About this spot
Riding Ford Falls is a gradual sliding cascade, roughly a dozen feet of drop, on the Tuckasegee River headwaters in Panthertown Valley. It's reached via the Devil's Elbow Trail from the Cold Mountain Road (east) parking area, the easiest access point among the "Tuckasegee Trio" of falls with Warden's and Jawbone. Trip reports consistently describe hikers playing and swimming in the pools at its base on summer weekends, making it one of the more visited backcountry swimming spots in the valley. The rock is slick when wet, current picks up after rain, and the trail is unofficial with creek crossings and no signage. It lies on public Nantahala National Forest land with free access, though check with Friends of Panthertown on trail conditions given ongoing regional Helene storm-damage recovery.