Laurel Falls Trail

Laurel Falls Trail in Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Tennessee, leads to the largest easily accessible waterfall in the park—an 80-foot two-tiered cascade on Laurel Branch that draws more visitors than almost any other trail in the Smokies. The trailhead is at Fighting Creek Gap on Little River Road, 3.9 miles west of the Sugarlands Visitor Center near Gatlinburg. The small parking lot fills by 7 AM on summer and fall weekends; the National Park Service occasionally deploys a shuttle from Sugarlands Visitor Center during peak periods. Entry to Great Smoky Mountains National Park is free, and no trail permit is required.

The path is paved for its entire 1.3 miles to the falls, making it one of the very few paved routes in the park. Despite the smooth surface, the trail gains 314 feet and includes sustained uphill grades that can challenge walkers unaccustomed to hiking. The route winds through a dense second-growth hardwood and pine forest where rhododendron and mountain laurel crowd both sides of the trail and bloom in June, creating a floral tunnel along the path.

Laurel Falls drops 80 feet in two tiers over a sandstone ledge into a shallow rocky basin. A wooden viewing bridge spans the creek just below the falls, providing the primary photo vantage point. The lower tier is wider and less dramatic; the upper tier is narrower and more forceful. The falls are most impressive in spring when snowmelt and seasonal rains push water volume to its annual peak. In warmer months, visitors sometimes wade in the shallow basin below the lower tier.

Because the trail is paved and short, it receives extremely heavy foot traffic—often 1,000 or more visitors per day in summer. The return trip follows the same paved path back to the trailhead. No water sources are available on the trail, so carrying water from the parking area is necessary.