DeSoto Falls and Icebox Cave (DeKalb County, Alabama)

The weather in the southeast has been very erratic for the past few weeks. We have been suffering through 90+ degree days with 80-90% humidity, which makes for a miserable time outside. Add to that surprise and harsh thunderstorms popping up unexpectedly, and it's not a recipe conducive to getting much hiking in. I've especially been resisting the urge to travel for any hikes. Today though, I decided to risk it and make a drive just over the state line to visit DeSoto Falls State Park in Alabama. I have tried to do this trip a couple of times recently only to be thwarted by the rain. Today looks to be clear though until the late afternoon, and so, I'm going to give it a go.

It takes a couple of hours to reach my destination and when I do, I'm a little confused by the way the park is laid out. Initially, I pull into a picnic area at the pool above the falls. I have to pay $5 to park here, but hopefully it will be worth it . . . it was not worth it. This area is for family kayaking. The creek that feeds the falls is dammed to form a large pond and a number of families are here paddling out on that flat water. Just below the dam is a small double waterfall, each dropping about 20 feet into another more shallow pool. From there the water heads over the main waterfall, but unfortunately, the angle from here is not very good. I do follow a small trail along the side of the cliff (with a safety fence) to get to a look out point, but even from here, the view of the main fall is quite lacking.

Returning to the car and looking at a couple of maps on my phone, I decide to hike a nearby trail called the DeSoto Falls Bottom and Icebox Cave Trail. Hopefully, this will take me towards the bottom of the canyon formed by the falls and offer a better view. The cave may be interesting as well.

It's only about a five minute drive from the picnic area and once there, I quickly find a parking spot, though the lot is pretty full. The trail meanders through a number of large rock outcroppings, which are probably great for bouldering, as it approaches the waterway, which is known as the West Fork of the Little River. I do encounter a number of other people out hiking on this sticky summer day, but everyone is quite nice. The final push to the pool below the waterfall is an exercise in balance, as the trail traverses over a large number of half-buried stones. It would be very easy to roll an ankle here, but I'm careful and manage it without incident.

When I get to the opening that offers the best view of the waterfall, I'm a little disappointed that the pool leads up to a large boulder, which is taller than I care to climb today. I manage stand on a piece of fallen log to get a couple of shots. There are quite a few people here swimming in the cool waters of the pool and a couple over closer to the waterfall, which is roughly a 300 feet across the pool from me.

The waterfall itself is quite majestic, plummeting 104 feet over the tall cliff. which has been carved into a canyon by the rushing water. This natural configuration seems to be quite common in this part of the world. I've encountered numerous other waterfalls that look very much the same, including Lula Lake Falls, Foster Falls, and the waterfalls at nearby Cloudland Canyon. I'm guessing the geology lends itself to this kind of erosion.

After only a few minutes taking it all in, I turn around and head back towards the car. The sky is clouding up and I'd rather not be caught out here in the rain. A few drops of rain to fall on me, but nothing significant and even though I want to get back to the car, I decide to take an alternative path to see Icebox Cave. This connecting trail takes me up the hillside and to the bottom of the continuation of the cliffs. After a short distance, I encounter the cave.

This cave is more of a very deep overhang. The entrance is roughly fifty feet wide and twelve feet tall, more than enough to allow me to walk into it. The ceiling of the cave is covered with soot, indicating the use of campfires here. I would imagine this cave was used by indigenous peoples as a shelter, as offers a fairly large room, which is nicely sheltered from the weather. Though the ceiling tapers down towards what appears to be the back of the cave, it's probably sixty or seventy feet deep. It even appears to go deeper, but exploring further would require some belly crawling, which I'm unwilling to do today.

The trip back to the car is uneventful, though the rains continue to threaten. The total distance of this little hike was only about 1.3 miles, but some very interesting things to see along the way. I had originally planned to do a couple of other hikes in this area, but given the weather situation, I think I'm just going to head home.

Fort Yargo (Barrow County, Georgia)

Before joining the Meetup group today, I did a short walk in nearby Athens. Having arrived early at Fort Yargo State Park though, I decided to relax in the shade while the rest of the group began showing up. This park is very near to my house and I hike here pretty often. By noon, our planned start time, just about everyone has shown up and after our customary round of introductions, we begin the hike.

We start by crossing the long wooden bridge across the northern end of the lake. As we cross, we talk to a number of men and boys casting their lines into the water and testing their luck. It seems they aren't biting much today. I suppose it's not surprising on such a warm summer day. Shortly after we cross, a couple of late-comers catch up to us and join the group. As we walk, we talking about a variety of subjects, but mostly of other adventures. With three of us here today having recently completed the Camino de Santiago, international trips seems to be the topic of choice.

As we make our way around the newly-built beach facility, we note some storm clouds starting to form up. It is supposed to rain today, but we were hoping it would hold off until we finish our hike. Just past the beach area, we're forced to divert off the normal inner loop just a bit due to some downed trees. Soon though, we return to the intended route.  As we cross the wooden bridge on the far western branch of the lake, our group leaders asks me to check my doppler radar app for signs of a storm. While there are patches north of us, it looks all clear in our immediate vicinity. No sooner have I said that, then we hear the first boom of thunder in the distance. 

I tell the group that my last visit to the park a few months ago ended in hiking halfway around the lake in the pouring rain at night, and that I'm not looking forward to do that again. With that said, I pick up my pace to what is pretty normal for me at about 4 mph. The group falls further and further behind me as finish out the trail. I do stop a couple of times along the way for pictures, including a shot of a beautiful eastern kingsnake slithering across the trail.

I arrive back at the parking area far ahead of the group and send a text just to let them know that I made it back and that I was heading home. Just as I begin driving out of the parking lot, the clouds open up and it begins to pour down rain. Hopefully, my friends found shelter. As for me, I'm thankful to have gotten in my 6.6 miles and to have stayed dry while doing it.

Firefly Trail to "Murmur" Trestle (Athens-Clarke County, Georgia)

I'm joining the meetup a little later today, but in advance of that hike I wanted to get in a little more distance. For quite a while, I've also wanted to check out the "R.E.M. Murmur" railroad trestle in Athens, GA. To accomplish both, I drove a bit further east than where I was hiking with the group and walked a short distance on the Firefly Trail.

The band R.E.M. was founded by students attending the University of Georgia at Athens. Their first studio album included a picture of a tall dilapidated railroad trestle overgrown with kudzu. The bridge became a landmark due to the cult-like following the band had. While I was never a member of the cult, I do like quite a few of the band's songs. Since I live pretty close though, I' had always wanted to see the trestle. After doing some research, it seems that the original, which was built in 1883 to cross Trail Creek, a tributary of the nearby North Oconee River, was actually demolished in 2020, after a lengthy public debate. With all of the support to keep the landmark though, the city sought and received funding to build a replacement in the same design. This new version is now part of the Firefly Trail, a 39-mile "rails to trails" project, which starts just a short distance north of the bridge. The paved and well-groomed multi-purpose path now traverses a large gorge across the trestle. 

After parking my car, I had to do a little route-finding. Although, the grounds of Dudley Park are well maintained, the way the Firefly Trail passes through is a bit confusing. It's actually something of a three dimensional trail here, as the pathways lead by the river and then circle back up and around to cross over the trestle. I first walked below the bridge and then found the path to circle back and walk across it. The view from the type is pretty nice and overall, it seems like a great trail system. I only hiked about 1.5 miles here today, but knowing how nice this is, I will plan to bring my bike back and put in some more serious mileage sometime soon.

Haw Creek (Forsyth County, Georgia)

Between the heat wave passing over the Southeastern US and the nearly daily thunderstorms, I've been pretty lazy since getting home from Reno last week. Today, I decided to put that to an end and join the Meetup group for a short hike at Haw Creek Park. This park is nothing special, but it has a trail system popular with some mountain bikers. More that the hike itself, I was looking forward to catching up with some friends that I haven't seen since returning from Europe. 

I met up with the group in the parking lot and we spent a few minutes catching up before entering the woods. The trails here are well marked and well maintained, though there trail system doesn't offer a lot of mileage. After crossing Haw Creek, we headed for Samples Road, and walked through the middle school grounds until re-entering the woods neat the elementary school. It's pretty hot today, but not as bad as it has been. 

The conversations are always good with this group and I truly enjoy their company. When we decided to call it quits for the day, we had hiked right at 6.5 miles of easy trail. Again, not an amazing hike, but it was nice to stretch my legs a bit and see friends that I haven't spoken to in several weeks.