11 Waterfalls in the Blue Ridge for spring adventures

Spring in the Blue Ridge brings colorful flowers, new green leaves on trees, bright bird songs, and lots of rain. And lots of rain means big, fat waterfalls. One of our favorite things to do is visit as many waterfalls as possible in spring. We’ve been to a lot of waterfalls in Virginia and North Carolina and these are our absolute favorites for springtime fun.

This list covers waterfalls in both Virginia and North Carolina and while we strongly suggest you visit in spring, you can almost all of these anytime of the year and really enjoy your visit.

One thing we wanted to mention is there are many, many more waterfalls that aren’t on this list, especially in North Carolina. These are the waterfalls that we believe are the best of the best throughout the region.

Best spring Waterfalls in Virginia

Virginia might not have as many waterfalls as North Carolina but that doesn’t mean that the waterfalls it has are any less amazing than those found elsewhere in the Blue Ridge. You’ll find most of the waterfalls are deep in the mountains in Virginia, so be ready to do a bit of hiking.

Dark Hollow Falls – Shenandoah National Park

Dark Hollow Falls isn’t the only waterfall in Shenandoah, but it is our favorite to visit in spring. The 70-foot waterfall spills down a steep rocky mountain face at the end of a 0.7 mile trail.

You’ll find the hike down to the waterfall very easy, but the hike out is a bit tough. Luckily the trail is short and it follows the Hogcamp Branch Stream all the way to the waterfall.

The babbling stream makes for a pleasant hike.

Dark Hollow Falls is one of the most popular hikes in Shenandoah National Park and parking can be an issue at times. We have a post that covers Dark Hollow Falls in more detail as well as parking alternatives.

Shenandoah National Park has an entrance fee and also accepts the America the Beautiful Pass. Also be sure to check for closures when you visit.

Crabtree Falls

Crabtree Falls is the longest waterfall east of the Mississippi at over 1200 feet long. It isn’t a 1200 feet drop, however, that distance is split between freefalls and slides. This is an enormous waterfall.

You can reach one of the drops at the very beginning of the hike and from there you’ll see the waterfall 10 more times throughout the hike. This is a steep, but truly amazing hike.

We love this hike because after you reach the top of the falls you get a sense for how enormous this waterfall truly is.

One of the best things about the hike is that you can just do part of it and have an amazing trip. You can read more about that in our guide to Crabtree Falls.

There is a $3 parking fee for parking at the Crabtree Falls day use area to be paid in cash.

Apple Orchard Falls

Apple Orchard Falls is a 200-foot waterfall just a few miles from the Peaks of Otter on the Blue Ridge Parkway. The hike to Apple Orchard Falls descends steeply to the base of the waterfall where you get to enjoy the view from a large wooden flatform.

A short distance before you reach the base of Apple Orchard Falls their is another short waterfall you can splash around in.

Apple Orchard Falls is one of the best waterfalls on the Blue Ridge Parkway and is a must if you are hiking around Peaks of Otter.

If you are going to access Apple Orchard Falls from the Blue Ridge Parkway check for closures before your visit.

The Cascades

The Cascades is a 66-foot waterfall in Pembroke, Virginia near Blacksburg. In our opinion, this is the best waterfall in Virginia. The waterfall is wide and powerful and spills into a wide pool. It is also a popular spot for swimming in summer.

You’ll enjoy the amphitheater like quality of the waterfall as well as seeing several other waterfalls along the hike. There is actually a second, also amazing, waterfall that is less known just past the Cascades. You can read more about that in our guide to the Cascades.

Bent Mountain Falls

Bent Mountain Falls is at Bottom Creek Gorge in a nature conservancy. The waterfall is 200-foot tall and is visible from a high overlook at the edge of a gorge. Unlike the other waterfalls on this list, this is a waterfall that is worse in summer and fall.

The waterfall is thin and during dryer times of the year the waterfall is quite small. One unique thing about the trail to Bent Mountain Falls is that there are three separate trails to take to the waterfall.

Our favorite way to hike to Bent Mountain Falls is to take the Knight Trail to Bent Mountain Falls and then the Duval Trail back to the trailhead. You’ll find the remains of a community that formed from Civil War deserters along the trail.

Best Spring Waterfalls in North Carolina

Western North Carolina has a lot of waterfalls. In fact Transylvania County, where a few of our favorite waterfalls are, has more than 200 waterfalls. We’ve listed some of our favorites but there is no way we could list every waterfall.

Most of these waterfalls require a hike, but not all of them. If you are making a waterfall trip in the spring to North Carolina you really need to consider going to Brevard. Three of our favs are just a short drive from downtown.

If you need to visit all the waterfalls you’re in luck. Kevin Adams is a writer/photographer that has written extensively about the waterfalls of North Carolina. You can find his book on the waterfalls in North Carolina on his website. He is not a sponsor and we don’t know him, but we have his book and it is our travel companion when we visit North Carolina.

Linville Falls

Linville Falls is an incredibly powerful waterfall. The drop is only 45 feet, but that number is deceptive. Because of the volume of water it looks much larger than that.

This is an excellent spot to stop any time of the year but in spring, while the river is swollen, the already powerful waterfall is even more impressive.

There are two different trails that surround Linville Falls. One takes you to several different overlooks, including a view from the top of the falls. The other takes you to the base of the falls down a steep and kind of treacherous trail.

We highly recommend you read through our guide to Linville Falls before you visit so you know what you are getting into. The upper trail is fairly easy, but I’ve noticed that many people miss out on some of the stunning overlooks because they turn back too early.

Crabtree Falls

You may have noticed Crabtree Falls was listed in the Virginia section too. There is an amazing Crabtree Falls in both Virginia and North Carolina. Besides the name you won’t find many similarities between these two waterfalls.

Crabtree Falls in North Carolina is the most picturesque waterfall on the Blue Ridge Parkway. The 70 foot tall waterfall is perfectly framed in a natural amphitheater. It is best if you can time your visit once the leaves have begun growing in the forest in late April and early May.

We’ve visited in the late winter before when the leaves are gone and the forest looks a little like… a shaved cat? I’m not sure what to compare it to, but it’s not as good as it should be.

You can read more in our guide to Crabtree Falls. We have some tips for which direction to hike the trail and a few other things you don’t want to miss along the trail.

Rainbow Falls

Rainbow Falls in Gorges State Park gets it’s name because in sunlight there is a perpetual rainbow. There are actually four waterfalls on this hike. Most people visit Rainbow Falls and Turtleback Falls.

If you want to visit all of them you can get more information in our guide to Rainbow Falls.

Rainbow Falls is 150 feet tall and thunders over a steep cliff blasting mist high into the air. It is common to see puddles on the trail on dry days because so much mist is carried through the air.

We’ve visited in spring and summer and have found the volume is so much higher in the spring. Like Crabtree Falls you may want to visit in late April when the trees are leafing out so you have the most enjoyable visit.

Triple Falls and High Falls

Triple Falls and High Falls are part of the same trail and both are enormous waterfalls. In spring the waterfalls are even larger and with just a little bit of hiking you can see both of these amazing waterfalls.

High Falls is a classic single drop waterfalls with a wide path and Triple Falls, as you might expect, has three different drops.

These are incredibly popular waterfalls so you will have your best visit if you can reach the trailhead early in the day and even better if it’s during the week.

There is a short spur trail that leads to the base of Triple Falls that very few people take. You can read more about getting to the base of the falls and Hooker Falls in our guide to Triple Falls and High Falls.

Dry Falls

Dry Falls is a roadside waterfall along the Waterfall Byway on Route 64. It is a winding road that passes through the steep mountains in the Nantahala National Forest. You can see dry falls from the parking area, but you want to take the walk down to the waterfall.

Dry Falls is a plunge style waterfall that spills forcefully over a sharp cliff’s edge and there is a walkway that passes behind the waterfall. There aren’t too many waterfalls that you can walk behind but this is one of them and one of the best we’ve ever been to.

If you like waterfalls you can walk behind, check out Moore Cove Falls. It is only about an hour from Dry Falls.

Dry Falls is a popular spot but if you visit in the cool spring mountain air, it will be much less crowded than in the summer months.

---

And that’s our list. Each of these waterfalls is amazing and worth a special visit. You can be sure that if you visit in spring you’ll find rushing falls, swollen with rainfall, perfect for any waterfall lover.

If this wasn’t enough waterfalls for you we have a couple other posts about waterfalls in the Blue Ridge you may want to check out.

• Best Waterfalls in Virginia
• Best Waterfalls on the Blue Ridge Parkway

You’ll find even more amazing waterfall you’ll be drooling to visit.