NO RETREAT
Last week was wonderful, as
I was assigned to a job in Asheville.
Prior to last week, I’d spent very little time in Asheville proper. There was a good reason for this. To put it simply, I was afraid to go there,
because I knew I’d end up wanting to move there permanently. Well, I was right. After a week in Asheville, I’m having trouble thinking of a
single good reason to live in Charlotte.
I finished my job on
Thursday, but stayed in town that night so I could hike in the area on Friday. Originally I’d planned on hiking in the
Pisgah National Forest, but somehow I’d grabbed the wrong folder of maps on the
way out the door Monday morning. I
ended up with my Jocassee folder, which was convenient, since that area isn’t a
long drive from Asheville either.
I had Saucony with me, as
logistical complications had forced me to bring her along all week. I planned a hike along the Thompson River,
where I’d backpacked a couple of months earlier. On that trip, we’d hiked in from Whitewater Falls to camp along
the lower Thompson River. That trip had
focused on Big Falls, and its gorge.
This time, I planned to explore the river farther upstream.
First though, I planned to
check out Toxaway Falls, on the Toxaway River.
Oddly, I’d never explored Toxaway Falls. In fact, my experience with Toxaway Falls had been limited to
crossing above the falls on the highway 64 bridge. Until recently, exploring the falls was difficult, as all of the
surrounding land was private. However,
a few years ago, Gorges State Park purchased a strip of land along the east
side of the falls. Now it’s possible to
explore the falls, without trespassing.
I got an early start from
Asheville, and reached the bridge over the Toxaway by 8am. It was a cool, overcast morning, and I
wasn’t sure how safe the route to the base of the falls would be. Plus, just reaching the beginning of the
descent requires crossing a busy road.
I decided to leave Saucony in the car.
I’d make it up to her on our second hike of the day.
I crossed the highway and
the guardrail, and picked up a path leading to the open rocks alongside the
falls. Initially, I thought the best
route might be a descent of the rock face.
It wasn’t long before I reached a sheer drop. Obviously, this wasn’t the best way. Instead, I veered away from the falls, into the woods. Here I found a relatively easy route
down. Before long, I found myself at
the base of the main drop. I waded the
river barefoot here, which was easy due to the low water level. In fact, it was almost low enough to cross
in boots.
The low water made the hike
easier, but diminished the falls. At
higher water levels, Toxaway Falls is a raging torrent. Although my timing wasn’t ideal, I decided
to explore the falls further. I headed
downstream along the west side of the river, following the open expanse of
rock. This part of the riverbed is
almost completely devoid of vegetation, as a result of the devastation
following a severe flood in 1916. The
flood was caused by the collapse of the Lake Toxaway dam, which was immediately
upstream of the falls. The dam has
since been rebuilt. As I hiked, I tried
not to think about the possibility of the dam failing again.
As I descended, I passed
three or four more significant drops.
At the very bottom, I was treated to a great view of the entire run of
falls. Unfortunately, the view was
compromised by the numerous condominiums built along the west side of the
falls.
From the base, I picked up
an obvious trail and followed it downstream.
The path eventually faded, and I rock hopped a side stream. A short distance beyond, I reached the brink
of Twin Falls. Getting to the base
requires descending a steep, slippery rock face. Fortunately I found a fixed rope here, which enabled me to
descend safely. I wouldn’t have
attempted the descent without it.
In many ways, I liked Twin
Falls more than Toxaway Falls. Twin
Falls is only about 20’ high, but it’s quite scenic. At the falls, the river splits into two channels around a large
rock. It’s a nice spot, and best of
all, there aren’t any condominiums there to muck up the view. In fact, Twin Falls feels like a true
wilderness setting, even though highway 64 is less than a half-mile away.
I first heard about Twin
Falls a couple of years ago, when Kevin Adams released the updated version of
his guide to North Carolina waterfalls.
It’s gems like this one that make his book priceless.
After a short break and some
photos, I returned the same way I came.
Along the way, I spotted some brilliant orange Wood Lilies. I waded the river again, and a steep climb
returned me to the car.
I drove a few miles down
highways 64 and 281 and turned left onto Brewer Road. I parked immediately, and gathered my gear and the dog. It was just after 10 when I left the car and
started up the old logging road leading to the Thompson River.
After a brief climb, 25
minutes of easy hiking brought me to a ford of the Thompson River. I waded the river, and began following it
downstream. I passed a nice cascade,
and a couple of appealing campsites.
Unfortunately, I could still hear occasional truck traffic on highway
281 from there. If it weren’t for the
traffic noise, these campsites would be ideal.
During periods of higher water, the river may make enough noise to drown
out the sounds from the highway.
I continued downstream,
following the directions in Kevin Adams’ guidebook. After some easy hiking, I picked up an obvious path to base of a
nice waterfall. Adams’ refers to this
cascade as “Waterfall #1 on the Lower Thompson River”. This was a nice spot, although it certainly
doesn’t compare with some of the larger waterfalls on the Thompson River. Still, it was worth visiting, as the path
down to the river was fairly easy to descend.
I returned to the main trail
and continued downstream. After another
mile or so, I reached the side trail down to waterfall #2. Kevin Adams describes this route as
extremely difficult and almost impossible to follow. Obviously more use has improved the path in the last couple of
years. The turn for the path is marked
with a cairn. From there, a decent
scramble path descends to the river.
Although it’s steep, the path is easy to follow and is relatively safe.
I reached the river, and the
falls were visible upstream. I headed
upstream for a better look, and found this part of the hike to be far more
difficult than the descent into the gorge.
I scrambled over several large boulders, and worked my way to the base
of the falls. This waterfall is pretty,
but it’s probably best viewed at higher water levels. Here, the river spreads out over an immense rock face. With all that rock, a little more water
would’ve improved the view.
Despite the low water
levels, the falls provided a nice spot for lunch. Afterwards, I returned to the scramble path and climbed back up
to the main logging road. From there, I
backtracked to the river ford. After
crossing, I climbed several switchbacks before arriving at a junction. At that point, I turned left on a rapidly
disappearing logging road. This road
used to be wide and obvious, but the vegetation is beginning to take over.
I worked my way up the road
to an obvious side path descending on the left. I followed this path down to the river and rock-hopped to the far
side. From there, I worked my way upstream
a short distance to the base of High Falls.
High Falls is probably the
nicest waterfall on the Thompson upstream from Big Falls. From the base, I had a great view of the
falls cascading 80’ or so into a nice pool.
Unfortunately, my arrival coincided with the first appearance of the sun
all day. Until then, I’d enjoyed pretty
good photographic conditions. I guess
my luck ran out at High Falls.
From there, I decided to
continue upstream. It was still fairly
early, and I wanted to visit White Owl Falls before finishing the hike. White Owl Falls is easily accessible from
highway 281. However, the only time I’d
seen it before was on a longer hike upstream from High Falls. I decided to try to recreate that hike.
I returned to the old
logging road and continued upstream, hiking well above the river. This part of the old road was even less
defined. On my last hike there, 12
years ago, the road was obvious and easy to follow.
After a short distance, the
road split, with the right fork heading steeply uphill. That didn’t look right, so I headed
left. A few minutes later, I reached
the river a short distance upstream from High Falls. At that point, I knew I wasn’t far from the confluence with Mill
Creek. Just upstream on Mill Creek is
Tumbling Fun Falls, which is one of the larger waterfalls in the area. I’d never reached Tumbling Fun Falls, and I
was eager to check it out.
The old road turns
downstream here, so I abandoned it in favor of the river. I put on sandals, and began working my way
up the river. Thanks to the low water
levels, this was fairly easy. Still,
rocks, rapids, and the occasional deep pool presented obstacles. A few minutes later, I reached the national
forest boundary. I knew from Kevin
Adams’ guide that reaching Tumbling Fun Falls by this route would require
crossing private property. Now, I’m not
necessarily opposed to crossing private property, as long as it isn’t posted
and I don’t have to walk through someone’s yard. I didn’t see any signs, so I continued upstream.
A few minutes later, I
spotted power lines just upstream. A
minute later, a building came into view.
This caused me to reconsider. I
reached for the map in my pocket, to evaluate my alternatives, and found it
missing. Apparently it had fallen out
of my pocket as I’d hiked upstream.
I knew highway 281 wasn’t
far, and I really didn’t want to backtrack all the way to the trailhead. If I could make it to the road, I’d only be
about ¼ mile from the car. On my
previous visit to White Owl Falls 12 years earlier, I’d followed a logging road
all the way to the falls. I decided to
bushwhack up from the river, locate the road, and follow it upstream to the
falls and the highway.
Some rough bushwhacking
brought me above the river, but I didn’t see much sign of a road. In places, it looked like there may have
been a road at one time. However, the
rhododendron was extremely thick, and fallen trees were numerous. In 12 years, the forest had completely
swallowed the road. I was reconsidering
my options when I realized that Saucony wasn’t with me. This was unusual, as she normally stays
right by my side.
I looked out across the
river, where I could see the site of a former trout farm. It appears that someone is living on that
property now. I called for Saucony, and
several dogs began barking from across the river. I then spotted Saucony, down near the river. What was she doing down there? Apparently she was antagonizing a large pack
of dogs on the far side.
I called for her
frantically, but she didn’t appear.
Finally she emerged from the vegetation and reached my side. Unfortunately, the damage had been
done. A whole pack of howling dogs was
following her. I wasn’t sure what their
intentions were, but I was afraid that they might attack her. Going back the way we came was no longer an
option. Instead, I began hustling up
the steep hillside above me.
The bushwhacking was so
nasty, the dogs eventually gave up the chase.
This was a relief, but we were hardly in the clear. We were now hiking off-trail in unfamiliar
territory, and the map was floating in the Thompson River far below. At that point, the thunderstorms that had
been threatening all day finally arrived.
My uphill slog continued in a total downpour.
I was near the top of the
ridge, and decided to continue the climb.
I finally reached the crest, where I found the remains of an old
road. I’m not certain, but I suspect
this road is the same one I’d left at the fork upstream from High Falls. I thought about heading down that way, but
decided against it. I knew going the
other direction would eventually bring me to the highway or the trail I’d
originally hiked in on.
A descent littered with
downfall and thorns seemed to go on forever.
I was relieved when I finally stumbled onto the trail I’d hiked in
on. 10 minutes later, I reached the car
as the rain finally subsided.
I’d had a great adventure,
and had seen 5 waterfalls along the way.
Best of all, I’d never seen four of those waterfalls before. I still need to make it back to White Owl Falls
though, and Tumbling Fun Falls continues to beckon. I’ll make another attempt at that one, but next time, I’ll plan
on some additional bushwhacking to avoid the private property near the river. Getting chased by a pack of dogs once was
more than enough!
Back to The Jocassee Gorges
Back to North Carolina
Back to Hiking and Backpacking Trip Reports
Please remember to Leave No Trace!