Looking for a rewarding walk to some of the southern mountains’ loveliest falls? Here are some of our top picks, with details on the walks to get to them.
There is something in all of us that harkens to water, especially when it’s tumbling over a cliff or down a mountain slope, cascading in white streams over sandstone or granite, inspiring us with its loveliness, its soothing dull rushing roar that we can hear even before we can see it. This is perhaps one reason why I have fallen in love with places rife with waterfalls like the northeast corner of Georgia and Transylvania County, North Carolina, places where waterfalls can be found every few miles, or so it seems. Since childhood I have walked hundreds of miles of waterfall trails in these southern mountains; some of them I know like the contours of my own hand. And if you haven’t explored these cascading streams in awhile, here’s a guide to steer you toward the best of them.
North Carolina
Linville Falls, Erwin’s View Trail, Linville
Distance: 1.6 miles roundtrip
Difficulty: Moderate
Why it’s worth the walk: This is a relatively easy hike through rhododendron tunnels with several viewing opportunities of Linville Falls as well as the Linville Gorge. Accessible right off the Blue Ridge Parkway, this hike offers viewing platforms for glimpses of both the upper and lower falls, and the lower Chimney View area provides a panorama of the Linville plunge basin.
nps.gov/blri/planyourvisit/upload/LINVILLE%20FALLS.pdf
Crabtree Falls, Little Switzerland
Distance: 2.5 miles roundtrip
Difficulty: Strenuous
Why it’s worth the walk: Take this loop trail off the Blue Ridge Parkway in summer, and you’ll enjoy vibrant displays of rhododendron, irises, yellow lady slippers, and snowy white trillium as you descend to a viewing platform of this 60-foot waterfall. The plunge is so strong that you’ll find yourself covered in chill spray at the base of the falls.
nps.gov/blri/planyourvisit/upload/color%20CRABTREE%20FALLS.pdf
Looking Glass Falls, Brevard
Distance: Short walk to viewing platform
Difficulty: Easy
Why it’s worth the walk: This isn’t really a hike. It just requires a short descent down some steps off U.S. 276 in the Shining Rock Wilderness, but it’s a must-see waterfall. Looking Glass Falls has a 60-foot drop and is a sheer and wide cascade making a drop to a popular swimming hole. If you can brave water temps in the 50s, bring your swimsuit!
fs.usda.gov/detail/nfsnc/specialplaces/?cid=stelprdb5188439
Yellowstone Falls, Waynesville
Distance: 2.2 miles roundtrip (for lower falls only)
Difficulty: Moderate
Why it’s worth the walk: Located just off the Blue Ridge Parkway, the Graveyard Fields Loop Trail offers a unique hike through a landscape swept by fire in 1925 and a massive windstorm more than 500 years ago. Barren and covered with brush that bears blueberries in summer, the area is reminiscent of the Rocky Mountain West. The trail curls down to Yellowstone Falls, where a cascade tumbles over burnished golden rock. This is the Lower Falls and often features children romping in the swimming hole at the base of the cascade.
fs.usda.gov/recarea/nfsnc/recreation/hiking/recarea/?recid=48420&actid=50
Whitewater Falls (Upper), Cashiers
Distance: 100 yards
Difficulty: Easy
Why it’s worth the walk: This dramatic 411-foot cascade on the Whitewater River is the highest waterfall east of the Mississippi. A paved and level path leads to a falls overlook, though you can also take 150 steps or so to a lower viewing area.
blueridgeheritage.com/attractions-destinations/whitewater-falls
Virginia
White Oak Canyon, Madison
Distance: 7.3 miles roundtrip
Difficulty: Strenuous
Why it’s worth the walk: Located off Skyline Drive, the White Oak Canyon Trail leads through what is known as the Limberlost, a former virgin hemlock forest, down into White Oak Canyon past six plunging waterfalls. The upper falls is the highest at 86 feet. (This is a strenuous and steep hike – allow yourself plenty of time to complete it.)
nps.gov/shen/planyourvisit/upload/whiteoak_canyon_area.pdf
Lewis Falls, Near big Meadows
Distance: 2 to 3.3 miles roundtrip depending on route taken
Difficulty: Moderate
Why it’s worth the walk: Lewis Falls is one of Shenandoah National Park’s more scenic falls, dropping 81 feet at full stream over a granite ledge. The easiest route is to descend from Skyline Drive and then return by hiking the loop past the amphitheater at Big Meadows. This is also a great trail for spotting black bears!
nps.gov/shen/planyourvisit/upload/big_meadows_area.pdf
South River Falls, Stanardsville
Distance: 4.7miles roundtrip
Difficulty: Strenuous
Why it’s worth the walk: Located just north of the Swift Run Gap entrance to Shenandoah National Park, this rewarding hike provides access to two viewing points, one above the falls, and the other at the fall’s base (also an excellent fishing hole). It is a sparsely traveled hike, making it one of the better waterfall trails in the park for those who want to get off the beaten path.
nps.gov/shen/planyourvisit/upload/lewis_mtn_area.pdf
Crabtree Falls, Montebello
Distance: 3 miles roundtrip
Difficulty: Moderate
Why it’s worth the walk: One of the loveliest waterfalls in Virginia, Crabtree Falls is located about six miles off the Blue Ridge Parkway and features the highest vertical-drop cascading waterfall east of the Mississippi River. Featuring five large cascades, it falls a total distance of 1,200 ft.
nelsoncounty-va.gov/departments/parks-recreation/hiking/
Falling Spring Falls, Covington
Distance: Short walk to overlook
Difficulty: Easy
Why it’s worth the walk: This dramatic waterfall, visible right off U.S. 220 north of Covington, drops 200 feet over a sharp ledge into a shallow pool and then flows into the Jackson River, a popular trout fishing stream.
Tennessee
Grotto Falls, Gatlinburg
Distance: 3 miles roundtrip
Difficulty: Moderate
Why it’s worth the walk: Located off the Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, this hike gains about 500 feet in elevation and rises through a forest of hemlock, maple, and beeches to a 25-foot cascade. It’s well worth the walk, however, as the trail passes right behind the waterfall.
nps.gov/grsm/planyourvisit/grotto-falls.htm
Laurel Falls, Townsend
Distance: 2.6 miles roundtrip
Difficulty: Moderate
Why it’s worth the walk: This is the most popular waterfall hike in Great Smoky Mountains National Park, probably because of how accessible it is. The trail is wide and paved and can even accommodate baby strollers. The trail is lined with mountain laurel and leads to a 75-foot waterfall plunging to a scenic pool, where you’ll often find waders in summer.
nps.gov/grsm/planyourvisit/laurel-falls.htm
Ruby Falls, Chattanooga
Distance: 1 mile roundtrip
Difficulty: Easy
Why it’s worth the walk: Ruby Falls is the highest underground waterfall in America (as far as anyone knows anyway) and is an 80-year-old roadside attraction in Chattanooga that has a little bit of the kitschy about it, at least when it comes to the guided cave tour you have to take to get to the falls. But this trek into the bowels of Lookout Mountain has its rewards – a 75-foot streaming waterfall cascading from the ceiling in a spray of ever changing light.
Georgia
Amicalola Falls, Dahlonega
Distance: ½ mile roundtrip (West Ridge Falls Access)
Difficulty: Easy
Why it’s worth the walk: At 729 feet, this waterfall is the highest east of the Rockies, though its name, which means “tumbling waters” in Cherokee, would seem to belie that fact. For a serious workout, take the 429 steps from the West Ridge trail to the top of the falls for a look at the cascade from above.
http://www.gastateparks.org/AmicalolaFalls/Trails
Anna Ruby Falls, Helen
Distance: ½ mile roundtrip
Difficulty: Easy
Why it’s worth the walk: Located in the Chattahoochee National Forest, the twin falls of Anna Ruby are well worth a leg stretcher. The higher of the pair of falls cascades 153 feet, and its mate tumbles 50 feet, through lush rhododendron understory.
unicoistatepark.org/anna-ruby-falls.html
Dukes Creek Falls, Helen
Distance: 2.2 miles roundtrip
Difficulty: Strenuous
Why it’s worth the walk: This is another double waterfall accessible via a steep trail that descends to a series of boardwalk viewing platforms. The first fall drops straight over the face of a sheer granite cliff. The second and shorter falls tumbles down to a roiling pool in great froths of spray. You will likely get wet on this path!
fs.usda.gov/recarea/conf/recreation/hiking/recarea/?recid=10509&actid=50
Tallulah Falls, Tallulah Falls
Distance: Various
Difficulty: Easy to moderate
Why it’s worth the walk: At 1,000 feet deep, Tallulah Gorge is one of North America’s oldest geological formations, and it cradles the Tallulah River, as it descends 600 feet over five cascading waterfalls, which can be viewed from various overlooks along easy walking trails in Tallulah Gorge State Park. The North Rim Trail offers fairly easy access (though there is some significant stair climbing) to several gorge overlooks, including the Oceana Falls overlook, where tightrope walker Karl Wallenda made his precarious crossing of the gorge in 1970. It also offers access to the Hurricane Falls trail, where a swinging bridge crosses the gorge over tumbling Hurricane Falls.
gastateparks.org/TallulahGorge
West Virginia
Blackwater Falls, Davis
Distance: 200+ steps to best viewing platform on Rt. 29
Difficulty: Moderate
Why it’s worth the walk: This five-story amber-colored waterfall plunges into eight-mile long Blackwater Canyon, often creating three plumes of spray over a large rock outcropping. In early spring, the falls run at full throttle after the snowmelt, creating a crashing cascade that roars over the canyon walls.
blackwaterfalls.com/recreation.htm
Falls of Hills Creek, Hillsboro
Distance: 1.5 miles roundtrip
Difficulty: Moderate
Why it’s worth the walk: Located just off the Highland Scenic Highway, this trail descends 220 feet via a series of stairs paralleling three different waterfalls, the lowest of which drops in a lovely stream into a perfect pool beneath a water-worn sandstone cliff.
fs.usda.gov/recarea/mnf/recreation/hikingrecarea/?recid=9914&actid=50
Mill Creek Falls, Huttonsville
Distance: Short path through woods to viewing area
Difficulty: Easy
Why it’s worth the walk: Located in Kumbrabow State Forest, this short hike leads to a terraced waterfall that tumbles through a rhododendron spray below the park’s log cabin lodgings. Bring your swimming trunks, as a favorite pastime here is taking a leaping lunge into the pool below the falls via ropes hung in trees adjacent to Mill Creek! Mill Creek is also a great brook trout stream.
South Carolina
Whitewater Falls (Lower), Lake Jocassee
Distance: 3.4 miles roundtrip
Difficulty: Moderate
Why it’s worth the walk: This chain of six waterfalls on the Whitewater River begins in North Carolina and ends above Lake Jocassee in South Carolina. The whole series of falls is the highest drop in eastern North America. You can access the lower falls on the South Carolina side to see a dramatic 200 ft. cascade.
http://www.upcountrysc.com/links/16/1038
Kentucky
Cumberland Falls, Parkers Lake
Distance: 1 mile roundtrip
Difficulty: Moderate
Why it’s worth the walk: Located in Cumberland Falls State Park and often called the “Niagara of the South,” this wide falls on the Cumberland River spans the entire river, and on clear nights under a full moon, you can often see a beautiful lunar rainbow over the falls.
ky.gov/parks/resortparks/cumberland-falls/trails.aspx
Yahoo Falls, Whitley City
Distance: 1 mile roundtrip
Difficulty: Easy
Why it’s worth the walk: This is the highest waterfall in Kentucky at 113 feet and is best seen following a good rain. Located in the Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area, Yahoo Falls offers a narrow but dramatic drop over a rock ledge, slipping like a bridal veil into the pool below. The trail also passes underneath the falls.
nps.gov/biso/planyourvisit/kytrails.htm
Maryland
Muddy Creek Falls, Thayerville
Distance: 1.3-mile loop
Difficulty: Easy
Why it’s worth the walk: This short and pleasant walk on a level trail leads to a 53-foot cascade, the highest vertical falls in Maryland, Muddy Creek Falls tumbles through the oldest virgin hemlock forest in the state, over a rocky gorge into the roiling whitewater of Muddy Creek. Along the way, you’ll enjoy three other smaller falls on the Youghiogheny River.
dnr.state.md.us/publiclands/western/swallowfalls.asp
Alabama
DeSoto Falls, Mentone
Distance: 0.68 miles roundtrip
Difficulty: Moderate
Why it’s worth the walk: As Alabama’s highest waterfall at 100 feet, this picturesque falls in DeSoto State Park is noteworthy more for its context and location than its height. A delicate spout of water trips over the lip of the gorge into a stunning aquamarine pool.
alapark.com/desotoresort/Waterfalls%20&%20Trails/
Photo Contest Winner!
Western North Carolina photographer Dave Allen won our recent Facebook photo contest with this shot, which he calls Autumn at Dry Falls. In case you want to visit:
Where it is: Outside of Highlands, N.C.
How to get there: Take U.S. 64 west out of Highlands toward Franklin.
To reach it: There is newly remodeled parking and restrooms, and a handicap-accessible viewing platform for those who can’t make it down the stairs and trail to the falls. The steps and groomed trail lead down to the falls and even behind the waterfall.
Why it’s worth the short walk: It’s easily one of the most beautiful waterfalls in the Southern Appalachians in Allen’s opinion, and considering the ease of access it should be high on anyone’s list of places to visit.
