Beautiful and scenic. A bit more strenuous than I'd thought it would be. Still, quite lovely and…read morecool

Laurel Falls is a great starter trail for Families that are introducing their children to hiking in…read moreGatlinburg. There are plenty of interesting facts to be shared, different types of plants and wildlife along the trail. This time we didn't see many animals but the trail was a bit more crowded that day. I would not recommend taking a stroller or wheelchair on this trail. It is barely paved and there are many roots. Parts of it are very steep as well. It's a great place to practice mindfulness on the way up. There are enough roots and rocks on the path to force you to focus on being present and walking carefully. It's a peaceful trail that gives you a great view of the forest. The falls are still there but not as deep as they used to be. The rocks are very slippery! I definitely recommend water shoes if you have them. The way down is a bit harder than the way up. If you have issues with your legs or balance, I recommend using a support of some kind. There are no benches but you should be able to find large boulders to rest on.

I wasn't expecting the 5.6 mile hike to Rainbow Falls to be strenuous, but it was. The 2.7 mile…read moretrail winds 1500' up the mountains and is rocky and root covered. In spots, the trail was muddy and slippery. We forded two creeks along the trail and saw several small waterfalls before siting Rainbow Falls. Rainbow Falls is beautiful, falling 75' over an impressive cliff. Huge rocks offer great photos. We did not see the "rainbow" from the mist, but the sun was low in the sky. Along the trail were blooming spring wild flowers, rhododendrons, hemlock and fern starting to emerge. The trail follows a lovely creek. The hike took us three hours up and two hours back down. We were traveling with a five year old that wanted to be carried most of the way up. We stopped several times to take breaks. Fortunately, the day was cool and clear. The air gets thin the higher you climb and it is easy to get winded. I recommend bringing a walking stick, good hiking books and water. We did not encounter bugs, but maybe later in the season, hikers need bug spray. Parking is inadequate for the number of hikers. We circled several times before finding a spot. Parking passes are required for parking. There is a rustic restroom near the parking lot and that is the only facility along the trail. Like most of the Park, there is no mobile phone reception, so purchasing a Park map is useful. Despite being sore the next day, Rainbow Falls will be one of my best memories of my visit to Great Smoky Mountain National Park.

This was a great hike and the scenery was amazing! LOVED this one…read more The hike is about 6.5 miles roundtrip and is mostly uphill all the way up, so plan on that. All the rocks on the ground were slippery and there were a ton of those, so watch where you are walking. This one is more of a moderately hard hike for the elevation and the rocks throughout. Parking was hard to find when we came, so plan accordingly. There are multiple lots and both were full. We ended up parking a mile a way and walking to this trailhead. There is a bathroom at the trailhead.

Beautiful short hike that is around 2 miles total roundtrip in Townsend near the Smoky Mountains…read more A lot of uphill climbing, but worth it for the waterfall. When we were here this trail was still quite crowded and parking was limited/hard to find so be mindful of that. Otherwise, it's a beautiful site to see.

Looking for short, less populated, but still fabulous waterfall hike while visiting Gatlinburg or…read morethe Great Smoky Mountains? This is it!!! SPRUCE FLATS FALLS is a very short hike that begins at the Great Smoky Mountains Institute @ Tremont. The waterfall trail begins at the exact same point as the Lumber Ridge Trailhead, but the Lumber Ridge Trail goes left while the Spruce Flats trail goes right. The trail is easy to follow for the most part due to the Institute providing additional signs along the way to help guide you. Various hiking websites have differing difficult ratings as well as differing distances to the falls. My personal hiking experience would rate this as mildly moderate and the distance, according to our tracking systems was around .8 miles to the falls for a grand total of about 1.6 miles round trip. ~ MILDLY MODERATE HIKE The distance is easy, and while there are some steep uphill and downhill sections, my heartrate was never elevated to the point of heavy breathing. Experienced hikers would likely rate this trail on the harder side of an easy scale, primarily because of the difficulty of the terrain. It is heavily laced with exposed tree roots and/or embedded with jagged stones making it important to watch your step and balance. ~ OUR EXPERIENCE Our primary reason for visiting the Smokies was to hike Mount LeConte, which we successfully did the day prior to hiking here to Spruce Flats Falls. LeConte is a beast of a hike with an elevation gain of just under 2,900 feet over 5.5 miles. Comparatively, Spruce Flats Falls trail was a delight, but our legs were still extremely sore from our LeConte hike! The pain made our this hike less joyful, but each painful step was well rewarded with a gorgeous waterfall. Our group included myself, an experienced hiker, a grandmother (64), two single moms (29 & 31), their two kids: Adorable 3 year old Jojo and 10 year old Zeke + my yelp daughter Jess (30). My wife was still sore from the LeConte hike and opted to stay back in Gatlinburg. *** LET ME JUST TAKE A MOMENT TO SAY HOW INCREDIBLE MOTHERS ARE!!! Little 3-year-old Jojo's mom carried her probably more then 1/3rd of the hike, particularly over some of the tougher terrains and didn't break a friggin' sweat!!! I carried her tiny 30 pound body up one of the steeper parts of the trail for about 5 minutes and thought I was gonna die! Jojo's 64 year old grandmother who does not hike at all handled the trail like a champion, even leading the way on occasion. Truthfully I was worried by some of the hiking reports for this trail saying it may be difficult for children, seniors and inexperienced hikers, but our group had all of those and it was not a problem. PLUS it had been raining most of the morning (wetting the trail) and continued with a light dewy drizzle most of our hike. ~ FINAL THOUGHTS Yep, my group included three generations of women on a rainy, misty Saturday and we all had a great time! The falls are beautiful! One of the more beautiful ones I've seen in the area, but hard to see in full from the base. This is definitely a waterfall where the pictures are best if you have a drone that can capture it's full grandeur. My difficulty scale: 0 = no effort required 1-3 = easy 4-6 = moderate 7-9 = difficult 10 = extremely difficult WATERFALL ATTRACTIVENESS: 8 out of 10 OVERALL DIFFICULTY: 4 out of 10 (mostly because of terrain) OUR TRACKING DISTANCE: 1.6 miles round trip from parking area across from the Institute @ Tremont. 2020 / 68

Cataract Falls is one of the easiest and most family-friendly waterfalls in the Smokies. The walk…read moreis short, mostly flat, and shaded. perfect for young kids, older adults, or anyone who doesn't want a strenuous hike. There's lots of places to walk or swim in the shallow stream with rocks the water was too cold for us Floridians but still refreshing to wash your hands in. One tip: we initially drove around trying to find the trailhead and couldn't figure out where the entrance was. We finally stopped at the Sugarlands Visitor Center gift shop and learned the trail starts directly behind the visitor center near the restrooms. You'll need a parking pass to park, but we opted for the all-day parking tag since we planned to visit multiple areas in the national park, and it was well worth it. The waterfall itself isn't huge, but it's peaceful, and a great spot for photos. If you're looking for a quick, relaxing waterfall without a long hike, Cataract Falls is definitely worth adding to your itinerary.

Walk to the fall is nice - the fall is a bit average - it is not very large. We enjoyed the walk…read more There are some logs and puddles along the way for kids to enjoy.

Will make it brief: this is a lovely hike, slippery when wet (which is often, it rains a lot) -…read moretake your time so you don't slip (I did, and it HURT). There are a LOT of stairs, and when it's humid you will need to stop for breaks along the way. The final view is closed from fires but they have a reconstructed viewpoint near the end that is gorgeous - the views of the mountainside are stunning. Overall - would do again, but it's a relatively difficult hike because of the uphill climb so come prepared!

This is a busy trail. Go early to avoid crowds. It is short but steep so if you don't normally…read moreworkout or hike it may be difficult. The view is pretty. It's an out and back not a loop.

As a local content creator here in Gatlinburg The Gatlinburg Hussey, I highly recommend hiking Mt…read moreLaconte in Gatlinburg, TN Smokies I've done it 2 times and I was almost 280 the first time and 200 the second time I tell all of my subscribers to do this and if it's too tough, try a smaller trail Please bring the kids too and have them explore nature ahd and get them off the phone and have their hands get dirty

Mount LeConte is the highest mountain located within the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in…read moreSevier County, Tennessee. At 6,593 ft. I have hiked around the mountains, and enjoyed, what each season's offers. Fall the leaves changing colors, snow in the winter, and Spring and summer the vegetation it is so alive. Good hikes, history, water falls, creeks, wild animals! Fireflies put on a nightly show in the summer! I must say there are so many people, it cannot be as relaxing, at least for me, I'm kind of a hermit. Nature is my sanctuary, it is home, I am comfortable when out in it! My native friends say it calls, and holds much knowledge.

Great hiking trail for all ages. About a mile and a half up to the historic barn attraction…read more Great views of the mountain stream that runs alongside the trail. This is one of my favorite easy, family friendly trails to hike on.

This was probably one of our favorite hikes during our vacation to GSMNP. The trail itself is…read morelocated in Greenbrier at the end of a long gravel road. What this means for you, is that this trail isn't as crowded as most others in the park! Porters Creek is about 4 miles roundtrip with Fern Branch Falls being the turn around point. You can continue on the trail another 1.5-2 miles after that but it just leads you to a campground. The trail is rated as moderate but we found the first mile to be fairly easy. The second mile was more uphill and rocky with a lot of tree roots to compete with. The first mile of the hike runs along Porters Creek and the gravel/dirt trail is wide. Along the way you will see several historic points of interest. First stop is The Owenby Cemetery which dates from the early 20th century. You will also pass the John Messer Barn built in 1875 and the Smoky Mountain Hiking Club Cabin built around 1934. If you do this hike, take some time to explore these places. They were pretty cool! During the second mile, the trail narrows some as you start heading uphill. The forest becomes a little more dense and you really have to start watching your footing. At the turn around point, you'll see Fern Branch Falls. This waterfall is about 40-50 feet up from the trail and it was pretty cool watching it trickle down the side of the mountain. It's no where as big as say Abrams Falls but it is still impressive in its own right. Porters Creek trail was a nice change of pace. If you are looking to get away from the crowds, this might be the perfect trail for you. We saw maybe a total of 10 people during our 4 mile hike. Beautiful hike!

The Low Gap trail is perfect for families and out of the tourist area so lower traffic overall. It…read moreis located inside of the campground but a hiking area in its own right. There are multiple options for this trail you can hike the 2.1 mile path or the easy 1 mile Nature Trail. We came out for the nature trail as we wanted a lazier day with great scenery. The nature trail was very cool and easy to walk. All levels can walk this trail or if you are more advanced you can get adventurous and go down by the river itself (there are paths). This trail is also a connector on the Applachain Moutnain trail and to the Mount Cammerer Fire tower.

My family and I hiked this trail! It was a great experience, being from Florida and hiking up and…read moredown the mountain. All the streams and the bridges were beautiful!