North Carolina. The Great Smokies lie between Knoxville and North Carolina. Covered by forests, of which about 40 percent is virgin growth, the Great Smokies support an abundance of plant and animal life. Large amounts of rain feed dozens of streams and waterfalls. It is the domain of the Cherokee Indians.