BLACK ROCK MOUNTAIN STATE PARK IN GEORGIA

Nantahala Overlook on our campsite

Tennessee Rock Trail Overlook

Hot days and cold nights at this high altitude park. We are camped almost at the top of the trees on a ridge in a beautiful, quiet site surrounded by rhododendrons. The only down side is that all the hikes go downhill first.

wildflowers we have not seen before - any ideas?
Hiked a beautiful trail today, the Tennessee Rock, only about four miles but awash with wildflowers. Tomorrow we leave Georgia and move into the Smoky Mountains for about a week, so no internet for a while.

 

GORGEOUS GEORGIA

 

Wild & Scenic Chatooga River at Bull Sluice Rapid

Scarlet Tanager

Vogel State Park, Lake Trahlyta and a resting Roy

Moved over the state line into northern Georgia's oldest state park, beautiful Vogel, located at the base of Blood  Mountain in the Chattahoochee Forest.
 











 

White winged Junco enjoying his lunch with us

on Bear Hair Gap trail - no bears sadly

Pink Lady's Slipper Orchid

Squaw Root

 Hiked Bear Hair Gap trail with wonderful wildflowers and next day trekked part of the Appalachian trail up to Blood Mountain (4458ft). According to legend, a fierce battle between the Creek and Cherokee occured between Blood and Slaughter mountains. The battle raged so long that the streams ran red with blood.
I prefer the other legend about the cave of gold on Blood Mountain. Before the Cherokees were rounded up and sent to Oklahoma, they buried their tribal treasures in a cave atop Blood Mountain. Many searches have been  made but neither gold nor caves have been found.

blood Mountain summit

Blood Mountain trail

Sock Snake!

On the way down we stopped to spend a penny and Roy said - is that a sock on that log? I knew he needed glasses - the "sock"  was a big, fat, black snake sunbathing!
We drove up Brasstown Bald, the highest point in Georgia at 4784ft, surrounded by endless views of hazy mountains in four states.
We are now at Black Rock Mountain State Park, named for its sheer cliffs of dark coloured biotite gneiss ( are you impressed I know this?) It sits astride the Eatern Continental Divide at an altitude of 3,640 feet, the highest state park  in Georgia. Exploring tomorrow!

Brasstown Bald

summit of Brasstown Bald and Roy looking brassed off!

Walasi - Yi Inn on Appalchian trail - hikers who have left their boots!

DeSoto Falls

DeSoto Falls

Roy playing 

 

Helton Creek Falls

Yellow Lady's Slipper Orchid

LAST DAYS IN SOUTH CAROLINA

Yellow Branch Falls

Yellow Branch Falls

Issaqueena Falls

We made the best of two non-stop days of rain by visiting Duke's Energy - World of Energy, a nuclear power station self guided tour - we learnt so much.
The next day we braved the outdoors and went to Oconee Station Historic Site - but stayed dry as the Ranger opened the two houses for us to see. We spent about 2 hours there with another couple from Ohio putting the world to rights as well as hearing from the Ranger about the history of the station. There was a waterfall about 3/4 mile walk away and decided to see it despite pouring rain and puddles you could fall in. We got to within 200 yards and had to turn back as the stream we needed  to cross was so swollen - we heard the falls and saw a glimpse through the trees!
The sun made an appearance next day and we had a lovely hike to Yellow Branch Falls, then re-visited Issaqueena Falls to see the result of all the rain. Just stunning!
Tomorrow we finally move into Georgia.

Oconee Station Historic Site

STORM SCARE AND UPCOUNTRY WATERFALLS, SOUTH CAROLINA

Drove north through South Carolina and stopped the night near McCormick at the side of a lake.
What a scary evening I had, Roy complacent as usual passed it all off as "it'll be fine"
Firstly the radio gave out the usual warning tone which indicates a storm/hurricane/tornado
announcement. They said there was a tornado/storm warning and when we checked on map
which counties, they were ours!
I spent the next 3 hours in a panic, I even got to the stage of assembling the things I would grab and take with me if we had to get out of the trailer. Roy, his usual calm self just said - well its insured!
Thankfully they announced that the tornado warning was over but still cloud to ground lightning - its funny now writing about it but at the time I have to admit I was frightened. We had the TV on and off as the lightning illuminated the night sky. Still we were only watching M.A.S.H. and Columbo! The joys of States TV.
Later that night we saw the news about the floods in Houston and again gave thanks we had once again escaped.
Next morning the Camp Host just laughed when I said about the tornado threat, miles away he said - not enough miles for me!

 

Lake Jocassee

Northbound into Upcountry, South Carolina and spent three days at Devil's Foot State Park on Lake Jocassee. (Called the Lake Tahoe of the east) Visited two real pretty waterfalls and the unfinished Stumphouse Tunnel.  Whitewater Falls (lower) are part of the highest falls in eastern America  and the delicate Issaqueena Falls, named for an Indian maiden who hid on a ledge to avoid capture as she fled to warn her English lover of an Indian attack.

Whitewater Falls

 

 

The ghost of Stumphouse tunnel

Next day we drove to the summit of Sassafras Mountain, 3650ft and South Carolina's highest mountain. We hiked a trail to the top of Twin Falls but got on the wrong one, came across a thin 2ft long black snake blocking our path, then got the right trail and reached the falls
top to find a very small stream with poor views down, so we hiked back to the car, hiked to the base and were amazed by the beautiful Twin Falls that cascaded from that small stream.

Sassafras Mountain

the 2ft black snake

start of Twin Falls

Twin Falls

We moved just a few miles west to Oconee State Park in the Blue Ridge foothills for three days, this whole area recently featured in National Geographic in  "50 of the World's Last Great Places" - "Jocassee Gorges: an intense concentration of waterfalls" - with 150 waterfalls in Oconee County alone, we fell in love with this area.
Is it the rush of the water or the delight to the eye that makes waterfalls so appealing? Maybe it's the effort it takes to see them that adds to the mystique - like you've come upon a treasure that's yours alone. Walks, waterfalls and sprinkles filled our days.

Oconee State Park, Roy re- living his past!

Hidden Falls

Hidden Falls

 Roy says I have to tell everyone that yesterday when we were unloading the shopping from trolley into the trailer - I dropped a full 1 gallon bottle of milk in the entrance to the trailer and it spilt on the mat and gushed down the steps! - Whoops! Of course it was not my fault, he didn't pass it to me properly!

SEA PINES FOREST PRESERVE AT HILTON HEAD ISLAND, SOUTH CAROLINA

Wildflower field

Green Heron

Imagine having these gators on your front lawn!

We returned to Hilton Head Island and spent a wonderful day biking the Sea Pines Forest Preserve. This island is a little gem!
We saw the Indian Shell Ring, a mystery ring of thousands of shells made into a mound. Supposedly 4000 years old it sits silently in the middle of the overgrown forest with its secrets still unknown.

There were alligators, flowers, birds, baseball game, trees, swamps, boardwalks, turtles and endless sunshine - another wonderful day.
So now we finally head north, we have been delaying as the weather has not been good. We will see, probably will not have internet for a week now.

Anhinga

lost on the trails!

Yellow-bellied Turtle

Turtle town

lovely house in the Rice Dike - not lovely in a month infested with mosquitos!

Back to the beach for a late lunch