A miserable weather forecast and some sore knees forced Christy, Saucony, and I to cancel our backpacking plans for Labor Day weekend. We had been looking forward to another opportunity to explore the Jocassee Gorges, but decided against it. However, after a couple of days sitting around and watching it rain, I was getting crazy. On Monday it looked like there was a chance for a break in the weather. We decided to head for Harper Creek.
I was a little leery of going to a popular area on a holiday, but the rain must have scared everyone away. There were only 2 cars in the parking area at the trailhead when we arrived. We started up the muddy trail, and soon began to climb Yellow Buck Mountain. I’ve done this hike several times, and it never fails to be more difficult than expected. Today was no exception. The humidity was off the charts, which made the forest seem jungle like. Eventually we reached the top of the last steep stretch, and were rewarded with a decent view of Grandfather Mountain.
We descended to a junction, and I decided to do some exploring. We followed an old road into the woods, down towards Harper Creek. I hoped that it would lead down to the Harper Creek Trail. However, it simply died out about ½ mile from the original junction. We weren’t in the mood for bushwacking, so we returned and headed down the Persimmon Ridge Trail.
It didn’t take long to reach North Harper Creek. We followed it downstream and crossed it several times before reaching the confluence with Harper Creek. Along the way we enjoyed numerous rapids and pools, as well as Cardinal flowers in bloom.
We continued the hike down Harper Creek. The final 2 creek crossings were difficult with the water up. It was tricky balancing on submerged rocks. Luckily though, we made it through mostly dry. Just after the last one, we were delighted to spot a Great Blue Heron in the middle of the creek.
By mid-afternoon we reached Harper Falls. We descended a rough, steep path, with the help of a rope someone had left. The view from the base was spectacular. We didn’t waste any time getting in the water. There were a couple of groups there when we arrived, but they left shortly thereafter. We never expected to have the falls to ourselves! We swam for a while in the lower pool, before climbing another rope up to the upper pool. We swam here as well, and explored a natural alcove at the base of the falls.
The hike out was easy and uneventful. It was a good hike, and we were thrilled to salvage something from the washed out weekend.
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