GSMNP Grotto Falls

Trail Name GSMNP Grotto Falls Nearest City Gatlinburg State Tennessee Trail Marking {{{Marking}}} Trail Use/Features Difficulty Rating Medium Hiking Time 22 Hours <br />0.125 Days <br />120 Min <br /> Distance, round-trip 2.82.8 mi <br />4.506 km <br /> Climb/Descent Elevation 527527 Feet <br />160.63 Meters <br /> / {{{Elevation Loss}}}"{{{Elevation Loss}}}" is not a number. High Point 40624,062 Feet <br />1,354 Yards <br />1,238.098 Meters <br /> Nearest Medical Sevierville Trip Reports Click Here Loading map... {"type":"ROADMAP","minzoom":false,"maxzoom":false,"types":["ROADMAP","SATELLITE","HYBRID","TERRAIN"],"mappingservice":"googlemaps3","width":"270px","height":"180px","centre":false,"title":"","label":"","icon":"","lines":[],"polygons":[],"circles":[],"rectangles":[],"copycoords":false,"static":false,"visitedicon":"","wmsoverlay":false,"zoom":8,"layers":[],"controls":["zoom"],"zoomstyle":"DEFAULT","typestyle":"DEFAULT","autoinfowindows":false,"resizable":false,"kmlrezoom":false,"poi":true,"cluster":false,"clustergridsize":60,"clustermaxzoom":20,"clusterzoomonclick":true,"clusteraveragecenter":true,"clusterminsize":2,"imageoverlays":[],"kml":[],"gkml":[],"searchmarkers":"","fullscreen":false,"scrollwheelzoom":false,"locations":[{"text":"","title":"","link":"","lat":35.68029146777251270350461709313094615936279296875,"lon":-83.462448736584718744779820553958415985107421875,"icon":""}]} Show Large Map

Trail Overview

Moderate hike up through classic GSMNP forest to a waterfall you can walk behind.

How to get there

From Gatlinburg, TN:

1. At traffic light #8 on the Parkway, turn onto the Historic Nature Trail.
2. Proceed into Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
3. Turn right onto Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail.
4. Continue to Stop #5 and park.

Trailhead is marked and heads uphill.

Route Description

The Trillum Gap Trail heads up the side of Mount LeConte to the Grotto waterfall and beyond.

Mileage	Description
0.0	Trailhead at Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail Stop #5.
0.2	Intersection of access path from parking lot with Trillum Gap Trail.
0.23	First creek crossing.
0.65	Second creek crossing.
0.9	Third creek crossing.
1.1	Fourth and last creek crossing heading up.
1.4	Grotto Falls

Typical Conditions

National Park Service does trail maintenance primarily between May thru Nov, thus some blowdowns possible during the off-season. The well-worn dirt trail also included tree roots and large stone. Can be very muddy have significant rain.

Fees, Permits, etc.

No fee, but Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail does not allow RVs or trailers and is only open March 11 - Nov 30 during 2011. During peak summer season, you might spend more time on this roadway than on the trail.

If the Roaring Fork Motor Trail closed, then next nearest access point would be at the Rainbow Falls trailhead for a 7 mile round trip hike.

After the Hike

Explore the other older cabins at the other stops along the Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail on the way out.

Misc. Information

Per NPS policy, pets are not allowed on park trails.

Maps

<googlemap version="0.9" lat="35.6775" lon="-83.455" type="terrain" zoom="15" width="650" height="350" scale="yes" controls="large" icons="http://tehcc.org/clubwiki/kml/marker{label}.png"> http://tehcc.org/clubwiki/kml/GSMNP_Grotto_Falls.kml (A) 35.68030,-83.46245 Trailhead at Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail (G) 35.67940,-83.46091 Intersection of parking access and Trillum Gap Trail (J) 35.67896,-83.46065 First creek crossing (J) 35.67692,-83.45635 Second creek crossing (J) 35.67664,-83.45376 Last creek crossing (C) 35.67367,-83.4496 Grotto Falls </googlemap>

Photos

• 

  Trillum Gap Trailhead

• 

  Trail intersection sign

• 

  First Creek Crossing

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  Fourth Creek Crossing

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  path behind Grotto Falls

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  Almost there - cascade downstream

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  Grotto Falls

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  Grotto Falls