Ramsey Cascades
A demanding 8-mile round trip up the Ramsey Prong through towering old-growth forest to the 100-foot Ramsey Cascades, the tallest waterfall in the Smokies.
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- Length
- 8 mi
- Elevation gain
- 2,200 ft
- Difficulty
- strenuous
- Route
- out-and-back
Trail conditions
No recent condition reports. Hiked it lately?
Report current conditions →Elevation
3.6 mi · 2,204 ft of climbing · high 4,267 ft · low 2,075 ft
Find the trailhead
Parking
Trailhead lot at the end of the gravel Ramsey Prong Road in the Greenbrier area; the road is rough and fills early.
Directions to parkingWeather at the trailhead
75°FOvercast now
Sunrise 6:17 AM · Sunset 8:49 PM
- TodayOvercast86° / 71°F28% precip
- SatOvercast85° / 69°F23% precip
- SunDrizzle84° / 67°F84% precip
Forecast from Open-Meteo. Mountain conditions change fast; check again before you go.
Ramsey Cascades is the tallest waterfall in Great Smoky Mountains National Park, dropping roughly 100 feet over a series of rock ledges. Getting there is the hard part: the trail climbs about 2,200 feet over four miles, the last mile and a half rough and rocky as it follows the Ramsey Prong up through one of the finest stands of old-growth hardwood forest in the East. Giant tulip poplars, silverbells, and basswoods tower over the path. The rocks at the base are slick and have caused fatal falls; enjoy the cascade from a safe distance and do not climb. A parking tag is required park-wide.