USFS · Tennessee

Cherokee National Forest

The Cherokee National Forest is a United States National Forest located in the U.S. states of Tennessee and North Carolina that was created on June 14, 1920. The forest is maintained and managed by the United States Forest Service. It encompasses an estimated area of 655,598 acres (2,653.11 km2).

From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

National Forest1.2 million acresUSFSTN67 campgrounds within 10 mi121 Forest Service sites185 trails
Official page at U.S. Forest Service ↗

Facts

Where each comes from ↓
DesignationNational Forest
Managed byU.S. Forest Service
StateTennessee
Size1.2 million acres (Forest Service administrative boundary (gis_acres))
Forest Service code0804, region 08
Center point35.8662, -83.0643
Night skyAbout as dark as the ground gets (Black Marble reading 12)

Boundary map

2 outlines

Boundary, simplified to about 0.005 degrees Federal campground Forest Service recreation site

The outline is the agency boundary simplified for display, so small parcels and inholdings may not show. The agency page has the authoritative map.

Weather by month

NOAA climate normals →
Weather by month near Cherokee National Forest30°40°50°60°70°80°January: 4.22 inches of precipitation, 1.9 inches of snowFebruary: 3.90 inches of precipitation, 1.3 inches of snowMarch: 4.72 inches of precipitation, 1.5 inches of snowApril: 4.45 inches of precipitation, 0.0 inches of snowMay: 4.56 inches of precipitation, 0.0 inches of snowJune: 6.38 inches of precipitation, 0.0 inches of snowJuly: 6.49 inches of precipitation, 0.0 inches of snowAugust: 4.61 inches of precipitation, 0.0 inches of snowSeptember: 4.00 inches of precipitation, 0.0 inches of snowOctober: 2.74 inches of precipitation, 0.0 inches of snowNovember: 3.44 inches of precipitation, 0.1 inches of snowDecember: 4.37 inches of precipitation, 0.8 inches of snowJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecJanuary: 38.8°F averageFebruary: 42.6°F averageMarch: 49.6°F averageApril: 58.4°F averageMay: 65.7°F averageJune: 72.4°F averageJuly: 75.6°F averageAugust: 74.7°F averageSeptember: 69.3°F averageOctober: 58.8°F averageNovember: 48.5°F averageDecember: 41.8°F average0 in2 in4 in6 in8 inTemp °FInches
The line is the average temperature and the bars are average precipitation at Waterville 2, 7 miles from the center point at 1,430 feet, station USC00319123 in the NOAA monthly climate normals for 1991 to 2020. Precipitation totals about 54 inches a year. The dotted line is average snowfall, about 6 inches a year on the same inches scale.

Large units span more than one climate. The station stands in for the center point, and the outer parts of the boundary can be warmer or colder.

Where to camp

Campsite Atlas →

40 federal campgrounds sit inside the boundary and 27 more are within ten miles of it. Nearest first. Distances are from the campground point to the boundary edge, from the Campsite Atlas index.

FS · Inside
Backbone Rock Campground
Reservable11 sites
FS · Inside
Backbone Rock Recreation Area Pavilions
Reservable1 site
FS · Inside
Big Oak Cove Campground
Reservable4 sites
FS · Inside
Birch Branch Campground
Reservable4 sites
FS · Inside
Cardens Bluff Campground
Reservable43 sites
FS · Inside
Chilhowee Campground
Reservable61 sites
FS · Inside
Chilhowee Group Camp
Reservable1 site
FS · Inside
Dam Creek Walk-In Campground And Picnic Area
First-comeTN
Show 3 more

55 more within ten miles are not listed here.

Trailheads and sites

Forest Service directory · 121

The Forest Service lists 121 recreation sites in this forest, among them 26 campgrounds, 16 day hikings, 12 picnic areas, 9 boat launchs. Each links to its page on fs.usda.gov, which carries the season, fees and current status.

Show all 60

The 60 closest to the center point are listed; 61 more are on the Forest Service site.

Distance is from the center point of the boundary, not from a road or town.

Trails

Every trail on Trailhead Atlas →

The Forest Service trail layer records 185 named trails in this forest, 677 miles in all. The 10 longest are listed here.

TrailMiles
Benton-McKaye ↗48.1
Benton Mackaye ↗22.3
John Muir National Recreation ↗20.7
Iron Mountain ↗19.3
Flatwoods Horse Trail ↗13.8
Meadow Creek Mtn Trail ↗13.7
Dark Hollow Horse Trail ↗13.5
Buffalo Mountain ATV Trail ↗12.8
Sylco Loop ↗11.3
South Fork of Citico Trail ↗10.4

Lengths and allowed uses come from the Forest Service trail layer by way of Trailhead Atlas, refreshed September 18, 2026. Trails in plain text have no page there yet.

All 185 trails in Cherokee National Forest on Trailhead Atlas ↗

Explore

Nearby on the other atlases

National Park System units within 30 miles · Park Atlas
National Historic Site · 6 mi
Andrew Johnson National Historic Site
National Park · 20 mi
Great Smoky Mountains National Park
Parkway · 27 mi
Blue Ridge Parkway
National Register listings within 15 miles · 288 in all · Register Atlas

Landmarks are listed first, then by distance from the boundary.

Reference

Questions people ask

How big is Cherokee National Forest?

1.2 million acres.

Source: Forest Service boundary data

Who manages Cherokee National Forest?

The U.S. Forest Service.

Source: U.S. Forest Service

What state is Cherokee National Forest in?

Tennessee.

Source: How states are assigned

Can I camp at Cherokee National Forest?

40 federal campgrounds sit inside the boundary, including Backbone Rock Campground, Backbone Rock Recreation Area Pavilions and Big Oak Cove Campground. 67 in all are within ten miles. Dispersed camping is allowed on most national forest land outside developed sites; check the forest page for closures.

Source: Where to camp

Where are the trailheads in Cherokee National Forest?

The Forest Service lists 121 recreation sites here, including 26 campground campgrounds, 16 day hikings and 12 picnickings. Each one links to its Forest Service page.

Source: Trailheads and sites

How do I get to Cherokee National Forest?

A point inside the boundary is at 35.866, -83.064. Andrew Johnson National Historic Site is 6 miles away. The official page carries directions and the office address.

Source: U.S. Forest Service

How dark is the night sky at Cherokee National Forest?

NASA’s Black Marble night-lights image reads 12 on a 0 to 255 scale at the center point, about as dark as the ground gets.

Source: NASA Black Marble

Which national parks are near Cherokee National Forest?

Andrew Johnson National Historic Site (6 mi), Great Smoky Mountains National Park (20 mi) and Blue Ridge Parkway (27 mi). Park Atlas has fees, hours and alerts for each.

Source: Nearby on the other atlases

Are there historic places near Cherokee National Forest?

288 National Register listings within 15 miles, including Brown, A.r., House and Butler House.

Source: Register Atlas

Sources

  • Boundary, name, acreage and code: the Forest Service Enterprise Data Warehouse.
  • States: computed by intersecting the boundary with Census state polygons; a state is listed when it holds at least one percent of the area.
  • Description: Cherokee National Forest on Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. The article was accepted because its title contains this unit’s name.
  • Campgrounds: the Campsite Atlas index of federal campgrounds, matched to this boundary at build time.
  • Trailheads and sites: the Forest Service Recreation Opportunities layer, matched by forest code.
  • Trails: the Trailhead Atlas open-data file of Forest Service trails, matched by forest code.
  • Night sky: NASA Black Marble (VIIRS, 2016 composite) sampled at zoom 6 around the center point.
  • Weather, alerts, air quality, river flow and earthquakes load live in your browser from NWS, AirNow, USGS and iNaturalist when you open the page.