Twin Falls is a 90-foot waterfall on Roaring Fork, high on the north face of Mount Le Conte in Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Sevier County, Tennessee. It has no maintained trail and sits in off-trail backcountry, with an unofficial name.
The falls
The World Waterfall Database describes two separate falls on neighboring branches of the stream at about 5,350 feet. The main branch drops about 90 feet in two steps; the adjacent branch has a single fall of about 75 feet. Earlier surveys listed 140 feet.
Getting there
No maintained trail reaches the falls. The closest road is the Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail, a narrow 5.5-mile one-way loop that starts near Cherokee Orchard and closes for part of the year; buses, trailers and motor homes aren't allowed. The Trillium Gap trailhead is 2 miles in, where parking is very limited. An off-trail route follows Roaring Fork upstream and takes the right fork where the stream splits, though navigating the terrain is difficult.
The park charges no entrance fee, but any vehicle parked for more than 15 minutes needs a parking tag: $5 daily, $15 weekly or $40 annual. Tags can't be bought along the motor nature trail.
When to go
Demand for parking on Roaring Fork often exceeds capacity, and the road is closed part of the year, so check its seasonal status first.
On site
Off-trail travel involves dense, soaking-wet vegetation, slick rock and difficult scrambles around the falls on the upper stream. Pets aren't allowed on park trails other than the Gatlinburg and Oconaluftee River trails.
History and name
Twin Falls may be the feature once known as The Great Cascades, captured in a 1929 photograph by Dutch Roth.
Nearby
Dome Cascade is about 0.1 mile away, Upper Grotto Falls about 0.6 mile, Grotto Falls about 0.9 mile and Rainbow Falls about 1.2 miles. Gatlinburg is about 5.3 miles away.
Distances are straight-line.