Lower Dismal Falls is a waterfall on Dismal Creek in Transylvania County, North Carolina, in the Blue Ridge region, with a total height of about 20 feet. It lies about 13.8 miles west of Brevard and roughly 37.1 miles southwest of Asheville as the crow flies.
At 20 feet it is on the modest side for North Carolina, where the typical waterfall with a recorded height stands around 50 feet; it ranks 242nd of 288. The water comes down as a cascade, descending over a series of rock steps rather than in a single drop.
The Blue Ridge is the highest part of the southern Appalachians, a range of forested peaks and coves with oak, hickory, tulip poplar and hemlock and spruce-fir on the summits, in one of the wettest climates in the East. Steep mountain streams drop over granite, gneiss and quartzite ledges, giving the region hundreds of waterfalls. Dismal Creek carries 2 recorded waterfalls; the biggest of them reaches 150 feet.
There are 133 recorded waterfalls in Transylvania County. Dismal Falls, a 150-foot tiered waterfall, is under a mile away. Rhapsodie Falls, a tiered waterfall, is under a mile away. Aunt Sallys Falls, a 35-foot horsetail waterfall, is under a mile away.
Lower Dismal Falls is located at 35.1849° N, 82.9709° W. The listing is based on the World Waterfall Database, one of the sources compiled by the U.S. Geological Survey in its inventory of waterfalls and rapids of the conterminous United States. The creek name is confirmed against the federal Geographic Names Information System. The exact position has not yet been verified on aerial imagery, so treat the map pin as approximate. Details on trails, parking and access have not been documented for this waterfall yet.