Walhalla Area Waterfalls

We woke up around sunrise on Saturday, quickly broke camp, and hiked down to see Riley Moore Falls. This is a 12-foot waterfall on the Chauga River. Given the height, I wasn’t expecting to be too impressed with this one.

But despite the low height of the falls, it was nearly 100 feet wide, spanning the entire river and the water was really flowing, and it turned out to be pretty impressive after all. Interestingly, the water appeared to be two different colors. The upper cascades were a murky brown color, while the lower cascades were white. I got some pictures of the falls from the front and side, before we headed back to the vehicles.

Along the way, we saw a turtle along the trail and a huge yellow mushroom.

Grace is in a mycology club and helped us find and identify many of the interesting mushrooms and fungi that we saw along the trails.

Back at the vehicles, Jim was almost out of gas. On the way out, we stopped at the first gas station, but since they didn’t take credit cards, we only got $20 of gas, not wanting to waste all our cash. From here, we drove through Walhalla and up SC-28 to the Yellow Branch Recreation Area. From the parking area we hiked the Yellow Branch Falls trail down to its namesake waterfall. Right away, we had to make a couple of easy stream crossings over Yellow Branch Creek. Well-placed rocks allowed for easy rock-hopping without getting our feet wet. The trail continues through the a nice hardwood forest with a couple of wooden footbridges before reaching the falls. The only steep part was right before reach the falls.

And what a magnificent falls it is! The waterfall is a beautiful series of countless cascades flowing over dark rock.

With such a contrast, it almost looked magical! We spent quite a bit of time here, climbing around on the rocks and getting wet under the cascades.

Although there were no other people here, we weren’t alone. There was a large number of blackbelly salamanders living in the water beneath the falls.

They were camouflaged well and blended right in with the rocks, so we didn’t see them at first. One was hiding in a hole in an old log, with just his little head poking out.

We also saw a water snake basking on a rock here.

When we finished, we hiked back to the cars and made the quick drive across the street to Stumphouse Tunnel and parked for Issaqueena Falls. According to legend, Issaqueena was a Native American maiden who fell in love with and married a white settler. Upon learning of an impending attack by the Cherokee on the settlers, she tried to warn them, but was chased by the Indians. She faked her own death by pretending to jump off the falls, but actually jumped down to a ledge below and was able to hide from her attackers. No jumping for us; we would just hike down to the falls. We hiked past the top of the falls and down to the wooden overlook and had lunch here.

The views of the falls aren’t that great from here as the tree branches and foliage obscures the view. After eating our lunches, we took the short but very steep trail down to the base of the falls for some better pictures.

We were alone at the bottom of the falls for a little while, just long enough to get some good pictures, but soon more and more people made their way down here.

As the base got more and more crowded, we decided it was time to leave so we made our way back up to the cars. We drove through Walhalla again, taking SC-183 to SC-11 to our next hike. Along the way, we found a gas station that took credit cards and restocked on gas, Gatorade, and ice. From SC-11, we took Oconee Station Road past the historic site to the trailhead for Station Cove Falls. This one is a short hike, maybe a half mile, and so there were quite a few others along the trail and at the falls.

Station Cove Falls is a beautiful 60-foot cascading falls. Similar to Yellow Branch Falls, it was very scenic, but the crowds of people took away from the serenity of the falls.

We got a few photos and then made our way back as we started to hear thunder. About half way back, it started to rain, and not a light drizzle, but a heavy downpour. Since the sun was out when we had started, we had not brought rain gear for this hike. Worrying about my non-waterproof camera, I ran quickly back to the trailhead and took shelter under the sign until everyone was back and ready to go. We continued on Oconee Station Road to Jumping Branch Road and looked for our turn. We were supposed to turn on FS715A, but we didn’t see it, so we turned on FS715. This was a wrong turn and we were unsure of where to go. The torrential rain didn’t help either. We drove up and back on Jumping Branch Road until finally we saw an unmarked gravel road. On closer inspection, there was a sign with 5A. It looked like someone had blasted the top two numbers off with a shotgun. So we proceeded down this road to a parking area at the end. There were a couple of cars here and some people were hiking back to them. They confirmed that this was indeed the trailhead for Lee Falls and that it was spectacular waterfall, though a bit difficult to reach. We started out on the first of several open field crossings. The rain had lightened a bit, but it was still coming down and walking through the tall grass in the fields, we were getting soaked. At the end of the field, we had to cross a creek. The water was high enough that we were going to get our feet wet, but we were already soaked anyway. Then another field and another stream crossing and then another. Everything was so wet at this point that it didn't matter how many times we had to walk through the creek. Finally, after the third field, we headed onto what looked more like a trail heading through the woods. There were more stream crossings and the trail got narrower and harder to follow. As we got closer to the falls, we saw a snapping turtle in the middle of the trail. I had never seen one completely out of the water before (although it was raining enough that the trail was practically underwater). We carefully moved him off the trail and continued on to Lee Falls.

The area around Lee Falls was very beautiful – almost like a tropical rainforest, and even more lush with the light rain. Unfortunately, the wet rocks and stinging nettle made for treacherous maneuvering to get good pictures.

It’s also hard to get the entire waterfall (there are two distinct streams) as well as the cascades below.

We stayed here for a while, and then made the very wet trip back to the cars. By the time we made it back to the parking area, the rain had stopped although it was extremely humid. We dried off as much as possible and then took a windy forest road to SC-107 and went to Cherry Hill Campground to set up camp. It was still relatively early in the evening, so after quickly setting up camp at site 29, we headed out to knock out two more waterfalls before dark. We drove just a short ways up SC-107 to Burrells Ford Road (FS708) and proceeded down to the parking area for King Creek Falls. From the parking area, we hiked down the forest road past the campsites and took the King Creek/Foothills Trail upstream on King Creek. After crossing a bridge, the trail continued up King Creek for half a mile or so of a scenic stretch of the creek with several nice cascades along the way.

King Creek Falls is a very impressive 70-foot waterfall with powerful cascades.

The backwards slant of the falls makes it look even bigger than it is. There were some logs to cross the creek at the base of the falls and get pictures from different angles. When we were done here, we continued back to the car and drove just a short ways further on Burrells Ford Road to the trailhead for Spoonauger Falls, our last waterfall for the day. It was getting late in the evening and we certainly wouldn’t have any more time for waterfalls today, but Spoonauger is a short trail and we could get this one done quickly. The short Chattooga River Trail leaves the road and enters the Ellicott Rock Wilderness before a turn to head towards the falls. This short spur trail follows Spoonauger Creek upstream through an area of dense rhododendron, certain to be spectacularly beautiful in the early summer when in bloom.

After a few switchbacks, we made it to the Spoonauger Falls. This 50-foot waterfall has much less water flow than nearby King Creek Falls, but was still really pretty and in a beautiful setting.

The water cascades down a stepped rock with the late afternoon sun providing perfect lighting.

But it was getting late so we didn’t have a lot of time. After a few pictures, we made our way back to the car and headed back to camp. According to the GPS, there were no restaurants closer than 30 minutes away, so we made camp food and tried to get to bed early after taking advantage of the warm water showers. Unfortunately, it was a noisy night with a generator going, dogs barking, and snoring.

Westminster Area Waterfalls

For the Labor Day long weekend, we planned a waterfall-hunting expedition to the high country of South Carolina, near the borders with Georgia and North Carolina. We had a target of 15 waterfalls, all of which had different trailheads spanning three counties, so we definitely had our work cut out for us. So we started very early Friday morning, leaving from the Chapel Hill area around 6 in the morning. We crossed into South Carolina along I-85 later in the morning, stopping at the Visitor Center and picking up a few brochures to help us in locating the waterfalls. Just past the Visitor Center, we saw Peachoid, a water tower shaped like a peach (although it kind of resembled a very orange butt). We got off I-85 near Greenville and continued towards the upcountry region, taking US-76 past Westminster towards the small community of Long Creek. We turned on Damascus Church Road, then Battlecreek Road, and finally the gravel Turkey Ridge Road (FS755) into the Andrew Pickens Ranger District of Sumter National Forest. Grace had picked up a map of South Carolina that indicated this is the general area where the movie Deliverance was filmed… But we were undeterred. We followed this forest road to a parking area a couple of miles back and continued hiking down the road to a fork that followed an old logging road for a mile or so, approaching the Chattooga River. There are no signs at the trailhead or anywhere along the trail, but shortly before the waterfall, there was a sign indicating that we had entered the Chattooga Wild and Scenic River area. Past here, there was a steep, but short trail down to the falls, which were just above where Long Creek flows into the Chattooga River.

It’s a nice 25-foot cascading waterfall with two distinct water flows.

We stopped for a few minutes to get some pictures and crawl around on the rocks, before heading back up to the logging road to head back to the car. Along the way back, we saw a little green snake and a cute orange toad along the trail.

Back at the cars, we headed back up Turkey Creek Road just a short ways to the trailhead for Opossum Creek Falls, our next waterfall. There was a sign here for the Opossum Creek Trail, which is about 2.5 miles one way to the falls. Although the temperature was not that hot, it was extremely humid, making the hike more difficult than expected. And we were heading down to the river on the way out, so it would be even tougher heading back. The trail winded through the forest and followed Camp Branch down towards Chattooga River. We could hear a waterfall or cascade along Camp Branch, but didn’t try to bushwhack down to see it. When we reached the river, we saw a couple of NOC rafts along the shore where some rafters had stopped to take a break and see the falls.

Only the guide was waiting with the boats. As we continued on towards the waterfall, we crossed Camp Branch and then followed Opossum Creek upstream, passing the large group of rafters coming down on the narrow trail. Shortly, we hit the falls, a very beautiful large cascading waterfall with an upper section of cascades that was difficult to see through the foliage.

Although the hike was strenuous (and much more so on the way back), the waterfall was beautiful and definitely worth the hike.

When we were done here, we made our way back down to the river and then the grueling hike back up to the road. By the time we got to the car, we were all drenched in sweat and looking forward to the drive to the next waterfall in air conditioning. I did notice some trees whose leaves were beginning to change; not something I'd expect to see in August.

From here, we got back on US-76 and got off on Brasstown Road, going a couple of miles on this road past where it changes from paved to gravel. We turned right on FS751 and parked at the end. It’s a short hike to Brasstown Falls and we really got a lot of waterfall for our effort here. Brasstown Falls itself actually has three sections.

The first is a beautiful large cascade that levels off and then plunges down a 20-foot or so freefall, followed by a narrow chute.

We hiked around all three sections of the falls, taking pictures, enjoying the views, and getting a little wet to cool off.

Then we started to hike back and shortly past the top of the upper section, I could see what looked like a pretty big waterfall through the trees. This was Little Brasstown Falls, a bonus waterfall for the day. There was a small creek blocking access, but a downed tree provided a way across without having to wade. Little Brasstown Falls is a very pretty cascading waterfall and definitely worth the quick detour to stop and see it.

When we finished here, we made our way back to the parking area and stopped to ask some people who were just pulling in about where we could find a good place to eat. They suggested Brasstown Creek Gathering Place BBQ, which was just up Brasstown Road right after it changes from gravel back to pavement. We pulled into the parking lot of the big log cabin building and headed in what looked the front door. One of the servers, recognizing it was our first time, directed us to the line to order at the other side of the building and we placed our orders. We mentioned that we would be camping near Riley Moore Falls and a woman in line behind us offered to let us camp in her yard and make breakfast. She had 300 pounds of sausage in the freezer. I wondered to myself if that’s what’s left of the last people she let camp in her yard. We politely thanked her for her offer, but said we were on a tight schedule and needed to camp near the falls. The BBQ was very good and they had some great sauces. I tried Hot and St. Louis, both of which were very tasty. When we finished dinner, we took advantage of the flush toilets and running water before heading to our campsite. We had planned to hit Riley Moore Falls today, but it was getting late and we decided to wait until morning. Since we were camping nearby, it wouldn’t add much time. According to the US Forest Service, there is a primitive Riley Moore Ford Campground, following FS748B off Spy Rock Road (FS748). However, the road is really worn out and there was a steep spot that was muddy. Jim was convinced his Jeep could make it down and back up, but certainly the Camry couldn’t. So we went down FS748C and camped near the waterfall instead. We parked just before sunset and quickly set up our tents before dark, going to bed shortly after the sun went down. We were all exhausted after a very long day. Unfortunately, it was still hot and humid even after the sun went down and so we didn’t get a great night’s sleep.

Thieving Raccoons

In the morning, we woke up around 7 and headed down to site 6 to meet up with our group along the beach at Hammocks Beach State Park. Along the way, we saw some cute little sanderlings poking around the surf for food.

Sandy was tired and rested under the sunshade while I hiked further down to the east end. It was her birthday, so I couldn't complain if she wanted to relax. We had slept in a bit and didn’t catch the sunrise, but it was another beautiful day. Beautiful blue skies and not a cloud to be seen. As I got to around site 9, I saw Heidi sitting on the beach looking depressed. She had gotten up early to see the sunrise and when she went back to her tent, a raccoon had chewed its way in and stolen her food bag! And it had her coffee! There are no trees on Bear Island so hanging food up in a bear bag is not really an option. Keeping food in a tent is never a good idea, but there’s nothing else to do with it. Heidi was able to get some coffee from Susie back in site 6 and John managed to find her stolen bag stashed in the shrub thickets near the site, getting stung by a bee in the process. The raccoon had made off with some peanuts and other snacks but had left the coffee, the most important thing. I finished my walk down to the east end of the beach and headed over to the tidal flats here. It was close to high tide and they were completely flooded, but I did see a couple of egrets hunting fish in the shallow water.

Then I headed back and Sandy and I took down the sunshade and headed back to our site. I went for one more swim in the ocean. It was yellow-flag conditions today and the waves were a bit stronger. I enjoy getting knocked around by the waves some so I swam for a bit and then got out. Sandy and I finished taking breaking down our campsite and met up with Mahesh, then hiked our stuff back to the ferry dock. After getting back to the mainland, we made the drive back to Raleigh, getting home at a decent hour. Mahesh was very thankful that I had shared our campsite with him and given him the opportunity to join us. I wouldn’t have known about Bear Island if several years ago, someone hadn’t invited me and let me share their campsite. So I was happy to do the same for him this year.

Beach Camping at Bear Island

This past weekend, we headed to Bear Island in Hammocks Beach State Park for camping, surf, sand, and sun and to celebrate Sandy’s and Jim’s birthdays that were over the weekend. I couldn’t take Friday off from work, so we headed out early Saturday morning, while most of the others had already spent the night on the island. We left Raleigh just after six and got to the park right at 9. We had just enough time to check in at the visitor center and grab our gear to make the first ferry to the island at 930. As the ferry was ready to take off, we waited for one more camper – John, who had come up from Wilmington to join us, was the last in our group. Our Captain for the ride was Captain Bob who loves telling bad jokes on the ferry ride over; we remembered him from last year.

After crossing the Intracoastal Waterway on Cow Channel, we arrived at the island and made half-mile hike up to the pavilion and bath house. John was staying with Heidi at site 9, so he took off down the beach to set up.

Sandy, Mahesh, and I were staying on site 1, the closest one.

Being so flat, you would think the backpacking would be easy, but hiking on sand is tough and makes it seem much longer. I ran up there to make sure the previous night’s campers had left the site, and since they had, I went back to the pavilion and we grabbed our stuff and set up at our campsite. When we were done, we headed down to site 6, about midway down the beach and put up the sunshade. With all our stuff set up, we could now enjoy the beach. The surf was very calm today, so the first thing we did was take a dip in the ocean and float around amidst the gentle waves for a bit. The water was a bit chilly so after thirty minutes or so, I got out and warmed up for a bit in the sun. We made our way to the concession stand to get a cold drink with our lunch. By the concession stand, they had a table displaying exhibits of various wildlife found in the park.

These included a dolphin skull, a loggerhead sea turtle skull, various sea shells and corals, and horseshoe crab. After lunch, Sandy and I walked down the beach towards the east end of the island to collect seashells.

When we got back to our spot, we needed a rest after all that hard work! So we laid in the sand for a while. The skies were partly cloudy and the thick clouds did a good job of blocking much of the sunlight. But there were still beautiful blue skies all around. Couldn't ask for nicer weather. At one point, we could see a distinct color change in the ocean, where part of the sea was reflecting blue light from the sky and part was reflecting white/gray light from the clouds.

As the lazy afternoon wore into evening, we headed back to our campsite for dinner. Last year, we had taken our dinner down the west end of the island to watch the sunset. But there were these pesky flying ants that harassed us as we ate, so we decided to eat at the campsite this year before walking down there. After dinner, we all met back up and started the 2 or so mile walk down to the west end of the island. As we were walking, a very dark cloud rolled in and we got sprinkled with just a bit of rain, but after a few minutes, the cloud blew off and with it the rain. We also saw an interesting uprooted tree that was upside down in the middle of the beach.

It must have blown over at some point in time, but it was strange to see in the middle of the beach nonetheless. When we reached the west end of the island, we staked out a spot in the sand and waited to watch the sunset.

Clouds moved in and out from in the sun and made for a beautiful light show.

When the sun was blocked by clouds, its rays were shining out from around the clouds.

As it got lower and lower towards the horizon, the sky changed to beautiful colors of pink and orange until the sun set and darkness began kicking in.

Once the sun set, we hiked back to the pavilion and took a warm shower before going to bed.

While I was waiting for Sandy to get out of the shower, I saw an orange light in the direction of Emerald Isle. As it rose in the sky, I realized that it was the moon rising in a brilliant orange color. Walking back to our campsite, the moon and its reflection on the water made for a beautiful sight. And a good breeze behind the dunes kept the bugs away for the night and thankfully, we didn’t wake to a million bug bites.

Hiking in Corolla

Sunday morning, we went for breakfast at First Light in TimBuckII. The skies were mostly overcast, but the rain had stopped. When we got back to the beach house, Sandy went out to the beach and I took a hike around Corolla. First, I headed up NC-12 to Currituck Banks Reserve, a North Carolina Coastal Reserve and National Estuarine Research Reserve. Before I came, I applied a copious amount of bug spray, but surprisingly, the insects weren't bad at all here. Being a swampy maritime forest, I had thought the mosquitoes would be terrible, but I really didn't see any.

When I got to the reserve, I first headed out on the short boardwalk trail leading to a beautiful view of Currituck Sound.

Although the skies were cloudy, the views of the marshy areas up to the sound were quite beautiful.

I sat for a few minutes at the benches at the end of the boardwalk trail, enjoying the view, then started back and turned for the Currituck Banks Maritime Forest Trail. This trail passes through a beautiful maritime forest with a number of really cool live oaks growing along it.

I had to stop several times to check out these trees with their wildly-growing branches. They almost look like something out of a scary movie where the trees come alive. The trail ends again at a marshy area on the sound, about 3/4 of a mile from the start.

Turning around, I headed back through the maritime forest and boardwalk and headed back towards Corolla on NC-12. Almost back at the resort, I took a detour through Curritck Heritage Park for some pictures of the Currituck Beach Lighthouse, the Whalehead Club, and some of the other interesting features of the park.

The Corolla Island Bridges, which were built after canals were made to create an "island" for the Whalehead Club were really pretty.

I got some more pictures and starting heading back to the beach house.

By the time I got back, the sun was finally starting to come out. Sandy and I had lunch with her parents at Cosmo's Pizzeria and then she and I headed to the beach to soak up some sun before we headed back. The sun had come out and it was turning into a beautiful day, but unfortunately, we needed to start heading back home. Of course, the weather gets nice when we have to leave! But it was an enjoyable weekend trip nonetheless. On the way out, the traffic was light going south on NC-12, but there were miles of gridlock going in the other direction. We will definitely need to keep this in mind next time we head to the northern Outer Banks and plan accordingly.