North CarolinaNC Waterfalls

Everyone loves Silver Run Falls. It’s not big or high, it’s just pretty. And it has one of the finest pools of any waterfall in the state. Low water exposes a sandy beach that’s perfect for the youngsters.

When I first visited Silver Run Falls in the 1980s, a majestic hemlock stood at the base of the falls on river right, overhanging the pool. A few years later, the tree fell along the edge of the pool. For years I used it to cross the creek to get to a frontal view of the falls. I thought it would be there forever, but the hurricanes of September 2004 had other plans. Sometime in the early 2020s, flooding washed out a lot of the sandy beach on the edge of the plunge pool, exposing small stumps. I suspect these are the final remnants of that grand old hemlock.

If you want to see the falls from in front, you can cross the creek on a pile of rocks at the downstream end of the pool. In normal flows, you can rockhop, but it’s a wade if the water is up much.

Silver Run Falls is very popular and the parking limited. Get there early on weekends during warm weather.