The Village Green is a wonderful green space in the center of Cashiers. It has a "wooden park", as…read moremy granddaughter calls it, for children to swing, climb and run around. Great dog walking area through garden and wetlands. They sponsor numerous festivals, flower shows, antique shows, art shows in their new air conditioned building. Outside they sponsor Easter egg hunts, 4th of July celebrations, Turkey runs, etc. This area draws our community together and is open to the public!!

It is cool children's playground. Twin castles entrance. Big play house set. Several swings set…read more Wooden bridge connection between castle. Slide for younger kid and twisted slide for the older kid. There are a lot to offer. I can see mom bring their kid here in the morning, midday or evening. It has climb area for monkey of the day. This park locate at the village park - may be the only park in Cashier. The park is beautiful with flowers and blooming around the park. This is a nice green space. It has Dance wooden platform that can host county dance. This place can be county festival area. I wonder how it will look with low lid light and the atmosphere must be good. There are several monuments or statues in the park. Garden is located at the middle of the park with nice sitting area.

I was enjoying a walk at the botanical gardens and saw the sign near where I'd parked. It's a…read moresteady, mild incline 1/2 mile up and down a gravel road to the viewpoints. Not by any means the prettiest trek, but lovely views at the top of course. I did encounter sections of monster mosquitos about 3/4 the way up and around the rocky viewing areas. I didn't arrive at sunset or rise, so I can't account for that aspect. But I found some of the other viewpoints in the area equally pretty, so I probably wouldn't go out of my way for these. And, I enjoyed the setting of the botanical preserve trails below much better. Still yet, I'm sure it would've been a different experience during the right time of day.

Loved this place! It's a half mile walk in a gravel road but to be able to watch the sunset was so…read morebeautiful!! Will definitely be back.

It is a beautiful, low key, Wonderful park. We had the ceremony for our wedding here which was a…read morebeautiful setting. Rented out the pavilions and the staff were extremely helpful making sure everything was ready for us. park is fairly large and the lake is beautiful.

Hike no. 1 in the Nantahala National Forest was at Glen Falls Trail. It's a moderate out-and-back…read morehike that is 2.4 miles. Make sure you stop at all of the lookouts on the way down because the views are amazing and so is the waterfall at the end. It's a must visit.

Beautiful trail but strenuous workout. I thought we were about to the end but when we tracked…read moreelevation on the way back up, it seems we only did half the trail and I was still tired. There are no benches to sit and rest, but there are steps and rocks aplenty. I come from a place where you can get in almost all waterfalls and it's torture being so close to a beautiful one and not being able to reach in and feel the water, but it is a beautiful hike and perfectly shaded from sun. There was GPS reception going in, but we didn't get it until going the mile back out of the dead end street to the main roads again, so check the start of directions back before you go.

On 64 No longer able to drive under the falls but you can…read morestill walk behind it. Although it has been and was lightly raining, the waterfall was very light. Parking is small unmarked side of the road and could accommodate several cars. Perhaps after a big rainstorm, BVF maybe impressive, but this was rather an unremarkable visit.

Beautiful small waterfall right off the road. Easily accessible parking and most beautiful at…read moresunset.

This marker is located in downtown Highlands in front of the City Hall and points out this great…read moreman who moved here after being struck by North Carolina's beauty. The marker reads, "Thomas Harbison, 1862-1936. Botanist and educator. Pioneer in the study of flora, southeastern U.S. Highlands his base after 1886; taught here." Online there is more information, "Thomas Grant Harbison (1862-1936) studied the flora of his native Pennsylvania before heading south in 1886 on a walking trip to North Carolina. He was smitten with the natural beauty of the mountains and their abundant plant life. At Highlands he accepted a position as principal at Highlands Academy in August 1886. His education was unconventional. Through correspondence courses offered by the University of the City of New York, he earned a B.S. and an A.M. and a Ph.D. from the National University (Chicago) in 1888. He boasted an extensive personal library and was largely self-taught. In 1896 he married Jessamine Cobb." "Harbison was a consultant to the federal government on national forests, a promoter of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, and a landscape architect. His farm in Highlands hosted field experiments with apples and other crops conducted by agronomists from Clemson, South Carolina." There isn't a great spot to stop and park right here but there is street parking nearby so that you can explore Highlands. [Review 20017 overall - 3457 in North Carolina - 992 of 2023.]

Wanna know a secret???…read more There are waterfalls all over this region of the South just waiting to be discovered. Many are known and many more are unknown. While I've been hiking this area for nearly a decade, I only recently heard about this waterfall for the first time last year (2019). A well kept local secret indeed... but y'all dun let the wrong yelper discover this waterfall and the secret is about to be let out! [ THE DRIVE ] There are a shocking amount of natural waterfalls located on private property throughout this area. Thankfully this is not one of them and it can be enjoyed by all. The gravel road to the trailhead is known as Big Creek Road. Since we were coming from the King Creek Waterfall area near Tamassee SC, GPS lead us to the eastern end of Horse Cove Road, which is also known as Bull Pen Road closer to the Chattooga River (where you pass over a cool old iron bridge). I tell you these details because if you happen to follow our driving route on a week after heavy rainfalls, you are likely to see a great number of unnamed waterfalls off in the woods. We counted 5, and only one of them was a named waterfall on Google maps (Scotsman Falls). [ THE EXPERIENCE ] We traveled along Walking Stick Road until it took a sharp right turn towards Big Creek Road. On the day we visited, there was a locked gate blocking the drive onto Big Creek Road, so we parked in a small little niche near the gate and walked about 200 yards to the Secret Falls trailhead (which is marked with a narrow sign). The trail was very muddy, but the descent was slow and steady for the majority of the half mile hike. However, it gets considerably steeper as you approach the portion of the trail leading to the base of the falls. Here you will see poorly maintained wooden timbers actings as steps.They were so poor in fact, that we opted not to use them and walked alongside them. The waterfall was raging from all the recent rain, which limited some of our photo opportunities. It is a gorgeous waterfall with picturesque cascades both above and below it. The cascades below comes as the river takes a sharp left turn just past the pool of water at the base of the falls. Accessing the upper waterfall area is easily done by using a small obvious trail off to the left just before the wooden steps. A downed tree forces you to scramble over it and around large rhododendrons that are bent over from the weight of the fallen tree. Once through the brush, you will be directly on top of the falls, so be careful and exercise good judgement. [ THINGS TO KNOW ] Hiking Distance: 1.3 miles Difficulty: Easy and family friendly (but can be muddy) Creek Crossings: YES (3) Elevation Gain: 255 feet Waterfall Height: Approx 45 feet Access to top of falls: YES Access to base of falls: YES Pool of water @ base of Falls: YES Sitting areas @ base: YES RESTROOMS: NO PARKING: YES if gate is open. [ FINAL THOUGHTS ] THE SECRET IS OUT!!! This is a great waterfall for an easy family adventure. We came in the winter, but seems this would be a great picnic spot where kids could play in the water for hours in the summer. The drive to nearby Highlands, NC is only about 6.5 miles away for plenty of food options and even more waterfall adventures. Near Highlands are a number of GREAT waterfalls with very short hiking distances including Ranger Falls, Bust Yer Butt Falls, Bridal Veil Falls, Cullasaja River Falls and our personal favorites: Glen Falls, Dry Falls, Mud Falls and Estatoah Falls (which is hidden just next to the Sky Valley Scenic Overlook). ENJOY!!! 2020 / 4

I was somewhat surprised that there are not more reviews of this trail/waterfall. I believe that…read morethe real name of this falls is Big Shoals Falls. In his book on NC waterfalls, Kevin Adams referred to it as Secret Falls and the name seems to have stuck. For years, there was no official trail to this waterfall and the one unofficial trail which existed traversed private property. I've been visiting the area for thirty years and this (October 2021) was my first visit to this waterfall. Bottom line: It is awesome. Truly one of the more beautiful waterfalls that I've been to. I have to disagree with the previous reviewer: IMO, this trail is in horrible shape. Granted, reviews like these are entirely subjective. But I would definitely not bring young children or dogs here. When I visited, the trail was really in bad shape. The first part of the hike was fairly easy. But the farther you go, the worse the trail becomes. Erosion had taken a terrible toll. There are many rutted and washed-out areas. Some were so bad that hikers have bypassed the trail completely. The final descent to the base of the falls was the worst. Wooden steps had been constructed. But the erosion was so bad that much of the soil behind the steps had washed out making the steps all but unusable. There are two water crossings on the trail. One was a couple of planks stretched across a small branch. The other was on a split log over a somewhat larger stream. Neither was too difficult. Then again, the faint-of-heart would probably not care for either one. Trekking poles helped me on both. I was not able to find a path to the brink of the falls. I tried one crude path which seemed to be incredibly choked with rhododenron. So I gave up on getting to the top of the falls. There is a much smaller cascade downstream of the main falls. As with the brink, I could not figure out how to get to it. I visited early in the morning and had the place all to myself. The lighting wasn't terrific. I'm not sure what time or sky conditions are ideal for photography. I drove in on Rich Gap and Big Creek Roads off of Hwy 28 south of Highlands. It wasn't too bad of a drive in my 2WD F-150. But I believe that the drive out on Walking Stick Rd to Horse Cove Rd east of town was easier. If you love waterfalls, definitely put this one on your must-see list. But be aware of the fact that the hike is a challenge. Not so much due to elevation change (which is moderate) but, rather, due to the overall condition of the trail.

I didn't even know this was here, and I've been coming to Cashiers for YEARS. Nice complex, they…read morehave a gym, a play ground and a swimming pool as well as classes offered for everyone. It's a great addition to the area!

Nice addition to the neighborhood (been open a few years now). Small gym, but I only go for…read moreexercise classes. I do wish there were a few more options. Only one cardio kickboxing class a week, wish there were more. Ashley is the instructor and she is AWESOME! Lots of spin classes, though I don't take spin. Only 2 Zumba classes, one of which is at 7pm, just too late for me. You can pay $5 per day to go, or $37 for a month if you are just visiting (like me), with no contracts to sign