We have been to Cherokee NC many times, but had never taken the time to visit Mingo Falls until 2023. Since then we have been to Mingo Falls and hiked up the many stairs to see it, more times than we can count.

Mingo Falls is a beautiful waterfall, especially after a heavy rain. The areas surrounding the waterfall are also gorgeous, with many smaller photo opportunities. We definitely recommend taking some extra time to visit Mingo Falls if you're in the Cherokee NC area.

In this guide to Mingo Falls, we'll give you the full scoop on what to expect, show you photos, and provide some tips to help you enjoy a visit to the falls even more. For example, parking can be a challenge!

Mingo Falls in Cherokee

Mingo Falls is in the Big Cove Community of the Cherokee Indian Reservation (Qualla Boundary) on the North Carolina side of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

Mingo means "Big Bear" in the Cherokee language. Mingo falls is stunning and one of the tallest waterfalls in the Blue Ridge Mountains at 120 feet tall.

Mingo Falls Video

Here is a video did of one of our adventures to Mingo Falls, where you can see the full hike up, the falls, and the creek area surrounding the falls. The hike up, because of the stairs, can be challenging for some. Our video shows you what to expect.

Directions to Mingo Falls

From the Oconaluftee Visitor Center in the Great Smoky Mountain National Park, drive south (toward Cherokee) on US-441 and take the second left onto Big Cove Road.

At the first stop sign turn left and drive 4.5 miles to Mingo Falls Campground, where the trail begins. You will see a small sign on your right at a bridge that says "Mingo Falls".  

Make sure you obey the slow speed limit as you pass by the school area too.

Hiking up to Mingo Falls

The trail head to Mingo falls is located right off of Big Cove Road and the hike to the falls is very short.  The only difficulty is the 150-160 stairs that must be climbed to get to falls.  

The stairs aren't steep, and there is ample room to stop and take a breather without blocking other visitors coming up or down. The stairs aren't level though, which adds to the challenge a bit.  

We took a few short breaks on the way up. We made it to the top without too much difficulty, but were a bit winded at the top.

At the top is nice bench where you can catch your breath, and enjoy the view and sounds of the creek flowing from the base of the falls.  The entire area is heavily shaded, so nice and cool as well.  We would recommend making sure you have some water with you, as you will break a sweat on the way up.

Once you're at the top of the stairs, the trail to the falls is short, but a bit rocky.   The trail leads to a set of wooden stairs that take you to a bridge that gives you a wonderful view of the base of the falls.  Be prepared, there will generally be lots of people here, especially in the summer.

If you're a photographer, I would highly recommend arriving very early in the morning to get pictures.  This will keep you from having your tripod bumped and from having the motion of the bridge as people walk over it from blurring your time lapse waterfall photos.

We stayed for about 15-20 minutes, taking lots of photos and just enjoying the wonderful sites and sounds of the falls. Honestly, I could have stayed there all day, but we had other places we wanted to see and visit.

We headed back down the trail, taking a few photos of the creek before we arrived at the stairs. Here's the good news, going down the stairs is far more easy than going up! At the base of the stairs is a nice little waterfall, where I spent a few minutes taking some photos. Here's one that I thought turned out really well.

We've been to and photographed several waterfalls in the area, and Mingo falls is definitely on our list of the most beautiful. If you love waterfalls, you'll definitely want to put Mingo Falls on your list to visit and photograph!

Our Tips for Visiting Mingo Falls

• Visit early in the morning or late in the day. The parking area is small and there is no overflow parking area. Your chances of getting a parking spot are much better early AM or late PM.
• Lighting at Mingo Falls for photos is best in the morning, but good all day.
• Bring some water, as the climb up with the stairs is a bit of a workout. There are benches to rest on as you go up.
• Mingo Falls is a very popular waterfall. Some of the best shots are from the bridge, which moves up and down as people move and walk on it. This makes taking sharp photos a challenge. Bring a tripod and be patient.
• Do not climb up the falls or above the falls, people are have been seriously hurt doing so.