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Cosby is the quiet northeast corner of Great Smoky Mountains National Park, and it is the right call when Gatlinburg and Cades Cove are jammed. You get a 90-foot waterfall hike and one of the best old-growth groves in the park, plus a creekside campground and a picnic area in season. Start early, carry a parking tag, and the whole corner is easy.
The Smokies follow a pattern: the famous side fills up by mid-morning and the back corners stay calm. Cosby is a back corner. I would be on the trail at first light and back at the car while the main roads are still backing up. We have done Smokies days with nieces and nephews along, and a short creekside walk is how I would start them.
Cosby Tennessee
Cosby sits on the Tennessee side, near the small communities of Cosby and Hartford. The park’s own map puts Gatlinburg and Newport, the nearest town on I-40, about 30 minutes away. The Maddron Bald trailhead for Albright Grove is about 16 miles east of Gatlinburg on Highway 321, then roughly half a mile up Baxter Road.
The corner is known for spring wildflowers, fall color, historic cemeteries and old-growth forest. Plan for self-reliance. The park puts the Sugarlands Visitor Center about 45 minutes away, so fill the gas tank, pack lunch and download your map before you leave town.
A workable Cosby day runs in this order. Walk Hen Wallow Falls first, while the hiker lot still has room. Eat at the picnic area while it is open for the season, then do the nature loop in the afternoon when legs are tired. Albright Grove gets its own morning.
The parking tag has no Cosby exception. The park’s fee page lists $5 for a day, $15 for a week and $40 for a year, required for any vehicle parked longer than 15 minutes. America the Beautiful passes do not replace it. Our parking tag guide covers how to buy one before you drive in.
Check conditions the morning you go. The park’s closures and cautions page lists road and trail closures and bear warnings for the whole park, including backcountry shelters like Cosby Knob. Storms change that list quickly, so read it the morning you go.
Cosby Trails
Five walks start from this corner. Two are easy to fit into a morning, and the rest are bigger days.
| Stop | Distance | Difficulty | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cosby Nature Trail | About 1 mile loop | Short loop | Starts at the picnic area lot; the easiest walk here |
| Hen Wallow Falls | 4.4 miles round trip | Moderate | 90-foot falls; starts on the Gabes Mountain Trail (the park’s place page lists 4.3 miles) |
| Albright Grove | 6.5 miles round trip | Steep, rough, narrow at times | Old-growth forest; Maddron Bald trailhead on Baxter Road |
| Low Gap Trail | See the park trail map | Steady climb | Leads up to the Appalachian Trail |
| Lower Mount Cammerer Trail | See the park trail map | Long day hike | Heads toward Mount Cammerer and the Appalachian Trail |
The Cosby Nature Trail is the one for a first walk with younger kids. It loops for about a mile from the picnic area lot and gets you under the hardwoods without a commitment.
Low Gap and Lower Mount Cammerer both start near the campground and climb toward the Appalachian Trail. The Snake Den Ridge Trail is a third way up to the same ridge. I would save all three for a second visit, after the waterfall and the grove.
Hen Wallow Falls
Hen Wallow Falls is the best single reason to come to Cosby. The round trip is 4.4 miles, rated moderate, and the falls drop about 90 feet. Park in the designated hiker lot at the picnic area, then walk roughly 100 yards back along the road to the signed start of the Gabes Mountain Trail.
The walk runs through hemlock and rhododendron. A signed side trail drops to the base of the falls on steep switchbacks, and salamanders are often easy to spot in the pool below. Slow down on those switchbacks, because the footing gets slick when the ground is wet.
Like every Smokies waterfall, it runs strongest after rain and thins out in a dry fall. If the choice is between a drizzly morning and a bone-dry week, I would take the drizzle. Our list of the best hiking trails in the Smoky Mountains shows where this one sits against the bigger names.
Albright Grove
Albright Grove is the hike for people who want big trees. The route is 6.5 miles round trip: 2.9 miles each way on the Maddron Bald Trail, plus a 0.7-mile loop through the grove. It is steep, rough and narrow in places, so treat it as the main event of a Cosby day rather than an add-on.
The payoff is old-growth cove forest, with tulip poplars and Fraser magnolias that have wide, buttressed bases. It is one of the finest stands of its kind in the park. The trees are the point, not a view or a waterfall.
Remember the trailhead is not at the campground. It is off Baxter Road, so drive to the Maddron Bald trailhead and park there. With nieces and nephews I would stop at Hen Wallow Falls and save the grove for older legs. For a bigger picture of the area, read our Great Smoky Mountains trip planning guide.
Cosby Campground
Cosby Campground is reservation only. Book on recreation.gov, where the park says reservations can be made up to six months ahead. The park’s fee schedule lists $30 a night, and the stay limit is 14 consecutive days.
Most sites are tent-only and non-electric, with 16-by-16-foot tent pads, fire rings and picnic tables. The campground has flush toilets, drinking water and a dump station for RVs. Quiet hours run from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m., and pets must be on a leash no longer than six feet.
Cosby also works as a quiet base for the rest of the park, because Gatlinburg is about 30 minutes away. That puts Newfound Gap Road within an easy day out, and our guide to the best campgrounds in Great Smoky Mountains compares the other options. The campground office does not accept cash. Opening and closing dates and any status notices live on the campground’s recreation.gov listing, so read them before you build a trip around a date. The campground is seasonal and shuts for the winter. From late October, assume it is closed or about to close until that listing says otherwise. Our national park camping checklist covers what to pack, and food sealed in the car matters more here than anywhere.
Cosby Picnic Area
The Cosby picnic area has 35 sites, charcoal grills only and a pavilion that seats 55. The park’s picnic page lists the 2026 season as May 15 through October 25, so it closes for the year in late October. Hours are sunrise to sunset, and the restrooms are seasonal.
The pavilion can be reserved up to a year ahead, and the fee schedule lists it at $32. Wood fires are not allowed, so bring charcoal. The picnic area sits at 2,179 feet, beside Cosby Creek, which runs through a large cove shaded by hardwood forest.
The hiker parking area stays open year-round. That means the trails do not depend on the picnic season, and a cold-weather walk to Hen Wallow Falls is still on the table.
Cosby Tennessee Bears
Bears live here, so food handling is a rule, not advice. The park’s bear page says willfully approaching within 50 yards (150 feet), or any distance that disturbs a bear, is illegal. Violations such as feeding wildlife or improper food storage can bring fines up to $5,000.
In the campground, all food, cooking gear and scented items stay sealed in a vehicle or a hard-sided camper whenever you are not using them. Bear-proof trash cans sit in the campground and picnic area. Pack out whatever you carry onto the trail. A quiet corner means fewer people making noise, so talk as you walk and give wildlife a chance to move off.
None of this is hard. A bear that learns people mean food becomes a danger to itself and to the next camper. That is the real cost of a lazy picnic table.
Cosby Tennessee FAQ
Do you need a parking tag in Great Smoky Mountains National Park?
Yes. The park requires a parking tag for any vehicle parked longer than 15 minutes, and that covers the Cosby hiker lot and picnic area. Tags are $5 a day, $15 a week or $40 a year, and America the Beautiful passes do not replace them.
How far is Cosby from Gatlinburg?
The park’s Cosby map puts Gatlinburg about 30 minutes away. The Maddron Bald trailhead is about 16 miles east of Gatlinburg on Highway 321, then roughly half a mile up Baxter Road.
Are there black bears in this part of the Smokies?
Yes. Black bears live throughout Great Smoky Mountains National Park, and the park posts bear warnings for shelters and trails on its closures page. Keep food sealed in a vehicle and stay at least 50 yards (150 feet) from any bear.
Can you camp at Cosby without a reservation?
No. Cosby Campground is reservation only, booked on recreation.gov, and the campground office does not take cash.
Prices are approximate, current as of publication, and change frequently — confirm the latest price with the retailer before buying.
Published October 21, 2026.
Photo credits: (1) featured, Mount Cammerer rising above the forested… — Brian Stansberry, CC BY 2.5, via Wikimedia Commons; (2) Cosby Creek and hardwood forest seen from… — Brian Stansberry, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons; (3) The Gabes Mountain Trail crossing a… — Brian Stansberry, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons; (4) Large old-growth trees in Albright Grove… — Brian Stansberry, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons; (5) Footbridge over Cosby Creek near the Low… — Brian Stansberry, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.