A Cascade Waterfall Along The Middle Prong Trail

Many visitors to the Great Smoky Mountains never touch the numerous trails that scatter throughout the National Park. Instead, they're introduced to the popular Cades Cove, Roaring Fork Motor Trail, Newfound Gap, Clingman's Dome, and perhaps some of the popular trails like Laurel Falls along the parkway and Abrams Falls in the Cove.

What's not so popular, though, is the Tremont area of the Great Smoky Mountains. Only marked with the "Great Smoky Mountains Institute" sign, this quiet area is often missed. From Gatlinburg, turn left just past the Townsend exit and you'll follow a paved, then gravel road along Little River. From Townsend, go into the national park, take a right and then your next left. You'll meet winding curves with several places to stop and observe the raging white water (when the river is up and after a hard rain). Oftentimes, you'll find locals here swimming in the deep pools of water or perhaps fly fishing for the Summer catch.

At the end of the drive, for several miles, you'll come to the Middle Prong trailhead. From there, you'll walk across a bridge and begin the hike up the valley and mountain ridge. Not far along the way (maybe a tenth of a mile) you'll witness one of the largest cascading waterfalls in the National Park at over 70 feet. Continuing along the trail, you encounter large boulders and openings where you can slip through and see the river as it cascades down the trail.

Cascade Waterfall

Along that same trail, there is a semi-obscured, cascading fall. I first encountered this waterfall in 2009 when hiking the Middle Prong. From that time period and forward, I've returned here to witness the beauty that it has to offer. The drop of the falls start up the trail and it ends here, the shallow pool of mountain water that's probably at least 10 feet deep and ice cold. This waterfall doesn't have an official name by the National Park Service, but it's a place that I frequently visit when traveling throughout the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

The waterfall is shown above, matted to a black frame. The Glistening Light Photography photo watermark will be removed when ordering. Order your print only or framed print of this waterfall by going to the Image Gallery: Click Here To View