Waterfall Hero Hikes: Mouse Creek Falls and Midnight Hole

Mouse Creek Falls is a scenic 45-foot waterfall on Mouse Creek in the Big Creek area of Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Along the way, you'll pass Midnight Hole, a small waterfall on Big Creek with a beautiful swim hole.

Hike Length: 4 miles
Estimated Time: 2 hours
Difficulty: Easy
Location: Big Creek Area (Great Smoky Mountains National Park)
Trail Users: Hikers and Equestrians
Dogs: No dogs
Features: Waterfalls (2)
Crowds: Moderate
Warnings: None
Trailhead GPS: 35.75159,-83.10977
Waterfall GPS: 35.73507,-83.13356 (Mouse Creek Falls); 35.73810,-83.12720 (Midnight Hole)

Directions:

Head west from Asheville on I-40 for around 50 miles and cross into Tennessee. Take the first exit, 451 and turn left at the end of the off-ramp to go under the interstate. Turn right and then left on Tobes Creek Road to cross Pigeon River. Immediately after the bridge, turn left on Waterville Road to head back into North Carolina. In about 2 miles, the road will enter the park and turn to gravel. Go about another mile to the Big Creek day-use parking area.

Map:

Hiking Description:

The Big Creek trailhead is right before the parking lot. The trail follows Big Creek upstream along an old gravel road. Although it's all uphill, it's never too steep, gaining about 500 vertical feet over the course of 2 miles. The creek is very scenic and there's several spots to go down to creek level. At about 1.5 miles, Midnight Hole will be off the trail to the left.

The creek flows in two streams around some huge boulders. At only about 6 feet high, it's not so impressive of a waterfall and there are plenty of comparable cascades and drops along Big Creek. But Midnight Hole is very popular as a swim hole in the summer, though the water is always freezing cold.

In another half-mile, the trail will pass by Mouse Creek Falls, which flows into Big Creek from the river right side. It's a really beautiful little waterfall.