Highlights along the trail in this area include Clingmans Dome, the highest point along the entire trail at 6,643 feet and Roan Mountain, known for its mid-summer floral displays of rhododendron. The mountains are very steep in this region, so the hiking ranges from moderately difficult to a strenuous challenge. The national forest along the eastern Tennessee border covers 630,000 acres in two units, separated by the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. There are 189 hiking trails covering 715 miles. The scenery is composed of many mountains, streams, meadows and five whitewater rivers.
Wildlife includes black bear, deer and wild boar.
The southern trailhead is at milepost 408, where Hwy. 50 crosses the Parkway. This national scenic trail is an easy, marked, linear trail through mixed pine and hardwood forests and open meadows. Natchez Trace State Park and Forest Tennessee's largest state park covers 43,000 acres in the west-central part of the state. It's a woodland park with four lakes.