Rock Slab Falls

Sunday morning, I had breakfast at the hotel and then got on the Blue Ridge Parkway heading south towards Cherokee.  The mountains were beautiful and I made a few stops.  First I stopped at Bunches Bald Overlook for a nice view.

Then I stopped at Big Witch Overlook.

The next stop was View Thomas Divide.

Finally, I stopped at View Ballhoot Scar.

At the south end of the parkway, I entered Great Smoky Mountains National Park at Occanaluftee.  There was a bull elk in the field so I stopped for some pictures.

There were also some wild turkeys here in the field as well.

I then drove up to Clingmans Dome to start my hike.  There were great views from the parking lot here.

I started off hiking down Forney Ridge Trail for just over a mile and turned right on Forney Creek Trail.  This trail was even steeper in its descent.  It headed towards its namesake then switchbacked towards a tributary.  It got pretty narrow in places.  At the tributary, the trail followed it down steeply towards the confluence with Forney Creek.  There was a scenic cascade just upstream of the crossing.

Rock Slab Falls was just downstream of the crossing and there was a campsite here.  There was also evidence of old logging operations in the area.  The view from the base was poor due to a big tree that fell across the middle.

Another path from the campsite led to the base of the upper cascade, just above the downed tree.  There was a better view of the upper drop from here.

There were some scenic drops just downstream of the falls as well.

After some pictures, I continued on the trail down to Steeltrap Creek.  There's a waterfall about a half-mile upstream but absolutely no trail.  I started to rock hop up the creek but it was so overgrown with rhododendron.  I was by myself and no one would ever find me out here if something happened, so I turned back.  It was a very steep climb back up Forney Creek Trail.  When I finally got back to Forney Ridge Trail, I turned right to go out to Andrews Bald.

There were really nice views from here and Fontana Lake was visible far down below.

Heading back, I took Clingmans Dome Bypass Trail up to the Appalachian Trail.  I went to the top of Mount Buckley but there was no view here.  There was one spot along the AT with a really nice view and I could see Gatlinburg.

Turning around and going northbound, I passed Clingmans Dome and went out Mount Love.  There were a few breaks in the trees but not much to see.  Turning back, I stopped at Clingmans Dome and climbed the tower.

It was super crowded but the views were fantastic.  Mount LeConte was towering to the north.

Then I headed back down to the parking lot and enjoyed one more view from way up high.

From here, I headed back towards Maggie Valley.

At Oconaluftee, I got back on the Blue Ridge Parkway and made a couple stops.  First, I stopped at View Raven Fork.

Then I caught the sun setting behind the mountains from Jenkins Ridge Overlook.

I made one more stop at Plott Balsam Overlook and saw the moon over the mountains.

After this, I finished the drive into Maggie Valley.  I had dinner at Legends Sports Bar and then headed back to the hotel and got ready to head home.

Gunter Fork Falls

For Veterans Day weekend, I headed out to the mountains.  Sandy had to work and I didn't have Alex, so headed to the Smokies.  I left Saturday morning after 4 and drove to the Big Creek section of Great Smoky Mountains National Park.  Arriving just before 9, I set out on Big Creek Trail.  As I was leaving the parking area, a large group of wild turkeys crossed the path.

Hiking up Big Creek Trail, I first stopped at a scenic cascade downstream of Midnight Hole.

Another photographer was climbing back up so I headed down for a couple pictures.

Then I stopped for a picture of the Midnight Hole and the very cold-looking swim hole.

It was about another half mile to Mouse Creek Falls.  With the rain earlier in the week, it was flowing very nicely.

But I didn't stay too long as I had a lot more hiking to do.  A large bridge crosses the creek just after Mouse Creek Falls.

The trail follows Big Creek for almost 3 more miles to another bridge.

Walnut Bottom backcountry campsites were on the other side.  After the equestrian campsite, the trail became Camel Gap Trail, and followed Big Creek further for half-mile to Gunter Fork Trail.  Almost immediately, I had to wade Big Creek.  I was nervous about the crossing as Big Creek was really raging up to this point, but the ford was a little calmer.

One step was knee deep but the rest wasn't too bad.  Across the creek, I began to follow Gunter Fork upstream with several crossing points.  The first was the hardest and I had to get one foot wet.  After this was a tributary crossing and more on Gunter Fork, but I was able to rock hop the rest.  Just before the fourth crossing of Gunter Fork, a lower waterfall was visible from the trail.  I scrambled down and crossed the creek for some pictures of this scenic waterfall.

It's a smaller waterfall but flows through a narrow little gorge.  There was another little cascade on a tributary as well.

Back on the main trail, I continued to the fifth crossing at the base of Gunter Fork Falls.

It's a pretty cool waterfall with an upper drop and long slide over interesting orange rock.

That being said, it's probably not worth the more than 16 mile round trip hike.  I had lunch here and then made the long hike back.

I then drove to Maggie Valley and checked into the Ramada.  I had fajitas for dinner and went to bed early.

Bear Creek & Chasteen Creek Falls

Sunday morning, I had a quick breakfast at the hotel and then drove west to Bryson City and into Great Smoky Mountain National Park.  I followed Lakeview Drive, the "Road to Nowhere", to the end and parked at the trailhead for Lakeshore Trail.  The trail starts out on the road past the barricades and towards a tunnel.

The tunnel is really big; it's straight so I could see right through, but it was deceptively long, close to a quarter-mile.

Beyond the tunnel, the road becomes a trail and gradually headed down towards Fontana Lake.  This is a pretty remote section of the park so I didn't see too many other people along my hike.  It was about 2.5 miles from the tunnel to where the trail headed down to Forney Creek where it flows into Fontana Lake.  There was a big campsite here (#74) and a footbridge over the creek.

I got some pictures from the bridge, but then headed the other way, picking up Forney Creek Trail.  In less than half a mile, I turned left on Bear Creek Trail and crossed Forney Creek on a wide footbridge.  After crossing Bear Creek on another bridge, the trail headed towards Welch Branch and then turned sharply back towards Bear Creek.  In just under a half-mile from Welch Branch, I got off the trail and started bushwhacking down towards the creek.  I could hear the waterfall from here, but it was hard to discern as Bear Creek has many cascades and drops.  There were also some steep cliffs to navigate around and as I could close to the waterfall, it was a brutal wade through rhododendron to get out to the base of Bear Creek Falls.  But despite the difficult bushwhack down (and equally bad going back up), the waterfall was worth the effort - it was a real beauty.

I relaxed down here for a while, taking some pictures and eating a snack.  But it would be a nasty climb back out, so I didn't linger too long.  Once back at the trail, the hike back wasn't too bad, though it was mostly uphill.  Near the tunnel, I took a detour on Goldmine Loop Trail that headed steeply down to Goldmine Branch and then  to Fontana Lake.

There was a nice spot to get out and view the lake here.  I saw a couple on jet skis cruise through the little cove.  Then it was all uphill back to the tunnel.  There were a lot of Rosebay Rhododendron blooming along the trail and made for a welcome break to stop and take a picture.

Eventually, the trail leveled off and I turned on Tunnel Bypass Trail to head back.

Back at the car, I was pretty tired from the, but wanted to get another waterfall.  On the way out of the park, I stopped at the Fontana Lake Overlook for a view of the lake where Tuckaseegee River flows in.

Leaving Bryson City, I headed to Cherokee and the Smokemont area of the park.  Parking at the far end of the campground, I picked up the Bradley Fork Trail and followed its namesake upstream.  This trail is for hikers and equestrians; I saw a number of pipevine swallowtail butterflies feeding on horse waste along the trail.

In a mile or so, I turned right on Chasteen Creek Trail and went about three-quarters of a mile to a fork.  Chasteen Creek Trail went to the right, while left headed to a horse hitching post.  Just past the post, a short path led to Chasteen Creek Falls.

It's not a big waterfall, but rather scenic.  And despite being close to the Smokemont Campground, I had it all to myself.  I took off my boots and waded in the creek for a bit, as much to cool down as to get pictures.

After a little while, I headed back.

I didn't want to get stuck in Cherokee traffic again, so leaving the park, I got on the Blue Ridge Parkway.  And I couldn't help, but stop at an overlook along the way.  I pulled over at Lickstone Ridge Overlook for a nice view of Cherokee down below.

Then I returned to the hotel for the evening after a long and strenuous day.

Royal Palm & Flamingo

Friday, we had planned to go snorkeling at John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park.  Due to unfavorable weather, the trip was cancelled so, we instead went back to Everglades, entering at the main entrance just west of Homestead.  We first stopped at the Ernest F. Coe Visitor Center, where a ranger suggested we head to Royal Palm.  Arriving here, all the cars were covered in tarps.

Apparently, the resident black vultures attack cars and try to remove windshield wipers and weather stripping.  There were no bungee cords left, but we were able to wrap the rental car with a tarp and close it in the car doors.

Once the car was secure, we started hiking the Anhinga Trail – a short boardwalk with lots of wildlife.  Anhingas, the trail’s namesake, are very interesting birds with a long pointed beak used to spear prey.  We spotted one anhinga with an impaled fish on his beak.

Now that he had caught his prey, he needed to get it off so he could eat it.  Near here was a beautiful strangler fig right along the trail.

Further along we spotted a number of alligators as well as cormorants, herons, and vultures.

The open views of the Taylor Slough were just beautiful.

After finishing the short boardwalk, we then hiked the Gumbo Limbo Trail.  Although both trail are right next to each other, they each explore a different landscape.  While the Anhinga Trail lead through an open swampy area, the Gumbo Limbo Trail was through a dense hardwood hammock.  There were several of the distinctive red-orange trees for which the trail is named.

Once we finished the trail, we headed back to the main road and continued towards Flamingo.  Our next stop was the Pinelands, another short interpretive trail that led through an “island” of pine forest.

We heard lots of birds in here, but the forest was too dense for a good view.  We also spotted some Bahama Senna blooming right along the trail.

Then we continued to Pay-Hay-Okee Overlook with great views of the River of Grass.  Pay-hay-okee is a Seminole word for "grassy waters" and we had a nice view of the Shark River Slough from the elevated observation tower.

On the short walk back, we passed through a cypress swamp.  It's just amazing how different ecosystems lie so close together.

By this time, it was getting later in the day and we were hungry so we continued to Flamingo and had lunch at Buttonwood Café.  It was damaged in a hurricane and there wasn’t a lot of seating, so we were seated with a German couple for lunch.  After lunch, we hiked the Guy Bradley Trail along Florida Bay to the campground.

Near the entrance to the campground was an impressive nest with two ospreys.

And a number of black vultures were drying their wings.

After some pictures, we made our way back and departed the Everglades.  We had dinner in Homestead at Sake Sushi and Thai and then got packed for a flight home in the morning.