Backpack Trail Guide

Trails / North Carolina / Nantahala National Forest

Panthertown Valley Loop (Mac's Gap, Little Green and Schoolhouse Falls)

Panthertown Valley Backcountry Area, Nantahala National Forest (near Cashiers)

Panthertown Valley is a 6,300-acre backcountry area on the Eastern Continental Divide near Cashiers, with granite domes, bogs and a lot of waterfalls packed into a small space. The forest calls it the “Yosemite of the East,” and on a clear day it’s easy to see why.

This loop from Salt Rock Gap takes in two waterfalls and a granite summit in about 5.5 miles. It’s short, and that’s the point: it’s a good first overnight, or an easy one with time left for a swim.

The hike

The route starts at the Salt Rock Gap Trailhead, on the valley’s west side. One trail site describes it as the Panthertown Valley Trail (#474), a gravel road behind a Forest Service gate, dropping into the valley. About 0.1 mile in, the Salt Rock overlook gives a view across the whole valley, and one guide notes the open view of Little Green Mountain’s western granite face from Salt Rock Gap.

Turn right onto Mac’s Gap Trail (#482). The same trail site describes a narrow path through hardwoods, then pine forest. A 2011 trip report calls Mac’s Gap a flat, straight trail cushioned with pine needles. At about 1.3 miles, a spur of roughly 200 yards leads right to Granny Burrell Falls, which one guide calls “a natural water slide over striped rock slab.” The forest lists the Granny Burrell Falls Trail (#486) at 0.31 mile, linking Mac’s Gap with the Great Wall Trail.

Back on Mac’s Gap, the trail runs along the valley floor to Little Green Trail (#485) at about 2.3 miles. Turn left. The climb starts moderate, then gets steep, with a series of steps. The 2011 report puts the trail at almost a mile with about 800 feet of climbing. On top, the route crosses bare rock that can be hard to follow, so watch for green markers on trees and exposed roots, or the faint painted arrows one magazine writer mentions. Little Green is a granite dome, which one guide calls “uncommon to southern Appalachia,” with Blackrock Mountain to the northwest.

Near the summit, a user path through a tight rhododendron tunnel leads to Tranquility Point, an overlook that one trail site calls hard to find. Then the trail drops steeply off the back of the mountain to Schoolhouse Falls, where a short raised boardwalk follows the falls. One magazine article puts the falls at 25 feet and recommends it for swimming. Turn left on the Panthertown Valley Trail to return to Salt Rock Gap.

Panthertown has a long history of hard use. The county tourism site says loggers cleared much of the valley, pines were planted in the 1960s for a planned mountain resort, and the Nature Conservancy bought the land in 1989 and transferred it to the Forest Service. A nonprofit, Friends of Panthertown, now helps the forest maintain the trails.

For a longer weekend, the forest’s Big Green Trail (#487), 1.35 miles, connects Mac’s Gap with the Great Wall Trail. One 2024 trip report camped on Big Green’s summit after a long day around the valley. A 2012 three-day magazine itinerary starts from Cold Mountain Gap instead and adds Powerline Road Trail, with its sliding and swimming falls. For bigger Nantahala country, see the Standing Indian loop or Joyce Kilmer-Slickrock.

Tips

Camping

The forest says camping is permitted in Panthertown, with no more than 12 people per site, and no fees. There are no designated campsites, no restrooms and no potable water. The county tourism site says no permit or reservation is needed for individuals or noncommercial groups, and asks campers to use existing fire rings, burn only dead wood from the ground, and camp at least 50 feet from water, ideally 200.

Bears are the main issue. A 2022 forest order required bear-resistant containers for all food and trash in most of the valley, through April 25, 2024, or until ended, and a 2022 news report says three bear lockers were installed. No renewal was found, so check with the ranger district, and plan on a canister either way.

Inside Intel: Campers on one review site point to a few good spots. One 2019 reviewer found “the sites near the middle of Macs Gap trail are huge,” with easy access to a couple of streams. Another, in 2021, found Green Valley “the most secluded” and the site along the main Panthertown Valley Trail noisy. Tranquility Point fits about four tents on a large rock face, the site says, but has no water nearby; one camper notes “the nearest source is back at schoolhouse falls,” about 0.4 mile away. A 2012 magazine itinerary camped in a flat, sheltered pine forest on the Little Green Trail.

Trail facts

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Where this comes from

This page draws on the sources below, along with other guides and trip reports. Links go to the original pages.

Before you go: This page is based on published trail guides, trip reports, and reviews, along with official park and agency information where we could find it. It’s meant to help backpackers discover new trails, not to replace current, official information. Conditions, closures, permits, campsites, and water sources change, and some details here may be out of date or wrong. Confirm everything with the managing agency and check current conditions before you head out, and don’t rely on this page alone for safety or navigation. Backcountry travel involves risk.