I was moderately confused planning our hike to The Jump Off. Years ago I’d heard it described as a side trail leading to a sheer cliff overlook with fabulous views of the Smoky Mountains. Accessible via the Boulevard Trail, you needed to hike a ways to get to the spur, but by all accounts it was marked and well-known. However, on All Trails, I couldn’t find a “Newfound Gap to The Jump Off” hike. This was probably further complicated at various times by me mistakenly calling it “The Drop Off”.
Suffice to say, when my daughter and I started our hike at 7:52am yesterday morning, there was a slight “air of the unknown” to it adding to the overall experience in a “no spoilers” kind of way. Whatsmore, I’d purposely shied from viewing any photos of the place, as I wanted to experience it firsthand the first time I saw it. However, upon seeing the real thing, I discovered that no matter how many photos I might have seen, nothing compares to standing on this particular cliffside, sensing the void before you, and watching the clouds wisp by.
We made good time out of Newfound Gap covering our first mile in ~25m. With no one holding us back, Ella and I reached the sign marking the Sweat Heifer Trail leading to Kephart Shelter by 8:34. We continued our route with one mile to go before hitting the Boulevard Trail.
At one point, I turned to take a photo of Ella coming towards me. I snapped the shot, and she exclaimed, “Look behind you!” Here’s what we saw:
After the deer made her way deeper into the woods, we continued taking time to photograph small details catching our eyes:
After reaching the sign marking the Boulevard Trail, I was expecting we had another 0.2 miles to go. That may have been the case, but we came upon the sign for The Jump Off much quicker than I expected. The sign pointed to a somewhat hidden trail heading off to the side. If it weren’t for the sign, I would have questioned whether to take it at all:
By the time we got onto The Jump Off trail, we hadn’t seen anyone for over an hour. The forest was extra quiet as we meandered back along the ridge. Right before we got to the Jump Off, we heard voices. We came upon a family of three taking in the view.
As you may or may not be able to see, the view from The Jump Off is fantastic. Regardless of what you think from our photos, I highly recommend you see it in person. It’s my new favorite vista in the Smokies.
We ended up spending about thirty minutes there. The clouds never lifted off completely, and for much of the time, the view was completely occluded. However, the extended views we did see were breaktaking, and the cloudy weather only has me wanting to go back again.
After The Jump Off, Ella and I made our way back. At the trail split for Charlies Bunion and Newfound Gap, Ella chose for us to check out the bunion too. While there, we climbed to the top and ate our lunch in the spot where I asked Beth to marry me some 20+ years ago.
