Four Great Day Hikes through the Smoky Mountains

Posted by Rob A on May 17th, 2019

It’s lots of fun to drive through a national park, and you can cover lots of area in your car, but to really get a feel for the beauty of a place you need to venture off the road and down a path a two. And the deeper you go inside a national park, the more interesting things you’ll find. Luckily for you, others have gone before and worn down easy to follow trails to the best places.

 If you’ve hiked any of the national parks and want new scenery and vistas, you’ll want to hike through the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Here are the top four-day hikes through the park. There are many hotels near Great Smoky Mountains National Park where you can stay so you can get a good night sleep and have a relaxing bed to crawl into at night. If backpacking and sleeping in a tent is not your thing, day hiking is the way to go.

Charlies Bunion Hike

Starting at the Newfound Gap trailhead, the Charlies Bunion hike is a moderate 8-mile round-trip hike along the higher elevation spruces and fir trees of the Appalachian Trail. Around the 4-mile mark you’ll come upon a great panorama of the northeast peaks. Charlies Bunion is a rocky outcropping where you can see Mount Kephardt and Mount Guyot.

Abrams Falls Hike

Starting at the trailhead in Cades cove, this 5-mile round-trip hike takes you along the Abrams Creek to Abrams Fall. You’ll pass through pines and oak trees. Abrams Fall is one of the most popular destinations in the park with its 20-foot-tall roaring waterfall.

Deep Creek Loop

On the North Caroline side of the park, the Deep Creek Loop hike is 4.5 miles and begins at the Deep Creek trailhead. You will pass by wildflowers in the spring and come up several waterfalls. You’ll pass the 80-foot tall Toms Branch Falls, 45-foot tall Indian Creek Falls, and also the 80-foot tall Juney Whank Falls.

Mount LeConte Hike

This is the most challenging of the four hikes. It is 11 miles round-trip and starts at the Alum Cave trailhead. The trail leads to the park’s third tallest summit coming in at 6,500 feet. Once at the Alum Cave you can go inside and hold tight to metal cables to navigate the mouth of the cave. For an overnight stay, you can reserve cabins and bunkhouses.

 After some of the longer hikes, you’ll be dog tired. So, reserve one of the nice hotels near Great Smoky Mountains National Park where you can relax the night away to get ready for your next hiking adventure in the morning.