Roaring Fork in Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Tennessee

© Paul Hassell/Tandem Stills + Motio

Loud waters

Roaring Fork may seem like a misnomer for this mountain stream in Tennessee’s Great Smoky Mountains National Park. During dry spells, it's an idyllic mountain stream. But Roaring Fork descends 760 metres over just 3.2 kilometres—a steep drop down Mount Le Conte. When heavy rains swell the stream, Roaring Fork transforms into a whitewater rush, with the sound of the surging water echoing off the sandstone walls of the mountain.