waves

You must live in the present, launch yourself on every wave, find your eternity in each moment. 
--Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862) American author and philosopher. 

Above: Detail of Elk River at sunset.

elk river

No man ever steps in the same river twice, for it's not the same river and he's not the same man.
--Heraclitus (c. 535 – c. 475 BC) Greek philosopher

Buffalo Treks: Elk River Falls, Grandfather Mountain and the Blue Ridge Parkway

This post is written especially for Milligan College students who stop and ask me..."Where should we go this weekend?"  With fall break beginning today, I recommend a trip to Grandfather Mountain and the Blue Ridge Parkway. It's your best chance to find fall colors at this point in October -- and it's all within 60 miles! Click here for map.

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To get there from Milligan...

1. First Stop Elk River Falls: Head through Elizabethton turn Right on 19E and follow this for 23 miles through the towns of Roan Mountain, TN to Elk Park, NC.  (Note that 19E becomes Rt. 194 in NC.)
2. At Elk Park, turn left onto Old Mill Road (you'll see a sign to Elk River Falls), after a 1/4 mile, turn left again onto Elk River Road, and take this road 4.2 miles to the falls.  It's a short hike down to the falls. Click here for more information and discussion of this majestic waterfall.
3. Next Stop, Grandfather Mountain: Once back out on Rt. 194 in Elk Park, drive 7 miles. At the town of Linville, NC, turn left onto Rt. 181 (you'll find a Subway and Flick Video on this corner) and drive 4.1 miles.
4. You'll come to an intersection where you could turn left on 105 and go to Boone or drive straight, staying on 181, and head towards Grandfather Mountain. Go straight and drive 2 miles to the entrance to Grandfather Mountain. There is a $15 per person entrance fee to get into Grandfather. It's worth it because you can spend an entire day exploring the mountain. Besides the Mile-High Swinging Bridge and the Nature Habitats, there are also some amazing hiking trails there.
5. Final Stop, Rough Ridge Overlook: After Grandfather Mountain Park, continue driving on Rt. 181 for 1 additional mile and you'll reach the entrance to the Blue Ridge Parkway take the entrance ramp and stop at the stop sign.
6. From here, turn left and drive 2.7 miles, and you'll pass by Stack Rock Overlook (it's okay, but I'd keep going) and then the Visitors Center to Linn Cove Viaduct (There's a gift shop and restrooms there, and also a neat trail that winds around under the viaduct), followed by a couple more overlooks.  I recommend coming back to the viaduct trail if time allows, but our third destination is Rough Ridge Overlook.  The parking area for this will be on your left at Mile #302.8. Rough Ridge offers the best views of the viaduct -- as well as panoramic views of the mountains in every direction. A half mile hike takes you to a wooden platform, but don't stop there, go another half mile and the views keep getting better.  



View of Linn Cove Viaduct from Rough Ridge

7. Continue driving on the Parkway and you'll find more to explore....

Boone Fork Parking Area (the entrance point to many trails)
Price Lake (rent a canoe or hike the 2 mile trail that circles the lake)
Moses Cone Estate (miles of great trails)

Hope this helps you have a memorable fall break...have fun!

Experiment.

Don't be too timid and squeamish about your actions. All life is an experiment.
--Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882) American philosopher and writer

This was a very blah-gray winter photo that I jazzed up (I can't wait for color to return to our world!) The waterfall above is of one of the most visited, and most spectacular in our area, Elk River Falls. It's also one of the most easily accessible falls, click here for directions.

be you

Be who you are and be that well.
--St. Francis de Sales

Elk River Falls

Took a quick trip to Elk River Falls this past weekend -- what an impressive waterfall! It's also one of the easiest to visit in our area. Follow the signs and drive 4.5 miles off of 19E in Elk Park, NC -- and then it's just a 400 yard hike (although it's a bit steep and can be slippery after a rain). Click here to see more photos and to get more detailed directions.

Elk River Falls

Here are a couple shots from Elk River Falls taken last week. Even with very little rain, this 50 foot high waterfall is still very impressive. It's also an easy one to get to: just five miles off of Route 19E in Elk Park, NC and a very short hike and you're there. If you're wanting to photograph this waterfall, you'll need to get there in the morning on a cloudy day. This waterfall is completely exposed to the sun, so to avoid 'hot spots' on the photo, you'll need a day with diffused light. Click here to see another photo, to get directions and to read about a recent tragedy at this waterfall.

Elk River Falls

Elk River Falls (aka Elk Falls and Big Falls) is awesome and amazingly accessible. It is one of the easiest waterfalls to visit in the area. I'm not sure if you can tell from the photos here, but it's a very powerful and large waterfall. Even in time of drought, there is decent flow. Today the water had a striking blue-green tint. The other times, especially after a hard rain, the water has been murky.

Elk Falls in autumn.

Photography: Photographing this 50 foot waterfall is always a challenge because it's very much exposed to the sun, which tends to cause "hot spots" and overexposure problems (see the top of the falls in the photo above). It's best to come on a cloudy morning.

Nearby Waterfall: From where you park at Elk River Falls, you can also hike to beautiful Jones Falls. I really recommend visiting Jones, it's a stunning and often overlooked waterfall in our region -- but it's a 'low flow' waterfall, so visit after a time of heavy rains.  While Twisting/Compression Falls is downstream from Elk River Falls, it's quite a distance and would require driving.

Directions: Take 19e to Elk Park, NC (just over the border from Roan Mountain, TN), turn north onto Old Mill Road, and after 1/4 mi. turn north again onto Elk River Road. Take this for approx. 4 miles until the road dead ends at the falls. It's a short 1/4 mile hike to the base of the falls. The first part of this little hike is level and then a steep, but quick descent to the falls.

Update, 6/26/07: Just read the sad news of a 16-year-old Elizabethton, TN boy who drowned after jumping from the top of the falls and being pulled under by the currents. It's a terrible tragedy and my heart goes out to his family. If you visit this waterfall, please take a moment to remember Chad Hicks and encourage others to respect and appreciate the power of the churning produced by a waterfall of this size. Read my Warnings, Safety Tips and Disclaimers.

Update 5/30/10: Another tragic death at Elk River Falls, a 40 year old man drown after either diving or falling 50 feet into the water. The sad details, here and here. Please urge others not to risk their lives by jumping from this waterfall. See the comments below for a discussion of the danger presented by this waterfall.