Indian Flats Falls is located 3.8 miles from the Tremont Trailhead in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The fall is comprised of 4 medium-size drops accessible by an unmarked spur off the Middle Prong Trail.

Indian Flats Falls is comprised of four medium size tiers

As summer ends the dominant green pigments in leaves fade, enabling carotenoids (orange - yellow) and anthocyanins (red - purples) to come forward

Each tier spills into its own enclosed pool

The Middle Prong Trail, Lynn Camp Prong Trail, Miry Ridge Trail and Panther Creek Trail form a 14 mile loop

Fallen leaves cover berry-bearing kinnickkinnick along the Lynn Camp Prong Trail

A moderate, graded path leads to Indian Flats Falls

Purple colors come from anthocyanins, formed when sugars in leaves break down in bright autumn sunlight

Cascades along Middle Prong rival those of Indian Flats

The Middle Prong corridor is shrouded in laurel and rhododendron

Voluminous streams carve through the rocks at Indian Flats

Narrow trunks indicate a second growth forest on the Panther Creek Trail

Short scrambles in thick brush are required to reach each tier

Fall colors typically peak mid - late October but weather can impact timing by days or weeks

The turn off to the Indian Flats area is unmarked and very easy to miss

The trail starts off by crossing Middle Prong on a long steel bridge

The upper tier of Indian Flats Falls

Old growth canopies cover portions of the Middle Prong Trail

Vines lace the canopy of Lynn Camp Prong Trail

Tangled rhododendron encloses the lower tier of Indian Flats Falls

Hikers enjoy brief openings in the canopy along the Miry Ridge Trail