Great hike in a wonderful location that still keeps you close to civilization. Many other places…read morethroughout the park offer incredible experiences but if you are looking for a short trek that full of beauty and history this is a hike worth taking.

This is a very remote property located along the Little Brier Gap Trail, about 1.5 miles from the…read moreLittle Greenbrier School. It is only accessible by foot. The site contains a house, corn crib or barn and springhouse built in the mid-1800s. The buildings are the last remnants of the Little Greenbrier Community and were occupied by the Walker Sisters until the 1960s. Although the hike to the property is fairly easy, this spot does not attract as many visitors as others in the park and as a pleasant result you can find more solitude and tranquility here than other places you may visit. It is hard to imagine what life must have been like for the women who lived here. A tour of the interior of the house will leave those of us used to creature comforts thankful for all we take for granted. The grounds provide ample spots for taking a break, stretching out and relaxing. There are no restrooms, water stations or amenities of any kind available here. The hike to the Walker Sisters Place for the most part follows an old road and is easy to navigate. Just before the turn to the property, a narrow footbridge allows you to cross the stream. The sounds of running water, scurrying critters and the leaves rustling in the wind can make you forget that just a few miles away there is a park road teeming with traffic and other visitors. We hiked after lunch and it made for a perfect afternoon. We met a few people on the trail as we hiked in, but there were only three or four other people at the house when we arrived. This is a great family hike. We managed well with a 3 and 5 year old, although some piggy back rides were needed on the return trip.

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!

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

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.

Upper pigeon forge trip was awesome! Our guide Max was super friendly and made the trip even more…read moreenjoyable. Definitely recommend!

What a terrific afternoon…read more Well run operation. Friendly people. Efficient and clean. Well outfitted. Great guide (Chicay ---- spelling?) Had a blast. Didn't take phone on boat... Sorry no pics. But trust me, it's worth the go.

Beautiful park, but you better be careful with wild animals , A tiger appeared in that park on…read more9/10/20. Things of 2020

There is no shortage of amazing places to get outdoors in Knoxville. Forks of the River is…read moreabsolutely one of those amazing places. It is often overlooked by Ijams because it is so close. But this gem is just minutes from downtown and you should definitely pay attention to it. Not only are there trails for hikers and cyclists at all skill levels, but the views that this place offers looking out over the river atop high bluffs are beautiful and all home to an abundance of wildlife and songbird activity. Mark your calendar for the July explosion of color when the sunflower fields are in bloom, aiming their bright yellow faces towards the sun. It's breathtaking and something that you just have to see in person. You will forget that you are minutes away from the heart of downtown. The trails and fields are very well maintained. You should also be aware that the Wildlife Management Area is an active hunting area managed by the Tennessee Wildlife Resource Agency.

There are many beautiful scenic drives in this part of Tennessee and I'd be amiss to try and pick a…read morespecific location to say "this is the best of the best", but I can say with certainty that just calling this a typical scenic drive is an understatement, this drive is nothing less than amazing. It's always nice when you have a mountain to yourself but an entire mountain range to yourself is incredible - ok I must be honest I did see a few other vehicles as I made my way through the switchbacks and steep climbs and descents but they were far and few between. Most were motorcycles doing that bionic lean as they navigated the many curves on this beautiful day. I was very fortunate to discover this place while out exploring in my Jeep which is probably the second best mode of transportation to experience this drive, the wind in my hair and sucking in the good ole mountain air was nothing less than therapeutic. There are many amenities along the way including spacious pullouts, over-looks and an endless number of hiking trails. Hopefully if your planning to take the ride across this parkway you come prepared to fully experience it - hiking shoes, water and a few snacks will enhance your visit. As I researched this area prior to arriving I read several notes claiming this was "The Top of Tennessee" I can't say I know the exact topographic significance of this particular drive but I can tell the beauty crosses the horizon and there were many breathtaking moments. I certainly recommend bookmarking this location while liking my review and photos lol - seriously it's worth your time...

Had a blast zip lining today. So much fun zipping over the Pigeon River. Guides Leanne and Shane…read morewere very professional. Had a great time. Can't wait to go again!

Zip- a-dee-do-da!…read more Ok, couldn't help myself with that one. Here we go! This was our first Zip lining experience, but we are outdoor folks with an adventure streak in us. We wanted to surprise our 11 year-old with something other than white water rafting. Don't get me wrong we love our white water, but we just wanted something new and the rivers here can be pretty tame. So after finding a few outfitters we went with this operation mainly based on how helpful the girl on the phone was. It was an easy drive from Asheville, NC (about 1 hour) and their directions were spot on. The guides Steve-O and Joe showed us how to gear up quickly and safely and out the door we went. We went on a couple of practice zips each a little further up than the last until away we went. The guides did not inspire fear at all and actually encouraged us to go faster and brake later. They even bounced the more adventurous of the group around while on the line. The view was beautiful and the last two Zips alone made the 2 hour round trip worth it. If you go you can ask for Joe and Steve, but really it seemed like everyone working there was great!. Around back of the building is the dog house with some pretty satisfying Chili Dogs so you can grab a bite for the road. Don't forget to sign the wall. Look for us "3 of 6 Pearson People Were Here" on the bottom center.