More Waterfalls in Oconee County, SC: Spoonauger, King Creek, Rileymoore & Issaqueena Falls

Spoonauger Falls, King Creek Falls, Rileymoore Falls, Issaqueena Falls

Mountain Rest, SC – 6/5/20

Cruising back roads in the left elbow of South Carolina today, we conquered three waterfalls and glimpsed a fourth over the shoulders of too many people (and called it good enough). For all y’all following along, I’m working my way through the Carolina Mountain Club’s Waterfall 100 Challenge (WC 100). Most of the entries are in NC and information is easily obtainable via Kevin Adams’ book North Carolina Waterfalls and website. The SC entries take a little more work but are worth the effort.

I rely on official sources but I also like to read blogs about places I’m interested in. The most current blog posts can verify and/or update the official sources. Three or more sources give me a picture of what to expect (or not) when I get on the trail. Some other favorites:

Oconee SC Waterfalls

Upstate South Carolina waterfall map 

NC Waterfalls - a terrific site for waterfalls in SC as well as NC

Brenda Wiley - Crazy good HIKING section with detailed trip reports, photos and elevation profiles and GPS tracks for download

Waterfalls Hiker – the easiest way to find writeups here is to Google “waterfalls hiker” and the name of the waterfall you're interested in

[We treated each waterfall as a stand-alone hike to make the best use of our time. If you’re not so obsessive about it, you can combine Spoonauger and King Creek Falls into one nice hike via the Chattooga River Trail.]

So...where did we go today?

Spoonauger Falls

Past the big parking area for Burrells Ford Campground, we parked where the Chattooga River Trail crosses Burrells Ford Road (FS 708), consulted the trail kiosk on the right side of the road, and walked a flat half mile alongside the robust river. A small bridge crosses over Spoonauger Creek where it flows into the Chattooga, and just past it we took a right turn onto Spoonauger Trail. 

From there it’s a quick tenth of a mile to the falls. There’s a nice cascade on the way up, and I wonder how many people think that’s the falls. 

Keep going! The real deal waterfall is said to be named for the Spoonauger family that lived near the top of the falls. Think about that as you gaze up from the base and feel the spray on your face. 

King Creek Falls

Back at the campground parking lot, I got my bearings from my Foothills Trail thru-hike here where it crosses Burrells Ford Road.  At the far end of the lot, a wide trail leads down to the Chattooga River and signage eventually gets you to the Foothills Trail and King Creek Falls side trail. 

Rock hopping to the middle of the creek to get the full effect of the powerful flow. 

On the return hike, we turned right at the junction onto the Foothills Trail, making a loop back to the Burrells Ford parking lot. The distance was about the same and a little more straightforward, I think. I like it when I can connect dots.

Rileymoore Falls 

Driving directions that I had took us to a back road closed to through traffic (bridge construction?) so we worked our way around on forest roads to another access. The last turn to the falls was obviously not accessible for us. Someone in a similar vehicle was stuck there between two enormous humps, spinning her wheels as her friend coached her out.  

So we parked and walked that mile along a muddy 4X4 road, then on a sweet blue-blazed trail 

steadily downhill to the Chauga River.

Sensitive briar

Random trailside guitar

I can picture the big rocky beach filled with people, but today we were in company with just a few, including a young couple with two little kids that had hauled in all their stuff, chairs, coolers, and swim toys. The swimming hole is massive, dominated by the “wall of waterfall” that is only 12 feet high but 100 feet wide. It’s a Class VI whitewater rapid – can you imagine going over that in a raft or a kayak?

Issaqueena Falls

Descriptions warned how crowded this place is and they were right. Part of Stumphouse Park, the waterfall is a 5-minute hike from parking, not too much to ask for even the most unmotivated person. There is lots of infrastructure, wooden walkways to wooden platforms. I declined to go onto the overlook platform because the multitude of visitors were unmasked and no one seemed concerned about social distancing.  Likewise the rougher dirt trail to the bottom, too many peeps for us. We were all making choices for our comfort levels.

As close as we got

Speaking of close, it was easy to stand at the top of the falls and watch water from the little creek

 fall over the edge into nowhere

Bonus: Stumphouse Park’s main attraction is Stumphouse Tunnel, a hand-dug, never-completed railroad tunnel intended to cut through Stumphouse Mountain. Jim and I ventured into the inky blackness that my headlamp couldn’t penetrate. Dank and creepy – take me back to the light!

More waterfalls coming!

“The closer you get, the further I fall

I’ll be over the edge now in no time at all

I’m falling faster and faster and faster

With no time to stall

The closer you get, the further I fall.”

~ song recorded by Alabama,

written by J.P. Pennington and Mark Gray

Yellow Branch Falls, Oconee County, SC

 Yellow Branch Falls – Oconee County, SC - 6/4/20 – 3.3 Miles

Like many people around the globe, by June 2020 Jim and I had canceled several trips. Forget flying, forget hotels, forget eating in a restaurant. But Airbnb seemed to be responding to COVID-19 concerns, with deep cleaning protocols and days in between guests.  We decided to venture into the new world of ‘Rona traveling. Where shall we go? What shall we do when we get there?

I am always driven by the second question, and the answer is always “something outdoors.” Spring had been lovely but summer heat was upon us, which meant waterfalls. The mountain area of upstate South Carolina has a lot of ‘em, and I found a very sweet cottage on Airbnb. We packed up groceries and adult beverages and set off for Mountain Rest, SC.

Our long drive from Charlotte took us near Sassafrass Mountain, the 3,553-foot high point of South Carolina. I had passed that way once before during a thru-hike of the Foothills Trail, when the summit was dreary and desolate at the end of a wet spring day. Now there is a paved road and a viewing tower for sweeping 360-degree vistas. Bonus points: You can straddle the NC/SC state line.

Today’s hike was close to our cottage: Yellow Branch Falls in Sumter National Forest. The trailhead starts from the Yellow Branch Picnic Area, which was packed with cars when we arrived mid-afternoon. This high traffic area had the most folks we had seen on a trail since the start of the pandemic. Advised protocol to wear masks was not high on the list. Other than one group of four who wore bandannas to cover their noses and mouths when they passed us, no one else seemed concerned. Jim and I didn’t wear masks continually, just slipped them on and stepped off the trail when people approached.

We moved at a brisk pace because of pent-up energy from the long car trip and the delight of being on a trail. BUT we didn’t miss this handsome fellow going about his business.

Pipsissewa

Maidenhair fern

Within a hundred yards of the falls, the trail makes a turn and begins a steep descent. We came upon an elderly couple sitting on a big log. The man seemed in distress with labored breathing. His wife said they had been to the falls and the steep uphill return was hard, but he was just catching his breath. It was quite hot and we offered to walk with them, but they waved us away with a smile and we continued to the falls.

Two people were leaving as we arrived and it was just Jim and me. I am always amazed when we find ourselves alone at the destination after encountering so many other hikers along the way.  A recent fallen tree lay across the bottom of the falls, making “perfect” photos more difficult, but that’s Nature – take it as it is. We scrambled a little ways up a side trail to get closer, but as often happens on side trails, the footing became precarious and we returned to the base.

On the return hike we caught up with the elderly couple; they had started walking again. I had soaked my bandanna in the water at the falls and now offered it to the man, but he said no, his wife was carrying a towel for him. We struck up a conversation and so walked with them for a while to assess (both were very slow, the wife as much as the husband).  They are originally from Germany, now living in South Carolina near their daughter and grandchildren. After a while, they waved us on again, and we left them behind. They seemed confident in their ability to finish the hike.

It was late afternoon, and at the parking lot we realized we were the last people on the trail. We were sure that our new acquaintances would continue stopping to rest. Would it get dark before they reached their car? We were concerned, but it felt inappropriate to treat them as though they were incapable of looking after themselves.  What to do?

We waited in the parking lot for 30 minutes, then another couple arrived to hike to the falls. We explained the situation, our concern, and asked them to be on the lookout, and Jim and I went on to the cottage. 

Our home away from home

Dinner on the screened front porch

“But I love to be outdoors. I prefer being outdoors to, you know, being inside.” ~Keith Carradine