In the Smokies high country, over 85' of rain falls on average each year, feeding over 2,100 miles of rushing mountain streams and rivers that flow through the park. The park abounds with the two ingredients essential for waterfalls—water and an elevation gradient. Waterfalls dot the waterways throughout the park, attracting over 200,000 visitors each year to the park's better known falls. The glacial influence on the Smokies climate, coupled with the range of elevation and the southwest to northeast layout of these mountains, accounts for the striking variety of living things found in the park. Five forest types within the park support over 1,500 species of flowering plants and at least 4,000 non-flowering varieties. In fact, the forests of Great Smoky Mountains National Park are world renowned for their biological diversity.
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