Hiking

Excerpt by Karen T.

Falls on West Fork of Montgomery Creek
I saved the best for last!  Actually, I just did it today – after failing to
find it yesterday.  Mr. Anthony’s directions are accurate, except that when
you get to the area he describes as “an area large enough to park and turn
around” he doesn’t make it clear that you are at an area that looks like 5
or 6 old roads come together.  So, yesterday following what I *thought* were
the directions I, naturally, went completely the wrong way and ended up
going down an eroded trail that looks like it might be a mountain bike
trail.  I crossed a branch, as he describes and came to a T-junction with
another trail which he does NOT mention.  Since he said the trail “ascends”
after crossing a branch, I took the uphill direction.  Actually, this was  a
very nice trail – but I have NO idea what trail it is!  I only know it
wasn’t the right one!

So I went back today and looked around a little more carefully.  Actually,
where Mr. Anthony says to take the “right fork” it’s easier to just keep to
the left, but either one brings you out at the same place – where it looks
like several roads come together.  There’s a nice parking spot and the REAL
trail is just to the left of this area, over a couple of small mounds
designed to keep care from driving down the old road.  This was an easy hike
down and then back up a little way to a very nice, big water fall.  I didn’t
climb down to the base, though it’s possible down a steep trail.  Maybe some
other day.

But the BEST part I’ve save for last!  If you go on the right day, and get
lucky – as I did today – you’ll get to see about 100 good-looking young Army
Rangers out on maneuvers!   The beginning of this trail is actually on the
Ranger camp grounds, though not inside the manned gate…but there is a gate
across the road, so it’s possible that sometimes it might not be possible to
drive up the road.  Luckily for me, that gate was open both days.  BTW, when
Mr. Anthony says the road gets very narrow after the first fork, he is NOT
kidding!  It’s JUST barely wide enough for a pick-up truck – you PRAY you
don’t meet anyone coming the other way.  If you decide to park at the first
fork (as he suggests) it would still be a nice, easy hike to the falls and
back – maybe just under 2 miles total.

Over the last few weekends, I’ve done a lot of driving on forest service
roads and I am happy to report that a lot of them are in MUCH better
condition than they were last spring, especially FS 42.  A LOT of work has
been done on them, grading and graveling, and they are much improved.  They
aren’t superhighways, but still much, much better than they were after last
winter.

Karen T.

Excerpt by Karen T.

I’m still working on my “waterfalls project” and have been to quite a few
more since Labor Day weekend.  As usual, these all came from J.J.Anthony’s
website: http://www.jjanthony.com/waterfalls/

High Shoals Falls on Walden Creek
This small falls is very pretty, and a nice hike…if you don’t mind hiking
on forest service roads.  The directions on Mr. Anthony’s site are quite
accurate, and the road – considering that it is blocked to traffic – was in
pretty good shape.  In fact, if it hadn’t actually been blocked, I probably
could have driven almost to the falls…except there was one big blow-down
that completely blocked the road.  This hike sticks in my mind as a bit
“odd.”  All the way in, I saw no footprints, no tire marks and I heard
nothing but the usual forest sounds.  But when I actually got to the falls
there were two big family size tents, and an open-air kitchen area.  Sound
really travels in the mountains…but I heard no voices, or engine sounds.
Nothing at all.  I’ve NO idea where all those people went!  I’m guessing
they had ATV’s or something and had driven out the other way from the way I
hiked in.  The road does keep going, but I don’t know where it comes out at
the other end.

Falls on Ward Creek (near Justus Gap)
You can drive right up to this falls on FS 42 (the same forest service road
that goes to the parking area for Springer Mtn.) and this time of the year
it’s JUST visible.  But you can walk down a very short drop from the road to
get a complete view of it.  It’s not very big, but is very pretty.

Cane Creek Falls
This falls is on the grounds of Camp Glisson, a Methodist campground.
There’s no charge, but you do need to sign in at the Visitor’s Center.  The
camp will not be open to visitors, though, if they are having a camp
session.  This one was funny.  It’s quite easy to get to the falls, you just
drive through the gate and there is a sign that points to the parking for
the falls.  Never having been there before, I made the turn, saw the parking
area…but NO falls!  So I kept driving and ended up in the middle of a
bunch of cabins.  Obviously not the right direction!  So to keep from
getting totally lost, I turned around and retraced my steps and lo and
behold – when I got back to the parking, THERE was the falls!  It is BEHIND
you as you come down the curve to the parking!

Glen Falls
This falls is BARELY in Georgia.  In fact, you have to go through
Chattanooga to Lookout Mtn to get to them.  Mr. Anthony has a picture of a
sign on his website that shows “Glen Falls Trail .4 mi” but I never saw that
sign.  The trail is quite nice, short and at one point almost looks as if it
just stops, but you keep going and so does the trail.  This falls is quite
high up the mountain and is therefore VERY rain dependent…which means,
don’t do like *I* did and try to see it when it’s been dry for a while.  The
“falls” were BONE DRY!  I took a picture anyway, because the rock formation
is interesting…it’s just a huge jumble of huge rocks flowing down the
mountain.

Lula Falls
These falls are on land held by the Lula Lake Land Trust – as indicated by
Mr. Anthony, so you can’t just drive up and expect to see the falls.  You
need to check the website to find out when they will be open.  The road in
was in VERY bad shape the day I was there.  Very deep ruts that I had to be
careful to straddle, as they were too deep for my small car to drive in…I
would have ended up “high centered” if I’d tried.  Fortunately, it’s only
bad for a couple hundred feet, once you are down in the valley, it’s much
better.  The parking area, the day I was there anyway, was a good mile+ from
the lake and the falls.  It wouldn’t be a bad idea to take a bike if you
have one and don’t feel like a long walk.  The road is gravel, but only has
some small ups and downs, and I saw several people on bikes.  The falls were
very small (I went the same day I went to Glen Falls) but the rock formation
are just fantastic, even in low water.

Stonewall Creek Falls
This falls is a couple/three miles above the town of Tallulah Falls and is
pretty easy to get to.  The entrance to the gravel road is marked by signs
pointing to a bike trail, they don’t mention the falls.  The road was not
too bad, except just before you start down into the creek valley it was
pretty rough, so we chose to park at the top and not drive down.  And, of
course, once we walked down in there, we saw LOTS of cars that DID manage
the drive.  There is a parking area before that point where you can park and
walk down the road into the valley.

Falls on Branch of Jones Creek
This was another funny day.  The directions on Mr. Anthony’s site are
detailed and complicated, and at one point he says “Turn right on Siloam and
continue another 6 miles to the Etowah River. Turn left after crossing the
bridge and proceed another 1.5 miles to Forest Service Road 28-1. ” but this
is not accurate.  Actually, Siloam Rd. is listed on my map program as Siloam
Church Road, and at some point it changes to Hightower Church Road.  AND you
don’t “turn left after crossing the bridge”  – the road ENDS at a T-junction
and you turn left TO cross the bridge.  But it’s easier to drive past Siloam
(Church) Rd. and, if driving from Dahlonega (as Mr. Anthony instructs) turn
right on the 2nd Nimblewill Church Road and follow this to FS 28-1 and then
on to FS 77.  Then follow Mr. Anthony’s directions from there.

The last 1.8 mile road is rough and the day we did it was barely passable in
my little station wagon.  It would be easier in an SUV or jeep-type vehicle.
What made it a funny day is that Mr. Anthony advises parking between the two
concrete fords and then going up the right side of the creek.  Well, we did
that and at one place ended up LITERALLY hanging onto the trees to keep from
dropping into the creek.  It was only a couple/three feet down – but we
didn’t want to get our feet wet!  We found the falls and on the way out, my
sister followed a nice, easy old logging road that went RIGHT back to the
ford!  So it’s much easier to cross both fords, find a place to park and
follow the old road.  This will bring you out above the first falls, but
there is a bridge and you can then hike a bit downstream to where it’s easy
to get down the hill to the base of the falls.  The second falls are harder
to find and I didn’t actually get a picture, will have to go back one day!

To be continued…..

 Excerpt by Karen T.

High Shoals Falls & Blue Hole Falls – I had an adventure on this hike, for
sure! The hike starts near the top of the mountain and you switchback down
to near the bottom. It’s a good trail, nice bridges and nice viewing
platforms at both falls. The hike back up is a bit strenuous, but not too
bad. When I did this one a bear cub ran across the road near the bottom of
the mountain as I was driving in. I stopped as I was hiking out to talk to some other hikers and
told them about the cub. They said they hadn’t seen anything of him and JUST
at that moment a bear cub jumped up out of the brush and took off down the
hill!

Cupid Falls – this is a pretty, small falls that is right in the town of
Young Harris, behind Young Harris College. It’s easy to get to, it’s in a
park that is right along the road. There is part of an old stone wall at the
top of the falls.  Drive past the college and then turn just before the tennis courts.

Denton Branch Falls – it took me three tries to find this one, and of course
once I did it was easy to find! This is a short hike along the branch –
maybe 1/4 mile. The last half is uphill and you have to work your way
through a pretty big blown-down tree. I chose to go through the smaller
branches instead of over the trunk – which was pretty high off the ground,
but not high enough to go under. Good decision! When I got to the falls some
people already there said “Did you see the hornet’s nest at that downed
tree”?! Turns out it was near the base of the tree and I did the right thing
by staying away from that end. The falls are very pretty and you can
actually walk around behind the falling water. The road in to the trailhead
is an unmarked road off the forest service road, which is why I had a hard
time finding it. On Mr Anthony’s page is says “Denton Branch Rd” but there’s
no actual street sign to identify it, but another website says it’s right
after Chapple Road, and it is. The drive in to the campsite where the trail
starts is short, and rough but I did it OK in my Ford Focus wagon – though
you want to stay to the left, as at one point there is a rock on the right
that I bottomed out on.

Desoto Falls – this is actually 2 falls, upper and lower – which designation
is deceiving. The “lower” falls are actually higher than the “upper” falls!
They are upper and lower because both feed into a creek in the valley, and
one is upstream of the campground, the other downstream. Do the lower falls
first. This is a steep, switch-backed trail up to the viewing platform. The
hike to the upper falls is longer, about 3/4 mile, but is much easier and
the falls are only a little way off the trail, up a short side trail to the
viewing platform. From the parking area the total hiked to get back is about
2 1/2 miles. Both falls are pretty, and this would be nice hike when the
rhododendron is in bloom as the valley is full of them.  There is a fee at the parking area.

Dicks Creek Falls (Lumpkin County) – this is actually a series of falls and
cascades and is very easy to get to as they are right along the forest
service road. This is a very popular area in the summer. The last time I was
there, there must have been 50 or 60 people all up and down the creek at the
various cascades, and jumping off the lower falls.

Dicks Creek Falls (Chattooga River) – this is a long drive down a narrow
forest service road – be prepared to back up if someone is coming in the
other direction, then a short easy hike to the Chattooga River. The last
maybe 1/4 of the hike is downhill along Dicks Creek. The problem with this
falls is that you can’t actually see it from the trail! In fact, in order to
view it at all you have to go out into the Chattooga River! There is one
spot where you can get alongside the falls, but it’s not a very good view of
them.

Dukes Creek Falls – this is another show-piece of GA waterfalls. The trail
down is a series of long, fairly easy switchbacks – about a mile total.
There are several interconnected viewing platforms. There are actually 2
falls here, the largest and most spectacular is on Davis Creek, and the
smaller one is on Dodd Creek. They are, combined, “Dukes Creek Falls”
because the two creeks join here to make Dukes Creek. The large falls has a
drop of 200 feet.  There is a fee at the parking area.

Estatoah Falls and Mud Creek Falls – Estatoah Falls is on private property
and can’t be approached closely, but it makes a spectacular, distant sight
on the drive up to Sky Valley, where Mud Creek Falls can be found just below
the golf course. Mud Creek Falls is a steepish drive down a gravel road, and
the falls is at a nice picnic area right off the road down.

Falls Branch Falls – this is a double falls not too far from Blue Ridge.
It’s a steep, short hike up to the lower falls and I didn’t have time to do
the hike further up to the upper falls.

Fall Creek Falls – this beautiful falls is about 1/2 way down a tough, 5
mile hike in Dawson Forest. The trail is called the Fall Creek Trail
and it starts high up and has a total drop of 1200 feet to the other end at
the campground. There’s supposed to be 5 waterfalls along here, but when we
hiked it we only saw 3, but you can hear a lot of cascading water as you
hike, but in most places you can’t actually see them very well due to the
“curse” of cascading streams in GA: mountain laurel and rhododendron bushes
right along the stream banks. This is a tough, but beautiful hike.

Gurley Creek Falls & Joel Creek Falls – these 2 falls are on the grounds of
the Enota Mountain Retreat near the road that goes up to Brasstown Bald.
This is a private retreat and the day use fee is $10 which I thought was a
bit steep. The Gurley Creek Falls are 220 feet high, and the Joel Creek
Falls are about 150 feet high. There is a nice viewing platform down in the
valley where you can get a distant view of the Joel Creek Falls. I did try
to hike up to the base of these falls, but the trail is steep and the day
was hot and I just didn’t have enough energy to make it all the way up. I
did manage to do the hike to Gurley Creek Falls, which is shorter but nearly
as tough and you do have to be careful as you get close to the spot where
you can view them. There are supposed to be other falls in this area, but I
couldn’t find them.

Helton Creek Falls – these are a 2 stage falls that is right along the
forest service road. They are easy to get to, and the short climb to the 2
viewing platforms is not difficult. There is good parking on the road, this
is a popular site.

Hemlock Falls & unnamed falls upstream on Moccasin Creek – the hike to
Hemlock Falls is one of my favorites. It’s only a little over a mile in,
uphill, but not steep, and easy. The falls are not tall – but are very
pretty, and there is a deep pool at their base that is nice for swimming.
The trail to the upper falls is tough, tough. It’s not maintained and there
are many, many blowdowns. There are places where you can – carefully – climb
up, but I found them easier to slide down coming back than to try to “walk”
down. In fact, I did this for the first time today and when we got to the
falls I didn’t actually have the energy to climb down to the base – but I’ll
do it someday!

Horse Trough Falls – this is a long drive (5 miles) down a forest service
road from near the top of Unicoi Gap. You need to have your “forest service
road manners” down pat as this falls is in a popular campground and you will
meet people driving out the other way. In the greater part of the road, it’s
not wide enough for 2 cars to pass – especially a big one pulling a trailer,
so be good about finding a wider spot and pulling over – even if you have to
back up to do it. The trail is a short, easy hike to a nice viewing
platform.
To be continued……