Big Creek Falls is a waterfall on Big Creek in Yancey County, North Carolina, in the Blue Ridge region, with a total height of about 18 feet. It lies about 6.8 miles southeast of Banner Hill and roughly 19 miles south of Johnson City as the crow flies.
At 18 feet it is on the modest side for North Carolina, where the typical waterfall with a recorded height stands around 50 feet; it ranks 255th of 288. The water comes down as a horsetail, where the water keeps some contact with the bedrock as it falls.
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. Big Creek carries 6 recorded waterfalls; the biggest of them reaches 54 feet.
There are 10 recorded waterfalls in Yancey County. Martin Creek Falls, a 20-foot fan waterfall, is about 5.4 miles away across the state line in Tennessee. Spivey Falls, a 50-foot tiered waterfall, is about 5.5 miles away across the state line in Tennessee. Coyote Falls, a 35-foot horsetail waterfall, is about 5.8 miles away across the state line in Tennessee.
Big Creek Falls is located at 36.0395° N, 82.3765° 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.