Glassmine Falls is a 245-foot horsetail waterfall on Glassmine Branch in Buncombe County, North Carolina, visible across a deep valley from an overlook at milepost 361.2 of the Blue Ridge Parkway. The falls lie inside Asheville's closed drinking-water watershed, so the overlook is the only place the public can see them.
The falls
Glassmine Branch slides down a single drop of 245 feet from a lidar measurement; earlier surveys listed 200 feet. The sign at the overlook claims more than 800 feet, a figure lidar data rules out. The stream runs off Horse Range Ridge toward the North Fork Swannanoa River. It flows only after rain and can nearly dry up between storms.
Getting there
Glassmine Falls Overlook is a roadside pullout with parking a few miles north of Craggy Gardens, which is at milepost 364.5. The overlook sits at about 5,197 feet. There is no fee to drive the Blue Ridge Parkway.
Hurricane Helene closed this part of the parkway in 2024. The 26 miles from Asheville to Ridge Junction Overlook, including Glassmine Falls, reopened in September 2025, and the Park Service lists the section open as of September 2026. The Craggy Gardens Picnic Area is still closed.
There is no trail to the falls. The land is privately owned as part of the Asheville watershed, and approaching the falls on foot is prohibited.
When to go
Go after heavy rain, in any season; in dry spells there may be little or nothing to see.
On site
The falls are a long way off across the valley, and binoculars help. A short path from the pullout leads to a second viewing area, and after rain the roar of the water can carry across the valley. The Mountains-to-Sea Trail can be reached from either end of the overlook.
History and name
In the early 1900s miners worked mica at the base of the falls, at the Abernathy Mine. Locals called the mineral glass, and the name stuck to the branch and the falls.
Nearby
Walker Falls is about 1.9 miles away, Blue Sea Falls about 2.3 miles and Douglas Falls about 2.6 miles. Craggy Gardens, with its visitor center and the Craggy Pinnacle Trail, is a short drive south on the parkway.
Distances are straight-line.