A year or so ago I saw a picture of a waterfall that the photographer said was taken in Abingdon Va. I inquired about where it was located but never got a response. I posted copy of that picture to see if my FB buddies that live in the Abingdon area knew where it was. I got a couple responses saying that it might be out past Whites Mill

Last week a FB buddy posted a picture that looked to be the same waterfall and I got some directions and decided to go this past Saturday afternoon. It was a terrible day for waterfall picture taking but my goal wasn't a good picture, I really just wanted to find it and see if it was worth a trip back in the fall.

I saw the waterfall below from the road as I drove by, but there was no easy way to get to it. And since this wasn't the waterfall I was looking for I kept driving. At the end of the road I turned around and on my way back out I found a place to park and a trail that led toward the waterfall. I took the trail and found a waterfall that was similar to the one I was looking for but wasn't it. I took a quick iPhone pic for evidence then got back on the trail and it led on to the bottom of the waterfall I saw from the road.

I rumbled, bumbled and stumbled down the bank and climbed up on a big rock below the waterfall. It was so muggy down in that gorge that I only stayed long enough to get one bracket.

 

Private Waterfall in Abingdon

On my way back to the truck I saw the 'private property' sign nailed to a tree that I had walked right by on my way in. Had I seen the sign on my way in I wouldn't have continued. I'll definitely need to get permission before I go back.

Fireworks

Here's 4 of the pics I took from our back deck of the Pepsi Fireworks show at Freedom Hall ... beverage in one hand camera remote in the other ...

Rosebay

This past Saturday morning I went back - a third time in June - to Dennis Cove falls to see if the rhododendrons were blooming at the falls. There were some blooms but a lot more buds that had not opened fully ... krep. I guess the late frost that happened up in the cove has the blooming season all mucked up. Oh bother. 

We any way, I was there, and I already have lots of pictures of the falls so instead of taking some more like the other ones, I captured about 50 pictures intending to try to make a short time lapse video. That didn't turn out too well because my pictures weren't spaced far enough apart to show any real movement ... I'll know better next time.

But I had an idea ... you've seen star trails where folk take several long exposures of the night sky and use software to stack the images into a single file. In my head I figured the flotsam on the water could make scum trails as they swirled around, but in reality they didn't. I used CS5 to stack the images and this is what I ended up with ... it's kinda interesting, but not special. Again, the answer is much longer exposures.

scum trail fail

Here are two proper pictures I made of the rosebay rhododendron at the falls, not in full bloom yet but still very pretty.

Grotto Falls on Dads Day

We made a camping trip to SV/PF/GB over father's day weekend, after a nice lunch at No Way Jose's in GB we rode the Roaring Fork Motor Trail back toward SV, with a stop-over about half way for take in the Grotto Falls. The hiking guides all said it was a moderate hike of 2.8 miles round trip, and I agree with their assessment. The trail was nice and wide with plenty of roots and stones to keep you paying attention. And it was uphill, all the way, to the top ...

The following pictures were processed in a new way for me. I used Lightroom v4.1's new ability to handle handle 32-bit files in concert with Photoshop's 'Merge to HDR Pro' option to handle the 3-bracket heavy lifting.

From a distance ... all the folk finally cleared out.

just the falls ... please

small fall just a little ways downstream from grotto

The next two are HDs, just normal pictures.

my herd o' womens behind the falls

rosebay rhododendrons on the way back down the trail

Favorite

In my continuing effort not to miss the rhododendron bloom at my favorite waterfall, I took the herd on a Sunday afternoon trek to the upper falls in Dennis Cove. The falls themselves are stunning and the setting is incredible, but it's the trek getting to the falls that make it such a cool place. We only saw a handful of blooms on the trip in. I missed the height of the bloom last year by a week or so, I don't want a repeat this year ... I'll try to try again this coming weekend.

Upper Dennis Cove Falls

I've mentioned in earlier posts that there are three creek crossings that must be negotiated on the trip. None of the crossings have a bridge. The first one is under the cable that marks the beginning of the 'artificial-only' section of the river. Sometimes there's a log across the creek and you can use the cable for balance ... if the log is missing you can wade across or - if you're shaped differently than I am - you can hand-line across on the cable. If you trek with a vertically-challenged crew like I do you can toss a rope or tripod carry strap over that cable when you can't reach it ....

The second crossing can normally be done with a good bit of rock hopping, but this trip the creek was still up too much for that ... we waded across.

The third crossing is potentially the worst because you cross on rocks that form a waterfall of about 5 ft high. As long as the rocks are dry it's not hard, but if the rocks are wet, they will be slippery and that makes the crossing a much more technical feat. It's one thing to risk taking a header into the water but I won't take many chances with a backpack full of photo equipment. There's usually a log across the widest portion of the creek but this time it had moved parallel to the creek making it useless for crossing the creek. A nice family of three (the Shiners from JC) came along right behind us and the other guy and I managed to wrestle the log back into it's normal resting place ... excellent.

The falls are tucked into a horseshoe that is surrounded by rhododendron, and when they are in bloom it is a visually stunning sight ... the shiny green leaves, the pink and white blooms, the browns and blacks of the rocks, and the white of the falls. The pool at the base is a popular swimming hole, and diving off the rock on the right is popular with folk that swim there.

On the way out we side tripped to the top of the upper falls and to the lower falls, both are worth the effort.

Lower Dennis Cove Falls

The lower falls aren't as big as the upper falls but the pool at the base is shallow with some great colored rocks on the bottom, and it's quite popular with trout fishing people. If you look above and to the right of the falls you can see the top of the upper falls through the trees.

Day Trip

On our long weekend getaway to SV/PF/GB we took an afternoon trip to Clingman's Dome. The last time we were there Emily was in a stroller and I carried Elizabeth up the mountain on my shoulders. 

We made a slight detour on the way through Sevierville to stop at the New Salem Baptist Church. I saw an article last week about the restoration effort, so I figured it needed it's picture taken. According to the sign out front: it was built in 1886 by African-American brick-mason Isaac Dockery, and now listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It's the oldest remaining building in Sevierville and the second oldest church in the county. The church was built in 1886 for the local black community and remains Dockery’s most significant building. The Gothic Revival-style church was originally constructed as a Union church, which welcomed all religious denominations.

 

New Salem Baptist Church 6449 Henry Town Rd

Did I mention is was wicked hot in Sevierville when we left? The temp dropped from 93 in Gatlinburg to 63 when we got to the parking lot on top of the mountain ... 30 wonderful degrees. Aside from the views of the mountains, the most striking aspect of the area is all the dead fir trees. Imported beetle bugs are killing them. The grey-white trunks are striking against the greens and blues and browns.

Dead fir trees half-way up the mountain.

We finished the trek up the hill to the Dome. It was cool and breezy which felt great after the past few days of 90+ heat in the valley. We watched a rainstorm blow across the valley. The girls took some iPhone panoramas. I took this pic on the way down. See the guy in blue at the bottom of the ramp? He must have thought I was taking his picture ... he stopped, smiled, and held the pose until I moved ...xcllnt.

Clingman's Dome

We got back to the camper just in time for this post-rain-storm sunset reflection on the river. The clouds were moving pretty fast and the river was perfectly calm, so I knew this shot wasn't going to last very long ... I quickly set up, framed the shot, and just as I went to click the shutter ... a large couple in an inflatable raft came paddling (more like waddling) up the river, right through the center of the reflection. Son of a ...

I waited as long as I could for the water to settle down but the color was changing and the clouds were starting to cover the sun, so I took this one which has a lovely crease in the center of the reflection ... oh bother.

Pigeon River sunset

Laurel Fork

I keep reading posts saying that the rhododendron along the parkway are in bloom. I really want to get back to Upper Dennis Cove falls when the rhododendron are in full bloom. I made another trip back to the cove Sunday afternoon to check on the progress ... and ... nothing. The rhododendron are just now putting out new leaves, there are a few flower buds, but no flowers.

I walked in to the first creek crossing and came back, the creeks still a bit high, and cold, and I didn't feel like wading across if the blooms are still weeks away.  I took this picture on the way out.

It's a  noisy cascade about a 100 yards downstream from the crossing, down a side trail made by the folk what fish for trouts. It was bright and sunny everywhere except down in this little corner, and I got lucky that the one cloud in the sky covered the sun for the couple of minutes I needed to take the picture. The water is not very clear right now, it's not muddy, just has a rusty tint to it.