Hike Deep Creek Trail to Indian Creek Falls

This is the Smokies' best bang-for-your-buck waterfall hike — two cascades for less than a mile of walking each way. The wide gravel path follows Deep Creek through a canopy of hardwoods so thick the air feels ten degrees cooler than the parking lot. You'll hear Tom Branch Falls before you see it, a lacy curtain of water visible from a cluster of benches just a third of a mile in. Push on another half mile and the trail delivers Indian Creek Falls, a more muscular cascade that drops into a pool framed by moss-covered boulders. The creek stays within earshot the entire time, and the path is flat enough that you'll barely notice you're hiking. This is the trail you bring your parents to, the one you hit after a big breakfast in Bryson City, and the perfect warm-up before tackling something steeper in the park.