Start of the Oconaluftee River Trail in Great Smoky Mountain National Park
See the Smokemont Region web page for an interactive location map.
Length: 3.2-mile Round Trip
Time: 1.5 hours (foot), 45 minutes (bike)
Difficulty: Easy
The Oconaluftee River Trail is a one-way, 1.6-mile trail, so unless you have a ride waiting for you at the end you must walk or bike back to the start. This is one of only three trails in Great Smoky Mountains National Park that allows bikes. The smooth, crushed gravel surface makes it a great walk-and-talk trail—no need to watch your step because there are no rocks or roots to trip you up. However, at three miles round-trip, for many people it may be a little too long for a stroll, particularly if you have young children with you.
One end of the trail begins near the Oconaluftee Visitor Center in the Smokemont Region of the park. Look for the trailhead near the entrance to the Mountain Farm Museum, an outdoor collection of authentic 1800s farm buildings. The trail starts off by skirting the farm boundary, then darts into the woods and follows the river for much of its length. The other end of the trail is at the Qualla Boundary, which is the division between the park and the Cherokee Indian Reservation.
Southern end of Great Smoky Mountain National Park’s Oconaluftee Trail at the Qualla Boundary in Cherokee, North Carolina
I started at the Visitor Center and rode my bike to take advantage of the rare off-road biking opportunity. The trail is easy, often flat with a nearly negligible downhill slope for much of the second half. Those on foot won’t give the incline / decline a second thought.
Wayside exhibits about Cherokee folklore are placed along the Oconaluftee Trail in Great Smoky Mountains National Park
The trail follows the Oconaluftee River, though trees and other vegetation block the view for most of the way. There might be a hundred-foot stretch here and there where it is just you and the river, and there are a few spots where people have cut side trails down to the riverbank, but for the most part, river views are relegated to nothing more than glimpses of shimmering water through the leaves on the trees. The last quarter mile of the trail near the Qualla border veers from the water completely.
View of the river from the Oconaluftee River Trail in Great Smoky Mountains National Park
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Last updated on February 17, 2025
