Hidden Dome Falls

Friday, we headed out to the mountains without the dog to get some difficult waterfalls.  Leaving early, we arrived at Brewer Road to access Thompson River at around 930.  We started off hiking down the gated Forest Road 87 that runs along the river.  In about a mile, the road crossed the river and with recent rains, the water level was up quite a bit and the river was really flowing.  The crossing was tricky but we made it across safely.

I don't think it would be passable if it was any higher.  In another mile or so, a very overgrown road split to the right and followed an unnamed tributary upstream.  It was so overgrown, we had to belly-crawl through several areas of dense rhododendron.  After about a quarter-mile, the road crossed another tributary and we started following it upstream.  This part was even more overgrown and there was no old road to follow.  Eventually, we realized it was easier to get a little further up and above the rhododendrons and follow the tributary upstream.  Another unmarked tributary came in and we crossed and got in the little island in between the two.  At this point, we could see the waterfall, but there was no easy way to go except through more dense rhododendron.  Eventually, we made it to the base of Hidden Dome Falls.

With high water, it's a nice waterfall but the hike is brutal.

We hung out here and had lunch at the base.

It's hard to get a picture of the whole thing being so close, but viewing spots are limited.

On the way back, we stayed up above the creek on river left and found it somewhat easier than being to close to the creek.  It was good to get back to FR-87 and a clear trail.  Some little yellow violets were blooming along the trail.

Before we got back to the ford, we made a quick trip down to Simon Falls.  It's small, only about 20 feet, but rather scenic and one of the easier ones to reach on Thompson.

After that, we crossed Thompson again and made the hike back to the car.

We stopped at the food truck at Forks of the River Taproom for dinner then drove to Waynesville to stay at the Waynesville Inn and Golf Club.

Daniel Ridge Hike

Thursday morning, we took Alex out to the mountains for a long holiday weekend.  Our first stop was at the Daniel Ridge Trailhead near Davidson River in Pisgah National Forest.  It rained most of the way out, but was just a drizzle by the time we arrived around 10.  Being a dreary weekday morning, there was only one other car at the trailhead.  We hiked down the Forest Road 5046 across the bridge to Toms Spring Falls.

With the heavy rains, it was really flowing.  I climbed up the side for a couple pictures and also from the road.  Unfortunately, the view from the road is getting pretty overgrown.

There were some beautiful mountain laurel blooming as we continued down FR-5046.

The road curved around and crossed Toms Spring Branch again below the upper waterfall.

This one was looking really good in the high water.

Shortly after the waterfall, FR-5042 intersected Daniel Ridge Loop Trail and we turned right to follow the loop.  There were some beautiful flame azalea growing along the trail.

Where the trail intersected with Farlow Gap Trail, we turned right to attempt to reach Twin Boulder Falls on Right Fork.  The crossing of Right Fork, which is normally an easy rock hop, was a massive torrent.

There was no safe way to cross, especially with the dog.  So we headed back, following Daniel Ridge Loop Trail down.  Although we didn't get the waterfall we wanted, I did get to see some trillium.

Sandy also spotted some fairy wands.

Continuing down the trail, there were some nice cascades and small waterfalls along Right Fork.

There was the remains of an old bridge across the creek just above where Right Fork and Daniel Ridge Creek come together to form Davidson River.

Past the confluence, the trail split where left stayed on Daniel Ridge Loop and the right trail followed the river more closely, passing some primitive campsites.  We took the right trail and found some more small waterfalls on Davidson River.

A little snail was crawling on the rocks here.

There was the remains of what looked like an old dam a short ways further.

A nice cascade was just downstream of the dam.

We spotted a nice jack in the pulpit along the river here.

The trails joined back together near the ruins of the old fish hatchery.

Soon we reached the end of the loop and bridge back over Davidson River.

We finished our hike up back at the car.

Back at the car, we made another quick stop at Lower Rockhouse Creek Falls.

It's a roadside waterfall, right where FR-475 crosses Rockhouse Creek just above the confluence with Davidson River.  Then we left the forest and stopped to get take-out lunch from Hawg Wild and support our favorite BBQ restaurant in the area.  Next, we drove to the trailhead for Thompson River along Brewer Road.  We wanted to get Simon Falls, but with the high water, it would not be safe to cross Thompson River.  So we followed the trail for just under a mile.  Right before the turn for High Falls was a less conspicuous turn to the left that went down towards Reid Branch just below the waterfall.  The path came out below the waterfall, but there was too many rhododendron in the way for a good view.

I waded through the water to the base for a good view.  On the climb back up, we found another path that left to a great view of the falls from the side.

Then we hiked back to the car.

Continuing into South Carolina, we arrived at Oconee State Park and set up at rustic test site 5.  After getting set up, I took a short hike on Oconee Trail.  There were really a lot of mountain laurel blooming here.

The Oconee Trail went past the campsite lake that was really pretty in the evening light.

I followed the trail past the campground for a ways.

As the sun was beginning to set, I headed back.

After my hike, we built a fire and then went to bed.

High and Big Falls

This past weekend, I headed to the mountains to see High Falls on West Fork Tuckaseegee River. August 22 would be the last time this year that Duke Energy would be opening the dam on Lake Glenville for a whitewater release. Sandy had to work this weekend, so I headed out solo. I drove up Friday evening and stayed at the Quality Inn in Sylva, as I wanted to get a quick start in the morning and be there before the dam opened at 10 AM. I had Subway for dinner and saved the second half for lunch the next day. Saturday morning, I checked out of the hotel and headed south on NC-107. Just before Lake Glenville, I turned right on Shoal Creek Road and parked just beyond the gated road, arriving around 830, with plenty of time to make it to the waterfall. This land is private property, but the landowner is kind enough to allow public access to view the beautiful natural resources. After getting my stuff together, I hiked down past the gate and went left at the fork. The trail loops around and then follows West Fork Tuckaseegee River upstream. In about a mile and a half, flagging tape indicated a short spur trail to the right that led to the river. Across the river, Rough Run flowed into West Fork Tuckaseegee River at Rough Run or Thurston Hatcher Falls.

The other side of the river is private property and marked as No Trespassing, so I could only go as far as shore of the river to get a picture of this waterfall. Then, I hopped back across and finished up the trail at the base of High Falls.

It was still another thirty minutes or so before the dam would open, so I took the time to walk around on the rocks at the base of the falls that would soon be completely underwater. There were a couple of cairns right at the base of the falls – they wouldn’t be lasting much longer!

As it got closer to 10, I found a nice big rock to climb up where I would be safe from the rising water and be able to get some good pictures and video. Around 1020, it actually started. I’m not sure how long it takes for the water to get from the lake to the waterfall, but when it started, there was no mistake. First, the top section of the waterfall got huge. Then the lower part started in two sections and finally, the river below the falls began to fill up.

It took a total of about five minutes before the waterfall and river got to their full flow. After getting some pictures and video from the top of the rock, I got back down to the edge of the river and then went up to where the kayakers were putting in. The mist and spray from the falls made it difficult to get pictures. I even climbed up to the middle of the falls, where the spray was overpowering.

I watched some kayakers take off down the now Class V rapids and then made the hike back to the car.

On the way, I stopped quickly at Thurston Hatcher Falls - there would be no crossing the river now. While I was here, I met Tim, who wanted to go to Big Falls on Thompson River afterwards. I never pass up an opportunity for adventure on Thompson River, so we drove over to the trailhead on Brewer Road, just off NC-281. From here, we hiked down the old gated logging road that follows Thompson River downstream. In about a mile, we passed the side trail that leads to High Falls and shortly after that, we had to ford the river. The water level was lower than the last time I was here as there were several exposed rocks sticking out above the surface. Not enough to rock hop though, so we had to wade across. We continued down the path another 2.5 miles to the turn for Big Falls. It’s not terribly obvious, but I spotted the flagging tape and cairn at the turn. From here, it’s a steep climb down to river level. It starts off moderate, but gets steeper and steeper. Ropes tied to trees help with the steepest parts near the end. Once down to the river, we had to go upstream a bit to the base of Big Falls. A downed tree made getting to the base difficult the last time I was here. It appeared that another tree had fallen and it was now near impossible to get through the mess of branches and logs. Instead, we climbed onto some rocks before the trees and were able to climb under them from river level. Now, we could see Big Falls.

This certainly was a day for massive waterfalls. I ate the rest of my Subway and then we waded across the river and climbed onto the big rock on the other side. I went up as high as I could go to view the top of the waterfall up close.

Tim was going to slide down the falls, but ended up changing his mind. The water is mighty cold. So we started making our way back up. It wasn’t too hot, but was extremely humid, which made the climb back up that more difficult. But soon we made it to the top and started hiking back. Although he had talked about it on the way in, Tim was too tired to get any of the other waterfalls along Thompson. He decided to set up his hammock, while I headed down to Waterfall #1 on Thompson River.

I had never been to this one before and for being on Thompson River, it was pretty easy. And it’s a pretty nice waterfall too! I was glad I made the quick detour here. I also saw some tiger swallowtail butterflies puddling along the river bed.

I hiked back up to the main trail and met back up with Tim, resting in his hammock. He packed it back up and we finished the hike back out. Along the way, we ran into some guys who had been looking for White Owl Falls. Unfortunately, this wasn’t the trail to take. We told them how to get to it, but they didn’t want to take the time to get that one. We talked to them along the hike out. Tim headed home and I went into Brevard to stay at the Hampton Inn for the night.

Foothills Trail in the Snow

Saturday morning, we woke up relatively early. John didn’t sleep well the night before, so he decided to stay at the cabin and rest. A good thing, as this was going to be a very long and strenuous day. After a light breakfast, we headed west on US-64 to Sapphire and turned onto NC-281 south into South Carolina. Almost immediately after crossing the state line, we turned into Bad Creek Power Station and parked at the Foothills Trail access. We followed the spur to the Foothills Trail at the footbridges over Whitewater River and turned right on the trail towards Thompson River. Not long after crossing Whitewater River, we passed the spur trail to Lower Whitewater Falls, planning to hit this one on the way back. The trail headed up gradually, then dipped back down as we hiked into North Carolina.

Soon, we crossed Thompson River on a footbridge about a half-mile downstream of Big Falls. After crossing the river, we headed steeply up the ridgeline. I wasn’t expecting such a steep stretch, but I don’t think it’s ever easy climbing back up from Thompson River. The trail then started going back down. A couple spots were extremely difficult as ice covered steep steps heading down. The first set of steps had a handrail that helped tremendously in safely descending.

The second set didn’t have anything to hold on to, so we had to butt-slide down. After the “Stairs of Death”, we came out to a gated road and hiked down to Bearcamp Creek. At the creek, we hiked the short spur trail leading to Bearcamp Falls. This waterfall is also called Hilliard Falls, in honor of Glenn Hilliard, the founder of the Foothills Conference. There was a great campsite right at the base of the falls. If I ever backpacked the Foothills Trail, I would try to camp here as it was a lovely spot where you could hear the waterfall and kind of see it through the trees from a tent. Approaching the waterfall, there was a nice cascade at the base, but trees blocked a good view of the main waterfall.

Going a little further, we stopped at the base for lunch and pictures. It’s a pretty cool waterfall, with the water flowing down the rock face in several distinct streams. I was surprised that there wasn’t a lot of ice on it, though.

We didn’t linger too long, however, as we still had quite a bit of hiking to do to get back. So we started the rather long hike back towards South Carolina.

Although there was a lot of uphill on the way back, the icy steps were a lot easier going up. After a while, we got to the spur trail and headed to Lower Whitewater Falls. The trail went through the woods, then followed a gravel road, before skirting around Whitewater Mountain. It then descended steeply to a nice wooden overlook for the waterfall. The falls were a good distance away, but the overlook was positioned well for views of the 400-foot waterfall surrounded by ice.

After a few photos, we headed back and soon were back at the car. Our hike for the day ended up being more than 13 miles and we were all exhausted. But that doesn’t mean we couldn’t get a couple more (easy) waterfalls. Heading back into North Carolina on NC-281, we pulled off at the grassy spot on the side of the road at John’s Jump. First, we ran across the street and hiked up the short D.E.W. Falls Trail (#281) to this waterfall. Although the hike is short and normally easy, we had to put our Yak-Trax back on to make the final descent to see the falls. We were surprised to see another couple and their dog at the waterfall, the only other people we've seen on our hikes so far.

D.E.W. Falls is not a huge waterfall, but it’s in a really pretty setting. Even more so today with a thin layer of ice coating the pool and some nice icicles framing the waterfall. After a couple pictures we hiked back to the car and made a quick detour to John’s Jump.

It was a steep descent down to the base, but at least it was short. The snow and ice surrounding this waterfall were beautiful; I think this one had the best ice that we had seen.

Once we got some pictures, we headed back to the car and drove back to Brevard. We got take-out from Hawg Wild BBQ and ate dinner back at the cabin. We all fell asleep quickly after our very busy day.