About this spot
Upper Falls sits about 1.5 miles up the Yellowstone Prong from the Graveyard Fields parking area on the Blue Ridge Parkway (milepost 418.8), beyond the busier Second Falls swimming hole. Visitors scramble across boulders, wade and swim in shallow pools along the approach, and some jump from rocks into the plunge pool at the base of the falls itself, a quieter alternative to the crowds downstream. Water stays cold year-round, rocks are slick with spray, and the creek can rise fast after storms at this elevation (roughly 3,300 feet). No official height or depth figures are published, so scout the pool before jumping. It's national forest land with no fee and no posted swimming ban, but also no lifeguards; the roadside overlook lot fills early on summer weekends.