Cloudland Canyon State Park

We spent one night camping and one day hiking at Cloudland Canyon State Park. This beautiful park has waterfalls and awesome hiking trails. It’s only 30 mins from Chattanooga and 2 hours from Nashville.

I prefer backpacking over car camping. Cloudland Canyon State Park offers almost cheat backpacking, but it still feels more secluded and wilderness-y than being right next to your car. You park in a lot and hike no more than a mile to your spot in a loop of 13 backcountry spots. There are outhouses, fire rings, and picnic tables; pets can join you.

Reserve a site ahead of time! We had reserved one about a month beforehand, but when we arrived (sort of late) all the spots were taken. They have a board with the spots and reservation papers below them. We hiked in to a few spots and had no luck finding an unoccupied one. We ended up having to contact the park rangers who had to make someone without a reservation leave. I felt terrible but also did not want to sleep in the car. So reserve early and don’t take a spot without officially being issued a reservation.

Use this site to reserve your backcountry site. $10 for the backcountry sites. There are also regular campsites, cottages, walk-in sites, and more.

Our campsite was a little bit off the trail near a small creek. We cooked homemade backpacker chicken curry, drank red wine, and then froze. We were unable to start a fire. I blame the damp wood, but it also could have been our lack of fire-building skills. The temperature dropped into the 30s. We shivered until morning when the sun came up, and I apologized to Kyle for underestimating the cold. Sorry, but I think the South should be warm March-November.

Check out my post on the 8 best waterfall hikes near Nashville.

Hiking at Cloudland Canyon State Park

The hiking was beautiful. We did the Waterfall Loop first. It’s about a ½ mile to Cherokee Falls, and then another ½ mile to Hemlock Falls. It’s a steep hike with quite a few steps. The waterfalls were powerful and peaceful.

We continued on to the West Rim Loop Trail. All our hiking started from the East Rim Trailhead. There’s a large parking lot, some overlooks without walking far, and the trails are well-marked. There is some elevation gain, but nothing too strenuous. The overlooks provide gorgeous views of the trees, hills, and canyons. I’d bet this place is really gorgeous in autumn.

Here are all your hike options for your trip. There are 64 miles of trails, so you can’t get bored.

I try to appreciate every single hike I take. I was grateful for time away from real life, the expansive views, the beautiful waterfalls, and the ease of finding the trail/not getting lost.