RATtreks

Camp Creek Falls – 2-14-2013

The Camp Creek Falls has been on my list for quite some time now and I finally got around to making the trip to find them on Valentines Day. My friend Dave had already been there once before a couple years ago and knew the way so I asked him to show me. He is also good at getting permission to cross private property which was required for this particular route we would take to reach the falls however, we were instructed by the property owner that we should not ask again that we should find an alternative route in the future. I had invited Bol’Dar to go with us on this adventure but he was unable to go so Dave and I left Hairnt-Quarters around 9am on a near freezing, frosty morning and arrived at the Baptist Church Camp (The Oaks Retreat) by 10am. After gaining permission to park there we proceeded to walk up the gravel road which eventually becomes a driveway for the private property at the end of the road, we were approached by several large dogs barking loudly and they were definitely on the defensive. We were quickly greeted by the owners grandson who was also defensive and very interested in our business there and asked if we had permission. Dave worked his magic and we were granted access to the property in order to cross and get to the forest service land which lies directly behind the house there. The guy was nice enough after learning we only wanted to see the falls but upon our return did ask that we not come back across his property again in the future to find another way to the falls. We do respect the rights of all property owners and always get permission if possible before crossing any private property because not only is it the right thing to do morally, but is also the legal thing to do. You must also take into consideration the fact that many property owners have blocked all access to so many waterfalls due to people who did not respect the property owners rights by trespassing and others have also trashed some really nice places, not to mention ignoring safety and getting seriously injured or even falling to their deaths resulting in many falls now being off limits to everyone. So, please get permission and always be careful and leave the area the same or better than you found it.

There was a large bulldozer on the property so needless to say there was a very nice trail from there all the way to the forest service property boundary. That point is just after crossing Camp Creek however at that crossing, there is no water. That`s right, not a single drop ! This is an odd phenomena, but I have seen it before. For some reason, the creek actually goes into the ground about a quarter mile or more before it reaches the private property not to be seen again. The old trail that leads up the left side of the creek is not too bad at this point and soon intersects other trails coming in from the left that are all completely on forest service land and will be the way that will have to be taken in the future. One of which is in really bad shape with recent tornado damage and you would not want to use it. The old Camp Creek Trail is just above on the pine tree covered ridge which leads to the top of Greene Mountain where it joins the Greene Mountain Trail but the other end is also very hard to find and will involve private property once again. Just after passing by those other trails, you will hear water in the creek and can follow it all the way to the falls. There is never a lot of water in this creek so I was hoping that due to the current higher water levels that it would make the falls more enjoyable but I was still slightly disappointed at how low the water actually was so the best time would obviously be right after or during a really wet period.

As you can see from the pictures, the trail quickly disintegrates into the creek but there is another piece of trail just over to the left which will allow another quarter mile or so further before eventually crossing the creek is inevitable where you will have to make your way the best you can up the right side across some smooth and some rough sections passing by a large hollow on the right which had no water in it until it feeds you right back into the creek and massive devastation just before reaching what I call ‘the split’ where the second large hollow to the right is which is that of the falls. At this place the creek you have been following will continue straight ahead but the creek coming in to the right is the one the falls are actually on. We could look up and see the bright white of the ice that was frozen in the trees on the high tops of the Greene Mountain above us. There is nothing but huge piles of rocks and boulders and log jams of trees at ‘the split’ and there is no trail on either side of the hollow to the right as the sides are near vertical steep and covered with thick growth including laurel hells, briars and trees of all types. The best choice from here is to simply get in the creek and follow it up all the way to the falls. This is very doable but you must be very careful and choose each step as if it might be your last as some rocks are slick and it is significantly steep for the two tenths of a mile to the base of the falls.

I attempted to get around the cluster of boulders and trees at the split that was obviously a result of recent massive flooding by climbing up the steep ridge on the left hand side. It was there where I ended up breaking my hiking stick which saved me from plummeting down the incredibly steep bank to the creek below. I aborted that direction and found a way to slide down to the creek and realized hiking up the creek was indeed the easiest and safest way to get to the falls. The sun was shining right over the top of the falls in that direction and blinded us anytime we attempted to look up that way. We had to keep our heads down and choose each step wisely as we made out way up and around all the large boulders and huge blow downs that one must manage in order to climb this deep ravine. At this point I was kinda glad there was not a lot of water flowing as it would make it much harder and you would get wet. I was already planning in my mind how I was going to find a better way to reach these falls on any return trips. After climbing a ways we could begin to see the falls and it became apparent that the sun was soon going to move behind the rocky cliffs that sit on the high ridge just to the right side of the top of the falls. This was a relief and as soon as that happened we could finally see the falls.

Due to the extreme steepness and rough terrain, there is really no good or level spots to stand to get a unobstructed view of the falls. I experimented with several places on my way up as I climbed higher and higher and Dave was following along behind me. I ended up near the base on a large downed tree where Dave found a spot just over from me high up on the right side bank. We both setup our tripods and got what pictures we could while we ate our lunch but it was very cold in that ravine now being out of the sun and I could feel the numbness quickly entering my feet and hands to the point where it was hard to operate the camera.  Dave took the time to measure the height of the falls using his hypsometer as they are listed on Landforms at 150 feet but we both knew they were higher. They turned out to be 231 feet of vertical height. While Dave was packing up to get back down to the sunshine at the bottom, I climbed up closer to the base of the falls to get some shots from there where I then made the decision to climb up onto the steep left side ridge and traverse it back down to the split.

I got lucky and found an animal trail of sorts and since I was up much higher on that ridge than I was at the bottom where I had aborted that route earlier, I was able to make my way quickly and easily back down to where Dave was at the split in less than 5 minutes. From there we both had a long rest and snack break while we warmed our cold bodies in the warm sunshine before heading back down the creek the way we had came. I explored a little further up the other creek a ways as I thought I had seen another small frozen falls that morning but it turned out to be nothing and it dead ended at a very steep butt end of a hollow that I would not want to climb. It did not take as long to get back down the creek to the private property since it is all downhill, and we realized just how steep we had climbed all morning. Although it is just over a mile to the split, it is all uphill and the majority is pretty rough going so it feels like you have hiked much farther. It will be even more so the next time since we will not have the luxury of accessing the private property.

We arrived back at the car by 4pm and after a short conversation with one of the managers there, we drove around to the children’s group home and checked out a few roads there to see if we could find where the other trails start. We did get a good view of the entire mountain from the road on our way out but it is hard to tell exactly which hollow the falls are on but I think I figured it out and will continue to research other ways to reach the falls for any trips in the future. I will definitely be coming back here as I was unable to get any photos that I was happy with on this trip. Until next time,,,,

To see the complete collection of photos of the Camp Creek Falls, please visit our Photo Gallery here.