Guided Hikes in the Nantahala Ranger District, Nantahala National Forest

Here are suggested hikes at the Nantahala Ranger District trailhead. Contains all the information you need to take the hike on your next trip! Get complete details on each hike, including (when available):

length
landmarks
elevation change
trailhead location
a detailed narration and trail directions
a map, and
photos

Glen Falls

Whiteside Mountain

Length: 2.4 mi	Difficulty: More Difficult
Climb: (400ft)	Tread:

This trail takes the hiker through a pleasant forest of hardwoods and pines to one of the spectacular waterfalls of the Blue Ridge Escarpment. As Overflow Creek plunges over the ledge below one of the East's highest towns, you really get two falls in one. It forms two distinct tiers of falls totaling over 200' in height, each with an entirely different look and feel. Makes for an excellent half-day hike, and it's a great trail for familes and older children.

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Length: 2.5 mi	Difficulty: Moderate
Climb: (600ft)	Tread:

This excellent loop hike - although in need of some trail maintenance - climbs to the top of Whiteside Mountain, with its spectacular 700' high cliff walls lofting the hiker for amazing views. Take a camera, as the cliff-top views are lined with beautiful mountain laurel which blooms in mid-june. See relics from the past, when Whiteside Mountain was a tourist attraction. You'll pass through some pleasant woods along the way.

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Panthertown Valley Tour

Length: 8.8 - 10.0 mi	Difficulty: More Difficult
Climb: (1120ft)	Tread:

This is a large loop with a wide variety of main attractions. The trails will take you past lazy, meandering streams with clean white sandbars, yet you'll discover 5 major waterfalls as well. You'll explore the unusual, flat-bottomed, high-elevation valley and 300-foot high granite domes standing guard over it. Sheer cliffs offer great views of the unique area. Carnivorous plants grow among thick blankets of sphagnum moss, and rare and endangered species exist in the moist spray-cliff communities and on the dry, windy granitic domes as well. Be sure to bring your camera on this long hike!

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