| Date |
Distance |
Time |
Elevation Gain |
Average Moving Time |
Year to Date Miles |
| 1/31/2024 |
6.2 miles |
3 hours 52 minutes |
691' |
2.0 mph |
62.8 miles |
Parking:
- https://www.nps.gov/grsm/planyourvisit/mouse-creek-falls.htm
Map:- National Geographic Great Smoky Mountains National Park East
Directions:- Take the Big Creek Trail to Mouse Creek Falls. Return the same way.
Carolina Mountain Club Challenges:
- 100 Waterfall Challenge, Mouse Creek Falls
Today Glen and I were joined by Phyllis and Kay on a hike to Mouse Creek Falls. When we arrived, we discovered the road to the trailhead was closed. Kay had already done a great job resolving the issue. The road was being leaf blown & re-graded, and she was told it would be closed for the remainder of the day. She asked the forest service if we could still hike down the road to the trailhead if we could find parking. They were hesitant, but agreed. A local resident was there, and offered us permission to park on his land. He told her he was a trail maintainer of all 80 miles of the AT, which he does on horseback.
So we walked about a mile in from our parking area to the trailhead. Normally this hike should be 4 miles, but it became 6.2 miles with the extra road walk. From the trailhead, the trail was a wide railroad grade trail along Big Creek. Glen and I were doing this hike, because it's on the CMC's waterfall list, and we didn't have it marked as done. Once there, we realized we had already hiked this hike. Oops. It was still a great day to do it, because we've had so much rain this month that the creek was just gushing. A good day for waterfalls!
This is a moderate hike, with the climbs being gentle. We stopped at Mouse Creek Falls for lunch.
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| Walking the road to the trailhead |
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| Leaf blowing vehicle working before regrading done |
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| Arriving at the trailhead |
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| Very fun photo where the stone looks like its just pasted in. |
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