Never been on a hike before, but this was awesome! It has an amazing view of the valley, I highly…read morerecommend this place!

Land truly worthy of the protection of the National Park system, you get 85 miles of hiking trails…read more 37 square miles of mostly wilderness, and the landscape is awesome. That said, I'm going to complain lightly about a few things anyway. First, the real reason for the park is a story of European conquest -- the great westward expansion of the colonists through the gap and into Virginia and Tennessee territory. While we have more spectacular Appalachian parks in Great Smoky Mountain NP, New River Gorge, and Shenandoah, this one is really here for that historical aspect. (The gap of course was also used by big game as well as trappers and traders, of course.) So for those of us who really just want to enjoy the mountains, this isn't really the top destination, but it will certainly do. Then there is the general problem of understaffing and weak resourcing. We found trails near the town of Cumberland Gap to be well-maintained, but they also clearly have a massive problem of spreading kudzu. I'm not seeing that likely to change if we don't better resource that effort. Support of the parks is a federal line item, and the postwar consensus to do so is a thing of the past. Also worth noting -- lodging options are limited here. We stayed instead at Pine Mountain State Resort Park in Kentucky, which has a very good lodge and some very charming old cabins and cottages. (I didn't look carefully at campground options, but I know those exist too.)

7/26/26 My husband…read moreand I like to take a cave trip every year for our anniversary. This year, we traveled from Ohio to the Bristol area. Gap Cave was a great stop for the way back home. I will admit that we originally did not go in with high expectations. We saw the $8 price tag and thought that meant this cave must be underwhelming with the price being THAT low compared to all other tours that we have been on. Gap Cave was the 29th cave/cavern that we have visited in the US. When I tell you that we were pleasantly surprised, that is the understatement of the century. We loved the experience of getting to use the flashlights to light our own path while in the cave. The hike to the cave itself is super beautiful. Our tour guides(Lucas, Dylan, and Mackenzie) were amazing. You could see all of their enthusiasm for their job which is always great to see! Gap Cavern has an amazing amount of formations. We enjoyed our tour here more than the Domes and Dripstones tour at Mammoth Cave. The visitors center of Cumberland Gap National Park was also super nice! The employees and rangers were so friendly and kind! We highly recommend making this stop!

My wife stumbled across Wandering Llamas while researching things to do during our annual spring…read morebreak adventure. We spent two nights in the fox den treehouse which is located in one of the llama pasture areas. The "treehouse" is a elevated wooden shed like structure that has been refurbished into a pleasant little hideaway in the Smoky's. The treehouse has a nice deck to sit and enjoy the mountain view. There's also a nice swing chair and firepit to enjoy as well. The treehouse has electricity with a small electric heater to take the chill out. The treehouse was very clean and the bed unbelievably comfortable. The treehouse is a one and only. If you are renting here you have the treehouse and llamas all to yourself. The property owner and host (Sandy) lives on the property and is available if you are in need of anything. Sandy is very personable and will spend time sharing of herself with her guests. On the llama walk each person usually gets there own llama to walk with. Sandy accompanies you and can answer any llama related question you may have. The walk is at a very leisurely pace and lasts about two hours. The llamas are easy to walk and well behaved. Contrary to popular opinion of some the llamas did not spit at one another. One thing to be aware of if staying in the treehouse is there is no running water and only a fancy bucket of a toilet in an outhouse under the treehouse. This didn't bother us, but for some that don't care for "roughing it" I could see it as a drawback. (There is a gas station about a mile away that we used the bathroom at. We are members of the YMCA at home. There's a Y a few miles away and with the Y reciprocity program we were able to go there to take a hot shower. The Wandering Llama was an awesome get away experience for us and Sandy is a great host. We appreciate her sharing her llamas.

A super fun, unique outing if you are spending time in the Smoky Mountains, about a 1.5 hour drive…read morefrom our cabin in Sevierville. We booked the 2-hour wine and cheese tour because it was the only tour that had open spots left (we booked about a week ahead). We skipped the wine and cheese part due to our concerns about COVID (the food is served in their open gazebo, so it's relatively safe - we just prefer taking extra precautions and had already eaten lunch just before we got there), but the llama hike alone was well worth it. The walk, about 1.5 hours total time, is along the gravel road, which is a little hilly, but manageable if you're fit (not so much if you have small kids that don't do a lot of walking). Most of the time was spent relaxing in an open field - very socially distant from the other eight people in our group - where we fed the llamas and took lots of pictures. The llamas are super friendly and so soft! Though Sandy (the owner) provides animal crackers and strawberries for the llamas to enjoy during the middle of the hike, definitely bring your own -- we brought graham crackers and sliced apples to feed them throughout the walk, and the llamas LOVE to eat! Sandy is very friendly and welcoming and took pictures of everyone during the hike, which she emailed to us later. A great highlight of our trip!

I will have to go back again to see the gorgeous sights of the Yahoo Falls. However the sun was…read moregetting close to setting so myself and my hiking buddy (aka my dog) we went the overlook and what a gorgeous site that is to see. That overlook area is to the left of the hiking trail and just for a minute you get to take in the beauty that nature gives us and forget everything else. I hope to visit again in the spring with the pupper to see the magnificent sight of the Yahoo Falls and Arch

Very pretty dog friendly hike. Luckily it was a rainy day so the waterfall was flowing. It's the…read moretallest waterfall in Kentucky.

Want to see a Moonbow? Of course you do, even if you have no idea what it is! For about five…read morenights, if conditions are right, you can see one here regularly. You need 1) a waterfall that generates a lot of mist 2) dark surroundings 3) full moon (2 days before and two days after) 4) fir the full moon to be a 42 degree angle over said waterfall. This is the only place in the Western Hemisphere that meets these conditions monthly, and you will see lots of other Moonbow chasers during that period. The park is stunning anyway, with dramatic boulders and loads of gorgeous hiking. Not to mention, the area borders on the Daniel Boone National Forest, so there are arches and vistas all around. Currently, DuPont Lodge is closed for renovation within the park, however the Woodland Cottages (where I stayed), cabins, and campgrounds are good to go!

If you're within a couple hours driving distance of Cumberland Falls, make sure to take the trip!…read moreThe falls are gorgeous, especially after a period of rain. Make sure to bring your hiking gear as there are several nice trails in the area. At the falls, there is a visitor center, gift shop, and snack shack.

Exhilarating for newbies like me! We hiked the way up in pitch black with headlamps and the way…read moreback in the morning sun. Be ready to get scratched up by blackberry thorns and have a few falls. Still have bruises. So worth it if you love feeling like you're actually climbing and not just walking pavement.

The Justin P. Wilson Cumberland Trail State Park is the newest Tennessee state park. It is a…read morestraight line from the top border to the bottom, and cuts through 11 counties and two time zones. It encompasses 31,000 acres of land, and 200 miles of hiking at this time. But there are currently another 300 miles of hiking trails planned and in progress. Because of this, there are a lot of places you can fish, hunt, rock climb, or do back country camping. It's named after Justin P. Wilson, who was the deputy governor for a while. We hiked about two mile around the Tennessee Gorge area in Chattanooga that had some stunning overlooks.

Real customer service is hard to come by these days, but two of the Panther Creek crew deserve a…read morestanding ovation. It is Thanksgiving day, at 4:30 pm and we discovered that our 50 amp power outlet was only working on one side. That meant that our fireplace/ heater was not working on the coldest night so far with 20's forecast for tomorrow night. The new camp host, Mike, called the office and Ranger Brown was there in 15 minutes and resolved the problem. End of shift after a long day serving alone on a holiday and he never hesitated. Kudos, Kudos, Kudos. This is our 14th year at Panther Creek- even more of a favorite now.

Beautiful over look of Panther Creek. The State Rangers were awesome helping us get the TN passport…read morebook when the visitor center was closed. Bathrooms amazed at how clean they are!! Overlooking was well worth going out of the way to see this state park.

Small State park with a campground. Level concrete sites. Full hookups. Great walking short flat…read moretrails. Frisbee golf course and fishing as well as kayaks on the lake. Campground drive is narrow and tight for larger rigs. Check your campsite measurements as some are shorter than others. Crowded on the weekends but still not loud. Everyone seemed very friendly. We were there over the weekend and no issues. Great place to walk the dogs and unwind.

We use the park as locals only. We don't camp here. The park is small but very clean. Several…read moreplayground areas for kids. Kayak and paddle boat rental in season. The camp area has its own little playground area and I believe showers are available. 3 shelters with picnic tables are available for rent. They have put in a disc golf course which isn't for me, but apparently it's a popular sport. There is one basketball court. Cons: crazy amount of geese pooping everywhere on the walking trails. The pool closed years ago and it would be a better camping area for families if there was a splash pad.

As I write this, Yelp reviews for the state park, the lodge, and the restaurant are all rolled into…read moreone, so for better or worse, some of the ratings for this 1500-acre forest are being brought down by a disappointing salad bar experience or two. But make no mistake here -- the state park and the hiking trails are really very good and very well-maintained. We did have a 2-night stay in a cottage that is at least 50 years old - maybe more - and we were very happy with its offering modern amenities (thermostat, full kitchen, wifi) in an old wooden cabin. Nearby Honeymoon Falls is a a loop trail that is every bit as good as anything we saw in Cumberland Gap National Park, and we also thought highly of the Chained Rock trail, silly as the chain story is. The lodge seems nice too, although we didn't stay there. The dining area is a little more utilitarian looking than I might hope for from a 100 year-old lodge, but the view from the big windows makes up for it. The food? Yeah, it's nothing special. But we've seen worse from similar places. If you're here for the food and not for the other stuff then yeah, rethink your life choices or do some soul-searching.

Amazing views of the city if you drive up to the parking area for Chained Rock. Once you park there…read moreis a great view area on one hike and the chained rock on the other. There are several other hikes you can do. This is very easy going down but be ready for coming back up. Steep but go slow, watch your footing and take step by step! For sure bring a bottle water with you and do in the morning. It is very cool to do and it brings life to pineville. There is several spots to camp and chill as we saw on drive up the mountain!! Would totally recommend to anyone of multiple ages!!

A very picturesque State Park located off the Interstate. Great for camping,hiking,fishing and…read moreboating. Paved path along the lake which is great for bird watching. Plenty of parking and public restrooms is available .

Cute little lake. Not too special it's not very clean. But there is a park where you can eat your…read morelunch