Laurel Falls
The Smokies' most popular waterfall walk, a paved 2.6-mile round trip from Fighting Creek Gap to an 80-foot cascade that the trail crosses mid-fall.
Record this hike live
Recording keeps going as you move between screens, even with the screen off. Finish or Discard stops it.
- Length
- 2.6 mi
- Elevation gain
- 375 ft
- Difficulty
- moderate
- Route
- out-and-back
Trail conditions
No recent condition reports. Hiked it lately?
Report current conditions →Elevation
1.2 mi · 374 ft of climbing · high 2,646 ft · low 2,288 ft
Find the trailhead
Parking
Two small paved lots at Fighting Creek Gap on Little River Road fill by mid-morning year-round; a park-wide parking tag is required.
Directions to parkingWeather at the trailhead
74°FOvercast now
Sunrise 6:17 AM · Sunset 8:50 PM
- TodayThunderstorm85° / 70°F22% precip
- SatOvercast85° / 70°F18% precip
- SunDrizzle83° / 65°F83% precip
Forecast from Open-Meteo. Mountain conditions change fast; check again before you go.
Laurel Falls is the park's most walked waterfall trail for a reason: a steadily climbing, paved path leaves Fighting Creek Gap, rounds a ridge with views over the Little River valley, and arrives at an 80-foot waterfall split into an upper and lower drop by the walkway that crosses its base. The pavement is old, humped by roots, and slick when wet, so strollers and street shoes still need care, and the dropoffs near the falls are real. Go at sunrise or on a weekday; the twin lots at the trailhead are notorious for filling early, and roadside parking is prohibited.