Posts Tagged ‘Waterfalls’

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An Unexpected Surprise

April 27, 2009
Possum Falls, Dunlap, Tennessee. April 21, 2009.

Possum Falls, Dunlap, Tennessee. April 21, 2009.

In my previous post I mentioned a nice surprise that Betsy and I encountered while driving on the interstate.  Today I would like to share a pleasant surprise we encountered on a back road.

We came back from Texas on Monday and Tuesday, April 20 and 21.  We got as far as Fort Payne, Alabama Monday night and, since we had to go near Fall Creek Falls State Park (our special place) on April 21 in order to get home, we decided to stop by the park on the way.  So we asked our GPS to take us by the shortest route (which usually means back roads) and off we went.

We were going up the Escarpment when Betsy called out that she had seen a waterfall along the road.  So we turned around and went back to a pull-off where we found the waterfall shown in the picture above.  Research after we got home told us that this is Possum Falls, an 80-foot fall near the road.  This was a waterfall that we hadn’t known about until we stumbled upon it.

An added bonus was two more waterfalls in the next couple of miles on this back road.

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Posted in Waterfalls | 14 Comments »

Watery Wednesday # 32

April 22, 2009
Fall Creek Falls, Tennessee. April 21, 2009.

Fall Creek Falls, Tennessee. April 21, 2009.

This is my post for Watery Wednesday, a weekly meme created and hosted by 2sweetnsaxy of Eyes Mind Heart.  To see more of our beautiful watery world, or to join and post your pictures to share, click HERE.

As I mentioned in my last post, Betsy and I went to Texas over the weekend to see our granddaughters play softball.  We didn’t see any softball games but we did see plenty of rain.  So we had a very watery weekend.

The picture above was taken yesterday (Tuesday) on our way home from Texas.  This is one of our very favorite spots — Fall Creek Falls here in Tennessee.

Since Tuesday was April 21, we just had to stop by to see these falls.  Betsy and I went to Fall Creek Falls State Park on April 21, 2001.  It was our fourth date, but the first on which we spent the whole day together.  We went to see waterfalls (there are five in the park).

Although that day was the beginning of our waterfall collection, the waterfalls were definitely only the second best thing about the day.  The best thing about that day eight years ago was that I got to kiss Betsy for the first time.

Now that is something to remember!

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Posted in Watery Wednesday | 26 Comments »

Garvan Woodland Gardens

April 11, 2009

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I’m beginning to feel as if I’m moving backward with my to-do lists.  I’m now spending more time out in the yard.  That’s something I thoroughly enjoy, but it means I’m getting further and further behind on working on my  pictures.  I still haven’t gotten through all the pictures we took when we went to Arkansas .  Hopefully I can get them done before Christmas!

I’ve mentioned a couple of times that we went to Garvan Woodland Gardens near Hotsprings, Arkansas.  We went there because our Arkansas waterfall book had a listing for a waterfall in the garden.  The gardens are the botanical garden of the University of Arkansas and are well worth a visit if you are in the area.

The collage above is made up of the waterfall and several of the other streams and cascades in the gardens.  The streams were almost as pretty as the flowers.

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Posted in Travels | 14 Comments »

Watery Wednesday # 30

April 7, 2009
The American Falls at Niagara. October 25, 2008.

The American Falls at Niagara. October 25, 2008.

This is my post for Watery Wednesday, a weekly meme created and hosted by 2sweetnsaxy of Eyes Mind Heart.  To see more of our beautiful watery world, or to join and post your pictures, click HERE.

As a couple that collects waterfalls, we have been to Niagara Falls twice.  We first visited Niagara Falls in August of 2002, when we spent several days in Canada enjoying the falls and the sights from the Canadian side.

The picture above was taken in October, 2008.  Betsy and I had gone to Buffalo to visit my daughter and her husband and we went to Niagara Falls State Park to see the falls.  It had been raining off and on during the day and there was actually more water going over the falls than we had seen back in 2002.  There was so much water that the mist almost completely obscures the rocks at the base of the falls.

The American Falls is 1060 feet across and has a height of 176 feet, although the rocks at the base reduce the actual fall off water to about 70 feet.  The amount of water going over the falls varies due to two hydroelectric power plants which draw water into their reservoirs above the falls.  However, one fifth of all the fresh water in the world lies in the four upper Great lakes (Superior, Michigan, Huron and Erie) and all the outflow empties into the Niagara River and eventually cascades over Niagara Falls.  It’s quite a sight!

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Posted in Watery Wednesday | 24 Comments »

Shunkawauken Falls

April 6, 2009
Shunkawauken Falls, Columbus, North Carolina. May 20, 2008.

Shunkawauken Falls, Columbus, North Carolina. May 20, 2008.

My last post showed a view of the western North Carolina countryside from White Oak Mountain.  In the post I mentioned that there was a waterfall behind me as I took that picture.  So I thought I would show you the waterfall today.

Shunkawauken Falls consists of multiple drops and cascascads totaling hundreds of feet, but it is impossible to see the entire falls from a single  vantage point.  The falls is mostly on private land, but the 150 foot drop shown above is the main fall in the upper drop and is visible from  White Oak Mountain Road.

The waterfall was known as Horse Creek Falls until 1891, when the name was changed to honor an Indian chief from the area.

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Posted in Waterfalls | 20 Comments »

A Little Bit of Heaven

March 30, 2009
The view from Ed's Mill Cabin. March 26, 2009.

The view from Ed's Mill Cabin. March 26, 2009.

Imagine that you like waterfalls and have the opportunity to wake up in the morning, walk into the living room and see the view in the picture above.  (The picture can be enlarged if desired).

That’s exactly the situation Betsy and I found ourselves in over the weekend.  Last November we found a rental cabin in what had once been an old mill.  The cabin was in the Smokies at the base of a waterfall.  There wasn’t much water going over the falls in November, but we knew right away that we would want to go back.

We spent three nights at Serenity Falls and never got tired of watching the water cascade down the falls.  The window in our bedroom overlooked the creek below the falls and we slept with the window open so we could hear the water rushing over the rocks.  What more could two waterfall enthusiasts ask for?

Although we had some rain while we were in the Smokies it didn’t stop us from getting out an doing some hiking.  A high point (in more ways than one) was a 2.2 mile hike up into the mountains to see Hen Wallow Falls.  We were also able to check out a few smaller falls in the area, but we’ve left some bigger falls unseen so we have an excuse to go back in the future!

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Posted in Waterfalls | 24 Comments »

I May Have Jinked Us

March 26, 2009
Cabin at the base of Serenity Falls, Great Smoky Mountains. November 10, 2008.

Cabin at the base of Serenity Falls, Great Smoky Mountains. November 10, 2008.

Last November Betsy and I spent a couple of days on the eastern side of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.  While searching for waterfalls we came across the cabin in the picture above, which is located at the base of Serenity Falls.  In November there wasn’t much water going over the falls, but the setting was so nice that we decided we would like to go back when there was more water.

Well, we made reservations a couple of weeks ago and are going back there later today.  But then Tuesday night I posted a picture of Betsy in the rain at a waterfall.  It started raining early Wednesday morning and has been raining fairly steadily ever since.  The weather forecast says that it will rain through Saturday.  I might come back home with several more pictures of Betsy in the rain.

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On a more serious note, today is Purple Day, a day to increase awareness of Epilepsy.  The writer of one of my favorite blogs, Michele at Rocky Mountain Retreat, has to live with this disease.  She recently suffered from a series of seizures which left her hospitalized.  Fortunately Michele is doing much better now.  Michele is a very talented photographer who posts marvelous pictures on her blog.  Stop by her site — you’ll be glad you did.

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Posted in Travels | 26 Comments »

Watery Wednesday # 28

March 24, 2009
Betsy at Lower Lula Falls. March 29, 2008.

Betsy at Lower Lula Falls. March 29, 2008.

Watery Wednesday is a weekly meme created and hosted by 2sweeetnsaxy of Eyes Mind Heart.  It celebrates our wonderful wet world.  To see more pictures or to post your own, click HERE.

I thought the picture above definitely qualified for Watery Wednesday.  Betsy and I try to do our hiking when it’s not raining, but we’re not always successful.  This picture was taken at Lula Falls near Chattanooga, Tennessee.  As you can see, not only was there a pretty waterfall (Lower Lula Falls), but it was pouring down rain.  We definitely got our share of water that day!

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Posted in Watery Wednesday | 31 Comments »

Falls Creek Falls

March 16, 2009
Falls Creek Falls, Lake Catherine State Park, Arkansas. March 9, 2009.

Falls Creek Falls, Lake Catherine State Park, Arkansas. March 9, 2009.

On my birthday Betsy and I were able to do some hiking in beautiful 80° weather.  We got to western Arkansas fairly early in the day and went to St. Catherine State Park (near Hot Springs)  to check out a waterfall, Falls Creek Falls.

Falls Creek Falls is used to advertise Arkansas State Parks, so we were interested in seeing it.  Of course, there was also something of a personal connection as well.  Our ‘special’ place is Fall Creek Falls here in Tennessee, so we were eager to see what that extra ‘s’ would mean.  Actually, I guess we’re just gluttons for punishment, having to keep Fall Creek Falls separate from Falls Creek Falls!

We had a nice hike of just under a mile from the parking area to the falls.  Much of the trail followed the shore line of Lake Catherine,  which made for a nice hike.  Once we got to the falls we were able to enjoy the falls and the setting.

You can enlarge the collage above to get a better view of our visit to Falls Creek Falls.

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Posted in Waterfalls | 21 Comments »

Riding With Us Can Be An Adventure

March 2, 2009
Dunn's Falls, Enterprise, Mississippi. April, 2008.

Dunn's Falls, Enterprise, Mississippi. April, 2008.

Traveling with Betsy and me can be an exciting adventure.  We like to take back roads whenever possible, but even when we drive the interstate unexpected adventures can occur.

Last April Betsy and I drove to Texas to visit her two sons who lived near Houston and Galveston at the time.  We invited Betsy’s third son, Jeff, who lives in Chattanooga to go along with us so he could visit his brothers.

Because of the length of the trip we decided to take the fastest route, which meant we were on the interstate from Chattanooga to Houston.  The ride was very uneventful until we got near Enterprise, Mississippi.  We were tooling along (at the speed limit) when we saw one of those brown attraction signs that said ‘Dunns Falls.

We looked at each other and wondered aloud if Dunns Falls could be a waterfall — we didn’t have any Mississippi waterfalls in our collection.  We didn’t have much time to make a decision, but deciding that a town with that name would be on a green sign, we turned off the interstate and began following the signs.

I’m not sure what Jeff thought, but after about ten minutes we arrived at Dunns Falls Water Park.  From the road all we could see was a large pond and what appeared to be a grist mill.  But nothing ventured, nothing gained.  We paid the small entrance fee, entered the park and found the waterfall pictured above.  Another beauty for our collection.

If you would like to see more pictures of Dunns Falls, click HERE.

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Just a reminder that you are invited to visit my photo blog, Photos by Senior Hiker, by clicking HERE.

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Posted in Waterfalls | 23 Comments »

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