Bridal Veil Falls is a 140-foot plunge waterfall beside US 64 near Highlands in Macon County, North Carolina, on a small tributary of the Cullasaja River in the Nantahala National Forest. It is known as the waterfall a car could once drive behind: the old highway ran under its overhanging bluff, and that loop of pavement still curves behind the water.
The falls
The stream begins with a short sliding cascade, then a steeper slide that breaks into a freefall off a deeply undercut ledge. The World Waterfall Database measured the total at 140 feet in two steps, with a main drop of 120 feet, from lidar. Earlier estimates put it closer to 60 feet, and Wikipedia gives 45 feet.
Getting there
From the junction with NC 106 in Highlands, the falls are 2.3 miles west on US 64. The falls are right at the roadside, with plenty of free parking. The old roadway behind the falls is closed to vehicles and open to pedestrians only.
When to go
The stream is small and can nearly dry up during droughts. At low water, visitors can walk behind the falls and stay dry; at higher flows the passage gets wet. Ice on this stretch was the reason the highway was moved out from behind the falls.
On site
Rock has come down here more than once: a boulder blocked one side of the drive-under from 2003 until it was cleared in July 2007, and a major rockfall occurred here on February 19, 2014. The highway is a winding mountain road; on September 19, 2026, a Jeep left US 64 and went down the embankment into the rocky pit below the falls, and Highlands fire and rescue crews pulled the driver out.
History and name
US 64 was first built so that all traffic passed behind the falls, making it the only waterfall in North Carolina a vehicle could drive under. Winter icing on the curve led to the road being rerouted in front of the falls.
Nearby
Kalakaleskies Falls is about 0.3 mile away, Dry Falls about 0.6 mile away on the Cullasaja River, and Big Creek Falls about 0.9 mile. Bridal Veil is among four waterfalls along US 64 between Franklin and Highlands.
Distances are straight-line.