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Tuesday, May 31, 2011

Trip to Bald River Falls

I am lucky to live in beautiful East TN. When the days are hot or boring you can jump in the car and 25 miles to the east are the mountains and a pretty waterfall. It is always cooler there. The kids and I packed a lunch and off we went to Tellico, the Cherokee National Forest and Bald River Falls... those are the Smoky Mountains in the distance.
You drive a winding tree enshrouded route to the falls, park the car and walk to the bridge. This is my daughter, son and grandson.
This is the view of the falls from the bridge..those small pink dots on the rocks to the right of the falls are 2 crazies that hiked over there..quite a feat and dangerous because it is wet and slippery and if you get hurt it would be hard to get you out and it is quite a trip to the hospital!
There is a trail you can hike to the top of the falls. The footing is rocky and uneven but it is easy enough for a 2 year old to hike it..steepish bits, some wiggly stairs and a bridge.
Pretty moss and ferns..
At the top there is a pool above the head of the falls..the water was pretty cold yet but not horrible.
Great for rock skipping..
The river that feeds the falls..
Where you see the water end is where it drops over to the falls. I never let my kids get anywhere near close..I am a total worrywart!
I found out after I took this pic that there was 2 copperhead snakes in the tree behind me. One of the other hikers said they were humping..definately entangled ..at least snuggling! Copperheads are poisonous so I was not reaaaaally amused. I took a pic but you really can't see them through the leaves..they were probably 3 foot long...I did not get too close!
More scenery..I think this would be a gorgeous place to get your senior pictures done.
We sat on a huge fallen log and ate our picnic lunch ( I looked for snakes first).
Some kids that were up there swimming/wading with their parents.
More falls...
I climbed out on a rock to get this one which is big for me because heights and depths totally skeeve me out! This is looking down over the falls.
Last pic..there is a swimming area a ways down the road. My 8 yr old was so mad at me for not letting him swim across the river to get on the rope swing in that tree. He is a beginning swimmer and the river was over his head in the middle and under the tree but he was SURE he could do it. He pouted until we got back to Tellico and bought shakes at Hardees. There were also crazy teens jumping off a bridge and a lot of people tubing and rafting the river..that looked fun..the tubing not the bridge jumping! It was a nice afternoon and we plan to go back again this summer (or the 8 yr old will drive me nuts!) Hope you had a great Memorial Day weekend! Til next time! Julia

3 comments:

My Life Under the Bus said...

LOL!!! This sounds like a very dangerous post - I am sure I should have been wearing a hard hat, roping,gloves and an antivenom kit whilst reading it! From the dangerous heights to the copperheads to people jumping off of things you are lucky to have made it home lol!!! Stay safe : )

Mary Marcotte said...

I wish I could join you! The photos look like you all were having so much fun. I remember those days when our boys were young and we had to do "guy stuff" on the weekend. Back then I was more outdoorsy....it was part of survival! Today, I'd rather be quilting than hiking, but an occasional trek in a cool wooded area could be a welcome break.

Rhonda said...

Came across your post via a google search for images of the Bald River hiking trail. Great photos!
It's interesting to see how others view our town and outlying area. The "teenagers jumping off a bridge" comment made me smile. That's a very popular spot for the local kids...including mine when they were younger, lol. I'm glad you all had a great day :)