Accessibility – Moderate*
Height – 17′
Distance – 3.8 miles (out and back)
Beauty – 4
Photo rating – 6
Solitude – 5
GPS Info: LAT 35.65996 LONG -82.65986
Last Updated – 12-23-2024
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Where to start: The parking area for the Meigs Creek Trail is unfortunately the same parking as The Sinks. It is along Little River Gorge Road at 35.66947, -83.66228. It is a very popular place in the summer and the parking lot isn’t well designed. Be sure to have a parking pass. The Sinks is one of the places where they check since it is overcrowded.
The history of this spot: The Sinks is a manmade waterfall created by loggers attempting to clear a jam in the river. It isn’t much to look at, and the story of it’s creation is more interesting than the waterfall. The river used to go through a horseshoe bend near the current observation platform, and back in the logging days, there was a logjam that they attempted to clear by blasting it out. There was a bit of an oopsie. They cleared the logs and inadvertently changed the course of the river, creating an manmade waterfall. From the observation deck, you can make out where the river used to flow. It is even more obvious if you start hiking the Meigs Creek Trail. When you look down from the trail as it climbs, you can see the old curve of the river.
The hike: The Meigs Creek Trailhead starts at the observation deck, climbs for a second then descends and follows the curve of the old river bed. When it completes the curve, it begins to climb. Over the next half a mile it ascends 475 feet before heading down again. There are five or six creek crossings before you get to the waterfall, all of which I managed with dry feet, but the water was low on my visit. If it is up, you will get your feet wet. The waterfall is 1.9 miles from the trailhead on the right side of the Meigs Creek Trail. It is visible from the trail, and a scramble path leads down to the base. I happened to hike past it while I was in the middle of a longer hike, and it was a nice place to stop for a minute. There isn’t anything else of note along the trail except another nine creek crossings. In all there are fifteen of them on the way up to the junction with the Lumber Ridge Trail.
