Raven Cliff Falls at Caesars Head Mountain (Greenville County, South Carolina)

 

I'm headed home from a craft beer festival in Asheville, NC and wanted to get in a couple of hikes along the way. Departing from the same trailhead as my previous hike, I headed the opposite direction and followed a small connector trail to a second parking lot, from which the Raven Cliff Falls Trail departs. This short trail leads to what I'm told is a spectacular waterfall. There is another waterfall by this same name in Northern Georgia, which I have hiked to a few times, but it's only real claim to uniqueness is that it has carved out a trench in a large cliffside and now flows behind the scenes. It's pretty and a nice hike, but I've always been curious about it's South Carolina counterpart. Today, we'll see how they compare. 

As I make way downhill on a gravel path, I see a few other hikers and realize that this route actually shares trail with two much longer trails, the Foothills Trail and the Palmetto Trail, both of which I would like to backpack at some point in the future. So, there is a good chance that I will pass this way again.

Soon, the gravel ends and the trail passes over tree roots and dirt as it flows mostly downhill towards the vantage point for the waterfall. There are a few junctions and I pass a number of other hikers, but overall, it's a pretty easy hike. That said though, there does appear to be some indicators of coming rains in the cloud cover and I push my pace a bit more. I don't mind getting wet, but if I can avoid it, I will.

Eventually, I come to a T-intersection and having reviewed the trail map, I know I need to turn left while the option to the right is a continuance of the much longer trails mentioned previously. After only a short distance, I come to a covered observation deck which has been built on the side of the opposing cliff from Raven Cliff Falls. 

The waterfall is quite impressive and while I can't get anywhere near it from here, I am rewarded with a great view for my trouble. Several small falls cascade into small pools towards the top of the cliff, while the main highlight is the primary vertical drop of roughly 300 feet. I'm kind of glad we got that moisture overnight, as I'm sure it's contributing to the current impressive flow over the falls. 

Having seen what I came to see and with the threat of more rain, I turn around and head back the way I came. I make really good time and end up back at the trailhead where I left my car after only about 45-minutes. My distance for this little adventure was about 4.5 miles. When added to my earlier hike along the Silver Steps Trail, it's not a bad day at all.