Dry Falls

 

Dry Falls is my favorite waterfall that you can walk behind. Dry Falls is 75 feet in height and is on the Cullasaja River flowing through the beautiful Nantahala National Forest. This waterfall is located in Highlands, North Carolina and has road access from US Highway 64 with a good sized parking area.

The hike distance is 0.2 miles to the waterfall. The trail to Dry Falls is paved and goes right up to, behind and around the waterfall to the other side. This gives photographers multiple angles to get great shots.

There’s also a little spot behind the waterfall that looks like a tiny cave. My kids liked to pretend it was their “hidden cave”. It’s not real tall, so adults will need to squat to fit.

There’s a lot of spray behind the waterfall, so you will probably get wet (despite it being named Dry Falls). But, you can walk to the other side of the falls to get a different perspective. However, if you don’t want to get wet, you can always just view the waterfall at the observation platform.

There are really no bad views of this waterfall once you get on the paved trail. There are some stairs as part of this trail, but the steps are wide enough for people to go up and down at the same time and are easy to climb. Pay attention to where you are walking as the path runs right beside a rocky outcropping and you don’t want to run into it.

I would recommend this waterfall to people of all ages. However if you want photos during the summer without people in your photographs, I would recommend visiting Dry Falls on a weekday.

Dry Falls is open year round. During the winter the mist from the waterfall can freeze on the path and cause the stairs to become slippery or icy. Make sure you take it slow and use the handrails.

Other nearby waterfalls include: Cullasaja Falls, Bust Your Butt Falls, and Bridal Veil Falls.