Noah "Bud" Ogle Place

The Noah "Bud" Ogle Self-Guiding Nature Trail is a walking tour of a mountain farmstead, according to the National Park Service, and it is located just before the loop road starts. Parking is on Cherokee Orchard Road, and the trail is under a mile. It leads past a log cabin, a barn and a tub mill, built by Noah "Bud" Ogle and his family around 1880. The Ogles were among the founding families of the Gatlinburg area, and the farm was typical of the cove farms along Roaring Fork.

The mill is the feature to look for. Water is channeled in a wooden flume to a horizontal wheel, and the wheel turns the millstone directly, with no gears. A family could build one cheaply on a small creek and grind its own corn. The Ogle mill shows the simple version. The cabin and barn sit in a rich cove with large trees around them, which is why the family picked the spot.

• Where: off Cherokee Orchard Road, just before the Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail begins. The Rainbow Falls trailhead is just beyond.
• Time to allow: 30 to 45 minutes.
• Parking: a small lot; a parking tag is required for stops over 15 minutes.
• Season: the trail can be walked year-round, but the Roaring Fork loop road is open only mid-April to November 29, 2026.
• Vehicles on the loop: buses, trailers and motor homes are not permitted.

After the Ogle Place, the loop continues to Grotto Falls, the Bales Place and the Reagan Place. Rainbow Falls, a 5.4-mile round trip and moderately strenuous, begins nearby. Laurel Falls Trail is closed through 2026, so Ogle and Grotto are good short alternatives. In late October the creek is low and the leaves cover the trail, so wear shoes with grip.