Just 10 minutes from the center of Cherokee, you’ll find Mingo Falls - a popular waterfall viewing area that you won’t want to miss. We visit GSMNP often from Cherokee, and our top things to do on this side of the park are: Visiting Mingus Mill, hiking the Kephart Prong Trail, exploring the living history museum at Ocanaluftee Visitor Center (we often see elk here!), driving to and along Clingman’s Dome Road and enjoying the many awesome overlooks, climbing up to Clingman’s Dome, and hiking the Andrews Bald Trail.

There’s a complete range of activities for one to enjoy here, including fishing creeks, exhibitions, picnic spots, campgrounds, campsites, riding, hiking and biking trails. You’ll find the Ocanaluftee Visitors Center just 8 minutes from the heart of Cherokee.įor an awesome day trip, you could drive through the winding roads of the park and discover its marvelous historic sites, enjoy the scenic views and outstanding forest features.

You will find this place sitting on the border between North Carolina and Tennessee, and it is easily accessible from Cherokee. Stretching for 800 square miles, wherever you turn your eyes here, you will see endless natural landscapes, in their pure unfiltered beauty. To start exploring Cherokee, NC, you cannot choose a better place than the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

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