Day trips from Nashville · Waterfall
Machine Falls
75 miles from downtown Nashville · about 1 hour 30 minutes
Short Springs State Natural Area, Coffee County, near Tullahoma, TN
Machine Falls drops more than sixty feet into a mossy bowl and is nearly as wide as it is tall, inside Short Springs State Natural Area northeast of Tullahoma. It is the closest genuinely impressive waterfall to Nashville that most people have never heard of.
- Height
- More than 60 feet, and nearly as wide
- Nearest town
- Tullahoma, about 3.5 miles
Permits, fees and access
Free, and here is the rule that catches people, stated by the state itself: parking is extremely limited, and if the spots are full the area has reached capacity and you may not park anywhere else to get in. No hunting, fishing or camping. Go early or go on a weekday.
One thing to know first
The parking lot is the capacity limit. Weekend arrivals after mid-morning routinely get turned around and drive home. This is a place to go at eight in the morning.
Access rules, fees and closures verified August 15, 2026 against the agency that manages this place. They change, sometimes without notice. Check before you drive.
I keep this list because it is genuinely how people spend weekends here, and because almost every guide to it is out of date. If you are weighing a move to Middle Tennessee and want to know which part of it puts you closest to the things you actually like, ask me. No pitch.