Off trail in the Smokies today
Gold Creek Falls Off Trail
Tues. Dec. 29, 2020
After Christmas we wanted to do something close to home. I got in touch with one of my Facebook friends who I've known online for years. He lives in the same area. We had talked on the phone and emailed, and PM'd, but never done anything together. I wanted to remedy that. Gary Free lives up at Top of the World off Foothills Parkway. We met him up there to go snow hiking off trail to Gold Creek Falls. It is a waterfall that is a short, difficult off trail hike. We had been before about five years earlier. For part of the hike you are on National Park public land, but the waterfall actually lies a short distance over on private property. It is not a place I'd go often because it is private, but also because it is not the most spectacular waterfall in the area. Thirdly it is a difficult one to reach.
Last time we went I had got up with a FB friend who indicated to me that if we were to park and follow the drainage down from Emerine Gap we would be able to make it to the falls, then return up a less steep drainage. Kenny back that trip said no. We would park there and just go down over the bluff and take our time. It was steep, but a much shorter distance. We made it that day. We ended up returning the same way we'd come. It was so bad I cried. I said I'd NEVER do it again. Right there is where I messed up. Never say never. The Universe is sure to make a liar out of you. The original trip report from the first visit is here
It does a pretty good job of explaining the difficulty level and is extremely honest. I was recovering from Miller-Fisher syndrome. I am glad I took time back then to describe the difficulties I was going through as well as the progress of healing.
Below is a drawing of the map my buddy shared with me as a guide.
The red lines go clockwise... down Emerine Gap drainage, up the old logging road , down to the falls, and back up the other drainage. If you click on the image it should enlarge showing a tiny blue tear drop that is the marker for the falls.
We met Gary at the parking area. It was great to finally meet him. Super nice guy and in life just as he presents himself. Down to earth, likeable, funny. The only thing he did not share about himself is he is like a bull. He is strong and can flat get the hiking DONE! I swear he was trying not to make us feel bad. He made the whole thing look like it was a piece of cake.
I had made up my mind today to take the originally suggested route and avoid the steep descent and climb back out of last go round. We started down the drainage at Emerine Gap as suggested by my pal. It turned out to be a no go. It was a mess of tangled briars, downed trees and rhododendron. The gully was a spring branch so staying in the actual creek was worse. It was steeper, slicker than snot, and the soil was soft. slippery and squishy. We all decided that was not going to cut it. Next thing I knew Gary was up the bank and out on the ridge that flanked us. Kenny and I finally managed to get round there atop the ridge. It was tough, but was much better. In short order we were down it and onto the old logging road.
We followed it downward because that is what we did before. That was a mistake because while it was pretty and super easy and an actual trail for awhile..... it brought us out BELOW the falls. Not only below the falls... but in terrain where you ain't gonna be able to easily fix that mistake. You ain't going anywhere from here. The only good thing about that was we did get to see a lovely lower cascade we'd have missed were it not for that.
It is worth mentioning that above this cascade and before you get to Gold Creek Falls proper there is a large, beautiful waterfall you can see from the old logging road. During warm weather it should be possible to just stay in the creek and climb round there to it. During snow and ice it was a bad idea, though not a true impossibility. The falls I'm speaking of is actually larger, taller than Gold Creek Falls.
We did not want to wade the creek or slip and fall and injure ourselves this snowy, icy day so we doubled back to the logging road. Back up it we climbed and in about 0.25 miles we came to a point where a trail .. an honest to god trail... veered off gently to the left. The old road we were on is the haul road used by George Amerine to haul out iron ore for his bloomery forge business in West Miller's cove. I learned this per my friend Boyd Hopkins. I have seen the historical marker for Amerine's Forge at the corner of Old Walland Highway. I need to take a photo of it sometime. George Amerine built his forge in 1845 and made pig iron. It is said his bloomery forge hammered out 15 tons of crude iron a year from the ore. The hammer for pounding the ore was run by water power and I am guessing it was probably run by Hesse Creek in West Millers Cove. He produced iron bars until 1856 stopping before the American Civil War.
I had often heard the term "tougher than pig iron" but I never knew how the term pig iron came about until writing up this trip report. The molds for the iron bars were formed in sand. The shape of it reminded someone way back of a passel of piglets suckling the old mama sow. Thus pig iron!
Below is an image.. not mine.. I found on the web of what iron molds looked like.
That's your history lesson for today. I knew that mining was done along this area, but not a lot about it. Gold was mined here also, but I don't know much about it.
Seems I read that not a whole lot of gold was mined here.
Once we turned off onto that lovely little trail from the Amerine haul road.... we found ourselves in a veritable Shangri La. We were concerned as to whether we'd actually be able to reach Gold Creek Falls because of the terrain and the creek crossings. We needn't have worried. We were surprised most pleasantly to find that someone has constructed bridges and made an actual trail up to see the falls.
We were thrilled! We passed through massive boulders and some rhododendron but it was open and doable!
Before we knew it we stood before Gold Creek Falls! It was quite a pretty and welcome sight today. One of the bridges is directly in front of the falls providing many options for viewing the entire thing. The stone work here was beautiful as was the engineering of the bridges.
More scrambling around in the rhodo.. a glimpse of the creek from near Bridge #1
Above and below: a regular landscape shot of Gold Creek Falls main drop and a silky shot of the water.
Gold Creek Falls did not disappoint. It was flowing great as compared to our first visit five years earlier. We took time to enjoy it. We were glad we followed the path and were able to come out a different way. It was better for awhile and was an actual path that lead us easily back to the Amerine Haul Road we'd been on getting here. Once we got to that we walked a ways and then the torture began.
We were going to have to climb back up that mountain the way we did before. It was super steep and difficult, but shorter and a sure thing.
Once again Gary made it look like it was nothing. We all worked hard, but he sure showed it less. I did not cry this time, but I did a piece of bellyaching.
I just took my time and kept doing like before. Set micro goals. Getting from one tree to the next or one rock to the next. Take a break and breathe. I did not take anymore photos at this point. There was nothing to see. It was exhausting. I was also far more concerned about choosing a route that modified the original path at least a tiny bit. I remembered that the reason I cried before was one spot that was only about 10 or 15 feet where there was nothing to hold onto. A blade of grass, a twig etc. is not a hand hold that counts!
Today we fared better by listing to the right a little and side hilling it up a bit more. Then once we were up within 50 feet of the top we angled slightly left.
It did make the difference. I was huffing and puffing once up to the top, but elated and relieved instead of upset and exhausted. We came out at the grave marker of a little dog buried next to the parking area. Little Shihtz.... Gary pointed it out. He said it must have been someone's pet shih tzu dog.
Below is one last look at Gold Creek Falls. It was worth the effort to see.
It was great meeting Gary. I was glad we were able to help him get to see the falls for his first time. I told him I hoped he'd go with us again sometime. We were glad to have succeeded and come out safely and in better form than last go round.
The stream that this falls is on is an almost continuous series of cascades and falls in a narrow, rugged gorge running from below the Top of the World Lake all the way down to West Millers Cove. Gary mentioned that a fellow had fallen from one of the larger ones up closer to the lake some time back. He had to be rescued and retrieved. I can't remember for sure if he said the guy was just hurt or if he died. I'll ask him. He did say they came in to get him using the "old Morrow Road" that has some rental cabins back there. I think I misheard him and the name is Demaro, not Morrow. I didn't realize that til I looked at the map.
Below is a video of the falls
I went back and re-did the math on the Porters Creek Manway vs. the climb up from Gold Creek Falls to the Foothills Parkway.
I knew Porters Creek Manway was supposed to be a 65% grade which was not as bad as 71%. I had to figure how that was possible. The grade comparison is the last 200 yards of the manway ascending 1, 376 ft. to arrive at Dry Sluice Gap.
The Gold Creek Falls climb out was far shorter but steeper. The comparison was of the 100 ft final elevation gain over 34 ft which was 71% gradient.
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