Little River Canyon National Preserve

4322 Little River Trail NE, Fort Payne, AL 35984, USA

Related:	half day forest preserve
Address:	4322 Little River Trail NE, Fort Payne, AL 35984, USA
Phone:	+1 256-845-9605
Site:	nps.gov
Rating:	4.7
Working:	10AM–4PM 10AM–4PM 10AM–4PM 10AM–4PM 10AM–4PM 10AM–4PM 10AM–4PM

Location

Photos 100

Reviews 10

Steve Markos

I am a writer and photographer for National Park Planner and I visited the Little River Canyon National Preserve December, 2013. The park is located on Lookout Mountain near Fort Payne, Alabama. While people think of Chattanooga, Tennessee, whenever Lookout Mountain is mentioned, it actually extends all the way into northeastern Alabama. Atop the mountain flows the Little River, the only river in the country that begins and ends on top of a mountain. Millions of years ago at the spot marked by Little River Falls today, the river started to wear into the mountain, digging deeper and deeper each year until it wore a 12-mile long, 600 foot deep gash into the rock, forming Little River Canyon. In 1992, the canyon and surrounding areas became the Little River Canyon National Preserve. For the typical tourist, the park offers nothing more than a few views along a scenic, canyon rim drive and a spot for a family picnic along the river. Little River Canyon is a sportsman’s park, and an extreme one at that. Little River Falls marks the start of the Canyon Area, which runs the length of the canyon, terminating at the Canyon Mouth Picnic Area. World class kayaking can be found below the falls, with water so dangerous that the US Olympic Kayak team has trained here. Rock climbers can have a go at the miles of sheer canyon walls. Even the hiking trails are strenuous, some no more than a rock slide path down to the bottom of the canyon. The area north of the falls in known as the Backcountry Area. This area offers outdoor activities a little less strenuous, with easier trails and a calmer river open to canoeing and kayaking. Being that the park is a Preserve, hunting is allowed in the Backcountry, as is limited camping in three primitive sites. A high clearance vehicle is highly suggested for visiting the Backcountry. For complete information and plenty of photos about the park, please visit my web site, National Park Planner (npplan).

Megan Coughran

Amazing! We didnt do the hiking trails but we drove and saw the overlooks! Breathtaking views of the mountains. You can look at the overlooks and the Little River Falls in an hour and a half. Its a great place to stretch your legs on a long drive or just duck off for a short visit. WARNING: Check or call the office for the GPS coordinates if your unfamiliar with the area secondly even though you have the coordinates Google will tell you that your destination is a closed gate on the left side of the road but the actual entrance is abut another .25 of a mile further up the road to the left. To the right of the hwy is start of the Scenic drive. If your not hiking go down to the last Overlook then turn around and come back out because theres really not much to see after that point but before taking this scenic hwy go about 100 ft past the visitors entrance road which is on the left and the scenic hwy on the right and on the right is the entrance to the falls overlook right across the bridge. There is a side walk that goes to the bridge and the bridge has a bench with an amazing view of the canyon! The overlook has a great view of the Little River Falls! Thanks so much to the staff there for mailing and emailing with me about this destination! Super staff!

A Private User

Desoto State Park is an awesome place to visit and camp. I cant say much about the cabins or the lodge, but the campground is top notch. Full hookups make an extended stay here painless. The pool is cold but clean. The trails and scenery are awesome. The country store staff are very nice. I might also mention that, based on a previous review by someone named Santhi, someone might get the impression that the park staff and visitors arent used to "non-white people." If Santhi was getting "rude stares," I doubt very much if it had anything to do with race. Believe it or not, us dumb old Southerners are really quite up to speed, and have lived amongst "non-white" people for a very long time (as people of all colors live in the South). Perhaps the locals were staring at the chip on Santhis shoulder.

Ryan Beverly

I came to this place with my brother and friends. We came out for the day. This place is beautiful but can get crowded. We hiked and found a cold water hole that was undisturbed. The only downside is we came up there to hike and explore when the drought hit and there was an extreme burn ban going on. Other than that it was still a memorable hike and experience. Would definitely come back when we could. *Edit Came back this past weekend to check out Waterfalls and since weve been having a lot of rain lately I finally got to see the Canyon flowing and flowing quite well. Its is just as beautiful filled as is just Rock bed to go around and hike on.

طائر اليمامة

مكان جميل الأجواء بالصيف ابرد من غيرها للمناطق المحيطة بها توجد العديد من الشلالات والأنهار مائها عذب وبارد المناظر خلابة ورائعة جدا انصح كل من نزل بموبيل أو بنساكولا ومجاورها زيارة هذه المنطقة ومن ثم البيات بأحد الاكواخ الجميلة بأعلى الجبل

Joshua Price

There is more to see in about a three mile radius around this area then can be shoehorned into a single afternoon. The falls (both Grace High Falls and Little River Canyon Falls) were spectacular. Hiking was exceptional, and the NPS visitor center was new, well run, and exceeded expectations. Volunteers were extremely helpful. One of the best National Park Service experiences Ive ever had. Bring your hiking shoes, lunch, your sense of wonder, and a camera. You wont regret the trip!

Greg Holland

Absolutely incredible. GOOGLE NAVIGATES TO THE WRONG PLACE THOUGH. Like Scot said in another review below, youre gonna want to stay on Route 35 and then turn right after the bridge. Google navigates to some place where theres a dense forest. We walked through brush and thorns for over an hour at the wrong place before we realized we were in the wrong place. The actual little river canyon is beautiful and spectacular, and you dont have to walk through the forest to get there.

Thori Brewer

Beautiful Place to spend an afternoon! It varies from a gentle stream to a raging river depending on the amount of rain that has fallen, so the view is different each time you come! A ride through the park is a great photo opp! Especially in the fall! There is a restroom at the falls and it is handicap accessible. The walk down to view the falls is fairly steep but has handrails. For those with trouble walking, the view from the bridge is lovely and easier on the legs!

Kelly Mitchell

We went in late October to enjoy the Fall colors but the water source for the falls was dried up. The walking trails were still enjoyable because you can hike down to the river. It would be really beautiful if you went when all the falls were running. Some super photo possibilities with all the huge rocks, boulders, and mountains. We stayed overnight in the lodge cabins. Bed was comfortable and the room was quite acceptable, better than any state park I have stayed in.

Chris Parker

Like many NPS sites, the points of interest throughout Little River Canyon are largely accessible by road. This means you wont necessarily have to hike very far to see them. Of course, there are several hiking trails throughout the park, though they tend to be relatively short. One downside to the park is the number of steep and twisting roads, some of which can be inaccessible even for passenger cars. The map is also poorly drafted, as it excludes some roads.