Hiking in the Smokies: Ramsey Cascades

We heard about this hike from a friend (thanks Allan!). This hike was challenging and beautiful. In addition to a stunning waterfall, we saw a young bear walking throughout the forest! Talk about a great first hike of our vacation. 

We arrived to the trail around 10:30am and managed to find a parking spot near the start of the trailhead. The hike started out mellow as we walked by the flowing water and through so many spectacular trees with exposed roots. Around 1.5 miles into the hike, the terrain became a bit more technical with rocks and roots. As we continued the hike, we started climbing and climbing. Crossing narrow foot bridges over the creek was a cool experience. The last 3/4 of a mile took us about 25 minutes and per our Garmin watches and the grade averaged ~18.5%. We had a snack (PB&J) at the waterfall and spent around 30 minutes relaxing at the beauty of the waterfall. There were several boulders to sit on to relax before we made our way back down the trail (which nearly took us just as long to get down as it did to get up - it was super technical). In total, we spent a total of 4 hours on the trail head with 3:15 of it covering 8 miles. In route to the trailhead to park, you drive on ~3 miles of gravel. There are several areas to park your car and enjoy the water in a tube or just floating around. 

Quick Stats: 
Name of trail: Ramsey Cascades
Waterfall: Yes (the tallest waterfall in the park)
Distance: 8 miles (4 miles out and back) - it took us 3 hours and 15 minutes round trip (1:45 up and 1:30 back). 
Parking: Small gravel lot, get there early to park near the trailhead. You drive on a few miles of gravel (and over a small wooden bridge) to get to the trailhead. 
Elevation gain: ~2200 feet (start at ~2000 feet and finish at ~4250 feet)
Difficulty: Strenous - rocky, rooty and technical. 

Here are some pictures of our 8-mile hike. To learn more about the Ramsey Cascade Trail, check out this link.