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Welcome to one of the most beautiful places on Earth - the mountains of western
North Carolina! There are literally hundreds of waterfalls and miles and miles
of hiking trails in this area. You could spend a lifetime trying to see
everything. Western North Carolina is blessed to have over a million acres of
national forests, national parks, state parks, and other public lands for our
enjoyment and use. The Pisgah and Nantahala National Forests comprise most of
this land and offer multiple uses including hiking, mountain biking, camping,
and horseback riding. Our western state parks offer most of the same activities
and contain some of the lesser know hidden jewels. Be sure to check out Gorges
State Park, Chimney Rock State Park, Grandfather Mountain State Park, Hanging
Rock State Park, South Mountains State Park, and Lake James State park. And of
course there's the beautiful Blue Ridge Parkway - America's Favorite Drive.
You'll experience beautiful vistas, wildflowers, amazing fall color, and of
course - waterfalls! Men and women with extraordinary vision preserved these
special places and are constantly working to save more and improve what has
already been saved. They do this because they love the land, they love
the beauty Mother Nature has bestowed upon this area, and because they want to
share it with you, me, and everyone that will take the time to get out and
experience it.

Of course, the beautiful scenery doesn't stop at the North Carolina border.
Upstate South Carolina and Georgia have beautiful waterfalls in their mountain
areas. There are enough waterfalls in central and Eastern Tennessee to fill
another web site - and of course there's the Great Smoky Mountain National Park
on the NC/TN border. I've done my best to include their waterfalls in this site,
but still have a lot more places to visit.

I didn't discover this area until 1998. That's when friends invited me up to
their mountain home in Lake Toxaway to hike to some of the waterfalls in the
area. My first falls were Drift, Turtleback and Rainbow Falls along the
Horsepasture River and I've been hooked ever since. I lived near Raleigh at the
time and it was a struggle to get over this way more than 5 times a year. By
2002 I just couldn't stand living 4-5 hours away, so I started planning to
relocate. In April 2003, the dream became reality and I picked up my life and
moved to the Asheville area.

This site has grown tremendously in the number of visitors - especially in the
last 3 years. That's a good thing since it probably means more people are
getting outdoors to enjoy Nature's beauty and are looking for info on where to
go and what to see. The only down side is I'm getting a lot more emails and am
not able to answer all of the inquiries. I'm very sorry if I haven't responded
to yours, but please remember that this is a one person operation. Use this site
for your visual pleasure or as just one source of info for planning a trip to
this area. This site is - and will always be - a work in progress, and I'll do
my best to keep it up to date.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

PLACES TO GO - This page has links to subsections where falls in the same area
are grouped together. Try looking here if you're planning a trip to the area.
You'll find photos and directions to the waterfalls, as well as ramblings about
the areas and my adventures on various trips.

INDEX - If you would like to see a list of the falls on this site or if you are
looking for a particular waterfall, go to the index. The falls are in
alphabetical order and there's a link to the page that the information about the
fall is on. There may be more than one falls on a page, so you may have to
scroll down.

IMAGE GALLERIES - I wanted to create a section of my site where you can go and
just look at pictures of this beautiful area. I've found the easiest way for me
to present these images is to use PBase.com - an online service separate from my
site. The pictures are larger than the ones posted here and include a wider
variety of images that you won't find in this section of my site. Click the
thumbnails in each gallery for a larger image. These photos are best viewed if
your display is set to 1024 x 768. If you have to scroll to see the entire
image, you can click 'medium' under each image to get a smaller view.

VIDEO - I have added a lot of videos to both my YouTube and Vimeo Channels over
the past few years, but now am only adding to my YouTube channel.  Become a
subscriber to get notifications when I add new ones!

WILDFLOWERS - As I began hiking more, I couldn't help but notice the beautiful
wildflowers that grow along the trails and the roads that take me to the trail
heads. So I took pictures of those also and have posted them in one of my PBase
galleries.

LINKS - The links section has links to other waterfall, mountain and hiking
sites and also links to sites with info on camping, lodging and other activities
in western North Carolina. If you have one you would like for me to add, please
email me.

I realize there's a lot of info to sort through on this site, so I'm trying a
Google search. Leave the button set to ncwaterfalls.com, type in your search
words, click, and Google will search just within this site. Hope this helps - I
may or may not keep this feature.


WWW ncwaterfalls.com


 

WARNING!!! Wet rocks are very slippery and people fall to their deaths from
waterfalls every year! If you visit them, please be careful and use common
sense! Do not climb rocks around the waterfalls and do not ever cross a stream
or swim at the top of a waterfall. If you have children, watch them at all
times. There are also many species of rare plants near some of these waterfalls,
living in and near the spray areas of the falls. Please be very careful not to
trample vegetation while exploring any falls!


"I can see my rainbow calling me through the misty breeze of my waterfall." -
Jimi Hendrix

 

11-22-24  As you all should know by now, hurricane Helene caused massive amounts
of damage in western NC and surrounding areas. If you have a vacation planned in
this area, you really need to do your homework before you come. Closed roads
have begun to reopen and I'll do my best to post what has reopened and what is
still closed. It's always best to check the official web sites for the most
current info. The Blue Ridge Parkway just announced a major reopening on October
30th. The section between mile posts 411.8 to MP 421 is now open. This is the
section from the intersection of US276 south to Black Balsam Rd, so there is now
access to Graveyard Fields and the trailheads down Black Balsam Rd (FR816). The
section past that to NC215 which includes Devil's Courthouse remains closed to
everyone due to a major landslide. Do not enter this area for any reason!  MP
423.2 to MP 469 is also open. This section is from NC215 south to the end of the
Parkway in the Great Smoky Mountains NP and includes the highest point on the
Parkway and Waterrock Knob. Farther north on the Parkway, MP285.5 at Bamboo
Gap to MP305 near Beacon Heights reopened a few days ago. The Virginia section
of the Parkway is open.

The Pisgah Ranger District of the Pisgah National Forest reopened on Friday
October 18th. I was there on Friday and had no problems getting to Moore Cove,
Discovery, and Log Hollow Falls. I went to Cove Creek Falls today and the trail
had been cleared to just before the waterfall. The last little bit requires a
short scramble to get to the base of the falls. If you are familiar with the
area, FR475 is open. US276 and NC215 are open from Brevard to the Canton and
Waynesville area, but remember, the Parkway in those areas is closed. This
doesn't mean that all trails and roads are in good shape. The Appalachian Ranger
District of the Pisgah NF remains closed, but sections of the Grandfather
district have recently reopened. Most of the Nantahala NF has reopened.  Get
more updated info on the national forests here.  Several of the NC state parks
west of I-77 have partially reopened after being closed all through October.
Check the link for more info. Interstate 40 from the Tennessee border east into
North Carolina suffered heavy damage and will be closed for months. I-26 in
Tennessee heading in and out of NC is now one lane each way for a short distance
near the border. It had been completely closed for several weeks. Many other
roads are closed and a lot of the smaller towns around Asheville - especially
just east and south - are in really bad shape.

Again - do your research before you come anywhere near this area to see what is
open and closed. It will be months and months before some areas reopen. I'll
never be able to return to all of the waterfalls I have listed on this site to
see how they have changed or if trails are open, so some of the info I have here
might not be correct when you visit in the future. I'll do my best to update
with more info as it becomes available. Stay safe and do not enter areas that
are closed!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~



Late in 2020, I announced the launch of a new non-profit organization in western
NC - Waterfall Keepers of North Carolina. The mission of the new organization is
to promote and protect one of North Carolina's most valuable resources - it's
waterfalls! Waterfall Keepers of North Carolina had been in the planning stages
for more than a year before it's launch and was able to hit the ground running
immediately after being announced to the public. North Carolina's own Kevin
Adams serves as the executive director and is founder of the organization. As
most of you know, Kevin is one of North Carolina's top experts on the state's
waterfalls and is author of the well known NC waterfall guide book, North
Carolina Waterfalls. Along with being a writer, Kevin is also a teacher,
professional photographer, and naturalist. I am honored to serve on the Board of
Directors with several other conservation minded individuals and will also be
volunteering my time at many of the planned activities you can find on the web
site. Be sure to also check out Waterfall Keepers Facebook page  and Friends of
Waterfall Keepers page for up to date news and announcements!

Waterfall visitation has exploded in the last 10 years. The pandemic of 2020/21
has brought even more people outdoors and some of our more popular waterfalls
are suffering from over use. We all need to pitch in and help keep these areas
as pristine as we can - for now and for future generations. If you would like to
be involved with a community of waterfall lovers, please take some time and
really explore the Waterfall Keepers of NC web site. We would be honored for you
to join us on this journey. As of June 2021, we have 502 members, 206 waterfalls
have been adopted by 272 volunteers who have already picked up over 2,100
gallons of trash! Waterfall Keepers has also adopted a stretch of NC215 north of
the Blue Ridge Parkway for the Adopt-A-Highway program. Our first 2 cleanups
were a huge success! Volunteers picked up over 1,000 gallons of trash, 11 tires,
1 TV, 1 toilet, 1 kid’s ATV, and several other items too big to bag!

If you have used my site to plan your vacation or find new places to explore and
would like to show your appreciation for the time and effort I have put into
this, please join or make a tax deductible donation!

Back in April, Waterfall Keepers announced the Junior Waterfall Keepers program
for the kids! To date, 132 kids have joined in the fun and are Junior Waterfall
Keepers. The kids can earn badges and learn about conservation and life around
our streams and waterfalls. All of the info you need can be found on the Junior
Keepers section of the web site. I hope you will join in on the fun!

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The Blue Ridge Parkway has done away with it's interactive closure map. They
have replaced it with a chart showing which sections are open and closed. It
looks like it's updated daily and should be more user friendly on a wider
variety of devices. The link is here. 

My wife recently finished her 4th hiking guide book - Day Hiking The Mountains
to Sea Trail. This book focuses on the sections of trail from Clingmans Dome to
Mount Mitchell, but only the sections of trail that can reasonably done in a day
by the average hiker. You can order this book and her other 3 from Amazon at
this link.

The 3rd edition of Kevin Adams' North Carolina Waterfalls guide book is out and
in many of the visitor centers and outdoor gear shops in the area. You can order
the book directly from Kevin by clicking here. Kevin had more waterfalls in this
book than I will ever have on this site, so you are missing out if you don't get
a copy! The updated version of his excellent waterfall map is also out and is
available for order. This map is essential in planning your waterfall vacation.
You can order it directly from Kevin here or look for it at many of the outdoor
shops and book stores in the area. Kevin has also been working a lot harder on
his web site than I have and has an excellent North Carolina waterfalls section
with a really nice interactive map that he is always updating. Click here to see
it, then also be sure to click around on the rest of his site!

My hiking pal and finder of many new waterfalls Bernie Boyer has a great photo
gallery with a lot of photos of his adventures in this area and more recently
north Georgia. You can check it out here.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

If you are new to the site, visiting my PBase galleries from time to time might
give you ideas of other places to visit in the area. Some of the spots I visit
and shoot don't have waterfalls, so the info isn't posted on my main site here.
Most of the images in those galleries are from western North Carolina, the Great
Smoky Mountain National Park, and upstate South Carolina. The main gallery is
here, then click on any of the other galleries for the pictures. I have
galleries for the wildflowers, mushrooms, birds, and other things I have seen
while out and about, plus galleries from other national parks and areas I have
visited.

All updates to the site are listed below so you can tell if anything has changed
and if there is a link, it will take you right to the new stuff. I really
appreciate all the nice emails I've received saying how much you enjoy the
photos and info, or how the site brings back old memories of visiting or living
in the mountains. This site has grown tremendously in the past year and
unfortunately I don't have the time to respond to all of them. I do read them
all and do the best I can. Thanks for visiting!


Upper Catawba Falls

 

©1998-2024 All photos, images, videos, and ramblings are copyrighted by Rich
Stevenson unless otherwise noted. You may download and print any of the content
on this site if it will help you in your search for waterfalls. You may not
reproduce any of this web site or use any of my pictures any where else online
or in print for any reason without my consent.

 





7-3-24 - updated the Cedar Rock / Grogan Creek Falls page to reflect the changes
in the Butter Gap Trail

5-31-24 - updated the Catawba Falls page with the massive improvements made to
the area

6-11-22 - wow, an update! I revisited Hickory Branch Falls and added the upper
waterfall

8-31-21 - updated the Pisgah Ranger District page with updates on closures from
tropical storm Fred

8-31-21 - updated the Skinny Dip Falls page with new info about the destruction
after tropical storm Fred

5-18-21 - updates Dargans Cascade - now known as Silver Steps Falls - page with
new trail info

10-21-20 - updated the info on Virginia Hawkins Falls in SC and added a video to
my YouTube channel

9-12-20 - added a video of some of the falling water you can see on the Cove
Creek / Caney Bottom Loop Trail

8-28-20 - updated the Cove Creek Falls and Caney Bottom Falls page

8-25-20 - updated the High Falls on the Thompson River page

8-15-20 - finally added Maxie Duke Falls and Sparkle Falls to the Sids Falls
page of my site

8-8-20 - updated the Long Branch Falls page

7-31-20 - Apparently there's a new trail to Hooker Falls. I haven't been to
check it out and won't go any time soon because of the crazy number of people
that visit here. I did find info online, so have changed the Hooker Falls page
to reflect what I have found.

1-18-20 - added Lower Higgins Creek Falls video to my YouTube channel.

1-18-20 - added a new waterfall in Tennessee - Lower Higgins Creek Falls

12-6-19 - added Drip Falls in the Norman Wilder Forest in Polk County

11-19-19 - updated trail info for Reese Place Falls in Headwaters State Forest

8-27-19 - added a new video of Upper Bearwallow Falls to my YouTube channel and
to the Upper Bearwallow Falls page on my site along with new photos from the
falls

7-16-19 - updated the Big Laurel Falls and Mooney Falls page

7-1-19 - added a video of Glen Falls to my YouTube channel - also updated my
Rufus Morgan Falls page

6-30-19 - updated my way out of date and poorly written Glen Falls page with new
info, photos, and video

6-29-19 - updated info and directions to Bernies Falls and added a video to my
YouTube channel

6-18-19 - updated the Falls Branch Falls, TN page with new info, photos, and
video

6-9-19 - finally - a new waterfall! added Yellow Creek Falls near Robbinsville
to the site

6-9-19 - I upgraded my camera to a Sony a6400 a few months ago and am now
shooting video in 4K! Visit and subscribe to my YouTube Channel to see the
latest videos.

2-2-19 - updated the info on Pinnacle Falls SC which is now being called Beech
Bottom Falls

1-29-19 - added Hidden Falls in Oconee State Park, SC

11-14-18 - added Reedy Branch Falls in SC and also added a video to my YouTube
channel that includes this waterfall, Ramsey Creek Falls, and Riley Moore Falls

11-12-18 - added Ramsey Creek Falls and Riley Moore Falls - both in Oconee
County, SC

10-26-18 - added info and pictures on the new parking area and hike to Eagle
Rock and The Tunnel in Chimney Rock SP

10-16-18 - added a second way to get to Reece Place Falls in Headwaters SF

9-24-18 - added the hike to Bursted Rock in Headwaters SF

9-21-18 - did some more exploring in Headwaters SF today and found a nice loop
hike which includes Graveley Falls

9-19-18 - added some hiking options in Headwaters SF from the Glady Fork Rd
access areas

9-12-18 - I've added several new videos to my YouTube channel

9-11-18 - added Reece Place Falls to the Headwaters State Forest page

9-9-18 - added Graveley Falls in Headwaters State Forest

9-6-18 - added East Fork Falls in Headwaters State Forest

8-31-18 - updated directions to Lower Bearwallow Falls in Gorges State Park and
added a video from out June 2018 visit to Bearwallow Creek

8-26-18 - added a video of Aunt Sallys, Lower Rhapsodie, and Rhapsodie Falls to
my YouTube channel and to the Dismal Falls page below

8-25-18 - updated the trail info up to Rhapsodie Falls, but still need to go
back and revisit Dismal Falls

8-14-18 - added info about the hike past Little Bearwallow Falls up to Wildcat
Rock and Little Bearwallow Mountain

8-12-18 - added a video and new photos to the Douglas Falls page

8-11-18 - added a video and new photos of Roaring Fork and Setrock Creek Falls -