NPS Announces Laurel Falls Plan

The National Park Service is taking steps to improve the visitor experience at Laurel Falls Trail—one of the most popular trails in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The park has completed their required Environmental Assessment (EA) and approved the proposed Laurel Falls Trail Management Plan. What that plan will do is…

Resurface and widen the trail.

Build a new viewing platform.

Install new signs at the trailhead and along the trail.

Build a wider bridge at the upper falls.

Expand and improve the available designated parking spaces.

Include a shuttle service and timed-entry parking reservation system for the trailhead.

Construction is set to begin sometime in 2024 and the park service says when construction begins, they expect Laurel Falls Trail to be closed for a minimum of 18 months.

In 2020, more than 375,000 visitors hiked the 1.3-mile trail, which leads to a scenic waterfall near the Gatlinburg entrance to the national park.