Waterfalls in Tennessee

Tennessee’s waterfalls split mainly between two regions that don’t get compared often enough. The Great Smoky Mountains on the state’s eastern edge get the crowds and the name recognition. The Cumberland Plateau, cutting across the middle of the state, has comparable scenery with a fraction of the traffic: Fall Creek Falls, Burgess Falls, Cummins Falls, and Ozone Falls all sit on this sandstone tableland, along with dozens of smaller falls tucked into its gorges and pocket wilderness areas.

Rules vary by site more than in most states on this list. Cummins Falls now requires a permit for gorge access and swimming, put in place after flash flood incidents in the narrow gorge below the falls, and it’s not a walk-up system, plan ahead through Tennessee State Parks. Ozone Falls, by contrast, has no fee and no facilities at all, a bare-bones stop that rewards self-reliant visitors and offers nothing for anyone who wants a ranger station nearby.

Flow is rain-fed and swings hard by season. Late winter through spring generally runs strongest after seasonal rain, while summer and early fall can drop the smaller falls to a trickle in a dry year. Gorge terrain on the plateau carries real flash flood risk, since a storm miles upstream can raise water levels below a falls on an otherwise clear day. Check the weather upstream, not just at the trailhead.