The falls is really two separate falls formed by two separate streams that just happen to come within 50 feet of each other before they form the falls.
We did a scenic drive along the ridge of the mountains, we ended up crossing the Appalachia Trail three different times and then we came to the ‘DIRT ROAD”. The dirt road, why there’s nothing wrong with driving on a dirt road, even when it turns into a tiny little dirt road. Even when it turns into a tiny little dirt trail, which when you round the bend it stops at a creek, you look across this 25 foot creek and see that it comes out on the other side and continues. I should mention that two days earlier we had an all day down pour where we got about 2 ½ inches of rain and this little creek was running pretty damn fast and maybe a little deep. After a few seconds of thought I figured why not the road goes right through it, I started to inch out into the steam and when I felt the rear wheels enter the creek I also started to fell the front wheels sinking, doing what any macho man would do I put it to the floor and pointed it straight ahead, about 3/4 ‘s of the way across a wave of white water washed across the hood and I held it to the floor until we were launched out of the creek onto the other side. I pulled up about 30 feet and stopped to let the steam escape from the front of the car and to unwind my nerves, I got out of the car and saw a BIG Jeep pulling out of the stream, it was the mail lady, she stopped and told me that she wasn’t going to try crossing the stream today because the water was too high and too fast, but then see saw me make it and figured she wouldn’t have any problem, then she told me that there was a little bigger steam to cross a few hundred yards down the road, then just like that she smiled and drove away. OK now we’re approaching the second stream and I figured that I would take a good look at it and give it a thought or two, The trail made a sharp right turn and the bank was high enough that you could not see the stream over it so I decided to make the turn and see what it looked like, big mistake, it was wide, it was fast, it was deep, no way, nota, not me, I’m going to show a little sense and back up out of her and tackle the stream that I have already conquered. Wrong, I put in reverse and all it did was slip on the steep rocky embankment (damn front wheel drive) it actually started to slid forward so macho man to the rescue again, Slam it in first gear and stomp it to the floor again, this time when we reached the ¾ mark, with the familiar white water wave coming across the hood the front end didn’t start to sink instead the entire car started to slow, all I can say is that I’m not divorced so we made it to the other side. A few more miles and we were at the trail head for Helston’s Falls.
This is the Lower Falls, two years ago I was standing right in the middle of these falls and I was dry (right about in the middle of the picture where the water is shooting straight up) this shows how much a big storm can increase the water flow.
This is the upper falls which is about 50 yards up from the lower falls.
This is where I walked out a little bit to look over the top of the lower falls, if I was brave I would have slide down the falls.
What better place to end today’s adventure then at a grave, as long as it’s not mine, this is Trahlyta's grave and you can ready about it in the photo of the sign.
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