Tennessee trails · South Rim Trail
South Rim Trail
A 6.2-mile out-and-back in Tennessee, with 112 ft of climbing. Reaches Yellow Bluff View and other viewpoint destinations. Managed by the state.
Elevation profile
Most of the climbing sits in the first third — 56% of the ascent, between mile 0.0 and mile 2.1. It gives back about 353 ft along the way, so it rolls rather than climbing steadily.
3-D terrain
USGS 3DEP ELEVATION × ESRI WORLD IMAGERY · VERTICAL ×1.5
Reaches
- Yellow Bluff View (viewpoint)
- Champion Overlook (viewpoint)
- Step Down Overlook (viewpoint)
- Savage Falls Overlook (South Rim) (viewpoint)
- Savage Creek Swinging Bridge (viewpoint)
- Savage Falls Overlook (Day Loop) (viewpoint)
- Moonshine Still Remnants (viewpoint)
- Former Moonshine Still Site (viewpoint)
Heads up
Getting there
South Rim Trail access. 35.44229, -85.59809 · directions
Daylight at the trailhead
On August 31, 2026 — the day this page was generated — first light reaches this trailhead at 5:47 a.m., the sun rises at 6:13 a.m. and sets at 7:11 p.m., and the last usable light fades about 7:37 p.m. (CDT) — 12 h 57 min of daylight. At about 2.7 mph plus 30 minutes per 1,000 feet of climbing, the 12.4-mile round trip takes roughly 4 h 42 min, so leaving the trailhead at sunrise puts you back around 10:55 a.m. — 8 h 15 min before sunset.
Nearby trails
- Collins Rim Trail — 0.0 mi
- North Rim Trail — 2.0 mi
- Lower Loop Trail — 20.5 mi