Cherohala Skyway - Bald River Falls

The Cherohala Skyway connects Tellico Plains, Tennessee, with Robbinsville, North Carolina.  The 43-mile route through the Cherokee and Nantahala National Forests has been designated a National Scenic Byway.  The route follows the Tellico River for the first five miles out of Tellico Plains before turning away to begin climbing the mountains.  At this point, I turned onto Forest Service Road 210 to continue to follow the river upstream.  FS 210 is paved and at several locations there are gravel pullouts large enough for one or more vehicles.  I stopped at a larger one of these about two miles up the road and walked down to the river.  Since my visit was in mid-June 2012, the water volume was down considerably from its spring peak.

View downstream

View upstream

Small rapids

Rockpile

About three miles further upstream, the road crosses the river on a substantial bridge.  Just beyond the bridge is a fairly large gravel parking area that has recently been improved with timber shoring and a short set of timber steps leading to a shady "beach" area along the river.

Continuing up the road another mile leads to a second bridge, this time over the Bald River.  Bald River Falls can be seen from the bridge.  Immediately beyond the bridge is a paved parking area for several vehicles.

 

The skyway website is http://www.cherohala.org.

Burgess Falls State Park and Natural Area

We visited Burgess Falls State Park on Father's Day 2012.  The aptly named Falling Water River has four named waterfalls in rapid succession.  Upstream of the series of falls is a dam that somewhat regulates the water flow in drier seasons.  This is the second dam near this location and replaced one that was washed out by floods in 1928.  The dam was built by the City of Cookeville to provide electric power.  The penstock and powerhouse were located downstream.  While it is adjacent to the parking lot, the dam is not accessible to the public.  However, there are a couple of viewing platforms on the lake.  The falls and park are named after Tom Burgess.  The land was deeded to him by the federal government in 1793 as partial payment for his Revolutionary War service.

Falling Water Cascades

The short, gravel trail from the parking lot to the river descends gradually by way of several steps.  It reaches the river at the ten-foot high Falling Water Cascades.  When the water is down, it is possible to walk out into the river on a series of rock ledges.  There are several boulders near the trail that are used by visitors as benches.

Little Falls

Turning left and heading downstream from the cascades, the trail reaches Little Falls in about 500 feet.  The falls here are about 20 feet high.  At this point, the trail is well above the river.  The river bank here is very steep and access to the river is blocked with a series of handrails along the trail.  Just downstream of the falls are the remains of a suspension bridge that once carried a penstock from the dam to the powerhouse downstream.  There is a fenced overlook at this point.

Due to the heavy traffic, the trail has been packed and eroded.  This leaves lots of trip hazards on the exposed roots and rocks.

Middle Falls

Further down the trail another 0.4 miles leads to a short side trail with a fenced overlook on the bluff above Middle Falls and its amphitheater.  The sound reverberates off the rock walls and makes the falls seem even more impressive than their 30 foot height.

Burgess Falls

Continuing down the trail another quarter mile or so leads to an overlook of the 136 foot high Burgess Falls.  However, the best views are available after hiking down to the rim of the falls and then to the  base of the falls.

Including the stop at Ozone Falls, this made Father's Day 2012 a five-waterfall day!


The park website is http://tn.gov/environment/parks/BurgessFalls/.

Ozone Falls State Natural Area

Ozone Falls is a state natural area in the community of Ozone in Cumberland County, Tennessee.  The main feature is a 110 foot water fall into an amphitheater.  Access is via a rocky quarter mile trail from US 70 to the bottom of the falls.  The trail continues behind the falls to an additional vantage point in front of the falls.  We visited the area on Father's Day, 2012.  This is not a place for young children or those with a fear of heights as there are no railings at the rim or along the trail.

View from the top

The trail descends from the highway...

...and keeps descending...

...passes a rock house known as the Gamblers Den...

...but the view is worth it

Getting closer

My daughter on the trail behind the falls

The park website is http://state.tn.us/environment/na/natareas/ozone/.

Little River Canyon National Preserve

This little gem of a park is on top of Lookout Mountain above Fort Payne, Alabama.  This is one of 18 national preserves administered by the National Park Service.  The Little River Canyon Center is a Jacksonville State University facility that also houses a National Park Service visitor center, but I arrived after it had closed for the day.  Even though I visited in mid-June 2012, the water flows were high due to recent heavy rains.  The 45 foot high Little River Falls is located just downstream from the Alabama Highway 35 bridge.  There is a large paved parking lot just east of the bridge.  A short paved and fenced trail through the woods leads to a boardwalk-style overlook.  The falls are also easily accessible to those with mobility issues via a newly constructed concrete ramp and composite boardwalk.

Stairs back to parking area

Ramp back to parking area

Martha's Falls Trail

Downstream is the eight to ten foot high Martha's Falls.  It is accessible via a primitive 0.6 mile trail from the main falls or from a closer parking area on Highway 35.  Before arriving at the falls, I took a short, but steep side trail down to the river.

Beginning of trail to Martha's Falls

The trail narrows as it goes

Looking downstream toward Martha's Falls

Boulder strewn riverbed

Looking upstream

Martha's Falls

Canyon Rim Drive

For the less adventurous, there is a scenic drive along the west rim of the canyon.  There are several viewpoints with gravel parking areas.

Little River Falls from the overlook

Canyon from the Lynn Overlook

Mushroom Rock

Canyon from the aptly named Canyon View

Canyon from Wolf Creek overlook

Canyon View overlook from Wolf Creek overlook

View downstream from Wolf Creek

The preserve has three backcountry campsites, but otherwise is a day use area only.  Many of the overlooks on the Canyon Rim Drive have picnic tables, but there are no other facilities in the canyon.


The preserve website is http://www.nps.gov/liri.

Obed Wild and Scenic River

My first visit to the Obed Wild and Scenic River was a day trip in early June, 2012.  The ranger on duty at the visitor center in Wartburg, Tennessee, answered all my questions about hiking in the park, including directions to the parking area for Point Trail.  She told me that there are places where it is not easy to know which way to go at what seem to be trail junctions.  One turn that was very easy to miss follows a false trail along the base of a rock bluff instead of on top of the bluff.  While the trail is blazed with white paint on the trees, sometimes the blazes aren't as visible as I would like near the junctions.  The parking area for Lilly Bluff is about a twenty minute drive from the visitor center.  There were only three other vehicles there when I arrived.  Four trails start from the parking area.  To the left is the 0.2 mile Boulder Trail that weaves through large sandstone boulders on the other side of the road.  To the right of the parking area is a formal trailhead with regulations, a map and this quote from John Muir: "In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks."  This is the trailhead for the Lilly Bluff Overlook Trail, the Bridge Trail, and the Point Trail.  A wide gravel walkway extends about a quarter mile into the forest leading to a boardwalk area overlooking Clear Creek.  This is marked as being 0.3 miles one-way.  There are two large benches with stone wind breaks along this trail.  There are sturdy handrails on the boardwalk, but it is not an area for rambunctious children or anyone with acrophobia.  There are several benches built into the boardwalk.  However, there is no shade at the overlook.  

Visitor Center

Lilly Bluff Overlook Trail

Sturdy bench

Lilly Bluff Overlook Boardwalk

Boardwalk on the Bluff

Vista from the Bluff

Relax and Sit a While

Clear Creek

The other two trails branch off from the Overlook trail just before the boardwalk starts.  The first is the Point Trail and the second is the Bridge Trail down into the gorge.  I chose to hike the Point Trail.  Compared to the Overlook Trail, this is often just a faint path through the forest requiring single-file hiking.  However, I did not see another person on the entire Point Trail, so single-file does not seem to be an issue.  The trail has several creek crossings, but only the first one has a bridge.  The other creeks did not have any water flowing and had rocks piled up to make a pathway.  When I got to the bluff, I missed the two arrows pointing to the right that are so obvious in one of the pictures.  However, I recalled the advice of the ranger and headed right anyway.  

Footbridge

Side-hill Footpath

White Rhododendron Flower

Trail

Approaching the bluff

False Trail

This Way?  Really? Yes, indeed

As the trail approaches the point, there are views to the left of Clear Creek and to the right of the Obed River.  Near the end of the trail, there is a sandstone arch.  It overlooks the Obed River gorge.  

Obed River Gorge

Sandstone Arch

Side path to Clear Creek overlook

Clear Creek

End of the Trail

To return to Wartburg from the overlook requires re-crossing Clear Creek on the Lilly Bridge.  On either side of the bridge, there is a small parking area on the right side of the road.  The Bridge Trail ends at the western end of the bridge, while a set of concrete stairs descends from the eastern parking area down to the creek.  This is a very picturesque area during the late spring.  I wonder how it looks with white water in late winter.

Summer swimming hole

"Reflecting Pool" on Clear Creek

Upstream view from Lilly Bridge

The park website is http://www.nps.gov/obed.