Labor Day Hike at Breaks

Monday we checked out of the hotel for the last time and headed to Breaks Interstate Park for a Labor Day Hike before we headed home.  We parked at the trailhead for Ridge and Geological Trails and started off down the Geological Trail.

The trail passed under the State Line Overlook and led past some fantastic cliffs and outcrops.

The trail is quite short but the going is slow with so many places to stop and take photos.

This trail really highlights the geological history of the park.

The trail ended at Laurel Branch Trail and we went left to follow it downstream, an extremely steep path.  The trail ended at Grassy Creek and some small cascades were just upstream.

Following Grassy Creek downstream, there were some nice cascades along this one too, but too steep to climb down the bank.

The trail ended at the confluence with Russell Fork and we went left again to get on River Trail.

The trail followed the river a ways and was fairly level at first, but soon got very steep as it climbed, switchbacking between massive cliffs.

The trail ended at Prospectors Trail, where we went left again.  The trail passed along cliffs below the main overlooks but was mostly level.

At the end, we took Geological Trail back towards the parking area.  I headed out for a view from State Line Overlook.

This overlook had great views looking into Kentucky.

Then we made our way back to the car.

Before leaving the park, we made one more stop at Towers Overlook, the most iconic view in Breaks.

Then we started making the drive home after 17 days visiting 59 waterfalls in 11 states.  Alex slept the whole way home.

Little Stony & Devil's Bathtub

Sunday morning, we left Kentucky heading east into Virginia.  Our first stop was at the Little Stony Falls Trail in Jefferson National Forest.  We didn't arrive until after 1030 and still we were the first car, so we took advantage and hit the trail.  Soon, we crossed the creek on a footbridge just above Upper Little Stony Falls.

Just past the bridge, a path led down to the base of the falls.

It's a really pretty one and probably the most well known of the three.

A few more people were showing up, so we took off to stay ahead of the crowd.  Soon, there was another footbridge and Middle Little Stony Falls was just downstream.

The Middle Falls was probably the smallest, but really scenic.

A little further on the trail, we passed Lower Little Stony Falls.

The trail was pretty high above the creek here and it was a steep scramble down to the base, but worth it for such a pretty waterfall.

We followed the trail a little further, to another bridge where Ramey Branch flowed into Little Stony Creek and then turned around.

From here, we headed to the Devil's Bathtub.  Since Little Stony wasn't too crowded, we were hoping Devil's Bathtub would be the same, but no such luck.  We parked at the overflow parking on Route 619 and walked the road into the forest.  There were at least a dozen wet crossings of the creek to reach the Devil's Bathtub.

A small cascading waterfall tumbled into the pool.

A lot of people were jumping in the pool, but the water was very cold.

It was so crowded, we just got a couple pictures and then headed back.

From here, we drove to Grundy and checked into the Comfort Inn, our last stop of the trip.  We had pizza for dinner and then went to bed.

Arches and Falls

Saturday morning, we had breakfast then headed to the Yahoo Falls Scenic Area of Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area.  After getting our stuff together, we started out on the trail.  An overlook where Yahoo Creek flowed into Lake Cumberland was just off the trail here.

Soon we came to a split and went left to descend metal stairs down into the gorge.  Alex did not like these stairs, but he quickly descended and came out at Yahoo Falls.

Yahoo Falls is claimed to be the highest in Kentucky at over 100 feet.

There were trails all around the waterfall.

We could walk around the base of the waterfall here and view it from different angles.

It was a nice spot to hang out and enjoy the scene.  We spotted a little mushroom growing upside down under some rocks.

Continuing on the trail, we left the recreation area and entered Daniel Boone National Forest.  It was just a short ways further to Yahoo Arch.

It was a really cool arch and we could walk underneath it and all around.

It was even possible to climb up to the top of the arch.

It was a really cool area.  We took a little break here and had a snack then started making our way back.

From here, we headed to Yamacraw Bridge and parked here to pick up Sheltowee Trace Trail again.  Following the river downstream, we saw some wildflowers along the trail.

Lots of orange and yellow jewelweed were flowering.

In under a mile, the trail passed a small tributary.  A short path led up the tributary to Julia Lynn Falls.

The stream was very small, but it was a scenic 20-foot overhanging drop that would probably be very nice right after a heavy rain.

Shortly past here, the trail entered Daniel Boone National Forest and came to a bridge over Lick Creek.  We went right on Lick Creek Trail (#631) and soon a path led down to the base of Princess Falls.

It was a pretty waterfall and very scenic area.

I took off my boots to wade in the creek and view the falls from different sides.

It started to get crowded so we continued on the trail, which passed right above the waterfall.

Further along the trail, we saw a cool cauliflower mushroom that resembled lasagna.

There were a couple creek crossings along the trail before we made it to Lick Creek Falls Trail (#631A).  Turning right, we followed a tributary upstream past some huge cliffs.

The trail ended at the base of Lick Creek Falls.

It's a high waterfall but didn't have a lot of water today.

There was a huge rock shelter behind the falls that made a great place to stop and eat lunch.

There was an interesting tree under here.

After we finished lunch, we made the hike back.

Our last stop for the day was at Natural Arch Scenic Area.  A short paved trail led out to a scenic view of the arch.

From here, the trail descended down to the base of the arch to form a loop.

We went right to hike under the arch.

The massive 100-foot sandstone arch was really beautiful.

The short loop passed by some huge cliffs.

Finishing up the loop, we hiked back to the car.

We left the forest and headed back to Williamsburg.  We had G&E Burgers for dinner again and the started getting packed up.