Black Mountains Waterfalls

Sunday morning, we woke up early and broke camp and departed Hot Springs.  We drove up into Tennessee and then back into North Carolina on US-19W.  Just a mile or two across the state line, we made a stop to see Big Creek Falls.  It's essentially roadside, but hard to see through the foliage.  A scramble path led to a big rock with a nice frontal view.

I then climbed down to the creek for a view from the base.

The pool looked very inviting and I bet it would make an excellent swimhole.

It was a really scenic waterfall for being right along the side of the road.  Continuing on, we drove through Burnsville and took NC-80 towards the Black Mountains.  We took a short detour on Whiteoak Creek Road and followed to the end.  Whiteoak Creek Falls was just ahead.  First, we scrambled down to the base.

Back at the road, we found another path to get down to the middle section.

A little further up was another path down to the upper section.

It's not possible to see the entire thing from any one spot, but a nice waterfall nonetheless.

The light was poor unfortunately.  After some pictures, we headed back.

Our next stop was the trailhead for Roaring Fork Falls at the Busick Work Center in the Black Mountain-South Toe River Area of Pisgah National Forest.  There were quite a few cars in the parking area and we got the last spot.  Hiking down the Roaring Fork Falls Trail (#195), we saw several groups coming back.

There were some old concrete structures, maybe magazines to store explosives.

Where the road crossed Roaring Fork, we took the path up to the base of Roaring Fork Falls as the last group was leaving.

We got the waterfall to ourselves.  I scrambled around on the rocks to get some pictures.  It's a really beautiful waterfall.

We had lunch here as a few more groups arrived and then headed back to the car.

From here, we drove to our last hike at the South Toe Trailhead Parking just outside Black Mountain Campground.  We hiked into the campground and got on the combined trail heading upstream on South Toe River.  At the second split, we took a right on Setrock Creek Falls Trail (#197) and made the short hike to Setrock Creek Falls.

The water level was up and the lighting was good so I could finally get a decent picture of the waterfall.

Then we hiked back down the trail and went right towards Briar Bottom Campground.  Past the campground, we took River Loop Trail (#200) and continued following the river upstream.

Some self-heal, a medicinal plant, were flowering along the trail.

Near the halfway point, we had to rock hop across Camp Creek.

Wild bergamot was flowering all around.

Shortly after, the trail crossed the river on FR-472.

Across the river, the trail headed downstream on the opposite side climbing up a ridge above the river.  Some rosebay rhododendron was blooming.

Before we left, I took a short hike around the Devil's Den Nature Trail (#192).

I spotted some Japanese meadowsweet, an invasive species.

Then we started making our way home.

Driving down from the parkway on NC-80, we pulled off at Buck Creek Falls.

It's on private property but it's visible from the road.  The view isn't great unfortunately as its mostly blocked by foliage.

From here, it was about another 3 hours to get home.

Independence Day in Hot Springs

Saturday, we woke up early to do some hikes along the Appalachian Trail around Hot Springs.  Our first stop was Lover's Leap, one of the most popular hikes in the area.  But we arrived by 7 so were the first ones on the trail.  From the Silvermine Trailhead, we hiked down Silvermine Road and turned left onto the Appalachian Trail.

There was a scenic rock outcrop as we hiked past the base of Lover's Leap Ridge.  A little further were some nice cascades along French Broad River.

Not really a waterfall, but the river-wide drops were impressive here along French Broad River.

After following the river for a while, the trail turned and began to steeply climb up the ridge.  There were a few switchbacks and spots with nice views.

At the junction with Lover's Leap Trail (#308) was the overlook.  We took a break here to enjoy the view of the river and town of Hot Springs far below.

After the break, we took Lover's Leap Trail back down to the Silvermine Trailhead.  Arriving so early, we managed to see no one on the entire hike.

Our next stop was Tanyard Gap at the AT parking area just off US-25.  Hiking northbound, the trail climbed up Rich Mountain.  It was already hot by 9 and very humid but the heat and humidity decreased as we hiked higher.  It was about 2.5 miles to a short spur that led to the summit of Rich Mountain.

A lookout tower was here and we took turns climbing as Alex didn't want to climb the stairs.

Unlike most, the top of this lookout tower is open.

The views from up here were great.

One the way back, we enjoyed some summer wildflowers on the hike back down.

Near the top, a lot of white bergamot were blooming.

There were also a lot of spiderwort.

Further down, we spotted a red mushroom, probably a russula.

Rosebay rhododendron was blooming as we got further down.

Sandy spotted an eastern fence lizard that was very well camouflaged against the tree bark.

Some sumac was flowering near here.

Soon, we made it back to the car at Tanyard Gap.

From here, we took NC-208 into Tennessee and Viking Mountain Road up to the top at Jones Meadow.  Up above 4000 feet, it was noticeably cooler up here.  A spur here led to the Appalachian Trail in Shelton Laurel.  Heading southbound, it was about a mile to a split with Pounding Mill Trail.  Another spur trail led up to Camp Creek Bald.  Despite the name, the summit is not bald.  There are several communication towers here and a lookout tower, but this one is closed.

It was possible to climb the ladder up to the first landing for a nice view though.

We had another break here then headed back.

Driving back to Hot Springs, we had dinner at Trailside Bakery again.  While we were eating, a heavy rain storm went through, but we were sheltered in the outdoor dining area.  The rain was actually nice and cooled it down quite a bit.  After dinner we took another drive on NC-209 and stopped at the overlooks again.  First we stopped at Stone Spur Cliff.

The views were really nice with the cloudy mountains.  We also made a stop at Vann Cliff.

Looking down the Spring Creek Gorge, there was an interesting cloud illuminated by the sun.

Then we headed back to camp.  Although the town of Hot Springs had cancelled the fireworks, some people around the river were lighting them off and we had a nice show from our campsite.  When the fireworks ended, we went to bed.

Shelton Laurel Waterfalls

Friday, we took Alex out to the mountains for camping over the Independence Day weekend.  Taking I-40 west to Asheville, we took I-26 west to Tennessee and then back into North Carolina.  Our first stop was at Trillium Falls, just back across the state line in Madison County.

The waterfall was right on the side of the road.  The water level was a little low, but it was pretty in the early morning light.

Another husky was roaming around here and Alex got to meet him and get some sniffs in.

Then we continued to our next stop at the Jerry Miller Trailhead in the Shelton Laurel of Pisgah National Forest.  Jerry Miller Trail (#286) crossed Big Creek on a footbridge and there was a scenic cascade just upstream.

The trail then swung around to the Whiteoak Flats Branch drainage.

Rosebay rhododendron was blooming along the trail.

We also spotted some spiderwort.

Following the creek up, we soon came to Whiteoak Flats Falls.  It's visible from the trail, but the view was mostly obscured by summer foliage.

There was a nice rock outcrop just off the trail to take a break, though the view was blocked here too.  I scrambled down to the creek for a decent view.

The Forest Service claims a 100-foot high waterfall here, but it's not even close and there was a lot of downfall over the falls.

The trail continues on past Whiteoak Flats and eventually meets up with the Appalachian Trail, but we turned around after the falls.

Our next stop was the Hickey Fork Trail.  This trail starts with another footbridge, this one crossing East Prong Hickey Fork.

Alex did not like this bridge at all, but eventually we got him across.  He was proud of himself after crossing and wagging his tail.  Hickey Fork Trail swung around to the West Prong drainage and followed this creek.  We spotted some clubmoss growing in large clumps.

In just about 1.2 miles, there was a sliding waterfall but nowhere to get a good view.  It was possible to get out to the top and look down.

Just upstream was West Prong Hickey Fork Falls, a very scenic waterfall.

We had lunch here at the base and waited for clouds as the sunlight was not cooperating.

We spotted a large crayfish in the water below the falls.

Just as we were leaving, some clouds rolled in so I could get some nice pictures.

Then we made the hike back.  So Alex didn't have to cross the bridge again, I rock-hopped the creek with him.

From here, we headed into Hot Springs and had an early dinner at Trailside Bakery.  They had a nice covered outdoor seating area so we could dine in the shade with Alex.  After dinner, we then set up camp at Laughing Waters.  It was still really hot out so we took Alex for a scenic drive along NC-209 south of Hot Springs.  There were a couple nice overlooks to stop at and get some pictures.

Some yarrow was blooming along the roadside.

As the sun began to set, we headed back to camp in the shade and went to bed.  It had cooled off enough that it was comfortable for sleeping.