Rainbow Falls — Local services in Highlands

It's been a while since I attempted a trail labeled "strenuous," but it wasn't as bad as I expected from the reviews (and from the label). The walk back up to the parking lot wasn't actually that steep and was quite manageable. They provide a couple of benches to rest on, but most people shouldn't need them. My chest wasn't pounding the way it has with many "intermediate" paths I've done, nor did I have trouble running out of breath. And most of the path was wide and fairly smooth (other than occasional areas with quite a few tree roots to maneuver around). And the 1.5 miles each way is not that long. I have bad knees, and this trail didn't bother me nearly as much as many of the "intermediate" paths I've hiked of similar length. And even though it's pretty popular, there weren't many bottlenecks where you might have to wait for others. Sure, there were a few sections near the falls that were a bit more treacherous, but even then, I've navigated worse on "less difficult" paths.

The first half mile is in Gorges state park and is mostly downhill, but not that steep. Pretty wide and smooth. The next half mile or more is kind of a mix of some up and some down and more tree roots, but the path is still wide and not that difficult. About the last .3 miles is we're it gets a little tougher. There are quite a few steps, but due to erosion, the bottom step is too high to navigate easily, especially with bad knees. But the sides next to the steps usually offer a better alternative. In fact, if you can kind of mix and match where you use the side of the steps to skip the buttom step and then use the rest of the staircase if the side is too rough or steep, it's really not bad. My legs never started burning, and my knees never started hurting for the entire hike (I wear knee braces, use hiking poles, and usually stick to easy and intermediate hikes, and my knees are usually pretty sore by the end of 3 intermediate miles). So don't let the label scare you. Or maybe go into it thinking it's going to be REALLY difficult, and it will seem easy by comparison to that? Certainly, if you never hike or do any strenuous exercise, it's probably not where you want to start. But if you're in reasonable shape and used to "intermediate" hikes, it's really not that bad.

The waterfall itself is amazing, although it was a bit crowded around the falls, themselves. There are stairs and a pathway that take you to an overlook about halfway down and to the very bottom respectively, but you don't have to do them. They were the crowded parts. But the view at the top is amazing. And it's also awesome how you're just hiking along and suddenly the trees open up a bit and there's this giant waterfall in front of you! It was bigger than I expected. And all basically one drop, unlike a lot of "taller" waterfalls you see.

We personally decided not to fight the crowd to go down the stairs, partly because of the crowds and partly because of our fear that we would be in too much pain by the time we got back to the Trailhead, because we were so oversold on the trail difficulty. But I'm not disappointed we skipped that part, because I've done enough stuff like that on other hikes, and got to see another awesome waterfall in the area thanks to the saved time and energy.

Note: if you continue another .7 miles, you come to another waterfall, but this shorter waterfall drops maybe 10 ft. into a nice swimming hole, so people use it as a waterslide. Looks fun, but not at my age and with my knees. But if that's your thing, don't stop at rainbow and head back...

Great hike , located inside Gorges state Park in Sapphire, NC. The trail starts just a short drive below the visitor center . The trail is clearly marked and easy to follow. It’s not a long hike , maybe 4 miles total and I’d say moderate in difficulty. It seemed most elevation came was on the way out . There are three main falls, (rainbow falls, turtle back falls and driftwood). There is a short offshoot to stair step falls . There are a couple water crossings but very easy to manage , the trail is wet and seems to stay that way. You come upon rainbow falls at about 1.6 miles in , roughly . Thus falls is massive and you can feel the spray even way up on the trail. There is a trail or two that lead closer to falls but be careful . Next was turtle back and then driftwood falls, (it actually is in private property ,you will see signs ). A very beautiful hike and one I will be repeating often and...

We visited several weeks ago and I had read and heard various opinions about the hike to the falls. After completing the hike, I would say it is moderate and my husband would say it was strenuous. We saw young children, grandparents, and a variety of dogs, so the hike is doable for most people. The majority of the walk to the falls was a decline, with a steeper incline towards the end. I also want to advise that there is a safe path to get down closer to the rocks in front of the falls past the wooden fence section. We saw people going to the left of the fence to get down, but it is very steep and would be challenging to climb back up. We brought towels and water shoes and were able to safely get in the water further from the falls and relax there. The water temperature was perfect for cooling off after the hike. I would highly recommend this hike! Parking was not an issue. We arrived around noon and...