Wanting Glass Falls is barely 60 ft tall and 10 ft intensive. Nevertheless with an incredible amount of water falling over a rocky cliff proper right into a shallow pool and surrounded by lush greenery, it’s most likely essentially the most beautiful waterfalls in North Carolina.

And it’s one in all many few accessible waterfalls.

Wanting Glass Falls is the popular waterfall in Pisgah Nationwide Forest. It’s usually troublesome to hunt out parking. Nevertheless within the occasion you snag a parking spot, the short stroll to the scenic overlook will certainly make you smile.

Proceed learning to seek out out about discover ways to park safely, discover ways to attain the waterfall’s base, and particulars regarding the accessibility.

Map of Wanting Glass Falls

The way in which to make use of this map | Click on on the icon inside the top-left nook to open the Map Legend, then click on on on any of the legend devices to indicate additional knowledge. If you’ve obtained a Google account, click on on the (very faint) star on the end of the map’s establish to avoid wasting a number of this map to your account, then entry the map out of your smartphone all through your journey.

Pisgah Nationwide Forest

The 5 hundred,000-acre Pisgah Nationwide Forest boasts among the many biggest outdoors recreation and scenic drives in North Carolina. Northwest of Asheville, the nationwide forest consists of iconic places like Grandfather Mountain and Mount Mitchell, the easiest stage east of the Mississippi.

Near Brevard, the nationwide forest consists of the scenic route alongside U.S. Freeway 276 – the Forest Heritage Scenic Byway – to the Blue Ridge Parkway. The route consists of a variety of waterfalls, mountaineering trails, and picnic areas.

Forest Heritage Nationwide Scenic Byway

The Forest Heritage Nationwide Scenic Byway through Pisgah Nationwide Forest is among the many most beautiful scenic drives in western North Carolina. The loop route follows an outdated logging railroad alongside U.S. Freeway 276 from Pisgah Forest in the direction of Waynesville, turning onto N.C. Freeway 215 to Rosman, after which returning to Pisgah Forest alongside U.S. Freeway 64.

The first 17 miles of the route are designated a nationwide scenic byway attributable to its historic top quality. The route passes the Cradle of Forestry in America, the placement of the nation’s first forestry school.

Nevertheless it’s moreover a scenic route connecting outdoors recreation. The two-lane freeway winds earlier Wanting Glass Falls and Sliding Rock, two of the popular waterfalls inside the area. And it connects Brevard visitors to the Blue Ridge Parkway near Mount Pisgah. Summer season and autumn are the proper situations of yr to take pleasure in this drive.

The whole route takes about 2 hours to drive. The nationwide scenic byway route takes about an hour out and once more.

North Carolina Waterfall Byway

The 98-mile North Carolina Waterfall Byway is a scenic route alongside U.S. Freeway 64 between Murphy and Rosman. Dozens of waterfalls populate the two-lane freeway, many inside a ten-minute stroll from the car parking zone.

Study Further | Avenue Journey on the Scenic North Carolina Waterfall Byway

After I wrote a freeway journey itinerary, I extended the route into Brevard to include DuPont State Leisure Forest and Pisgah Nationwide Forest. The 140-mile freeway journey on the scenic North Carolina Waterfall Byway choices 25 waterfalls and 5 places the place chances are you’ll spend the night.

Best Time to Go to

Wanting Glass Falls is a form of waterfalls with enough water amount to stay churning year-round. Nevertheless apart from the amount of water that spills over the cliff, there are totally different elements to consider about visiting.

Spring lastly ascends into the nationwide forest about mid-Would possibly. That’s my favorite time of yr to go to the waterfall because of the bushes are a deep, vibrant inexperienced with new leaves. Nevertheless it’s nonetheless too chilly to dip your toes into the water.

By July, the water is about as warmth as a result of it ever will get – nonetheless chilly, nonetheless you’ll be cosy splashing spherical inside the shallow pool on the waterfall’s base.

Autumn typically descends into the world about mid-October. This can be most likely essentially the most scenic time of yr to go to because of the waterfall is surrounded by bushes that showcase spectacular colors.

On bitter chilly winter days, the waterfall will usually freeze. It in no way freezes secure, nonetheless enough ice creates a shocking winter scene. For certain, you have to costume very warmly.

Attending to the Waterfall

Are you ready for a scenic drive? Attending to Wanting Glass Falls is simple, and it’s one in all many prettiest drives in North Carolina.

From wherever you start, head in the direction of Brevard. At Pisgah Forest, an unincorporated metropolis, U.S. Highways 276 and 64 meet in a four-way intersection. Proceed alongside U.S. Freeway 276 in the direction of the Blue Ridge Parkway.

Skilled Journey Tip | Stop on the Pisgah Nationwide Forest Ranger Station alongside U.S. Freeway 276 and ask about current conditions on the waterfall. You would possibly uncover that giant crowds prohibit parking or that the waterfall is far much less spectacular than normal.

It’s a 5.6-mile drive to the waterfall that typically takes about quarter-hour. It may presumably final extra on summer season season days and autumn weekends when the throngs of vacationers and leaf peepers crowd onto the two-lane freeway.

There is not a admission value or day-use value to entry this waterfall. It is open twenty-four hours a day all 12 months lengthy.

Safely Parking

Parking might be essentially the most troublesome aspect of visiting Wanting Glass Falls. There are restricted parking areas on the becoming side of the freeway when touring in the direction of the Blue Ridge Parkway.

The authorised parking begins on the nationwide forest sign saying a waterfall ahead. This parking area is throughout the closing curve sooner than the waterfall. It’s a graveled area, intensive enough to tug off safely nonetheless with out a sidewalk. I counsel warning strolling alongside the parking area to the waterfall.

Sadly, there usually are not any choices if no parking areas will be discovered. Parking alongside the freeway’s shoulder is prohibited and dangerous.

There is a big pull-off a number of quarter of a mile earlier the waterfall. Nonetheless, I would not counsel strolling once more to the waterfall alongside the freeway’s shoulder. There could also be solely barely enough space for safety. This pull-off area is used for turning spherical after visiting the waterfall.

If you uncover parking, the forest service rangers ask that you just pull off the freeway. The parking area is form of twice as intensive as a typical parking space, allowing a great deal of room to park off the freeway and for passengers to exit the automotive safely.

Skilled Journey Tip | Would you favor to understand how I uncover parking on busy days? Concentrate on among the many distinctive cars parked on the waterfall. Then, drive a number of quarter mile in the direction of Brevard to a giant pull-off. Look ahead to one in all many cars you seen parked on the waterfall to go by. You’ll have a number of 50/50 likelihood of attending to the parking spot sooner than one different driver heading within the different method.

Viewing the Waterfall

Wanting Glass Falls is the very best waterfall to see in Pisgah Nationwide Forest – and one in all many finest spectacular

waterfalls to go to inside the nation. In fact, you may even see the best of the waterfall from the freeway.

Among the finest methods to view the waterfall is from the underside. A concrete staircase descends 95 steps to the rocky river on the waterfall’s base.

No official trails or boardwalks are on the bottom, so that you just’re left to navigate the world at your private hazard. It’s not troublesome to walk throughout the waterfall’s base, notably if the water stage is low.

Study Further | The 15 Best Waterfalls in Brevard, NC + Path Data and Parking

Clear, moist river rocks are terribly slippery, though. Everytime you go to a waterfall, I prefer to suggest a pair of trekking poles to help cross the shallow elements of a river.

There are a variety of boulders and patches of ground the place chances are you’ll merely perch. And there are a selection of fine places to carry a hammock in the event you want to experience a waterfall like I do.

Wanting Glass Falls is in a slim ravine surrounded by towering cliffs and bushes. This limits the daylight and indirect delicate on the waterfall, which suggests the proper time to see it is from an hour after daybreak until an hour sooner than sunset.

Photographing the waterfall is a definite story. About 3 p.m. is the proper time of day to grab photographs of the waterfall with daylight.

Accessibility

Sadly, no parking areas at Wanting Glass Falls are marked for disabled clients. That’s way more unfortunate because of the one ramp for wheelchairs to get onto the concrete sidewalk is on the ultimate parking space closest to the waterfall. If one different automotive is parked there, it’s going to be very troublesome to ship a wheelchair onto the sidewalk.

Nonetheless, within the occasion you’re fortunate enough to get that parking space, it’s simple to see the waterfall. It’s one in all many few waterfalls of this magnitude to have an accessible overlook.

The overlook has a wire mesh beneath the handrail to cease anyone or one thing from falling off. This allows people in wheelchairs a fairly good view of the waterfall.