10/30/2023 0 Comments Mingo falls nc![]() To drive to Mingo Falls, at first we followed our GPS, but I think it got confused so we got confused, and we ultimately had to retreat to the Oconaluftee Visitor Center to ask one of the rangers there to set us straight. For information or inquiries about the area as well as current conditions, you can try visiting the NPS website even though they’re technically not in charge of Mingo Falls. There are no special permits required to visit the waterfall. It is administered by the Cherokee Indian Reservation (Qualla Boundary). Mingo Falls resides just outside the Great Smoky Mountains National Park near Cherokee, North Carolina. We only took about 20 minutes to do the walk, take photographs (being mindful and respectful of the professional photographer who happened to be there when we got there), and return to the car. It started off by going up several stair steps before flattening out and eventually terminating at the footbridge over Mingo Creek. The short walk to Mingo Falls is said to be 0.4 miles (I think that’s round trip). Moreover, we would’ve contended with a lot more people as we noticed at least three groups (mostly families it appeared) approaching Mingo Falls as we were headed back to the parking area. Had we come later in the morning, then the sun would’ve breached the cliffs and we would’ve been looking directly against it (not good). Plus there was only one other guy (a photographer with some serious equipment possibly professional) who was already there prior to us arriving. We showed up early enough in the morning (around 9:15am) so the sun was still behind the cliffs supporting Mingo Falls. There were some later-arriving people who scrambled on the creek to get closer than the bridge, but I don’t think that’s necessary to get good photos or a good waterfalling experience here. I’m pretty sure this view would satisfy most visitors so that ultimately made this waterfall a quick visit. There was a footbridge over Mingo Creek where we were able to get the views that you see can see in the photo above. Thus, I’d consider the condition of our visit to be either normal or below normal because I have seen photos showing the falls in a widened state without segmenting. This tall waterfall (said to be 120ft) had a strandy appearance during our visit in Autumn of 2012. Mingo Falls is probably hands down the most scenic waterfall in the vinicity of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park (at least based on our research of the waterfalls in the park and our field observations).
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