Cherokee National Forest · Tennessee, Georgia, North Carolina

Margarette Falls Trail

0.3 mi of trail, end to end · trail No. 189 · the forest publishes the line only

Begins at the forest's mile 0, 36.0637, -82.7137 - no trailhead mapped Drive to where the trail begins

Margarette Falls Hike the Forest Service's write-up

Margarette Falls
Photo: US Forest Service

Margarette Falls with its picturesque fan-shaped, 60-foot drop, is one of the most popular waterfall trails in the area.

Enjoy exploring the same mountains and streams Margaret Doak, Margarette Falls namesake, enjoyed in the early 1920s. Imagine this forest at that time when it was home to the largest logging operation in Greene County, John Heilman Lumber Company. The area around the trailhead was a thriving logging camp, containing a boarding house, store, dining hall, and several other support buildings. A railroad, locally know as the Pea Vine, carried logs from the forest the twelve-mile trip to Greeneville.

The first .5-mile section of this trail is an easy hike on a closed Forest Service road. Shortly after leaving the road the trail forks, bear left and travel along Dry Creek .7 miles to the waterfall. This section of the trail is moderately difficult and crosses the stream several times, providing many opportunities to cool off in the creek.

This hike on fs.usda.gov

Every trail in Cherokee National Forest

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About this trail's facts

The lines are the US Forest Service's National Forest System trails layer (public domain), read 2026-10-16 and simplified for the map; the length is the line's, end to end, and the class, surface, grade and tread width are the forest's own entries where it publishes them - a forest that publishes the centreline alone has none. The trailheads and the points along the way are the Service's recreation points, and the write-ups its own recarea text, unedited. Heights come from USGS 3DEP through Terrain Tiles on AWS (Mapzen/Tilezen), read along each line and rounded; a short trail on steep ground can be off by a few tens of feet. Closures change: check the forest's own site before you go.