Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Loading...
Loading...
Loading...
Loading...

No search results found for
“”

Make sure words are spelled correctly.

Try searching for a travel destination.

Places near me Random place

Popular Destinations

  • Paris
  • London
  • New York
  • Berlin
  • Rome
  • Los Angeles
Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Sign In Join
Places near me Random place
All the United States Kentucky Williamsburg Cumberland Falls State Park

Cumberland Falls State Park

Moonbows over Kentucky.

Williamsburg, Kentucky

Added By
NathanRisinger
Email
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list
CAPTION
Cumberland Falls moonbow   wrightbrosfan / CC BY 2.0
  rainaelf / Atlas Obscura User
  rainaelf / Atlas Obscura User
June 25, 2023   jcbell764 / Atlas Obscura User
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list

About

Cumberland Falls is a waterfall on the Cumberland River. It is located near Corbin on the border of the McCreary and Whitley counties. Sometimes referred to as the Niagara of the South, this waterfall is the centerpiece of the Cumberland Falls State Resort Park. On average, the falls is 120 feet wide and 68 feet tal, and carry a water flow of almost 4,000 cubic feet per second.

There is another feature of the Cumberland Falls that make it interesting. On a clear night with a full moon above the falls one can see what is known as a "moonbow." A moonbow is a lunar rainbow, which is almost exactly like a regular rainbow except that they occur at night under the auspices of the moon, not the sun.

Moonbows are incredibly rare and there are only a few places in the world where they consistently appear. To the human eye, a moonbow often appears simply white because humans have a hard time seeing the color spectrum due to the relatively small amount of light they use. However, when using a long exposure camera shot, a moonbow’s distinct colors will almost certainly appear.

Related Tags

Weird Weather Phenomena Intriguing Environs Optical Oddities Ecosystems

Know Before You Go

Located in the Cumberland Falls State Resort Park in the Daniel Boone National Forrest.

Community Contributors

Added By

NathanRisinger

Edited By

patricelehocky, rainaelf, Michelle Cassidy, jcbell764

  • patricelehocky
  • rainaelf
  • Michelle Cassidy
  • jcbell764

Published

August 24, 2010

Edit this listing

Make an Edit
Add Photos
Sources
  • Trip Advisor: Cumberland Falls State Resort - Dupont Lodge: http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g39295-d488796-Reviews-Cumberland_Falls_State_Resort_Dupont_Lodge-Corbin_Kentucky.html
  • Wikipedia: Cumberland Falls: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cumberland_Falls
  • Wikipedia: Moonbow: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moonbow
Cumberland Falls State Park
Cumberland Falls
Daniel Boone National Forrest
Williamsburg, Kentucky, 40769
United States
36.836772, -84.248953
Visit Website
Get Directions

Nearby Places

Harland Sanders Cafe and Museum

Corbin, Kentucky

miles away

Paranormal Roadtripper's Nightmare Gallery

Somerset, Kentucky

miles away

Chained Rock

Pineville, Kentucky

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Kentucky

Kentucky

United States

Places 84
Stories 11

Nearby Places

Harland Sanders Cafe and Museum

Corbin, Kentucky

miles away

Paranormal Roadtripper's Nightmare Gallery

Somerset, Kentucky

miles away

Chained Rock

Pineville, Kentucky

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Kentucky

Kentucky

United States

Places 84
Stories 11

Related Stories and Lists

The United States of Camping

List

By Michelle Cassidy

The Most Wondrous State Parks to Visit During the Government Shutdown

List

By Kerry Wolfe

Where to Catch a Moonbow

waterfalls

By Allison Meier

Related Places

  • Human Skeletons in Skeleton Lake in Roopkund

    Chamoli, India

    Skeletons of Roopkund Lake

    A lake with hundreds of ancient skeletons surrounding it. The surprise is what killed them.

  • Puzzling World

    Wanaka, New Zealand

    Puzzling World

    New Zealand's epic shrine to all things puzzling.

  • Hamnøy Reien, Lofoten.

    Røst, Norway

    Lofoten Islands

    The convergence of two currents makes this a surprisingly pleasant getaway in the Arctic Circle.

  • George Town: beautiful and serene

    George Town, Cayman Islands

    George Town

    The capital of the Cayman Islands is a center of offshore banking, but gets battered by blistering hurricanes.

  • Horsetail Falls.

    Yosemite National Park, California

    Horsetail Fall's Firefall

    Under the right circumstances, this waterfall in Yosemite briefly turns a luminescent fiery orange.

  • Mystery Craters.

    South Kolan, Australia

    Mystery Craters

    The 25-million-year-old cavities have perplexed people for decades.

  • SPRUCE Experiment exterior.

    Bovey, Minnesota

    Marcell Experimental Forest

    A futuristic climate change study is nestled deep within this public land.

  • The phonolites.

    Santiago de Querétaro, Mexico

    Cerro de las Campanas (Hill of Bells)

    When struck, the strange stones in this park ring like bells.

Aerial image of Vietnam, displaying the picturesque rice terraces, characterized by their layered, verdant fields.
Atlas Obscura Membership

Become an Atlas Obscura Member


Join our community of curious explorers.

Become a Member

Get Our Email Newsletter

Follow Us

Facebook YouTube TikTok Instagram Pinterest RSS Feed

Get the app

Download the App
Download on the Apple App Store Get it on Google Play
  • All Places
  • Latest Places
  • Most Popular
  • Places to Eat
  • Random
  • Nearby
  • Add a Place
  • Stories
  • Food & Drink
  • Itineraries
  • Lists
  • Video
  • Podcast
  • Newsletters
  • All Trips
  • Family Trip
  • Food & Drink
  • History & Culture
  • Wildlife & Nature
  • FAQ
  • Membership
  • Feedback & Ideas
  • Community Guidelines
  • Product Blog
  • Unique Gifts
  • Work With Us
  • About
  • FAQ
  • Advertise With Us
  • Advertising Guidelines
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms of Use
Atlas Obscura

© 2025 Atlas Obscura. All Rights Reserved.