Great Stone Door — Attraction in Dunlap

South Cumberland State Park is a fantastic park. The Stone Door portion is just one of several, but it is a favorite of mine. The door itself is a crevice formed by the separation of the rock near the bluff that leads to one of the many hiking trails into the Savage Gulf. Rock stairs have been placed to make scrambling up and down easier. That said, the highlight of this area is the bluff overlook itself. It is one of the best overlooks in the state. The view over the gulf is breathtaking, especially in the fall. I hesitate to rave about it as I like to have it to myself. The hike to the Stone Door is an easy, mostly level 1 mile with an overlook deck at approximately .3 miles in, keep going, the bluff overlook is a hundred...

Part of South Cumberland State Park. Parking lot for both Stone Door and Laurel Falls. Ranger station and flush toilets. Small gift shop with park/hike items. Trails are well maintained, pet and kid friendly. Laurel Falls is under a mile with some slope, steps, and rocks/roots. To the door is a mile trip there, first 0.3 mile paved to an overlook, then rock/root trail that dips to creek before raise out to rock outcropping. No railings or safety nets, to keep kids and pets close. Drop offs are cool to view, open gulf views. Fairly busy trail, with families and small groups. Easier side of moderate. Parking free. Some hike in primitive camps...

Stone Door is a great spot to visit for people of all ages and abilities. People in wheelchairs can go about 1/4 mile to a beautiful lookout and people who want rugged difficult trails can hike for miles up and down the mountain. The Stone Door view is phenomenal- no signs of human habitation anywhere. There is a way to go down through a cleft in the cliff and then hike way down to a beautiful stream. Campsites are not that far from the parking lot, or you can hike for miles to get to one. There's a waterfall very close to the visitor's center at the start of the hike, too. It's beautiful any...