Third Time was Just as Charming
This was my third trip to the Smokies, and second time solo. I completely lucked out with sunshine, and the wildflowers were seriously one of the most memorizing things I've hiked through. As mentioned previously, when coming to the Smokies, be ready for no cell service (except at Newfoundland Gap and the visitors centers) and bring your own food for the day, since there's nothing available there.
Having been to the Smokies in May and July in previous years, June was the happiest medium. It wasn't raining (when I was there), and it wasn't blazing hot, so it was easy to hike very comfortably all day. Plus the wildflowers. I'm gonna talk about them too much because they meant that much to me. It was so fun to see what was blooming at different elevations, and all of the pink and white flowers to contrast the vastness of green. I'm telling you, this place is so magical.
Same rules applied as previous solo hikes- Phone, First aid kit, Head lamp, Rain gear just in case, Garmin In-Reach, Itinerary sent to friends, Lots of snacks and water and electrolytes. The limit to the amount of carbs I'll consume on a hiking trip does not exist. I also learned some hard lessons about being 30 now, which I'll get to. I stayed on the North Carolina side again this time, as this is my preference to avoid Gatlinburg when possible.
Alum Cave to Mount LeConte (Again, Again)
Why have I done the same 12 mile hike three times in three years? Because I hate trying anything new. Okay, not really, but this trail is perfection and why change what works. The only clouds I had on this trip were at the summit (I actually don't think I'm joking). And they had cleared by the time I got back to my car, because that is sometimes the sort of luck I have. I did some more research before I went this time, and learned there is a second view point that's possibly even more stunning out passed the lodge, and I was completely unaware. I got an early start- maybe 7am, and the parking at the trail head was almost full on a Thursday. Last year I took the Cliff Tops trail up from the lodge to that part of the summit, which I did again, and it was all clouds. The other view point passed the lodge is called Myrtle Point. My experience was also just clouds. But, that's something to look forward to for next year. I've talked about this hike a couple of times, and it a tough one, with 3000+ feet of elevation gain, and adding Myrtel Point tops it over 12 miles. It took me almost 6 hours this time, but that involved some inpatient sitting on the rocks at the top waiting for the clouds to maybe clear (they did not). But, even with clouds at the summit, this is one of my favorite hikes of all time. And, I was absolutely spoiled by the wildflowers this time of year.
Deep Creek Loop
This is the story of me not listening to my 30 year old joints and doing something stupid. According to my dear AllTrails, this is a 5 mile loop that doesn't have too much elevation gain (900ft). It's a flat loop, how hard can it be. I learned the hard way the signs on the trail are not clear, and thankfully I downloaded the map and had my navigation on over it or I would probably still be wandering in the woods. I went confidently in the wrong direction at least twice, and this ended up being a 6.5 mile loop and took like 2 hours, which was not the hike I thought I was signing up for, Thinking this was an easy thing to add on after LeConte was LeWrong for me that day. There are a few really pretty smaller waterfalls, which is the draw of this loop. There is also a WAY shorter loop you can do where you hit them all with only a small amount of back tracking- that would have been so much smarter for me to do on that day. You can also rent innertubes and float down the creek, which would have been the smartest option for me. Maybe next year. This is on the North Carolina side, by the way. And the navigation took me well outside of the park to get here, through a bunch of farm land, and it did not seem like the right place to go, but it was.
Here's what I should have done: Start at the Deep Creek Parking lot and follow all the smart people with tubes up the hill so you're starting in a counter-clockwise direction. You'll pass Tom Branch Falls on the way up. You then take the Indian Creek Trail just a little further than the fork off from the Deep Creek Trail to see the Indian Creek Falls, and back track back to the connector on the Deep Creek Trail. This will cut off a huge loop that is a pretty walk through the woods, but if you're just there chasing waterfalls, is completely unnecessary. You're then on the Deep Creek Horse Trail and see Juney Whank Falls, then you go back to the parking lot and you're done. I did not do this and my body was in near agony by the time I got done with the full loop (and bonus wandering). This was also the first day of my trip and I don't recommend that. If you just do the small loop, it's probably around 1.5 miles, maybe less.
Rainbow Falls and Grotto Falls
I'm going to talk about these together, since I did them from the same trail head. Which was a choice. Given the poor decisions I'd made the day before with hiking too much, I woke up with a painful knee and what felt like a stress fracture on the top of my right foot. I had rolled my left ankle earlier that week doing yard work, so it had been wrapped the day before and probably felt the best of all of my joints at that point. I'm falling apart. This was an all day endeavor that absolutely doesn't have to be if you pick one or the other. Rainbow Falls is about 5.5-6 miles depending on which GPS you listen to with 1600ft of elevation, and the connector trail and Grotto Falls added nearly 8 more miles with 1200ft of elevation gain. Which is a long day (about 7.5 hours), but not bad on unhappy legs. If you just do Grotto alone, it's 2.5 miles with 600ft elevation. The drawback to both of these hikes, and the main reason I decided to knock them out together, is they have VERY limited parking on one way loop, and Grotto parking is a one way loop off the one way loop, so doing both in one day and actually getting to park is likely not feasible. These hikes are also outside of Gatlinburg, so you have to drive through it in all of its glory. Which is not a peaceful experience.
I started early, and got to Rainbow Falls Trailhead at 7:30ish. I got one of the last parking spaces (it was a Friday). The Rainbow Falls hike is one I did my first time in the Smokies, and it really is beautiful from start to finish. There were also lots of wildflowers on this hike, and the falls at the end are really pretty. This trail goes all the way to LeConte, which I haven't done, but maybe will consider adding it to the list. My aching bones felt better on the way back, which was a relief. Not good enough to consider more crazy elevation hikes, so I stuck to the spot I was at. I got back to my car, refreshed supplies, and headed to the connector trail.
Side note: When I got back to my car, there were cars lined up and a poor park ranger directing them elsewhere. People were being pretty rude and entitled, particularly a couple with a small dog that was barking incessantly, who were told they can't take their dog on the trail. This is posted all over the place, and on the Parks website, and on AllTrails, and at every trail head. There are active bears on these trails, and I could not believe how rude they were being to the park ranger about it. So, please do your research and don't be rude when you're told No about something that is clearly not allowed for good reason. There were other people who snuck by with dogs on this trail as well., and didn't even bother to pick up their poop right where people are walking. I have two dogs and I'm not anti-dog by any means. But, dogs disturb the wildlife, and we are in their home in National Parks. So, find other places to take them.
Anyway, the connector trail. It was long and flat. The greenery was pretty, and it followed a road for a decent portion. Which was funny because I heard several people in vehicles point at me and say, "Look a bear!" to which I just waved. I'm blonde and a rather small human, sorry to disappoint you. It was what I needed that day, but likely not something I would do again. I did see a baby bear on the way back, though. Mom was not where I could see her, but I'm sure she saw me.
Grotto Falls was fine. I've complained before about my dislike of too many people when I'm hiking, and this was not an exception. There were SO MANY of them, and numerous large families taking up the whole path (it was a relatively wide trail), who would turn around and look at me, and not let me pass, and I frankly do not have the patience for that behavior. The falls were fine. Too many people. If I go back, it'll be first thing in the morning and then I won't have as many reasons to be a total grump ball about it. But, there were lots of people swimming and enjoying themselves. It's a pretty accessible hike for people of all ages and abilities, which is what makes it very popular and busy (if you can find parking).
Ramsey Cascades
I have tried to do this hike for three years, and it was finally open. The road to this hike washed out all the time when it rained (like when I was there in 2021) and so they closed it completely to strengthen it and repair the trail (when I was there in 2022), so 2023 was my turn and it was so worth the wait. My joints were less miserable, but I kept my foot wrapped and took it very slow. I got to the trailhead around 8am, and there were already a lot of cars there. There is also parking on the road leading up to it if you're creative about it. This is an 8 mile out and back and has 2200ft of elevation gain. It took me a little over 4 hours, and it was easy not to get lost as there were no other trails coming off of it. It starts off pretty slow, along a wide gravel road, then turns into very narrow, steep, woodland trail that looks like a fairy tail. The last mile up was definitely the hardest, as advertised on AllTrails. But the falls at the top were some of the prettiest I've ever seen. And the rhododendrons were in full bloom framing it. This definitely became one of my favorite hikes, and I look forward to returning, pending trail/road closures. It is also worth mentioning that at the time of this post, the trail is closed Monday- Thursday for repairs, so you have to drive through Gatlinburg if you're not staying on that side of the park on the weekend to get there. It's miserable ion the way back with the swarms of humans walking in the road, but definitely worth it.
Porters Creek Trail
The other trail down by Ramsey Cascades, if you want to add a few decent miles on, is Porter's Creek. It's off the right side of the fork in the road past a picnic shelter, and you drive right into the trailhead, which is nice when you don't really know where you are and GPS isn't working. This is a 7 mile out and back, but you can really go as far as you want. I did 4 total miles with an elevation gain of 700ft. There is a small waterfall at the turn around point that wasn't flowing super well when I was there, and I likely would have walked right passed it had some hikers coming down not pointed it out. The start of the trail follows a really nice creek and there are a few places you can go down to the creek and hop around on the rocks. There were a ton of butterflies around the creek that flew around my legs, which was adorable. The rest of the trail after about a mile is narrow and lush and green. There was a creek crossing with yellowjackets hiding in the bridge, so be aware that's a possibility as I didn't know until the people coming from the other direction got stung several times right before I crossed. This hike pretty remote and peaceful, and as long as you're not expecting the falls to be spectacular, it's a simple, pretty hike.
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