Accessibility – Moderate+
Height – 15′
Distance – 6.0 Miles (out and back)
Beauty – 5
Photo rating – 7
Solitude – 7
GPS Info: LAT 35.055607 LONG -82.963181
Last Updated – 12-23-2024
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Where to start: This hike begins at the Chimney Tops Trailhead on US441 in TN. The parking area is located at 35.63551, -83.46988. My advice is to get there early since it fills up quickly, and like every hike in the Smokies, you will need to have a parking pass.
What you’ll see on this hike: 4 waterfalls and Chimney Tops.
The hike: The hike starts at the opening in the rock wall bordering the parking area. The first little bit of the hike is downhill, but that will soon change. A tenth of a mile in, the trail crosses the Little Pigeon River and just after that, another bridge takes you across Road Prong. Been easy so far, now it goes up. The trail ascends for the next mile, steeply at times to a junction. The Chimney Tops Trail goes to the right and Road Prong to the left. Since you’re hear, I recommend making the hike to Chimney Tops. The trail is in good shape, but it is steep, and in some places very steep with lots of steps. The junction is the halfway point to Chimney Tops, so if you’re heading that way, you have another 0.9 of ascent. How much does it climb? From the parking area to Chimney tops, the trail climbs 1250 feet in under two miles. The actual trail to the top of the “chimney” is closed, but you get a decent view of it, and you may well see someone up there. I’ve been twice and both times, someone was on top of it. The area is closed.
After visiting Chimney Tops, hike 0.9 back to the junction with the Road Prong Trail. There is a sign at the junction, and you will be making a right and heading upstream. The trail was overgrown in places and eroded in others, hinting that not many people come this way compared to the hoards that swarm to Chimney Tops. There are 4 waterfalls on the hike, the furthest of which is one mile upstream from the trail junction. It is on the right and visible from the trail. A eroded path leads down to the base. It’s not huge, but the way the water flows over the rock is cool, and it’s pretty dark down by the falls even on a sunny day. There’s not much else to tell as far as this one goes. The map in All-Trails calls it “Talking Falls.” I don’t know it that’s the official name or not.
You are now at the furthest point upstream on this hike. You can keep heading up Road Prong and you will eventually reach a junction with the AT that is right next to the upper trailhead parking on the road leading to Kuwohi (Clingman’s Dome). It’s a long, uphill slog with nothing else to see along the way. Been there, done that. Unless you’re working on the 800-miler, there’s not much reason to hike this trail. To get to the next waterfall, head back downstream and look for an obvious side path on the left. It’s steep and leads to a somewhat unimpressive slide that it about ten feet high. You can see the Upper Waterfall on Road Prong here and decide if it’s worth the effort. Regardless of whether or not you stop at this one, the next destination is further downstream so keep heading back toward where you parked after you visit this one.
The first two waterfalls are for sure the least impressive of the four, but they are all close together and different enough that it’s worth the effort to view them all. From the side trail to the unimpressive slide, it is 0.3 of a mile to the next scramble path. Along the way the trail will cross the creek, so the side path will be on your right. You will hear the waterfall before you see it, and to get to the creek, you have to walk past it and make your way up the creek. There was no way to do this with dry feet, but you will be glad you made effort to get to the Middle Waterfall on Road Prong. From the point you get to the creek you can see the waterfall, and there is a huge flat boulder on river left to check it out up close. Here is a pic of the Middle Waterfall.
The last stop is the nicest of the four, at least I think so. The path to reach it is not too far from where you went down to check out the Middle Waterfall on Road Prong. The way down is steep, and you have to squeeze under a fallen tree to reach the creek before you can make your way up to the falls. On my first visit in May, the water was too high to get close, but on my second visit, getting to the base of the falls wasn’t an issue. All-Trails calls it “Trickling Falls”, but this name doesn’t seem to fit since even in low water, the thing was flowing great. On my first visit, it was raging. if nothing else on this hike, you want to see the Lower Waterfall on Road Prong, aka Trickling Falls.
A little history on the hike I outlined. The first time I hiked Chimney Tops and Road Prong was part of a 22.8 mile hike that followed Chimney Tops to the chimney, then back to Road Prong for the hike to the AT for a break. I hiked a segment of the AT to the Sugarland Mountain Trail and took the Sugarland Mountain Trail to the trailhead for Laurel Falls. It was done as a shuttle hike with my driver dropping me off at the Chimney Tops TH on US441 and ending at my Jeep. With nearly 23 miles on the agenda, I didn’t have a lot of time to explore the waterfalls that first day, but I put them on the list for a weekend trip about a month later. On the first trip, I only saw the Lower and Uppermost Falls.
