Carter Falls is a 45-foot cascade waterfall on Big Elkin Creek in Wilkes County, North Carolina, about 3.7 miles northwest of Elkin. Hidden on private land for decades and once the site of a hydroelectric plant, it opened to the public in 2018 and is now a short walk from a trailhead on the Mountains-to-Sea Trail corridor.
The falls
A lidar estimate puts Carter Falls as a single steep cascade of about 45 feet; earlier surveys listed 50 feet, and a state oral-history interview puts it at 60. The creek threads through fissures in the rock for roughly a hundred feet before dropping into the pool below, with a large rock outcrop above the falls.
Getting there
The Carter Falls trailhead is at 921 Pleasant Ridge Road, Elkin, near Byrd's Branch Campground, with parking for about 30 cars. The trail to the falls is 0.5 mile each way through forest, with a steep downhill final stretch, rated moderate. Longer approaches are possible: 1.2 miles round trip from Byrd's Branch Campground and 4.5 miles round trip from Grassy Creek Vineyard & Winery, which also offers parking and links to the falls by a 0.4-mile spur. The walk takes from 30 minutes to a couple of hours. The Elkin Valley Trails Association publishes a map of the trail system.
When to go
Big Elkin Creek runs strongest after heavy rain. Arriving before 10 a.m. or after 3 p.m. avoids the busiest periods.
On site
There is a lower viewing area below the falls. An optional spur, rated moderate to strenuous, drops down a steep slope with the help of a rope cable to a sandy, partly shaded bank at the base. Swimming isn't prohibited, but sharp rocks and sometimes glass on the bottom, brush that draws snakes, and strong current after heavy rain make it inadvisable. Rock around the falls is slick when wet; stay off the falls themselves. Leashed dogs are welcome.
History and name
A power station with a dam was built at the falls in 1914 and supplied electricity to Elkin until 1967. The land stayed in private hands until North Carolina bought it in 2018 to carry the Mountains-to-Sea Trail, and a public-private partnership opened the falls to visitors.
Nearby
The closest listed falls are about 10 miles away, on Big Sandy Creek: Beauty Falls at 10.5 miles, Middle Falls at 10.7 miles and Lower Falls at 10.8 miles. Grassy Creek Vineyard & Winery sits at the end of the spur trail from the falls.
Distances are straight-line.