NEW ADVENTURES IN A FAMILIAR PLACE

Originally I’d planned to tackle an ambitious 3-day backpacking trip over Memorial Day Weekend. The dog and I both need to get in shape for our upcoming month-long trip in the Rockies. Somehow, through various concessions, our ambitious trip got whittled down to a weekend basecamp trip in Panthertown Valley. Now, Panthertown has always been one of our favorite places, but our trips there are never very demanding physically. The hike in to our favorite campsite is only a mile and a half. So, I planned some challenging dayhikes from our basecamp.

We left early Saturday morning despite the fact that Christy and I were both suffering from colds. We made record time as far as Cashiers, NC. After that though, our luck changed. On Cedar Creek Road, we encountered a truck that was stuck and blocking most of the road. We made it around the truck, only to get behind 2 cars moving at a snail’s pace down Breedlove Road. I never knew two miles could be so long! Those last two miles took an eternity, and that’s not even mentioning the final 100 yards, where the road turns to dirt and becomes a bit rough in a couple of places. We finally reached the trailhead at 10:20, which was 5 minutes late and 15 minutes later than we would’ve arrived if it hadn’t been for rolling roadblock ahead of us.

Myron, Dorcas, and their dog, Izzak, were waiting for us. Since I’d planned some challenging dayhikes we had brought quite a few luxuries. I decided to bring my daypack, since it’s more convenient than carrying my large pack on hikes, and it can hold more than my fanny pack. I attached it awkwardly to the back of my main pack. Christy carried the grill, while I struggled with a 12-pack of beer. Myron topped us all by bringing a cooler! A trip to Panthertown Valley isn’t so much an easy backpacking trip as it is a car camping trip with an inconveniently long walk to the campsite. We certainly looked like a gang of sophisticated backpackers as we started down the trail with all of our accessories.

Myron offered to carry the case of beer. I immediately saw through the ruse. I knew he was offering because he was hoping that a couple of them might come his way in return. I decided to play along though, since I figured I’d probably give him a couple anyway. Plus, his cooler would probably come in handy.

We made it to our all-time favorite campsite in 45 minutes. We set up camp and had lunch before preparing for our first hike. Christy decided to skip it, as her workout program called for her to do an hour-long run. That run would come after a somewhat longer nap, but she did eventually complete it.

Myron, Dorcas, the dogs, and I set out sometime after 1pm for Greenland Creek. There are several waterfalls on Greenland Creek that I hadn’t seen, and I decided to dedicate the day to exploring them. We reached the ford of Greenland Creek and found the water level unusually low. We were able to rock hop the stream just upstream from the ford. From there, we followed a primitive trail upstream to the base of Greenland Creek Falls. Greenland Creek Falls is a nice one, although it was a bit less spectacular with the low water level.

After a break, Myron and I continued on in search of another waterfall farther upstream. This required climbing the hillside next to the falls. I was surprised to find a reasonably decent trail, and the climb was fairly straightforward if a bit of a grunt. We crested the hill above the falls, and descended back down to the creek just upstream from the brink. From there, we followed a faint path upstream. At times we followed the creek, but occasionally the path wandered away from the water deeper into the woods. The only thing consistent about this trail is that it never traveled in a straight line. We constantly zigged and zagged around dense stands of rhododendron. We were beginning to think we’d missed the falls when we finally reached them. Carlton Falls, which was recently named after the unofficial caretaker of Panthertown Valley, is a pretty multi-tiered cascade. Unfortunately the low water level really diminished its beauty. It might be worth returning during higher water. It was also a sunny day, so I didn’t get a photo worth posting.

We lounged around a bit before returning the way we came. On the hike back, we were treated to some entertainment. We had passed 3 hikers on the way in. They had looked surprisingly clean for people on a nearly off-trail route to a remote waterfall. On the way back, we passed them again, heading back towards the falls. When we met them for the second time, I commented that they must really like this trail! It turns out they were confused, and couldn’t find their way back out. They had headed back the way they had come, but at some point decided they were off-route and had doubled-back. They appeared to be in the pre-panic phase of being lost. In a few minutes they’d begin thrashing around off what little trail they were already on.

They had come following the directions on a pamphlet provided by a vacation rental place in the Lake Toxaway Area. I love those things. I wonder how many of their customers those places lose (literally) each year? They didn’t have a map, so I offered to guide them back out. After all, we were going that way anyway.

We made it back to the brink of the falls, which is where they had gotten confused. From there we climbed the hill, and then descended the steep hillside to the base of Greenland Falls. We rejoined Dorcas there, and all hiked back out to the main trail at the ford of Greenland Creek. From there, I pointed out the obvious route back to the Cold Mountain Gap trailhead on the east side of the valley. I was pretty sure they’d make it out without any further trouble.

We continued the same way, but took a lesser path to the left after a short distance. We continued downstream to a side trail, which we followed down to the creek. We didn’t find any waterfalls there, but did run into 3 fishermen. Not wanting to disturb them, we said hello, goodbye and returned to the main trail.

We followed this path for a few minutes before reaching the creek again. This is an area of some confusion. The main trail climbs away from the creek here towards the Cold Mountain Gap trailhead. There appears to be a ford to a trail on the opposite bank. Also, a faint path continues down the near side, but it peters out after only a short distance. I thought we were at a ford shown on the Panthertown map, but the map shows that ford immediately upstream from a waterfall. There was no waterfall where we were, so either the map was wrong, or we weren’t where we thought.

We explored up the hill away from the creek. We did pass a rough, tree-littered gully heading back down towards the creek, but it didn’t look like a trail. Later I found out that it was.

Eventually we doubled-back to the creek and rock-hopped to the other side. There was no trail on the far bank though. At this point, I was ready to give up on the waterfalls downstream and head back to camp. I knew if we headed up the hill in front of us, we’d run into the Hogback Mountain Trail before long. We bushwhacked up the hill, and just when we were beginning to get discouraged, we stumbled onto the trail coming up from the ford we had been looking for. Myron and Dorcas were inclined to take a rest, so I headed back down to the creek without them. When I reached the creek, the first thing I saw was the same 3 fishermen we’d encountered earlier. Now how did I get back there? I was quickly relieved to find out that they had simply walked downstream. It turns out that is probably the easiest way to get around this area, at least at low water.

I waded the creek just above the falls. Rock hopping here isn’t an option for anyone that doesn’t have exceptionally long legs. I found the trail on the far side, and continued downstream to an even more rugged path descending to the base of the falls. The good news is that all of this work was worthwhile. This unnamed waterfall isn’t very tall, but it is wide and pretty, and it spills into an attractive pool. With my motivation renewed, I continued the hike downstream. The trail is rugged as it clings to the hillside above the creek. Fortunately it isn’t far to the next falls. This waterfall is also rather small, but interesting. Unlike the one upstream, this one spills through a narrow chute. Several water-carved potholes near the base of the falls attest to the power of the stream.

Originally we had planned to continue downstream to Schoolhouse Falls and loop back to camp. However, I’d left Myron and Dorcas behind. I abandoned those plans and headed back to rejoin them. From there we continued up the ridge, through a lovely fern filled forest. We rejoined the Hogback Mountain Trail, and from there it was an easy walk back to camp.

That evening, we grilled steaks over a fire and enjoyed semi-cold beer. The evening would’ve been perfect, except for an unexpected phone call Christy received from her sister, Megan. Megan, her boyfriend Forest, and our nephew Nathan had planned to hike in Saturday evening to join us for the rest of the weekend. Unfortunately, Forest has problems with car sickness, and he had a major attack on the last part of the drive. They had decided to head back home, which was a huge disappointment for everyone. They had come with us to Panthertown the year before, and Forest had really enjoyed the weekend. Afterwards, he’d bought a full assortment of backpacking gear. However, before he got to use it, his car was stolen. The car was found, but the gear that was inside was not. Just a few weeks earlier, he had replaced all of that gear, but now he wasn’t going to be able to use it. The day ended on a bit of a downer after receiving this news. We headed to bed fairly early, knowing that we had a full day planned for Sunday.

THE CHICKEN OR THE EGG?

We slept in a bit the next morning, before starting the day with breakfast burritos. Myron and Dorcas had spam. Spam, spam, spam. Breakfast of champions.

Originally I’d planned to hike to Dismal Falls on Sunday. Dismal Falls is one that I’ve always wanted to see. In his guide to NC waterfalls, Kevin Adams describes the hike to Dismal Falls as one of the hardest in the state. The route he describes though is far more direct than approaching the falls from Panthertown Valley. From our campsite, it would be an all-day hike with a fair bit of wicked bushwhacking towards the end. Christy wasn’t up for that much adventure, and Myron and Dorcas didn’t seem particularly enthusiastic about it, either. I knew hiking to Dismal Falls solo would be risky, so I decided on a change in plans. We decided to explore the waterfalls along the Tuckaseegee River, downstream from Greenland Creek where we’d been the day before.

The hike began with a moderate climb over Little Green Mountain. The trail up Little Green Mountain has recently been improved, and the climb is no longer as steep as it used to be. At the top of the mountain, we found several excellent views from the open rock faces. We also found blooming rhododendron scattered across the peak. We enjoyed the views for awhile, before beginning the long descent to Greenland Creek.

We reached the creek, and headed upstream to Schoolhouse Falls. The scene at the falls was startling. We had seen only a handful of people on Saturday, and the trails had been deserted so far on Sunday. At the small beach below the falls though, there must’ve been 20 people. Out in the pool below the falls, 2 guys were fly fishing. About a half-dozen kids in bathing suits were roaming the beach, waiting for the fishermen to leave so they could swim.

We decided on only a brief visit. Then we headed downstream to the main trail through the valley and crossed the creek on an old wooded bridge. On the far side, we turned left and continued down the old road toward the Devil’s Elbow. A few minutes later, I spotted an obvious side trail to the left.

We followed this path through a dense rhododendron thicket and reached the creek at a ford just upstream from Wardens Falls. From there, we followed a steep, primitive path to the base of the falls. It’s hard to get a good view of the falls from the base. I waded across the creek to a rock to get a better vantage point for a photo.

There is no continuing trail from here. However, Myron got ambitious, and explored downstream. He returned a few minutes later with good news. We followed him, crossing the creek on a long diagonal rock hop. On the far side, we found a faint fisherman’s path, which we followed downstream to a huge sloping rock face adjacent to Lower Wardens falls. The rock provided a great spot for a lunch break in the sun. At the base of the falls is huge swimming hole. The whole area is very scenic, and I actually like Lower Wardens Falls more than Wardens Falls.

After lunch, Myron, Dorcas, and I decided to continue on. Christy was ready to call it a day though. She decided to relax in the sun for awhile before hiking back to camp. The rest of us followed Myron, down to the base of the falls and along the edge of a slippery rock face above the pool. Hiking here is tricky, especially if the rocks are wet. A slip here would result in an unintentional swim. Beyond the rock, we hacked our way through some rhododendron to an easy rock hop crossing. At the far side we found a sandy beach and a nice campsite. From there, we continued downstream to Riding Ford Falls. This waterfall is more of a sliding cascade, and Myron and I carefully hiked down the creek to the base of it. The most interesting thing about Riding Ford Falls is the numerous pot holes carved into the rocks here.

From there, we followed a side trail up to the main trail to Devil’s Elbow. We continued out to the Elbow, where the river curves around a rocky pinnacle. We continued uphill from there, following the ridge towards Shelton Pisgah Mountain. Before long, we reached the junction with the trail to Dismal Falls. I was briefly tempted, but knew we didn’t have time to make an attempt at the falls. Instead we continued up the ridge, on a trail that was nearly overgrown in places. The climb was rough, mainly because it was an unusually hot, humid day. The best aspect of this part of the hike was the hundreds of Catesby’s Trillium still blooming along the ridge. The rest of the trillium in the valley, including Red Trillium and Painted Trillium, were already long gone. The Catesby’s Trillium though seem to last longer.

Shortly before the summit of Shelton Pisgah Mountain is a nice view south to Cold Mountain. Clouds had moved in though, along with summer haze, which limited the view. From there we crossed the summit and descended to a gap and a small spring. Dorcas decided to rest there while Myron and I hiked to Cold Mountain.

We walked quickly, as it was getting late, and we still had a long walk back to camp. After 20 minutes of brisk hiking, we reached an overlook at a cliff just below the summit. The view from here is probably the best one in the valley. At the cliff is the High Bethel Altar. I’m not sure what the story of the altar is, but it adds some intrigue to what is already a fantastic destination. It also creates a little shade. While we enjoyed the view, Saucony took advantage of this tiny sliver of shade.

We only lingered a few minutes before returning to rejoin Dorcas. Then we began a rapid descent along Little Green Creek. This trail is exceptionally primitive, but it offered the quickest return route to camp. I’ve hiked this trail several times, but I don’t think I’ve followed the exact same route twice. Initially the trail stays above the creek and is easy to follow. Once it descends to the creek though, it crosses frequently, and it even requires hiking in the creek for at least one brief stretch.

It was a relief when we popped out of the woods onto the Devils Elbow Trail. However, rumbles of thunder added some urgency to our hike. From there, it was a quick hike back to camp. On the return, we skipped the climb over Little Green Mountain, opting instead for an easy route around the east side of the mountain. Fortunately, despite all the thunder, it never managed to rain.

That evening, the four of us shared burritos. Unfortunately, Megan never made it, and she had packed the rice. We had to settle for burritos with chicken, vegetables, and cheese. This was a lot like our breakfast, when we’d had basically the same thing, except with eggs instead of chicken. When you think about it, that’s not much of a difference at all.

TRESPASSERS WILL BE VIOLATED

The next morning we packed up and hiked back to the trailhead. Rather than doing another dayhike in Panthertown, I’d decided to do some short waterfall explorations hikes in the Jocassee Gorges region nearby. We drove back down to highway 64, and headed east towards Lake Toxaway. After a few miles, we turned right on Post Office Road. This took us to Upper Whitewater Road, which we followed through a new housing development before reaching a stretch of undeveloped forest. Beyond that, we passed a camp and some new home lots. Just beyond the camp, we arrived at a bridge over the Thompson River.

The Thompson is one of four major rivers the carve incredible gorges in their rapid descent from the Blue Ridge to Lake Jocassee. I’ve explored some of the waterfalls farther downstream on the Thompson River, but I’d never seen any of the falls upstream from highway 281. Today I hoped to change that.

Twin Falls is the upper-most waterfall on the Thompson River. Unfortunately, it is located on private property. The property at the brink of the falls is currently being graded for a new home. Fortunately, it is not yet posted with no trespassing signs. We decided this might be our last chance to see the falls.

We passed the new home site along the north side of the creek. From there, we followed an obvious trail up and away from the falls, before switchbacking down towards the river. The path deposited us at the base of the falls, which is truly impressive. Twin Falls is quite hike, and exceptionally wide, as the stream splits into 2 main branches as it drops over the falls. Unfortunately, it’s also an extremely difficult waterfall to photograph. I made some attempts anyway, and got lucky with a couple of good photos.

We hung out there for awhile before returning to our cars. From there, we continued down the road to a bridge over Mill Creek (also known as Gumbottom Creek on some maps). Mill Creek is a major tributary of the Thompson River. Just like the river, it spills over a major waterfall immediately downstream from Upper Whitewater Road. This one is also on private property. We didn’t see any no trespassing signs though, so we parked and descended a faint trail on the south side of the creek. After a short, easy hike, we arrived at the base of Slippery Bitch Falls. This one isn’t as impressive as Twin Falls, but it’s still pretty. After a brief visit, we returned to the cars. As we were driving away, we noticed no trespassing signs down the road a short distance from the falls. It isn’t clear if the signs apply to the same property that we hiked across to get to the base of the falls. If that property is off limits, it seems likely that there would be a sign near the trail.

Upper Whitewater Road led to Whitewater Church Road, which took us to route 281. We turned left on 281 and drove a short distance, crossing Mill Creek and turning left into a narrow drive that leads to a primitive campsite. The area was deserted, and the picnic table there provided an excellent place for lunch.

After lunch, we continued our waterfall explorations. First we headed upstream along Mill Creek, and an easy walk led to D.E.W. Falls. This waterfall is small, but it’s pretty. Unfortunately my photos were a bit disappointing due to the sunny skies.

We returned to the campsite and headed downstream to John’s Jump. To get there, we walked back south on route 281 to a grassy pull off on the opposite side of the road. At the near end of the pulloff, we found a faint trail. We followed this steep path down to the base of the falls. This waterfall is also worth a visit, and the hike to it is easy.

From here, I wanted to visit Tumbling Fun Falls. It is only a short distance downstream from John’s Jump, but there is no trail. Myron and Dorcas decided they’d had enough, and headed for home. Christy wasn’t interested in buswhacking, so she headed back to the campsite to relax and wait for me.

Getting to Tumbling Fun Falls isn’t as simple as it looks on the map. Going downstream from John’s Jump isn’t really an option unless you want to walk in the creek. Plus, that would only get you to the top of the falls. Since Tumbling Fun Falls is nearly 200’ high, that would be a precarious vantage point at best. I decided to try a different route. I headed back out to route 281 but headed back into the woods south of Mill Creek. My plan was to descend the ridge to the south of the creek. If that didn’t work, the next gully south appeared to join Mill Creek near the base of the falls.

What I didn’t realize is how wicked the bushwhacking would be. It took me a few minutes just to find a reasonable place to enter the woods. From there, I made progress that could be measured in inches per minute. The area is an absolute jungle. Descending the ridge was virtually impossible, and the gully was even worse. After 30 minutes of thrashing around, sweating, and bleeding, I began to loose my motivation. I studied the map, and realized that at the rate I was moving, I’d reach the base of the falls sometime around the middle of the next week. I abandoned the mission, and retreated to the relative safety of the highway. I would like to make another attempt at Tumbling Fun Falls, but next time I think I’ll approach it by heading upstream from the Thompson River.

It was still only mid-afternoon, so I decided to visit one more waterfall before heading home. Tumbling Fun Falls had been an unpleasant experience, and I wanted to finish the day on a high note. We drove up the road a short distance to the Thompson River, which tumbles over White Owl Falls just downstream from the road. I had been to the waterfall before, and I knew it would make a scenic place to end the day’s adventures.

I followed the directions in Kevin Adam’s guide and pulled off the road just before a guard rail not far from the bridge over the river. I descended a culvert and scrambled down some rip rap, but couldn’t find a trail beyond that. The entire area was a jungle. I wandered around through the weeds, and did reach the river just downstream from the highway. I knew the falls were downstream, but I couldn’t find a good way to get there thanks to the undergrowth. I thrashed around for awhile, before giving up and returning to the car. By the time I rejoined Christy there, I was ready to head for home.

That evening, I consulted the first edition of Kevin Adam’s guide, and noticed that he describes the area around White Owl Falls as “extremely overgrown” in the summer. The next time I visit that waterfall, it will be during the cooler months!

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