About Place of a Thousand Drips Pullout
Toward the end of the one-way Roaring Fork loop, the road runs beside a wet rock wall where water drips and streams down in dozens of little falls. The Park Service calls it the Place of a Thousand Drips, and the name is not much of an exaggeration after rain.
What you see
Springs and seepage from the slope above run over the rock in threads, mist and small cascades, then drop to the road ditch. The wall is covered in moss and ferns. Because the water comes from the mountainside rather than a creek, the flow depends on recent rain: after a wet week, the whole wall runs; after a dry spell, the drips slow to a few dark streaks.
Because the pull-off is right at the road, you don't hike to this. You park, get out and walk to the wall, which stands a few feet from the shoulder. It is that close.
Visiting
- Timing: best after rain or on foggy days; skip it after a long dry spell.
- Parking: a small pull-off. Pull fully off the road; the loop is narrow and one-way.
- Time to allow: 5 to 10 minutes.
- Season: the 2026 Roaring Fork season runs mid-April to November 29.
- Vehicles: buses, trailers and motor homes are not permitted on the loop, and vehicles over 25 feet should not enter.
On the loop
The Place of a Thousand Drips is one of the last stops on the 5.5-mile loop, after the historic farms such as Ephraim Bales and Alfred Reagan. Stopping here makes a natural finish. The loop takes about 45 minutes with stops.
Parking tags can't be purchased in this area, so buy one before you drive in. A parking tag is required for stops over 15 minutes. In late October, leaf fall along the road opens up the view of the wall, and the ground is slippery with wet leaves.
Good to know
- Do I need a parking tag?
- A Park It Forward parking tag ($5 a day, $15 a week or $40 a year) is required for any vehicle parked more than 15 minutes inside Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Entry is free, and federal passes such as America the Beautiful do not replace the tag.