RATtreks

Huntfish Falls (NC) – 6-7-2012

On June 7, 2012 my waterfall crazy friend Dave Aldridge invited me to go along with him to a waterfall in North Carolina called Huntfish Falls. It’s not that we have ran out of waterfalls to see here in TN (well Dave probably has) but due to low water levels and other issues, we have decided to start exploring the multitude of falls that North Carolina has to offer. We are fortunate to live so close to this area with only an hour + drive to reach them, and there are several waterfalls all very close together that one can see more than one on each trip. All are very nice and Huntfish falls are no exception. They are located in one of the many gorges just North of the Linville gorge on the Little Lost Cove Creek. We left Hairnt-quarters around 8:30 am and reached the trail head around 10:30 am. I noticed the circular white blaze on the sign and the trees along with the yellow blazes but I would not learn until later that we were actually hiking on the Mountains To Sea Trail.

Huntfish Falls (NC) Photo by Dave Aldridge

It was all downhill on a very nice trail through various tree types as we made our way down towards the bottom of the gorge where the main creek was. The Rhododendron were in full bloom. The trail follows a small stream that slowly grows larger as it makes it way down beside the trail. By the time we came out at the bottom and made our way over to the waterfalls there, that small stream ended up as a feeder falls that was over 90 feet high ! The Huntfish falls are not very high at only about 10 or 15 feet each but,  they are wide and very nice. There is no mention that I have seen of this nearly 100 foot tall feeder falls there beside them ! With all the green growth and the bright sun it was impossible to get any really good pics but that did not stop us from trying nor did it prevent us from fully enjoying this beautiful area.

92′ tall feeder falls at base of Huntfish Falls (Photo by Dave Aldridge)

Huntfish Falls

Huntfish Falls

The falls are a double set with the lower half emptying into a very wide and large pool that was very clear and inviting. I can tell this would be a great place to come and swim during the summer months. We stayed there for quite awhile waiting on some clouds to come over but although there were a few thin ones, the only dark ones were well off in the distance and would not be making it there by the time we had to leave.After taking several pictures and eating our lunch, we decided to follow this nice trail a bit further to see if there were any more falls or cascades downstream. We could see some elevation drops just downstream from the falls and could hear something that sounded significant, but after following the trail a short ways we quickly learned it gained elevation well above the creek level in the gorge. We backtracked and made our way down to the creek and I followed it a short ways to see what the racket was while Dave waited on me. What I found was a couple of small cascades and a rather large rock cliff on the trail side which was nice to see but hardly worth the effort it took to do so. I found out later that the nice trail that continued down the gorge was the MST.

Upper part of Huntfish Falls (Photo by Dave Aldridge)

Lower part of Huntfish Falls (Photo by Dave Aldridge)

Huntfish Falls

Huntfish Falls

After returning back to the falls, we seen a gentleman taking a  break at the pool below the falls. He was sporting a rather large backpack so it made us wonder just where this trail would lead to. We talked about the possibility of it being the MST but still were not sure, but I would find out later that indeed it was. Now I am wanting to do some miles on that trail in the near future. I have been a member of the Carolina Mountain Club for 21 + years and they have been very instrumental in helping to build and finish that trail. I can`t wait to hike it. We checked out the creek area above the falls where we discovered another trail that went across the creek and up the ridge there before beginning our ascent back up the trail we came down on. It is just over a mile back to the top but it did not take as long as I thought it would before we were back at the car and on our way to the nearest barbeque joint to eat some good food before I had to get home in time for work. We were already planning our next trip back to this same area for the next week to the North Harper Creek gorge on the opposite side of the road. Stay tuned,,,,,

Dave standing near Huntfish Falls

Large cascades located just downstream from Huntfish Falls (lower part)

Cascades located just downstream from Huntfish Falls (upper part)

To see the complete set of photo`s of these falls please visit our photo gallery here.