Sight · Great Smoky Mountains National Park
A shaded Big Creek pool reached by a steep, rocky scramble.
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The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Great Smoky Mountains Tour Guide
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Great Smoky Mountains National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
See the Great Smoky Mountains audio tourRecorded for this place
Big Creek and Mouse Creek Falls“You're coming up on Big Creek, where a gradual forest hike leads to Mouse Creek Falls. Allow two and a half to three hours for the four-mile round trip along an old logging railroad grade.”
Plays as you drive up to Midnight Hole in the Parkwolf Great Smoky Mountains Tour Guide.
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Guide
Midnight Hole is a natural stream pool on Big Creek in the northeast side of Great Smoky Mountains National Park, known for its cold water, boulders, and small cascade. It is a destination along the out-and-back Big Creek Trail from the picnic-area trailhead, not a roadside pullout. Mouse Creek Falls is about 4 miles round trip from the trailhead, half a mile farther along the same trail; that puts Midnight Hole at roughly 3 miles round trip. Treat the pool distance as an estimate, and come if a forested creek walk and uneven footing suit your day.
Big Creek Trail follows the creek through forest on an old logging railroad grade. The walk is mostly gentle, but leaving the trail for the water means a steep, uneven descent over boulders. Wear sturdy shoes and take care when rocks are wet. For a photo, frame the small cascade between the boulders from a stable spot back from the water.
The pool is known as a swimming hole, but it is not a managed swim area: the park has no lifeguarded swimming areas and does not recommend swimming or tubing. The water is cold, current changes with conditions, and algae can make rocks slick. Keep your footing, do not jump, and treat the pool as a natural feature rather than a guaranteed safe place to swim.
The path follows the railroad grade once used to haul timber from this part of the Smokies. A lumber mill stood near today's Big Creek parking area, and foundation remains can still be seen nearby. The quiet, wooded walk now crosses a landscape that was once a logging town.
Parking is at Big Creek Picnic Area near the trailhead. Its ten picnic sites and seasonal restrooms are useful before or after the walk; there is no food service at the pool, so bring drinking water and anything to eat. Horses also use the trail and have the right of way.
Wildlife
1,569 sightingsBlack BearMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
900 sightingsElkMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
13 sightingsBald EagleMost seen around 9 AMSighting map
142 sightingsTimber RattlesnakeMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
26 sightingsBobcatMost seen around 8 PMSighting map
42 sightingsRiver OtterMost seen around 7 AMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Great Smoky Mountains. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
Keep exploring
ModerateBig Creek Trail to Mouse Creek Falls4 mi · 2.8 hr · 1.3 mi awayAn old railroad grade reaches an unmarked pool and 41-foot falls.
ChallengingBaxter Creek Trail12.2 mi · 9 hr · 1.4 mi awayA steep Big Creek climb to a 1935 summit fire tower.
ChallengingCamel Gap Trail10.6 mi · 8.5 hr · 1.5 mi awayA long creekside approach to the Appalachian Trail at Camel Gap.
ChallengingChestnut Branch Trail2.1 mi · 2 hr · 1.9 mi awayA steep 2.1-mile climb from Big Creek to the Appalachian Trail.
ChallengingSwallow Fork Trail3.9 mi · 4 hr · 2.4 mi awayA forest climb links Big Creek to the high ridge routes.
ModerateMount Sterling Ridge Trail5.3 mi · 3.5 hr · 2.8 mi awayA remote 5.3-mile traverse from Mount Sterling to Balsam Mountain Trail.
ChallengingMount Sterling Trail5.4 mi · 4 hr · 3.1 mi awayA steep climb to a historic tower and wide clear-day Smokies views.
ChallengingGunter Fork Trail4.1 mi · 4.5 hr · 3.4 mi awayTwo cascades reward a long, steep backcountry climb.Sight · 0.5 mi awayMouse Creek FallsA 41-foot waterfall with Midnight Hole along the way.
Campground · 1.2 mi awayBig Creek CampgroundTwelve tent sites by the creek, with big hikes close at hand.
Picnic area · 1.3 mi awayBig Creek Picnic AreaBreak by Big Creek before setting out on a nearby trail.
Campground · 1.6 mi awayBig Creek Horse CampA five-site creekside base for horse campers and backcountry rides.Sight · 2.5 mi awayMount Sterling Fire TowerA 1935 lookout atop a steep, remote Smokies summit.
Sight · 2.6 mi awayMount Cammerer Lookout TowerA rock summit and a 1930s fire tower reward a big climb.
Campground · 4.6 mi awayCosby CampgroundA shady, tent-heavy base with hiking routes nearby.
Picnic area · 4.8 mi awayCosby Picnic AreaA shady 35-site picnic stop beside Cosby CreekParkwolf’s Great Smoky Mountains ranking
The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.
