Cumberland Falls Trail

The Cumberland Falls Trail leads to one of the most celebrated waterfall spectacles in the eastern United States—a 125-foot-wide, 68-foot-drop waterfall on the Cumberland River known as the Niagara of the South, the only site in the Western Hemisphere where a moonbow (lunar rainbow) can be reliably observed during full moon nights. The trail descends from the historic DuPont Lodge through the mixed hardwood forest of the Cumberland River gorge, with the roar of the falls audible from a considerable distance before the view opens dramatically at the main overlook platform. At peak flow following spring rains, the falls' full width is engaged, and the spray carries 50 yards downstream, creating a perpetual rainbow in afternoon sunlight and the famous moonbow on clear full moon nights when the lunar light is sufficiently bright to excite the water droplets' optical response. The moonbow phenomenon was first documented in scientific literature here and remains one of only two locations on Earth where it occurs with regularity, drawing lunar photographers from around the world during full moon weekends. The trail continues past the main overlook to lower viewing areas accessible by stone steps where the falls can be observed from below, with the full 68-foot face visible against the gorge walls of Corbin Sandstone. The Cumberland River below the falls is excellent habitat for rough green snakes sunning on the river-margin boulders in summer.