A good introduction to the geology and scenery is to hike one of the many short overlook trails. The East Rim Overlook Trail off highway 297 is a five-minute walk to a dramatic overlook of the Big South Fork Gorge. The Devil's Jump Overlook Trail located off Mine 18 road presents a short hike that terminates in a platform overlooking the gorge and class III-IV Devil's Jump rapids. One of the most dramatic features of the Big South Fork region is its abundance of natural arches. Probably the most famous is the Twin Arches, two massive arches that at points rise over 100 feet and have a combined span of over 220 feet, making this one of the largest such geologic features in the world.
Hikers have two options to view the Twin Arches.
Both begin at the Twin Arches Trailhead located approximately 30 minutes drive from the Bandy Creek Visitor Center off TN Highway 154. Be sure to grab a free Twin Arches brochure from the visitor center that contains detailed maps and directions to the trailhead. The first option is a 1.4-mile round trip hike that leads to the base of the arches and has several side trails to explore the Twin Arches Area. Be sure to explore the many rock tunnels, small caves and tight squeezes in the area to get a feel for the ongoing geologic forces at work. Geologists speculate that other arches once existed nearby but have long since collapsed due to the ongoing erosion that will one day topple Twin Arches as well.