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Thursday, May 14, 2009

Have I Told You that We LOVE Waterfalls?


One thing which makes our beach trip even more special each year is that we take an extra day driving to and from the beach to search out waterfalls. You aren't going to believe this ---but this year, we saw 35 waterfalls (all but two of them were new). Okay---so you're scratching your head wondering how we could see that many waterfalls in just two days. We got lucky!!!!!!


Going, we saw EIGHT ---and coming home, we saw FIVE ---------------- UNTIL we headed up the mountain (Highway 441) leading from Cherokee, NC to Gatlinburg, TN. We don't usually go that way due to the traffic, but this year (on Mother's Day) ---we decided to take that beautiful trip over the Smoky Mountains toward home.


What we didn't know at the time was that, due to LOTS of recent rains, there would be many wet-weather waterfalls coming down those mountains... Once we saw ONE ---we knew there would be many more. We stopped and took pictures at TWENTY TWO different places, of gorgeous waterfalls and cascades. If we missed one, we turned around and went back. Our poor GPS didn't know what to think!!!! ha....


That will probably never happen again---but seeing that many beautiful waterfalls made Mother's Day one of my all-time favorites!!!!! Thank God for all of the recent rain in this area. Today, I'll show you some of the waterfalls we saw BEFORE we headed over the mountain... (I'll show you some of the 22 sometime--but I promise not to show ALL of them... ha ha)


Above is a waterfall we saw not far from Fontana Village, NC along Lake Cheoah. It's name is Cheoah Falls. Below are more. Be sure and click them to enlarge.







This is Sweet Branch Falls. This one is located not far from Cheoah Falls.









We drove south into South Carolina and back into the woods not far from Westminster, SC. in Oconee County.. Here is where we found another Fall Creek Falls... (Remember that there is a special Fall Creek Falls near us in Tennessee also.) The picture above is Fall Creek Falls. It's pretty but I'm partial to "our" Fall Creek Falls in TN.









This is Upper Fall Creek Falls. which I don't think is as pretty as the lower falls.











Not far from Fall Creek Falls (also in Oconee County, SC) , there are FOUR waterfalls on Brasstown Creek. This is in the Sumter National Forest. The waterfall above is Brasstown Cascades, a 50 foot beauty.







This gorgeous waterfall is named Brasstown Veil (35 feet). It is below Brasstown Cascades.









The third waterfall in this series (35 feet high) is named Brasstown Sluice. The base of the falls is a great swimming place for folks in summer.









This waterfall, called Little Brasstown Falls, is actually ABOVE the other three --and harder to get to. (Ask George--who got his feet wet!!!!! ha).. This waterfall is 40 feet high. Don't you think that these four Brasstown waterfalls are pretty??? We hope to return there sometime.









On our way home from the beach, we stopped by the Dupont State Forest, south of Brevard, NC. There are four of the most gorgeous waterfalls we have ever seen here. We have been there before but only saw two of the four. So we decided to go back!!!!! Above is the first waterfall there, appropriately named Triple Falls. You can see three different cascades dropping down the mountain. This is one that we saw previously.









This is High Falls, also appropriately named. High Falls drops 120 feet. We saw this one previously also.









This is Bridal Veil Falls, one which was new to us this time. Isn't it pretty???? I sat on the rocks below this waterfall just enjoying its beauty.









This is Upper Bridal Veil Falls. This is the location used in "Last of the Mohicans" when the main characters were fleeing from the Indians . They walked UNDER the waterfall to hide. If you ever get a chance to visit the Dupont Forest, please do so. There are plenty of hiking trails in addition to these gorgeous waterfalls.









Finally, on our way from Maggie Valley to Cherokee, NC----we just happened to see this waterfall above. This is Soco Falls, a double cascading waterfall. It is right off of the road--so we just 'lucked' upon it.


Well--if you are still reading, these are the 13 waterfalls we saw BEFORE heading over the mountain. Tomorrow ---I'll show you the other 22...... HA HA HA.... No I won't!!!! I'm afraid I'd lose 99% of my followers if I did that...


Have a wonderful day!!!


Hugs,

51 comments:

RA said...

Beautiful, beautiful waterfalls! LOL, if you decide to do it anyway I would be in the 1% ;). Have a great day, Betsy. Hugs from Indonesia.

Midlife, menopause, mistakes and random stuff... said...

I love waterfall's as well Betsy and these are fantastic snapshots!!
I vould probably never actually pick a favorite but Sweet Branch Falls is calling my name with all of it's charm :)

Steady On
Reggie Girl

Femin Susan said...

Love the shot of that waterfalls.
cheers!

Peggy said...

Betsy you were in my hometown of Brevard. Thats where I was born and raised. Pisgah National Forest has beautiful falls. We always went hiking and picnicing there during the summer. Most times we would cook our supper near a falls to enjoy the beauty and the coolness.

Kathleen McQueen Wright said...

I know the road you were on very well.Oh how I wish I was up there today with my Mom...:(

Dorothy said...

Wonderful pictures of the waterfalls! I've see a few of these and they are so pretty. Have a great day!

Beth said...

I never get tired of your waterfalls, Betsy---I feel refreshed just looking at them! Some of these aren't too terribly far from my home---I see some summer waterfall trips in my future! :-)

Arkansas Patti said...

That first picture captured me but they were all beautiful. Love the Cherokee area. Used to camp at Deep Creek camp grounds and tube the white water.
I grew up on two lakes separated by a waterfalls. We lived on the lower lake so our picture window looked right at the falls which in Spring were fierce and awesome.
So glad you had such an abundance on Mother's Day. Such a treat.

Susie said...

Betsy those are all beautiful! I'm glad you were able to find some new falls to visit.

Martha said...

Hi Betsy
Thank you for visiting our blog - we enjoy having visitors.
You have some lovely waterfall pictures there - we are glad you enjoyed our wee video.
We will make a point of taking more waterfall pictures now!
There are lots and lots of waterfalls in Scotland!
Nice to meet you.
Martha & Bailey's mum xx

Ruth's Photo Blog said...

Bring 'em on Betsy.I love to see all these beautiful falls,and the bonus,it co sts me nothing and I don't get one bit tired from all the walking.LOL Seriously,each picture is so beautiful,perfect for a greeting card or even enlarged to hang on a wall.
Have a most wonderful day,my Friend.
Blessings,Ruth

NCmountainwoman said...

You know I won't ever get tired of seeing your waterfalls. Lovely photos.

Connie said...

Beautiful Falls Betsy. I'm lucky to see one a year so I'm glad to see yours. I know they were beautiful in person.

Welcome Home!!

Deborah Godin said...

You sure did see some beauties. And the notion of them being affected by so much rain it intriguing. Maybe you saw some that don't exist in drier times?

Wendy said...

Oooohhh, Betsy! Those waterfalls are truly magical! And to see some of them on Mother's Day too! Thank you for sharing your pics and your vacation.
Hugs

Busy Bee Suz said...

They are all very pretty and congratulations on breaking some sort of world record for the most fall seen in one week!!!!
Love the brasstown veil...so pretty.

Karin said...

Me too, I'll never get tired of seeing all your waterfall pictures! I just wonder how you find them all. Is there a map you follow for your region? Each cascade or fall is uniquely created - just like snowfalls - no two the same! Oh, oh - now looking at all that rushing water - I gotta go.....

Karin said...

Oops - snowflakes not snowfalls!!! LOL

Mandy said...

I've enjoyed reading your posts for the last three days! I just didn't get around to commenting until today!

I LOVE your blooms and the waterfall shots are great!

We're planning a beach trip for later this summer.

Mandy

Mary said...

These are all gorgeous! With the high water around here, there should be great waterfalls somewhere. All it does is rain, rain, rain.

Anonymous said...

O H M Y G O S H B E T S Y!!! These are beautiful beautiful beautiful! I love them all, but that 1st one is G O R G E O U S!

Becky said...

God has created us such a pretty world. I am glad that you can get out and enjoy it and bring it back here for those that aren't able to see it 1st hand.

I enjoy all of you posts.;)

EG CameraGirl said...

Oh my goodness! You DID see a ton of waterfalls for a perfect Mothers Day.

Dirt Princess said...

I would have to stop and play in every one of them!

Dave's Bird Watching Blog said...

Betsy, no, I never knew you liked waterfalls. You should tell us these things! :-)

Beautiful pictures!!!

Cath said...

I remember visiting waterfalls around Fontana Village with my family as a kid. So neat to see all these! Thanks for sharing them, Bets.

Pat - Arkansas said...

Lovely, loverly!! You won't lose me by posting photos of the other 22! :)

jalynn01 said...

Betsy, Thank you for stopping by my blog. Barb and I have been friends a very long time and have taken many trips together. That waterfall was a total surprise to us. We went down a dirt road looking for water fowl and found butterflies and the waterfall. Yours is gorgeous. Do you also video them? I like to do that and listen to them later. So soothing to the soul.

Anonymous said...

Hi Betsy, What a special gift just for you two to find all these waterfalls!!! I love the Brasstown series of falls. Everything looks so green and lush. I'm thankful for the recent rains.

Jen said...

You guys hit the jackpot of waterfalls this trip!
What a great ride home you must of had!

Pigeon said...

What pretty pictures. You certainly did hit the jackpot this time!

Mary Isabella and Kiley too! said...

I love all the beauty you share with us..m.

Tina said...

lol,,you like water falls..noooo
I'm like Ruth on this one...go ahead and share the other 22..its easy to view them from my chair and laptop..no climbing, no rocky steps or slippery slides to tackle..just my hot tea and maybe some snacks..
and oh yes,,,I can close my eyes and hear all the watery sounds that must be coming from all that falling water :)

Anonymous said...

These photographs are very nice. I can't think of more than one waterfalls in this area. You have many more.

Diane AZ said...

Unbelievably beautiful pictures! Out of this bunch, I like Little Brasstown Falls and Triple Falls the best. I would never get tired of looking at waterfall pictures. :)

Rosa said...

All your photos are beautiful!!!

SmilingSally said...

You've really added some gorgeous pictures to your collection.

Shelley said...

Each of these waterfalls has their own beauty! You & George are the waterfall experts!! Enjoyed these photos! You're making me want to go find some now in the U.P. of Michigan!!

Becca's Dirt said...

Betsy - that is such a lovely display of waterfalls. They are all so beautiful. It would be hard to pick a favorite. Am looking forward to the rest of the photos. Becca

Anonymous said...

Wowzer! They're all beautiful! I especially love the ones in the DuPont Forest.

penny said...

I always loved out trips to N.C. The mountains are so spectacular, especially the waterfalls. Your photos are wonderful, Betsy. You could never lose any follers!
Hugs, Pam

Diane said...

Betsy, It's amazing that they can all look so different, isn't it.

This Is My Blog - fishing guy said...

Betsy: I expected beach pictures but these falls photos are really special.

Joy said...

How in the world. Do you have a waterfall map? Those are just gorgeous and I know you enjoyed every one.


Joy

Unknown said...

Great photos Betsy. The top one is an award winner, and any of them would be frame-able. Of course, there's nothing close to the the "real thing!"

PCovi said...

The most wonderful hobby you guys have!!! Each waterfall is so unique with the mark of Almighty God on them!!!
I could drive that road from Cherokee to Gatlinburg with my eyes closed :) Did you buy a bag of stone ground cornmeal?
Maggie Valley is stunning :) Did you happen to see any Rhododendrons or were they already finished?

lola said...

Loved every one of the pics Betsy. Don't think about not showing them here. I dearly love to see them. I have seen a few around the Cherokee & Cades Cove area. I sure miss that.

Connie said...

Wow, you hit the jackpot with getting to see waterfalls, Betsy! I'm glad to hear you had such a wonderful Mother's Day!

Clara....in TN said...

I'm like Joy. How in the world do you find all of the water falls? Does your GPS find them for you? :) Go ahead show us some more!

Michaela said...

Absolutely fantastic waterfalls and terrific photos! I gotta learn how to shoot waterfalls as well some day, Thanks for sharing!! Greetings from Sweden!
:))

Lagean Ellis said...

Oh, Betsy! These are wonderful! Thank you!
Bring on the other 22. You'll still have 1 follower.
Talk soon!