Fall Creek Falls Camping Trip

Trillium cuneatum growing in the Camps Gulf Addition

Fall Creek Falls Camping & Exploration Trip

Dana & Kenny Koogler

Friday March 22 -Sunday March 24, 2013

Pictures are here:
Fall Creek Falls Camping Pix





Day 1-Friday

   Kenny & I took a long weekend to do our first camping trip of this year. We picked Fall Creek Falls State Park since we had lots of stuff in that area we wanted to see and/or try to find.    The weather forecast was something like this: 

• Friday-cold, 30% chance of rain
• Sat. cold, 50% chance of rain
• Sunday 30% chance of rain, cold 

  We decided to chance it anyway. Even if it rained we'd just take our rain gear and go for it.    We have a four- season camper and any day out on the trail is better than sitting home for the weekend on the couch.


      We got camp set up on Friday after lunch and decided to do something near by.
We headed out to see the Medley Arch.  It is on the Wheeler Farm Addition to Fall Creek Falls State Park. 
    
Medley Arch from below it.


Apparition Falls was a bonus find near the Medley Arch. Comes out of the ground at the top of the cliff.  Enters a cave at the base! 100 ft high!

   The terrain at the arch was rugged and beautiful.  Numerous sinks, caves, and huge boulders. It reminded me a a glacial cirque.  Looking up at one point the cliffs were a semicircle around us forming a natural barrier.  The arch itself was fascinating and huge!
We saw it from either side and atop it.  We found a bonus waterfall here. Lots of wildflowers just getting started. 
Underground Lake by Medley Arch down in a cave.

    We enjoyed exploring down in the sinks area and saw what appear to be some caves.
We then found a trail heading toward the road and the other portion of the Wheeler Farm.  We followed it and before long we came out at the road heading down into the gulf.  We we made our trip out far easier by walking the graded path back out instead of back tracking.   We did some driving around trying to locate roads that would put us in proximity to Perry's Branch Falls.  It was not that late and we wanted to see this falls.
We did gather some knowledge and decided to head back and check out the map compared with the roads we'd traveled. We went back to the camper and enjoyed a roaring fire and a hot home cooked meal.  Just nice to enjoy one another's company.

     
Our home away from home!


Nice roaring fire to sit by and keep warm in the evenings.


Grilling up some steaks for dinner

Day 2--Saturday

 
Saturday we got up and fixed breakfast and headed out in search of several off trail waterfalls.  Kenny had wanted to leave enough time at the end of the day to do some reconnaissance of an area he wanted to explore later in more detail.   I was good with all that.

    We pulled up in this gravel area and parked and started walking in the direction of falls #1.    Tennesseans don't seem to mind dumping their trash outdoors and while I've seen lots of this I continue to be dismayed.  Passing up the trash dump we arrived at this scene:



Cave with a spring flowing out


Dropping over the cliff


Forming the one hundred foot high Sullivan Creek Falls. It diverts part of its flow through channels within the rock. It terminates down in the gorge where a cave drinks up the entire flow. It was an amazing sight!  We saw all kinds of caves and wildflowers down in there.  It was steep and slippery, but doable and worth the effort to see.

Below is a very cool video of Sullivan Creek Falls
        We climbed back up and continued out the old gravel road with the GPS coordinates leading us on to the next falls.  We found it about 1/2 mile further beyond Sullivan Creek Falls.   Below us Laurel Creek Falls plunged a sheer 50 feet down into the gorge.  We were able to climb down to see it easily. The terrain around it is much more forgiving just past the falls.  Lots of wildflowers just getting started.  So pretty!


Laurel Creek Falls in profile


Looking out of one of the cave above Sullivan Creek


Living, growing stalactites on the cave ceiling.

  We walked back out the road to the truck. Passing up all the trash and furniture dumped around and down over the bank.  We also passed an abandoned barn or shed.  Once back in the truck we decided to head to Little Falls which is on state owned property with public access.    I had wanted to visit Old Mill Cave and Cascade but Kenny talked me into leaving that for the next camping trip. It was further west than I'd realized and added a good bit more to the days drive.  So that is what we would do!

             I failed to enter the waypoints for the public access trailhead to Little Falls.
Instead I just put in the coordinates for the falls.  We ended up in someone's side yard with the GPS telling us it was only 300 yards beyond the gate to the falls.  So tempting.
But I would not like someone tromping through my side yard to gain access. I corrected my mistake by putting in the trail head coordinates. We drove 2 miles to the right place and from here it said the falls was 0.67 miles ahead.   We began on a trail, but Kenny decided the trail was not leading to the falls to suit him. He took out through the woods
and we were off trail completely.   It was rough terrain. Up and down and through a boulder field.  I was suffering from having hurt myself earlier in the week.  The motrin I'd taken for the pain was not touching it.  The rugged route we took had me winching with every step.   Finally we could hear the creek below us. I had first thought "Oh great! We've come to a bluff. Are we going to be able to get down from here?" but it turned out ok.  The descent was stepped and gradual and I was thankful.   We followed the stream up and it was so pretty. Green and mossy. We were finally on a real trail again. I was very glad about that.   Not too much further ahead we arrived at the pretty sixty foot drop.. Little Falls.  It flows down a rocky stream with a few cascades above it. It drops into a cave or sinkhole.  There is another stream nearby. The stream we followed up toward it turns and goes into a bank nearby.  Not connected to the falls!

Little Falls comes in at about 60 ft high with two small cascades above it. Note the lack of a plunge pool or stream below it?

   Kenny scouted the area around Little Falls while I shot some video footage and took pictures.  He found the actual trail above the falls!  We were both thrilled. Neither of us wanted to bushwhack up over the ridge again and now we did not have to.  Going back was a little longer hike coming in at about 3/4 mile, but so much easier and faster!
Once back at the truck we ate our lunch and Kenny said he was wanting to save Old Mill Cave & Cascade for the next camping trip. It was closer to Rock Island than Fall Creek Falls so we'd hold off on that saving it for that trip.   We ended up going to scout an area
for another upcoming adventure.


         I will not share yet where we went scouting, but I will post a few photos.
I got a real strange vibe about the place. I have not made up my mind about it yet.
I will keep an open mind about it and perhaps the next go round will be better.



Trees growing in the river.

Very clear stream.


The road to adventure or ruin?

  We finally headed the long way back to the camper after much scouting.  We enjoyed a second night of a roaring fire, a moonlit sky and a good hot meal after a day in the woods.    We slept well but heard it raining and storming some through the night. 

    Day Three-Sunday

   We woke Sunday and the birds were singing. The rain had stopped.  It was still overcast and cold, but not as bad as we'd thought it might be on the weather forecast.   We ate a quick breakfast and decided to try for Perry's Branch Falls today since it was nearby.

We headed out with our hiking gear toward the Camps Gulf addition of Fall Creek Falls.

We had seen a dirt road that headed in the general direction of Perry's Branch Falls. 

Friday we parked at a ford of Cane Creek and the GPS said it was 0.5 miles ahead.

Neither of us thought it looked a bit safe to ford Cane Creek the way it was roiling past.

The way we'd found today had us only needed to cross Camps Gulf Creek which is usually a small stream.    We parked the truck and headed out in the general direction of the falls. The rain held off and the sun actually came out for awhile.  We saw some Spring wildflowers and a few pretty cascades and had a decent hike on an old logging road.

We finally got within 0.267 miles of the falls and began working our way off trail toward them.  The going was rough and rather slippery.  We had forded  a pretty stream we believed the falls was located on.  Our trek took us away from that creek and we could not hear water anymore.  Discouragement briefly because we wondered if we'd screwed up?  

             We looked around and saw the terrain was changing.  Descending steeper. Tightening in.  A rock cliff intervened from the left and we began to hear water flowing again.   I knew this had to be it!  Kenny went to hollering "A cave! a cave!" and sure enough there was the mouth of a cave with a stream flowing out!

Stream emerging from a cave.

   We climbed up and went inside the first part of the cave.  We really did not have time today to do any serious exploration of the cave, but we did go in.  We went in the beginning part to see the underground stream.  We saw a few bats roosting. One flapped me.  I did my usual holler and run. The stream flowed down the drainage in pretty rivulets and cascades. It was very mossy and lush green.  A little further ahead the stream dropped 70 feet over a cliff forming the gorgeous and dramatic Perry's Branch Falls!

Perrys Branch Falls! We had found it! I'd say it was worth finding!

Below is a video of Perrys Branch Falls

Above is a photo of Kenny at the brink of the bluff to the left of Perry's Branch Falls.  It is a unique vantage point. 

The terrain around Perry's Branch Falls is dangerous!  Steep. Slippery. Deep layers of leaves and loose rocks and dirt.  We used care in venturing out to the edge. We spied a bonus waterfall to the right through the trees.  The cliffs have projections out that give you the chance to look back and get the full view of the falls even though you're at the brink of them!  How often does that happen? Very very cool.

    We enjoyed the falls.  We enjoyed the view into the area below and around us.
We had wondered if we'd spy a better way on a more established trail out of here? It did not exist so we went back up the hill toward the old logging road.  It was rough going but far easier than the way we'd come down.  Good practice navigating.
All in all a fun and successful trip with lots of adventure.

Lots more to look forward to with my partner in crime.



Medley Arch Video

Below is a video of Sinking Falls.. a waterfall hidden behind the Medley Arch. It was named by Chuck Sutherland.  👀

Laurel-Snow Pocket Wilderness Hike

Blazing Star growing along the trail.

Laurel-Snow Pocket Wilderness Hike

Dana Koogler solo

Hike distance 5 mi. RT

(Out & back to Laurel Falls)

Pictures are here: 

http://tinyurl.com/955gpav

Videos are here: 

Lower Laurel Falls

Laurel Falls

Paine Creek Falls
(To see Paine Creek Falls see notes at bottom of page)

    I got up Thursday early and drove down to Dayton to hike. I'd been wanting

to hike Laurel-Snow Pocket Wilderness again.   Kenny and I hiked it about eight years earlier and it was real nice.  I don't recall everything about that trip, but I remember thinking I'd like to do it over when we'd had plenty of rain.   Today was my chance.  We got five inches of rain over the weekend with it finally drying up Wednesday.   I figured the crossing to Snow Falls would be a bust and it was.  The guide book warns that reaching Snow Falls at the far end of the hike is a wet foot crossing and that during times of heavy rain fall the creek is impassable.  Long way to hike only to have to turn around.    I contented myself with the idea of hiking the parts of the gorge that should be accessible this trip.  I was far from disappointed.

      The drive to Dayton is long at around 93 miles for me.   I got an early start, but after the drive I still did not get on the trail until 10 a.m.   Finding the wilderness itself was a challenge even with the tom tom to assist me.  I missed the turn, but realized it almost immediately and simply turned around.  I checked my directions and sure enough I was correct.  I need to update my tomtom as it seems to be on the fritz about half the time.    I had no recall of the road into the pocket wilderness.  I was not even sure I was at the right place.   It is worth mentioning that all the trash that had been in the woods at the parking area was now gone! That much I do remember.   I had called Bowater and the Tennessee Dept. of Natural Resources because folks were using the land as a dumping ground for old appliances,  household garbage, old furniture, you name it.   All of that is now cleaned up! The parking area is very tidy and improved.   

    I had not gone out of sight of the parking area when I heard a loud roaring to my right.  The creek to my left was raging, but even over that I could tell there was something off the trail to my right.  I recalled seeing that there was supposed to be a ten foot waterfall near the start of the trail.  I walked off the trail and went up the bank and followed the track others had trod.  Among room sized boulders, trees and logs was a beautiful waterfall about twenty-five feet  high. It was raging and from the point where I stood it flowed down the hill and formed a series of beautiful cascades.   The stream's flow split into about three parts among the rocks and gushed forth powerfully. 

      

Paine Creek Falls


    I continued on enjoying the view of the rushing stream to my left and the old stone structures from the mines to my right.  It was not long until I was flanked on the right by towering stone cliffs.  I passed the mine entrance and had to go in to see it.    It was dripping with water back there today.

Looking out of the mine.


One of many clusters of boulders and rapids along the stream.

      I saw only half dozen people on my hike in.  All of them were just day hiking.
I was surprised how quickly I arrived at the intersection where the trail continues straight up a short distance to the old Dayton Reservoir and the main trail veers sharply right and uphill.    I had visited the reservoir the last time so today I opted to stay on the main trail.
I saw a few blown down trees that were nearly all cleaned up and moved.  The trail was high above the stream now and provided good views of the bluffs on the far side of the gorge.  I got a good look at Buzzard Point complete with soaring, gliding buzzards!
I'll hike there next trip.

Buzzard Point viewed from the main trail.

  The trail up high continued for a short spell and soon I was rounding the bend where the forest changed character.   The air was cooler and the trail dropped to a lower level. The forest here was a healthy hemlock gorge.  I arrived at the first metal bridge over a stream.
All around me was verdant, lush and green with rushing white ribbons of water passing beneath the bridge.   Ahead on Laurel Creek I could see one cascade after another.
Just across the bridge the trail splits and goes right for Laurel Falls and left for Snow Falls.
I headed right and soon came to this spot where I had lunch. 

Lunch spot by some massive boulders and a lovely cascade on Laurel Creek.

    I followed the trail only a short distance until I arrived at Lower Laurel Falls.
It is a very pretty ten foot tall cascade on Laurel Creek.   The trail then continues
uphill.   I had to crawl through a hole in some boulders to keep going. That is how the trail is routed here. Makes it interesting.


Lower Laurel Falls

     I followed the trail uphill on some easy switchbacks.  I did not recall going this way before, but the blazes were consistent and I had no trouble finding my way.   I noticed lots of colorful Autumn wildflowers along the path.  Red hearts-a-bursting. Pale purple & white asters.  Golden asters. Goldenrod.  Pink Blazing stars.  I saw lots of bees, butterflies, and dragonflies today as well.   The stream was to my right now and filled with numerous cascades and small falls.  The terrain was treacherous and I was alone so I did not explore the gorge the way I would had I been with Kenny.   Instead I continued until
I glimpsed the top of eighty foot high Laurel Falls. I could hear it well before I could see it.
It was a raging cataract today and extremely impressive!   The spray from the falls had everything slick so I had to use caution getting close to the base.  I finally ended up
coming around to the far side of the falls to get the best photos and video footage without being drenched in mist.   The sun shining down through the spray was so pretty.  The wind was gusting. Above me against the high cliffs was another wet weather falls that was about sixty feet high.    I sat and soaked in the beauty and glory of this place today.
I was glad I had the chance to see it and I hope to be able to bring Kenny back to enjoy it.
When we were here before one thing I do recall is that it was nowhere near this much water coming over the falls.


Laurel Falls from the side.


    I can hardly wait to come back here to do some more exploring.
I eased on back toward the trail head. I encountered more people on my way out.
Most of them were kayakers!  It occurred to me that I wondered if anyone ever died kayaking Morgan Creek?   American Whitewater's statistics say no, but there have been numerous close calls.   Morgan Creek is one of the steepest streams in the area and descends the entire plateau in minutes.  Much of it is what they deem un-runnable and mandatory portages.  When extreme creek kayakers say something is un-runnable it gets my attention.   The North Pole run begins on the other side of the gorge at Snow Falls and continues down. I don't know what they consider the takeout point.

     I had a hankering to visit a fire tower today and managed to find one nearby.
I visited the attractive Summer City Fire Tower and what a day for views!


Summer City Fire Tower is accessible to the public, but the cab is locked.

View from the Summer City Fire Tower

Here is a link to a few photos from Summer City and other fire towers.
http://tinyurl.com/d6ydkoo

    I have a link posted up top to several really good videos of waterfalls from the day's outing.  I ended my day by hunting for Morphy Falls.  It was supposed to be in the area nearby.  I did find it, but was dismayed to find it was on private property.  I had pulled down into a lane and was hunting for a wide enough place to turn around safely.  I looked up and there it was right before me at the end of the road.  I figured no harm in snapping a few photos and a short video clip.  It was not a super great waterfall, but I was pleased to get to see it.   

     It was a fun day and I was tickled at having seen so many pretty and new sights.
I was also happy to get to practice using the GPS to successfully locate neat things!

**Paine Creek Falls and other beautiful waterfalls are on a side canyon where Paine Creek enters the Laurel Falls gorge from the right heading in.  You will have barely left the parking area before you encounter a side stream on the right. That is it.  There is no official trail to visit these falls, but it is possible to bushwhack/ creek crawl up there to see a series of falls. **