Day trips from Nashville · Waterfall
Piney Falls
141 miles from downtown Nashville · about 2 hours 30 minutes
Piney Falls State Natural Area, Rhea County, near Spring City, TN
Piney Falls is two waterfalls rather than one: Upper Piney drops about eighty feet, and Lower Piney drops another forty below it. A rock ledge circles behind the upper falls, which is the reason people make the drive.
- Upper falls
- About 80 feet
- Lower falls
- About 40 feet
- Access
- Foot traffic only
Permits, fees and access
Free, open sunrise to sunset, foot traffic only, no camping. Fishing is allowed and hunting is not.
One thing to know first
The ledge behind Upper Piney is wet rock above a long drop with nothing to hold. It is the best thing here and the most dangerous thing here at the same time.
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I keep this list because it is genuinely how people spend weekends here, and because almost every guide to it is out of date.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.