Bad Branch Falls State Nature Preserve is a forested gorge covering 2,639 acres (10.68 Km2) near Whitesburg, KY in Letcher County, Kentucky.

Fish and Wildlife Service to protect the forest against the infestation of the non-native insect pest, hemlock wooly adelgid.

Some of these species include the small enchanter's nightshade, Fraser's sedge, painted trillium, longtail shrew and the federally-rare blackside dace.

The moderate 1.8 mile loop leading Bad Branch Gorge where the 60-foot waterfall flows over the sandstone cliffs, starts from a small parking lot that can hold up to 10 cars and one bus.

The upper portion of the preserves has a roughly 3 mile, one-way trail that makes its way High Rock and Ran Polly Gap.

[2] Even with the additional foot bridges, hazardous signs to hike this trail are put in place due to the steep grades formed by the geological feature called a thrust-fault.