The main waterfall gives the park its name Laurel Run Falls, but there are five others of different sizes and water flow. Since it is the closest hike to St. Clair that means I have hiked there many, many times. When I hike at Laurel Run Park I always start at the parking area near the bathroom, so that is where this one will start. It is a large parking area and you go up the road past the park map, on the right, and the park sign on the left. Then it is past the park office along the road and upper parking lot.
The actual trail starts past the parking area and you will know as there is trail sign at the bridge. The sign used to be further up the trail. You will cross two footbridges before a short climb up a wide trail to two old looking buildings. These were actually leftover from the movie the River's Edge and they are starting to show their age and have been boarded up. It is another short distance when you will come to the junction with the Overlook Trail.
This is a mile trail up Canebreak Mountain to an overlook and then back down to the Laurel Run Trail. You can go straight, but I norma;;y take the wide steep trail up to the overlook. It is an old roadbed, so it is very steep, but in Spring it has plenty of wildflowers. After a heart-pumping climb, you will reach the overlook which is a good time for a break with views of the Holston River Valley and Church Hill to enjoy.
There is a little bit more uphill before the trail heads back down and reconnects with the Laurel Run Trail. The trail now does a short uphill before heading downhill to a ford of Laurel Run Creek. How hard this is to cross will depend on how much water flow there is. If it is low a rock hop can be done. If higher then you will have to wade or do some fallen tree gymnastics. In a bit of irony, the harder the crossing the better the waterfalls will be...oh, a place for a footbridge?
The trail heads uphill with the beauty of the creek to the right. You will notice what looks like an old road than the trail straights out and as it tops a rise you will see the short side path to the right down to Laurel Run Falls. This is a 12-foot curtain-type cascade that you can view from several angles. It is a beautiful waterfall.
Most people stop here and return for a two-mile hike (sans the Overlook Trail which adds about half-mile more), but this is just the first. A couple of yards further you will come to a junction while a trail goes left, the official trailheads straight so continue that direction. In a hundred feet or so there will be another slight trail to the right. Here is a small five-foot cascade I call Little Laurel Run Falls.
Continue straight until the trail comes to a turn. here is where we get to the "unofficial" part of the hike. First, you will cross near where Kiner and Laurel Run Creeks come together. Once over you will cross some large blowdown and head up Kiner Creek. There is a faint manway up through here so follow it. It won't be long before you come to the first, I call Lower Kiner Falls. It is a seven-foot horsetail cascade that can vary in beauty by the amount of water flow there are spots where you will climb through rhododendrons before reaching Middle then Upper Kiner Falls. You will also notice a marker about here, so maybe they might make this an official trail? we will see.
You will know you are there when you reach the base of 30-foot Kiner Falls pouring over the cliff which is the end of the trail. As I have pointed out before this falls looks like a small Grotto Falls. Like it, you can walk behind Kiner Falls, but it can be tough in the Winter if it ices up. Oh, in dryer times it can be more of a trickle over the cliff than a falls
You can get another view of Kiner Falls by staying on the main trail back when you crossed the creek. It is about two-tenths of-a-mile climb where you will see a steep trail to the right. Be careful if you go down because you are 30 feet above Kiner Falls. You will notice before you get to this side trail another path down which you can use to get to the base of Kiner Falls. I would recommend going the lower trail on the other side of the creek as I described.
Anyway, the hike back is mostly the way you came, except you will go straight instead of going up the Overlook Trail. overall of this hiking clocks in just over three miles. Once back a trip down to the river is never a bad way to end the day at Laurel Run Park.
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