Glen Burney Trail

The Glen Burney Trail is a 1.6-mile trail along New Years Creek, including several waterfalls. The trailhead is located in the Annie Cannon Gardens off Laurel Lane right in downtown Blowing Rock. The trail passes the ruins of a sewer plant that served the town and three waterfalls - The Cascades, Glen Burney Falls, and Glen Marie Falls.

Directions:

GPS: 36.13263, -81.68043

From the intersection of US-221 and Main Street/US-321 Business in downtown Blowing Rock, go south on Main Street for less than a quarter-mile and turn right on Laurel Lane. In about 0.2 miles, after passing Willingford Road, turn left into the Annie Cannon Gardens and the Glen Burney Trailhead.

Map:

Glen Burney Trail:

Length: 1.2 miles (one way)

Difficulty: Moderate

Glen Burney Trail leads from Annie Cannon Gardens to Glen Marie Falls, following New Years Creek downstream. Initially, the trail is an old road running behind houses. In just under a half-mile, the trail passes the ruins of an old sewer plant and switchbacks down to creek level and bridge over New Years Creek. At this point, the houses are not so visible and the car noise not so loud. In about three-quarters of a mile, the trail passes the Cascades, a small cascading waterfall. The trail then gets rather steep as it heads down to a split - right goes to the base of Glen Burney Falls and left continues to Glen Marie Falls, just over the county line in Caldwell County.

Waterfalls and Points of Interest:

The Ruins

The Ruins are the remains of a sewer plant that served Blowing Rock until 1929. It's mainly just the foundation that remains. The Ruins are located about 0.4 miles down the Glen Burney Trail.

The Cascades

The Cascades are a 15 to 20-foot cascading waterfall on New Years Creek. It's smaller than the two main waterfalls downstream, but still scenic and worth a stop. The Cascades are located about three-quarters of a mile down the Glen Burney Trail.

Glen Burney Falls:

Glen Burney Falls is a 40-foot sliding waterfall further downstream on New Years Creek. There's an upper overlook but the view from here is poor. Several people have died here, so please stay away from the top of the waterfall. To reach the base, hike about 1 mile down the Glen Burney Trail to a split and go right to the base of the waterfall.

Glen Marie Falls:

Glen Marie Falls is the last waterfall on New Years Creek along the Glen Burney Trail. It's about 1.2 miles to the waterfall. At the split where Glen Burney Falls is to the right, turn left and follow the trail to the end. It's not possible to see the entire waterfall from one point. There is an overlook near the top where you can see the upper portion of the waterfall.

The lower portion of the falls is visible from the base, but you can't see the upper section.

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14Apr2017: Blowing Rock Waterfalls