Waterfalls in Tennessee

Where the waterfalls are in Tennessee

Tennessee's waterfalls fall into two groups. On the Cumberland Plateau, streams cut deep gorges through sandstone and drop off the plateau edge in tall plunges; Fall Creek Falls, Burgess Falls and the South Cumberland falls are all here. In the Great Smoky Mountains on the North Carolina line, falls are shorter and steeper, tumbling down old, hard rock under a forest canopy.

Many of the best-known falls sit inside state parks, which makes access straightforward but means parking fees, set hours and rules on swimming that vary from park to park.

Well-known waterfalls in Tennessee

Fall Creek Falls

At about 256 feet, one of the tallest waterfalls in the eastern United States, in the state park of the same name on the Cumberland Plateau. An overlook sits a short walk from the road, and a steep trail leads to the base. Falls near Fall Creek Falls.

Burgess Falls

The final and largest of a series of falls on the Falling Water River in Burgess Falls State Park, about 136 feet. Falls near Burgess Falls.

Cummins Falls

A 75-foot stepped fall with a famous swimming hole below it. The state park requires a permit to enter the gorge, and the gorge closes when water is high because the river can rise fast. Falls near Cummins Falls.

Abrams Falls

A short but powerful fall in Great Smoky Mountains National Park, reached from Cades Cove. Swimming here is dangerous because of strong currents. Falls near Abrams Falls.

Laurel Falls

An 80-foot fall on a paved trail in the Smokies, one of the most visited walks in the park. Falls near Laurel Falls.

Grotto Falls

The Smokies fall you can walk behind, on the Trillium Gap Trail off the Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail. Falls near Grotto Falls.

Foster Falls

A broad plunge into a large pool in South Cumberland State Park, also a well-known rock-climbing spot. Falls near Foster Falls.

When to go

Rain falls year round, so the falls run in every season, but winter and spring are strongest. By late summer in a dry year the plateau falls can thin to ribbons. See the best time to see waterfalls for how flow changes by region.

Tennessee by the numbers

The map shows 215 named falls in Tennessee. 81 of them are in the USGS Geographic Names Information System, the federal register of official place names, and 134 more are named falls mapped only in OpenStreetMap. 15 have a height recorded by OpenStreetMap mappers, which is what the height filter above uses. CoffeeCounty has the most, with 11.

Tallest recorded waterfalls in Tennessee

Heights as recorded in OpenStreetMap, converted to feet. Guidebooks may list different figures, usually because they count every tier of a fall or only the biggest drop. Why heights differ.

Counties with the most waterfalls

From the USGS record, which gives each fall's county.

Every named waterfall in Tennessee

Alphabetical within each county. Tap a name to centre the map above on it.

Bledsoe County (2)

Crystal Falls, Hilliard Falls

Blount County (1)

Abrams Falls

Cannon County (1)

Rainbow Falls

Carter County (4)

Coon Den Falls, Jones Falls, Laurel Falls, Twisting Falls

Coffee County (11)

Baker Falls, Big Falls, Bluehole Falls, Bosworth Falls, Cascade Falls, Copperas Falls, Little Falls, Machine Falls, Ovoca Falls, Rainbow Falls, Rutledge Falls

Cumberland County (3)

Basin Falls, Ozone Falls (112 ft), Pilot Falls

DeKalb County (1)

Cul-car-mac Falls

Fentress County (2)

Magendanz Falls, Northrup Falls

Grundy County (4)

Bridal Veil Falls, Cascade Falls, Deer Lick Falls, Monteagle Falls

Hamilton County (7)

Falling Water Falls, Flatrock Falls, Freudenberg Falls, Middle Creek Falls, Rockstack Falls, Slider Falls, Three Creeks Falls

Hardin County (1)

Rainbow Falls

Hickman County (2)

Jackson Falls, Jenkins Falls

Jackson County (2)

Cummins Falls, Dry Creek Falls

Johnson County (1)

Gentry Creek Falls

Lawrence County (2)

Copperas Falls, Marcella Falls

Lewis County (1)

Eagle Falls

Lincoln County (1)

Boone Falls

Marion County (3)

Foster Falls, Jumpoff Falls, Laurel Falls

Maury County (1)

Rattlesnake Falls

Monroe County (2)

Bald River Falls, Bullet Creek Falls

Morgan County (3)

Double Drop Falls, Flatrock Falls, Jacks Rock Falls

Polk County (1)

Benton Falls

Putnam County (1)

Burgess Falls

Rhea County (8)

Laurel Falls, Laurel Falls, Lower Piney Falls, Morphy Falls, Ray Falls, Snow Falls, Stinging Fork Falls, Upper Piney Falls

Scott County (2)

Double Falls, The Falls

Sevier County (5)

Grotto Falls, Laurel Falls, Rainbow Falls, Ramsey Cascades, Wilson Falls

Unicoi County (2)

Buckeye Falls, Spivey Falls

Van Buren County (4)

Cane Creek Falls, Fall Creek Falls (256 ft), Hemlock Falls, Piney Creek Falls

Warren County (1)

Great Falls

White County (2)

Rogers Falls, Virgin Falls (110 ft)

County not recorded (134)

Anderson Falls, Angel Falls, Baby Falls, Baskins Creek Falls, Big Branch Falls, Big Laurel Falls, Big Lost Falls (164 ft), Birchfield Camp Falls, Black Canyon Falls, Blowing Wind Falls, Blue Hole Falls, Blue Hole Falls, Boyd Hollow Falls, Bridge Creek Falls, Brush Creek Falls 20, Buzzard Roost Falls (130 ft), Camp Creek Falls (148 ft), Cane Creek Twin Falls, Canes Creek Cascades;Cane Creek Falls, Cataract Falls, Center Hill-Fancher Falls, Chain Falls, Charlotte Falls (115 ft), City Lake Falls, Clear Branch Falls 40, Cliff Dwellers Cascade (15 ft), Coker Creek Falls (4) 45, Conasauga Falls, Coon Creek Falls (249 ft), Cooper Creek Falls, Crockett Falls, Crooked Arm Cascades, Debord Falls, Deep Pool Cascades 8, Dennis Cove Waterfall, Denny Cove Falls, Dudley Falls (10 ft), Emory Gap Falls, Ester Falls, Falling Water Cascades, Falling Water Falls 110, Falls Branch Falls (98 ft), Falls Branch Falls 15, Fish Camp Cascades, Foster Falls 60, Glen Falls 15, Greeter Falls, Hanes Hole Falls, Hell Hollow Falls, Hemlock Falls, Hemlock Falls, Hen Wallow Falls, Hogskin Branch, Horsehair Falls 80, Horsepound Falls, Huskey Branch Falls, Imodium Falls (25 ft), Indian Flats Falls, Josiah Falls, Julia Falls 95, Jumpoff Falls 90, Keaton Falls, Kelly Falls (12 ft), Laurel Falls 80, Legget Branch Falls 30, Little Falls, Little Possum Falls 25, Little River Upper Falls, Longarm Branch Falls, Lost Creek Falls, Lost Falls, Lower Cascades Glen Falls 65, Lower Higgins Creek Falls, Lower Piney Falls 40, Lowry Falls, Lynn Camp Falls, Mannis Branch Falls, Margarette Falls, Marks Creek Falls, Martin Creek Falls, McGill Creek Falls, Meadow Branch Cascade, Meigs Creek Cascade, Meigs Falls, Middle Falls, Morphy Falls 12, Mountaineer Falls, Mystery Falls 8, North Pole Falls 17, Paine Creek Falls 10, Pete's Branch Falls, Pine Branch Falls, Pine Ridge Falls, Pocket Creek Falls, Power Line Falls 140, Rainbow Falls 40, Ranger Falls, Red Fork Falls, Richey Ridge Falls 18, Ricker Branch Falls (15 ft), Rock Creek Falls, Rockhouse Creek Falls, Sale Creek Falls 40, Savage Falls, Savannah Falls, Sill Branch Falls, Small Falls 10, Small Waterfall, Snow Falls 12, Splash Dam Falls, Spruce Flats Falls, Squibb Creek Falls, Stevenson Branch Falls, Stinging Fork Falls 60, Stripmine Falls, Suter Falls, Sycamore Falls, Talking Falls, Thousand Drips, Trickling Falls, Twin Falls, Upper Glen Falls 12, Upper Piney Falls 80, Upper Waterloo Falls, Vortex Falls, War Branch Cascade, Wash Morgan Falls, Waterloo Falls, West Meade Waterfall, White Oak Sinks Falls, White Pine Cascades 28, Wildcat Hollow Falls, Wilderness Falls, Wolf Creek Falls (30 ft)

Before you go

The map shows where falls are, not whether they are open or safe to reach. Check the land manager, usually a state park or national forest, for closures, fees and permits, and stay on the trail near the water. Our waterfall safety guide covers the hazards, and waterfall hikes near me explains how to pick a trail.

Waterfalls near cities in Tennessee

Every named fall within driving range of the city, nearest first: waterfalls near Knoxville, waterfalls near Nashville, waterfalls near Chattanooga, waterfalls near Gatlinburg.

Waterfalls in nearby states: Kentucky, Georgia, Alabama, South Carolina. Or see waterfalls in every state.