The falls are closed as of late April 2026. Road is blocked about 2 miles out from town.read more

Elk River Falls is an open recreation area. As such it is not developed and the path is not…read moremaintained. Nevertheless the road into the parking lot is safe and easily passable by typical cars SUVs cans or trucks with either two or four wheel drive. There are no rest rooms or food so you must bring your own food and water. The path is firm and slopes upward gently becoming rocky with prominent tree roots. The 65 foot high big falls is spectacular. It is not a straight fall down. Many deaths have occurred as visitors attempt to dive from the top of the falls. Elk falls ranks in the top 3 waterfall related deaths. The rocks surrounding the first pool are beautiful but have a slippery surface. This park recently reopened after extensive restoration following Hurricane Helene. On the first day it opened there was a fatality of a falls jumper. Despite these challenges this park is a great example of the outdoors in nearly natural and breathtaking state.

This is an adorable little park with picnic benches, streams and waterfalls. It's alternate name…read more(donated by Firefighters) is Waterfalls Park. There is an upward hike to see all three falls up close but it is also fairly accessible for people who aren't able to hike upwards. It is a beautiful break from the bustle around and quite the little surprise.

Loved it!! Beautiful falls and swim hole. I can't wait to be back. Water shoes for when you get…read moredown to the water hole are recommended. It's a nice hike with lots of roots in the way so you need to be careful. But definitely worth it!

It is my absolute pleasure to introduce UPPER CREEK FALLS to Yelp!…read more If you are a hiker and lover of waterfalls, then you just might want to spend an entire weekend in the Newland, NC area. The mountains surrounding this area are a treasure trove of sights and sound for your soul to behold. Amongst them is the highly popular Upper Creek Falls. Now let me be honest, you're gonna burn some calories on this trail so don't let the short 1.5 miles round trip distance fool you! There is SIGNIFICANT elevation gain that will surely bring a little heavy breathing to your lips and sweat to your brow. However, the payoff is tremendous. **** The creek consists of multiple waterfalls, cascades and swimming holes, but the largest waterfall requires venturing to one of the lowest points on the trail to fully view. It will require detouring off the main yellow blazed trail and mountain-goating it down a steep side trail, then back up to the main trail before continuing the loop back to the parking area. According to ALLTRAILS, the loop starts at an elevation of around 3,215 feet and drops as low as 2,790 feet for a gain of approx. 425 feet in 3/4's of a mile. My personal trail tracker logged 436 feet of gain. The lowest point of the trail leads to a wonderfully exposed area of stone that almost acts as a raceway for the creek. The topography is such that you can walk on an island of stone that splits the creek in two for a short distant before rejoining and continuing its descent. I can only imagine how many more waterfalls are below this point as the creek continues its slide down the mountain another 460 feet over the following mile according to topography maps. *** FEATURES 1) There are two trailheads, but each links to the other. The trailhead on the left side of the parking area behind the information board leads first to the top of the main waterfall before crossing the creek and descending towards the base. You can get some terrifying pics on the dry stone near the crest, but don't drift too close to the edge! 2) Once you cross the creek, look to the left to spot a faint trail leading back up the mountain. Follow it and you will be rewarded with a gorgeous 15 foot waterfall. Here locals us the fall as a slide, complete with a rope to help you get back up to the top of this ultra-smooth cascade. 3) There is a fairly deep pool of water here and opposite of the climbing rope is a tire swing to launch into the pool. 4) Continue down the trail until you see side trails leading to the base of the largest waterfall. WARNING: The side trail is steep, but worth it to view the larger fall in its entirety. 5) As you continue down the trail it will once again cross the creek. This crossing is most likely tricky in high water and probably not advisable. It was only at average flow when I visited and I still got my feet wet doing my best jump. It is here you will discover another small pool of water and a large area to camp out on the stone outcrop. Even though this is the lowest point on the trail, it is actually an overlook of the mountains below. Very open and majestic. 6) Once across the lowest creek crossing, the trail switchbacks up the mountain OR you can find the shortcut trail that goes straight up the center! But fair warning, it's a leg burner! This portion of the loop will return to the parking lot on the opposite side of the upper creek trail. In total I logged 1.5 miles after visiting the sliding falls, main falls and lower raceway/overlook. *** FINAL THOUGHTS Upper Creek Falls in my opinion is 5+ stars despite its difficulty because of the multiple points of interest along the loop. I HIGHLY RECOMMEND this waterfall to avid hikers! While I personally would have thought it to be too much for kids and elderly... we saw SEVERAL older couples in the area above the main falls as well as a school bus load of 6 to 12-year-olds trekking along the lower falls trail well ahead of their parents. There was also a very large family of about 20 members (all age ranges) picnicking at the lower overlook, so I guess its safe to say its doable for all ages and skill levels. If you have any energy left, to the northeast are: - Grandfather Mountain - Big Lost Cove Cliffs - Harper Creek Falls - Gragg Prong Falls - Huntfish Falls And to the southwest are: - Linville Falls & Linville Caverns ENJOY! 2021 / 116

Took the trail from Dennis Cove rd. Beautiful well maintained trail. Fairly moderate until the…read morefinal climb down. Very steep but plenty of places to rest. Definitely one of my favorite waterfalls hikes yet.

An amazing place with a lot of tiny trails on the side. Great for photography and even just to…read morerelax.

We were looking for a place to go hiking where we could see good fall colors. We found a guide that…read moresaid this would be the perfect elevation for the weekend we wanted to go. There isn't much parking, maybe 5-10 spots, but tons of cars park along the road. The last few miles to get there is a bumpy gravel road. I had read that it was a 1.5 mile round trip hike, but it ended up being around 2.3 miles. It was a pretty short hike to the summit, but it was a decent climb. It's not marked all that well. At the first split, take a left. There is a sign that points you back to the parking lot which you can use in reverse to figure out which way the summit must be. There's another split close to the top. We were told that both ways will take you to the summit with the left being shorter and steeper. The views at the summit are breathtaking. You can get a view from the left side, but the actual summit is to the right. You can get 360 degree views that are stunning. It was incredibly windy at the summit. The hike up wasn't because of the trees blocking it, but it felt like you might get blown off the summit. We were a little disappointed because the views were still almost completely green, but leaves changing is probably happening a lot later than normal this year because of the warm weather. You can also drive a couple of miles down the road and hike to the Table Rock summit. We decided to call it a day after Hawksbill, but might come back another time. If you're looking for a short hike with awesome views, I would highly recommend this one!

What a gem this mountain is. The summit is gorgeous and plateaus in a really unique way. The view…read moreat sunset is breathtaking and there are a few areas to set up and camp. Not a lot of parking at the bottom on the dirt road so be prepared to park by the roadside.

Have been to Laurel Creek Falls (Trash Can Falls) many times and we love it. It's beautiful every…read moretime off year. I've came when it's crowed and when it's empty. The parking is off on a gravel area on the side of the road and it's limited. To get to the falls cross the street and follow the path through the woods. It's a super short and really easy path but once you get to the falls you do have to do some climbing and maneuvering so I don't recommend for anyone disabled, small children, or older folks who have issues getting around. We recently went post hurricane Helen and it looks a little different. The wood planks for crossing are gone but the straps remain to help you get out of the swimming hole. There is a fallen tree we had to climb over. Still many people there having a great time just as before!

This place is awesome to jump into a fresh spring & clean water as well, the rocks are a bit high…read morebut once the fear of heights is gone you'll have a blast!!!!! :)

This is a beautiful trail that leads to a 250 ft waterfall, with some easy hiking, some steep…read morefootsteps. Was easy to moderate for little kids and adults alike. The total hike is 30 mins (to and fro) and has nice marked trees for identification, streams, creeks and bridges. There is some beautiful foliage and trees along the way. There are two sites (start of waterfall and midway) each making for a beautiful photo opportunity.

Paved, with packed gravel surface part of the way, then many steps to get to lower viewing area of…read morecascade falls. Some incline and decline (out and back trail).

This hike is NOT for the inexperienced. The hike itself deserves the highest rating- ONLY FOR those…read morewho are into high intensity, steep, rocky terrains. I'd suggest this for someone who enjoys camping between the return hike or is very experienced in outdoor endeavors. The falls are beautiful, although not in my opinion worth the 7.6 miles of uphill battle. There is a separate way to get here (0.5 hike from it's own parking lot) The trail connects to a beautiful "Greyson's Overlook" for an additional 2.2 miles. Overall- I made it and I'm still alive.

We had so many options to choose from when hiking yesterday that we just decided to pick one. How…read moredid we miss that this was rated hard?! I'm going to give you my most honest review possible because I think we did not have a clear vision of what to expect. Based off of other people's shoe choices at the top, I decided to wear my tennis shoes. Big mistake. My husband wore his hiking boots. Definitely ate crow on my choice of footwear. Wear hiking boots! The trail was overgrown much of the way. There were a few little rocky river areas to cross over. I managed those with the help of my husband. But my shoes were not appropriate for all of the rocky, muddy, slick areas. And there were many! There were a few trees to go over that had fallen into the pathway. I am a short girl, 5'1", and getting over them on the steep, slick trail was a feat! Also needed my husbands help for that. The trail was very overgrown in some areas, to the point that we weren't sure if we should continue, but we pressed on. There was some uphill in the beginning that had us begging for a little downhill relief. We got that... for awhile. Then, we paid the price for it on the way back. A whole lot of uphill on the way back! My knees, legs, and back were killing me on the way back and I definitely thought about bringing a child back pack to ride on my husbands back for our next hike. We aren't out of shape or inactive people. We enjoy hiking and try to do it often. We have a peloton at home that we do actually use. But this trail was 100% hard and more than we bargained for. I guess we figured that we made it on an accidental 9.5 mile hike the last time we were in town and would be fine. Wrong! Yeah, I'm old. 38. And my husband is 35. We aren't old old but we aren't 18 anymore either. (Thank goodness--that would make him 15! And no thanks to that.) At one point on the hike, we asked a couple that passed us if we were almost at the falls. They said about 15 minutes. I would guess it took us probably another hour to hour and a half to get there. We had to be very careful with my tennis shoes and the slippery rocky trail. Plus, climbing over the downed trees. I'm hoping maybe they were just high and time was confusing for them. I don't see any way they could've gone the mile and a quarter in 15 minutes. Regardless... we made it. The fall was beautiful. The hike kicked our asses. I would not do this hike again. Ever. But if you're down for a difficult, rocky, overgrown, steep hike.... Have at it! I will 100% stay out of your way. The waterfall was a nice treat. Be prepared to pray for the existence of an Uber Air to get back up. (Except those of you who are clearly far more trail savvy than us. I'm sure you will find it much easier than we did. And also... kudos to you!) Apx 7.8 miles of pure torture. Done and done!

We had planned to hike Graveyard Field our first day in Asheville, but after sleeping in a little…read morelate and also getting over a recent back strain thought starting with Craggy Pinnacle may be better. It took us about 45 minutes to get there from Biltmore Village. I had read that parking could be an issue, but plenty of parking spots available on a late Monday morning in June. Usually when my husband and I are hiking I'm happy our kids aren't with us because I knew they would be complaining. However, this was one hike that I think they would probably enjoy and saw many families with big and little kids enjoying it. It's a pretty short way to the top (maybe 25 min tops) and while it was a nice little workout I didn't find it too difficult. The reward at the is a beautiful view of Asheville and the first thing I heard when we got up top was an adorable 4 year old boy saying "wow this is the most beautiful thing I've ever seen." It was picture perfect so we snapped some pics, enjoyed the view and headed down. Down was a little tricky and I was jealous of those who had walking sticks, but we made it down with no issues In fact, once down we felt like we needed a little more of a workout so added the nearby Craggy Gardens Trail, which was perfect. And after that we were ready for lunch so headed back to Asheville!

This hike is one of the best hikes to do any time of year. It is a short easy to moderate hike near…read morethe visitors center. The views are breathtaking and you meet great people and dogs along the way. I plan to do this hike again when the seasons change. If you need an uplight in your spirits or a stroll in nature this is your hike. Enjoy!

Beautiful! Stopped here on our drive to Asheville…read more It's a nice walk to the waterfall, and next time I'd love to plan to spend a little more time at the falls.

Wow! What a great falls and impressive set of stairs and tower that were rebuilt since the…read morehurricane. We hiked up the stairs and then back the long trail down. I think that is the best way to see it. There was a TikTok couple hogging the best picture spot of the falls and a large group making a lot of noise at the upper falls. Would have been a bit nicer but we were at the time of day when the afternoon folks are out hiking, so a bit of our fault. But this is a don't miss falls hike near Asheville!