The Tallulah Gorge North and South Rim combined loop takes you from epic views above the gorge to right down to the base of Hurricane Falls. Situated just an hour and a half outside the Atlanta perimeter, the park offers great trails for all difficulty levels. A well maintained interpretive center offers visitors informative displays, park history, and a gift shop.

The park opens at 8AM and there is a $5 parking fee. Before starting your hike, be sure to check out the Jane Hurt Yarn Interpretive Center at the parking lot. Here you will find restrooms, water fountains and hiking maps, as well as several displays with a plethora of information about the park and its history. This is also where permits are issued if you want to explore the gorge floor trail. Only 100 permits are issued each day, which go fast in the summer months. Be sure to call ahead to make sure they are issuing permits, as they don’t if it’s rained recently and still wet. Dogs are allowed on the trails, but NOT down the stairs to the suspension bridge or along the gorge floor.

The North Rim trail is accessed from either side of the parking lot, but the most direct is from the right and leads around to the back of the interpretive center. This section is well-maintained mulch, so very easy under foot. At .1 miles, the trail splits, with Overlook 1 and Inspiration Point to the left and the rest of the trail to the right. Take the short trail to the first overlook, arguably the best view of the gorge. At this vantage point, you can see Oceana Falls directly below and Bridal Veil Falls downstream. Continuing on to Inspiration Point requires travelling uphill almost 200 ft in a quarter mile, making this the steepest, non-staircase section of the hike. From here, a permit is required to travel along the High Bluff Loop.

Turning around and heading back to the junction behind the interpretive center, the path changes to recycled rubber from here to Overlooks 2 & 3. At Overlook 3, just below is L’Eau d’Or falls, which in French means “water of gold.” To the left you can see Overlook 2 and across the gorge is Overlook 6. If you wish to head straight down the gorge, continue to Overlook 2 and then down the steps along the Hurricane Falls trail; otherwise continue on to Overlooks 4 & 5. At Overlook 4 the hiker gets a view of the water pouring out of the dam.

Follow the sign and take the steps to the sidewalk along Highway 441. Painted signs on the ground direct you across the bridge to the other side of the gorge. Once across, follow the painted sign for the South Rim trail and on to Overlooks 6 & 7. Along the way are a couple covered areas with benches to sit down and get out of the sun for those that need a break. Shortly afterward, the trail splits again at the southern side of the Hurricane Falls trail and steps down this side of the gorge. Go straight to finish the South Rim trail by visiting the remaining three overlooks, which all have great views of the southern part of the gorge. The interpretive center can be seen on the other canyon wall.

Head back to the junction with the Hurricane Falls staircase and begin the descent into the canyon. This entire section is a series of metal grated steps. There are a few benches along the way for those coming up this side. After travelling down 347 steps, you will reach the Hurricane Falls suspension bridge. If you wish, continue down another 221 steps to the platform at the base of the falls. Here hikers with permits for the gorge floor can rock hop across the river and continue downstream to Bridal Veil Falls. Be careful, even when not wet, they rocks are very slick. Once back at the suspension bridge, it’s another 310 steps back to the North Rim trail and Overlook 2, completing the loop.