Accessibility – Hard (8)
Height – 50′
Distance – 3.0 miles (out and back)
Beauty – 8
Photo rating – 7
Solitude – 9
GPS Info: LAT 35.217461 LONG -82.30016
TH GPS: LAT 35.22239 LONG -82.31395
Last visited – 04/15/2026
Last Updated – 04/15/2026
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NOTE: US 176 is closed due to storm damage from Hurricane Helene, and from the looks of it, it may remain this way for some time. The road is blocked by concrete bollards just past the entrance to Pearson’s Falls, adding about 0.4 miles each way of road walking to reach the old TH.
Big Fall Creek Falls is the uppermost waterfall on this stretch of Big Fall Creek, and arguably the nicest and hardest to access. The total height is approximately 50 feet, with the upper 25-foot part being the highlight. There is 12-15 feet of sloped rock below the drop, and a small plunge at the very bottom with an enormous tree lying on it.
Where to park: There is room to park where US 176 is blocked, not too far from Pearson’s Falls. The GPS for where I parked is: 35.22239, -82.31395. US 176 is only one lane for much of the drive, and there are traffic control signals.
The hike: Walk US 176 beyond the concrete barricade for 0.4 miles to a point just before the second bridge over the North Pacolet River. The trailhead is on the right, on an old logging road that goes past a series of boulders while heading up the hill. The grade moderates after the initial climb, and wanders up and down for 0.5 miles, passing two cool rock formations on the left side of the trail. The first of which is a high cliff with a huge tree propped against it. I didn’t venture down back in 2016, and I didn’t climb down in 2026 either. At 0.6 miles from the road, the trail forks. One trail climbs up and away from the creek, one climbs up toward the falls, and the other heads down toward the rocky cliff.
Follow the trail that heads up and away from the creek. It will climb up to the railroad trestle, which has become a magnet for graffiti. On the other side of the tracks, a not-so-obvious path heads upstream. The path is easy to follow in places, only to vanish abruptly. We didn’t get too far from the creek, navigating some rocky areas, finding pieces of the path. All of our trek was on river left, until we got close to Upper Melrose Falls, when we crossed the creek and made our way up to the base, passing under a pipe that had recently been fixed. No clue what the pipe coming out of the dam is all about.
It’s not easy getting up and around Upper Melrose, with the land on river right private, and there are some steps leading up that side that are falling apart. The only way to legally get to it is with an awful climb on river left. Getting up the sloped rock was also easiest on river left, where there is some stuff to hang onto.
