While most visitors use the Savage Gulf West trailhead to reach summertime swimming areas at Blue Hole, and at the Upper and Lower Greeter Falls areas, the Greeter Trail will also connect hikers to the entire Savage Gulf trail network.

The Greeter Trail begins across entrance road from Savage Gulf West parking lot. Cobblestones indicate this section may once have been part of the historic Chickamauga Trace, a Native American trail turned settler road.

About 500 feet from the parking lot, the trailhead kiosk sits at a trail split, with the Greeter Trail bearing left, and the Blue Hole Trail bearing right, about a half-mile, to a great swimming hole.  Don’t try to dive off the rocks — the water is shallow, with more rocks hidden beneath the surface!

Continuing on the Greeter Trail, about 250 feet beyond the kiosk, a short spur trail to the left takes you to the site of the Greeter Homeplace, where the early settler family lived whose name is now given to the nearby waterfall.  The Greeter family lived here from the mid-1800s until the early-1900s.

Continuing on the Greeter Trail, about 500 feet beyond the spur trail to the Greeter Homeplace,  the Greeter Falls Access Trail begins to the right.  This trail begins in a grove of mountain laurels, then uses a 40-step metal and wood staircase to drop below the escarpent. From there, the trail gradually descends below the bluff to a trail junction in the area immediately above Greeter Falls. Turn right for the falls, or continue on the Greeter Falls Access Trail, curving around the base of the bluff and eventually ascending to re-join the Greeter Trail near Boardtree Falls.

If you take the right turn, for the falls, the trail almost immediately splits again, as follows:

The left split will take you downhill, toward the swimming area at the bottom of Greeter Falls, via a rocky  approach to a spiral staircase, followed by a second staircase, that will eventually bring you to the plunge pool at the bottom of Greeter Falls.

Taking the right split will bring you gently downhill to the site of Long’s Mill, an early center for commerce in the area, where grains were milled, and later, lumber was produced by the Greeter family.  An interpretive panel describes the history of Long’s Mill, and the adjacent Chickamauga Trace, in more detail.

But back to the Greeter Trail:  If you choose not to visit either of the falls, but instead choose to continue on the mostly-level Greeter Trail, when you're about a quarter-mile from the parking area, the trail crosses a creek on a cable bridge, just above Boardtree Falls, a double-drop cascade.

Three-quarters of a mile from the parking area, the Greeter Trail turns sharply left, but straight ahead are several outstanding overlooks with panoramic views of Big Creek Gulf.

About 1-1/4 miles from the parking area, the Greeter Trail ends at its junction with the Big Creek Rim and Big Creek Gulf trails, near the Alum Gap Campground. Turn around here if you wish to return to the Savage Gulf West Trailhead.