Meigs Creek Cascade Hike

 

First violet of the Spring 2022 season.

Meigs Creek Cascade Hike

Saturday March 5, 2022

Dana Koogler solo 

3 miles RT 

  I got up Saturday morning and had made up my mind to go hiking.

I had several scary rattlesnake experiences last Summer followed by one scary human encounter.  I have done only one solo hike since then and that was a super short one. Even that day turned out to be weird and creepy finding that abandoned camp at Harmon Den.  I knew I had to force myself to prove I could go alone again. The snakes are out, but the weather was going to be really nice.  I would get out to enjoy the day.   

 

  I had not hiked to Meigs Creek Cascade in a long time.   It is a good leg stretcher without being too extreme.  I have been experiencing a fair amount of joint pain and stiffness so I knew better than to try to overdo it.

This hike would be just right. I got an early start so the parking lot wouldn't be full.   I arrived around 9:15 a.m. to find only one vehicle in the parking lot at The Sinks.    I got out to hike the old ox bow of the river by the parking area.  I had read pawpaw blooms should be there.  Either I looked in the wrong place or it is still a bit early for them.   I hiked out and back and stopped to gather my gear.    

      I hit the trail and enjoyed the fresh air, the warm temperatures, blue skies, and the songs of hundreds of spring peeper frogs!  I saw quite a few critters today. A bright red cardinal, a raven with a twig in its mouth, a squirrel, a butterfly, a  salamander,  and later on... a bat!    I also put together the way the old abandoned ox bow of Little River really went.  It began by the parking area swing in a wide curve around and comes out in the bottom lands where the trail dips down low after the steps.  The spot is a low, muddy seepage. The river used to flow around this bend and back into the main river bed.

I was on the look out as I climbed the trail for Spring blooms.  I did not see any to begin with, but at last I saw my first one of the year.  A tiny violet bloomed all alone by the trail.

  The reality of a hike and the Dana's inner workings version often fail to line up.   Time goes by and I skip all the twists and turns and unless they are killer hikes/bushwhacks they all tend to fall in the "Oh that's easy" category.

Today I knew I'd have a creek crossing, but I believed it would only be one.  Oh how I lied to myself.   I knew the start went gradually upward, but I edited out fifty percent of it.   The lack of leaves on the trees yet allowed for nice partial views of the surrounding mountains and forest.  Far below I could see The Sinks and Little River.  

    The pine forest was quiet and the breeze rustled the trees a bit.

I enjoyed the bird songs this morning.   I was making good time and had thus far not encountered a soul.    I  saw a couple long spurred violets just getting started.   

long spurred violet

        

  It wasn't long until the trail leveled off and then began to trend downhill.

I knew at the bottom of this hill I'd meet with my first stream crossing.  I did get that part right.  I had already decided today that I'd simply wear my boots to wade the stream.  It was not cold and I wanted the additional traction with as unstable as my knees have been lately.   I  would simply change to dry stuff when I got back to the vehicle.    The stream was running pretty high, but nothing scary or dangerous.   I hadn't gone any distance until I met with another stream crossing.  Meigs Creek Trail snakes its way back and forth across the stream a multitude of times.  Once I came to my senses and realized I was going to have more than one crossing I did remember that the first several are one after another.  If  you are wearing water shoes don't bother taking them off until you are done with the first four or five. .... or six.. 

     The hike takes you along past some very scenic small cascades and pretty green pools of snow water before you get to the falls.   I was pleased to see that the scramble down over the bank to the falls was a lot easier than I recollected.   Someone has done some improvements to the way down.

I was grateful for that.  I believe today was the most water I've ever seen on this falls.  It is quiet pretty.  It is an eighteen foot high cascade in a mossy, pleasant spot.  A rocky area at the bottom provides a good spot for photos.

First glimpse of Meigs Creek Cascade today from the trail

Above: turkey tail fungus

Far left of the cascade looks like this. Can't get it all in one photo from up close.

Above: I am directly in front of the falls and there is spray on the lens!

Above: best shot of the cascade

        

Below is a short video of the falls and a small, pretty cascade and hole of water just below it.  

    I enjoyed the visit to the falls.  I took a few minutes to sit down and have a drink and a quick snack.   I packed up all my gear to begin the return hike.  I had made up my mind to climb down the bank to get photos and video of a very pretty low cascade and green hole of water.     It turned out to be easy and worth the stop.

While down there two things happened. I saw my first other hikers of the day and waved to them.    I saw a very large butterfly downstream from where I stood.  I thought it seemed a bit early in the year for butterflies, but there it was just the same.    I took my photos and video and enjoyed the scenery along with the sound of the stream.   Here came the "butterfly" back toward me.  It was big and erratic in its flapping around.  That isn't a butterfly... it is a bird? No... I got a closer look.. it was a bat!  Out in the daytime and behaving like a tiny kamikaze pilot.  I have seen bats like this before near streams.  They are always sick with white nose syndrome.  Just like that I was done! I put my gear away keeping a close eye on Mr. Bat.   He lit in the branches of the rhododendron nearby.   I got out of there quickly.   I don't mess with bats.   🦇

Above and below:  a nice cascade along the trail 

  The hike back was much easier since I had the majority of the uphill on the hike in.   Once I got the creek crossings behind me I cruised on back at a leisurely pace.  I encountered several more groups of hikers. I saw a total of seven other hikers all day.     Not a heavily traveled trail.   I also spotted some hepatica blooms on the way out. Either I missed them the first time or they opened while I was at the falls.    

Above and below: some examples of the hepatica blooms I saw

 Once I got back to The Sinks the parking lot was full as expected. It was quite crowded with visitors.  I stopped to video tape and photograph a group of creek kayakers run The Sinks.  It has a reputation for being a dangerous hole of water. 

A fourteen year old boy drowned here several Summers back after an incident of foot entrapment if memory serves.  These folks made picking the line and running it look easy.  

Below is a series of action shots of the kayakers who I did not know. 

Above: The Sinks... despite the reputation for danger I still go swimming and jumping here now and then.  I just don't get around the falls.  There is a very tranquil, deep hole of water with a good rock for jumping down below this. 

Below is a video of the kayakers.  Very exciting to watch them!  

All in all it was a good hike.  I felt great and was pleased I got it done with no eerie encounters aside from the little snafu with the bat and in my book that doesn't count.