My Top 40 Hikes

I love hiking, and I have been blessed to take lots of great hikes!  These have been day hikes, which I prefer to backpacking.  Some of the best hikes I have been on have spoiled me for some of the lesser hikes.  For instance, I have learned that my favorite hikes involve both majestic mountains, water, and sweeping views - preferably all the way, not just at the end.  So though hiking in the Smoky Mountains in my backyard is fun, those hikes are not top on my list.

I've thought a lot about what makes a good hike.  To me the ultimate hike would have mountains, water (bonus if a waterfall), sweeping views, good weather (only sort of out of my control as I try to plan my visits when the weather has a strong probability of  being excellent), good company (I have never hiked alone), and a restaurant along the way (hey, a girl can dream).  And while I have a sense of accomplishment with a long and hard hike, I really appreciate a hike that gives similar views with way less effort.  

My top 40 hikes reflect my particular adventures on these trails.  Different weather or different company might give you a totally different experience. These hikes include mountains, lakes, ocean, waterfalls, canyons, desert, cool rock formations, villages, castles, and even several movie locations!   

So here is my list as of January 2026 (and except for #1, it is MY list, not Terry's).  Many of the hikes have their own blog posts and are linked. 

1.  Stairway to Heaven (Oahu, HI).  Terry and I have agreed that this will remain #1, as it was the first epic hike we took together.  And it is now illegal and comes with a huge fine to any who attempt it.  To be fair, it was also illegal when we took it, but a boy scout at a grocery store in Kailua recommended it and told us how to do it. I admit it being illegal did add to the thrill!  This hike goes up a rickety staircase to a radio tower used in WW2 and has almost continuous views of mountains and the Pacific Ocean.

2.  Four Mile/Panorama/Mist Trail (Yosemite,CA)  Also our longest hike at approximately 15 miles.  Truly epic scenery. 

3.  Angel's Landing (Zion, UT)  Probably the best bang for the buck as it's a relatively short hike and totally legal, so it perhaps could have been #1

4.  Precipice/Beehive Trails (Acadia, ME) Two trails that are very similar, and you can do both in one day.  If you have to choose, take Precipice, but it is not open all year. 

5.  Cat Bells/Maiden Moor/High Spy (Lake District, UK) Such a special memory of this hike taken with my daughter!  I want to go back. 

6.  Hooker Valley Track (Mt. Cook, NZ)  So many great hikes in NZ.  But many of them were quite a challenge.  This one I could do over and over. 

7.  Roy's Peak (Wanaka, NZ)  - a hike with a continuous view!

8.  Rob Roy Glacier (Wanaka, NZ)  - my only glacier hike on the list

9.  Ben Lomond (Queenstown, NZ) - another continuous view hike

10.  Chapel Basin (Pictured Rocks, MI) on Lake Superior

11.  Monterosso/Vernazza/Corniglia (Cinque Terra,Italy) - a very unique hiking experience from village to village.  Wonderful food in each village, and very picturesque. 

12.  Skyline Trail (Mt. Ranier, WA) - lots of wildflowers!

13.  Mostnica Gorge/Voje Waterfall (Triglavski National Park, Slovenia) - not just good food for a hike, this was the best food we had on our entire trip 

14.  The Narrows (Zion, UT) - So fun to hike in a river!

15.  Avalanche Peak (Yellowstone, WY)- This is the first alpine hike I ever took, and it was one that I took with my Dad.  A Very special memory.  

1616.  Mt. Dickerman (Cascades, WA) - a hike a took with a guy I was dating (not Terry, LOL).  We ran into a thunderstorm on the way down and had to shelter in a cave of sorts.  

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1117.  Mt. Sunday (NZ) - LOTR fans will know this spot as Edoras, and here I am looking towards Helm's Deep.  We had this hike all to ourselves. 

1 18.  South Kaibab Trail (Grand Canyon, AZ)

 119.  Mt. Scott (Crater Lake, OR) - we took this hike a few months after Scott died

   20.  Taranaki Falls (Tongariro National Park, NZ) - in the shadow of Mt. Doom

21.  Lost Mine Trail (Big Bend, TX) - a hike with the whole family (Rebecca took the photo as she could not bear to get any closer to the edge)

23.  Wapama Falls on Hetch Hetchy Lake (Yosemite, CA)

24.  Figure Eight Trail (Bryce Canyon, UT)

25.  Pipiwai Trail, Seven Sacred Pools (Haleakala, Maui, HI) - a series of waterfalls ending in the Pacific Ocean

26.  Falls on the N. Umpqua River – Clearwater, Susan Creek, Fall Creek, Toketee (OR) - I've hiked to lots of waterfalls in TN and AR, but there were just a series of falls one after another along this road in Oregon.  Plus the name "Susan Creek" gave this series of hikes some points!

2 27.  Mala Osojnica (Lake Bled, Slovenia)

2   28.  Delicate Arch (Arches, UT)

2 29.  Lake Como Greenbelt (Italy)  - an urban hike, lots of cobblestones, and an iconic scene from Star Wars

30.  Canyon Overlook Trail (Zion, UT) - great during the golden hour

   

   31.  Lake Marian Track (Fjiorlands National Park, NZ)

3 32.  Bruce Trail – Horse Lake to Halfway Log Dump (Ontario)

   33.  Chimney Tops (Smoky Mountains, TN) - My favorite hike in the Smokies.  The first hike I ever took with Terry.  Also took our Piney Flats youth group here.  And all our kids.  I'm bummed that they no longer allow you to climb on the rocks at the end. 

   34.  Mt. LeConte via Alum Cave (Smoky Mountains, TN) - I have a love/hate relationship with Mt. LeConte.  I have been up the Alum Cave Trail with Terry (fun and the most scenic route, but we locked ourselves out of our car on our return and it was very complicated to get home), the Trillium Gap trail with my sister-in-law (a very fun day), and hiking up a creek/bushwhacking with Terry, Carol, and the Eastman Hiking Club - worst hike ever with stinging nettles, blowdowns, and barely made it UP before dark.  

   35.  Carver’s Gap to Grassy Ridge (Roan Mountain, TN) - My favorite bald in the Appalachians because we have lots of good memories there.  Best when the rhododendrons are blooming.

3 36.  Max Patch (Smoky Mountains, TN) - easy hike, iconic view

   37.  Charlie’s Bunion (Smoky Mountains, TN)

3 38.  Cummins Falls (Cookeville, TN) - part of the hike is in the water

   39.  Laurel Falls (Hampton, TN) - one of the first hikes our kids took

4 40.  Yellow Rock Trail (Devil's Den, AR) - lots of memories on this trail in Arkansas.  Terry and I took a hike here with my sisters when we were dating.  The curly hair is really something. 

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2025 Memories

We have actually had a quiet holiday season here, so it's given me a chance to reflect and be thankful for the events of 2025.  

The first big event of 2025 was the birth of our 4th grandchild - a son born to Rebecca and Joseph.  I got to be there for the delivery and those first special days as they became a family of five!  

Then in March, Terry and I celebrated our 35th anniversary with a long-anticipated camping trip to New Zealand.  We had three weeks of living in a tiny van and having a great adventure seeing some gorgeous sites.  Also lived through a wreck with a tractor trailer and had our return flight unexpectedly leave a day early without us!  

2025 also brought the purchase of Scott and Ann's lake house on Melton Hill Lake.  It's such a beautiful spot and we are very blessed. We hosted the Schaefer clan there for a week in July and had a blast.  I wasn't sure we could top the reunion of 2022, but I think we did!  

We also hosted our immediate family at the lake house over Thanksgiving.

Though it's just 25 minutes away, our current plan is not to move out there but to continue to run it as an AirBnB and just stay out there occasionally.  It has kept us quite busy as we decided to manage it ourselves.  It's been a fun project, and we have reminded ourselves several times of how we used to dream of owning a Bed & Breakfast someday.  

We sold several rental properties in order to buy the lake house, but we have a few other rentals that Terry maintains.  I am still doing dyslexia therapy and really enjoying my students this year.  

We didn't do any big travels after NZ, but we have a trip to Portugal planned in early 2026.  We also found out we have another grandbaby due in July (thanks, Caleb and Meredith, for that Christmas news!).  

2026 Superlatives:

Best moment - birth of grandbaby #4 in February

Best book - Green Dolphin Street (set in 1800s NZ and surprisingly inspirational)

Best movie - Freakier Friday 

Best food - Montanaro pizza with pistachio sour cream in Queenstown, NZ

Best date - Hobbiton in New Zealand

Best hike - Roy's Peak near Wanaka, NZ

Reunion 2025

In 2022, we gathered with my sisters and their families here in Knoxville for a week-long reunion at the lake!  We had so much fun that we decided to do it again this year.  It is quite an undertaking.  There were 40 of us - including 17 grandkids.  

Lots of planning went into our time - spreadsheets for food, games and activities planned.  This year’s event included a big family history Kahoot and a talent show.  And trips to see fireworks on the water.  All in addition to lots of time spent swimming, tubing, skiing, paddle boarding, riding the air chair etc.

We also had the requisite photo shoot with our designated family photographer, Rebecca.