25 hiking trails within about two hours of Gatlinburg, from Mount Le Conte to Kuwohi and the high peaks of Great Smoky Mountains National Park
Gatlinburg sits at the Tennessee entrance to Great Smoky Mountains National Park, with Mount Le Conte rising directly above town and the state-line crest, Kuwohi and the Newfound Gap area to the south and east. Most Gatlinburg guides stop at the waterfalls and short park classics. This one covers the summit hikes: all 25 publish-ready trails in our database within 30 straight-line miles, sorted by distance from real trailhead coordinates — not the town center — and compared side by side in a table so you can pick by length, gain and time.
Two cautions apply to every number on this page. First, drive times are straight-line estimates at 45 mph, and the roads here are winding park roads plus heavy tourist traffic through Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge, so the real drive is often one and a half to two times the estimate. That is why the list stops at 30 miles instead of the 100 other city pages use. Second, several summits share a single route record: Mount Chapman, Mount Hardison and Mount Yonaguska carry identical miles and gain, as do Inadu Mountain and Snake Den Mountain, because the same route reaches them. Alum Cave, Rainbow Falls, Laurel Falls and Chimney Tops are not listed, since none of them is a publish-ready route in our database yet. Park rules apply: check the National Park Service for trail closures and the parking tag required at many trailheads.
Tennessee-side Smokies summits and overlooks
Round-trip miles, elevation gain and time, from each trail's own record
| Trail | Miles from Gatlinburg | Est. drive | Round trip | Gain | Time | Summit | Difficulty |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Balsam Point | 5 mi | ~6 min | 0.3 mi | 109 ft | 0.5 hr | 5,820 ft | Easy |
| Peregrine Peak | 6 mi | ~7 min | 9.2 mi | 2,487 ft | 4.5 hr | 5,346 ft | Strenuous |
| Cliff Top | 6 mi | ~8 min | 0.4 mi | 158 ft | 0.5 hr | 6,550 ft | Easy |
| Horseshoe Mountain | 6 mi | ~8 min | 9.1 mi | 1,149 ft | 3.5 hr | 5,277 ft | Hard |
| Myrtle Point | 6 mi | ~8 min | 0.4 mi | 82 ft | 0.5 hr | 6,534 ft | Easy |
| West Point | 6 mi | ~8 min | 0.4 mi | 82 ft | 0.5 hr | 6,356 ft | Easy |
| Porters Mountain | 7 mi | ~9 min | 6.9 mi | 1,463 ft | 3 hr | 5,135 ft | Hard |
| Mount Mingus | 8 mi | ~11 min | 4.4 mi | 1,431 ft | 2 hr | 5,787 ft | Hard |
| Mount Le Conte | 9 mi | ~12 min | 9.9 mi | 1,208 ft | 4 hr | 6,575 ft | Strenuous |
| Mount Love | 11 mi | ~14 min | 18.2 mi | 1,319 ft | 6.5 hr | 6,417 ft | Strenuous |
Distance, gain and time are as recorded in each trail's own data and are estimates — confirm conditions and route length with the National Park Service or a current trail report before you go. Drive times are straight-line estimates and run low on park roads and in tourist-season traffic. Trails that share a route record show identical miles and gain.
Steady climbs through spruce-fir and hardwood forest, mostly half-day outings
Steep, sustained climbs — start early and carry the essentials
The high peaks along the state line and beyond Newfound Gap — long days with a long drive, so allow extra time
Sorted by distance from Gatlinburg
