Greenbrier Area - Great Smoky Mountains

The Greenbrier area is the Great Smoky Mountains National Park's best-kept secret — a quiet, stunning entrance to the park just 6 miles from Gatlinburg that most tourists never discover because they funnel through the main park entrance or head to Cades Cove. For local families, Greenbrier is where you go when you want the real Smokies experience: a clear mountain creek to wade in, old-growth forest to hike through, and the kind of natural beauty that makes the commercialized strip in Pigeon Forge feel a world away.

The Middle Prong of the Little Pigeon River runs through the Greenbrier area, and this creek is the primary attraction for families with young children. The water is shallow, clear, and runs over a bed of smooth river stones perfect for wading. Kids spend hours building rock dams, creating small pools, searching for salamanders (the Smokies have more salamander species than anywhere on Earth), and simply splashing in the cool mountain water.

On hot summer days, the creek is a natural water park — no admission required. Water shoes are essential, as the rocks are slippery, but the gentle flow and shallow depth make it safe for children of all ages under basic parental supervision.

For families wanting a proper hike, the Greenbrier area offers two excellent options. Porters Creek Trail is the best family trail in the area — a 4-mile round-trip walk along an old roadbed that passes through spectacular wildflower displays (April is peak season), past the ruins of an 1800s homestead, and through a mature hardwood forest that feels genuinely primeval. The trail is mostly flat and well-maintained, making it accessible for children ages 4 and up.

The old homestead ruins — stone walls, chimney stacks, and foundation outlines — give kids tangible evidence of mountain families who lived here over a century ago.

Ramsey Cascades, the tallest waterfall in the Great Smoky Mountains at 100 feet, is accessible via an 8-mile round-trip trail from the Greenbrier area. This is a genuine hike — challenging for most families and best suited for kids ages 8+ with hiking experience. The last two miles traverse rocky terrain along a stunning old-growth forest with some of the largest tulip trees and Eastern hemlocks remaining in the Southern Appalachians.

The payoff — a thundering cascade plunging down a series of rock faces into a rocky pool — is one of the most impressive natural sights in the park.

The Greenbrier area has no visitor center, no gift shop, and no facilities beyond basic vault toilets and picnic tables. This rustic simplicity is exactly what makes it special. Bring everything you need — food, water, sunscreen, bug spray — and prepare for an unmediated encounter with the Smoky Mountains.

The parking areas are small and the road is narrow, which naturally limits visitors and preserves the peaceful atmosphere that makes this spot feel like a discovery rather than a destination.