May 21-24, 2007
Monday, May 21
Left home early morning and headed out US 76 towards Laurens. At Gray Court, we gave the GPS a test run – told it to take us to a little town called Ware Springs – on the way to Pickens (and Table Rock). What an adventure – we headed off down winding country roads that are not mentioned on any of our maps – pretty farms and rolling hills. We got to where we wanted to be, but not without some anxious moments: the computer went into hibernation mode because of no input – and, of course, it did that trick in the middle of nowhere, just when we were supposed to turn on some unknown road. And, one road had a different name in the software than ‘on the ground’ – we decided to trust the software, and sure enough, we came out fine. Next challenge will be to figure out how to keep the battery charged long enough – it faded just as our test run ended (at least we got back to something we could identify before we lost power).
After some more wandering around, we got to Table Rock State Park in mid-afternoon. At 3,124 feet high, Table Rock is visible for miles before entering the park gates. Geologists believe that Table Rock is a monadnock, a massive chunk of prehistoric granite more efficient than neighboring landscape at warding off erosion. Legend tells us that the rock and surrounding forests were favored by the Cherokee Indians who called them Sah-ka-na-ga, the Great Blue Hills of God. They believed that the spirit of a great chieftain dined on Table Rock while sitting on nearby Stoll Mountain.In the early 1900’s, the area was both farmland and resort, with several hotels and inns accommodating growing numbers of tourists. It was acquired by the State in 1935 and the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) began constructing the park’s meandering roads, native stone-and-log lodge, rustic cabins and other structures.
We had the 75-site main campground almost to ourselves. On Monday, we counted seven other campers, but by Tuesday most of those had gone. Our site was nestled in among tall oaks and poplar trees, and surrounded by mountain laurel in full bloom.Tuesday, May 22
The cool mountain air made it easy to sleep late, but the unusually dry air made the morning warm up rapidly. After breakfast, we headed off toward the lake area, planning to explore the park. Instead, we picked up the Carrick Creek Trail. This is a moderately strenuous, 2-mile loop that follows the creek and provides lots of nice views of cascading waterfalls. The forest is dominated by hickory and oak, with a scattering of pines and hemlocks.
And everywhere was beautiful mountain laurel.
We also saw a few wild azaleas in bloom, as well as other wildflowers. Wildlife was elusive, but we could hear the pileated woodpeckers calling and hammering away.
In spite of the fact that we were wearing sandals and carrying very little else, we headed off on the Pinnacle Mountain Trail, with intention of making our way to Mill Creek Falls. It turned out to be a long, straight-up trail, climbing over boulders and huge downed trees – not exactly a walk in the park.
We did see some nice waterfalls, but later determined that we didn’t make it all the way to Mill Creek. Too bad about that, but we made it about as far as our feet and legs could handle in one day – we headed straight for the lake to soak our feet for a while before heading back to camp. We estimated about 7 miles total on the trails.Wednesday, May 23
Today was take-it-easy day, just messing around the campground and just enough exercise to limber up those muscles abused yesterday. It’s hard to argue with relaxing in cool mountain breezes and admiring the mountain laurel around the area – especially with so few folks in the campground – it’s like our private retreat.
Pictures here include a view of the park lake and the old chapel, built by the CCC and still used today.
Thursday, May 24
Leaving Table Rock, we went searching for Eastatoe Falls, also known as Double Falls or Twin Falls – it is said to be one of the most beautiful in South Carolina. The falls is on Reedy Cove Creek in the Eastatoee Community, north of Pickens, SC. The area is protected by a private foundation established by Philip Felburn and entrusted to the care of visitors. The nearby Eastatoe River derives its name from the Cherokee word for ‘The Land of the Green Bird,’ probably referring to the now-extinct Carolina Parakeet.
Finding the falls wasn’t too hard since we had good directions, but this isn’t a place that anyone would just happen by. Some of the back roads were narrow and very winding – good thing our RV is a small one.From the small parking lot at road’s end, it’s a pleasant walk along the creek, with some nice pools that would be tempting on a hot summer day.
There actually are two falls – the left and larger of the falls plunges from a height of 76 feet over a massive granite cliff, while the right side manages only a short drop on granite bedrock and slides down a 45-degree slope before rejoining the flow from the larger flow. It’s quite beautiful and totally unknown to most folks in the state.
From there, we headed over to Aunt Sue’s …one of the few commercial establishments along this stretch of SC Route 11. We found some postcards and some lunch and then headed on toward Beechwood Farms to see what was growing there.
Beechwood wasn’t disappointing – we picked sugar peas, beets, turnips, mustard greens, green onions and strawberries. At the farm store, we also purchased some just-picked squash and cucumbers – those fields are expected to open to the public next week. We’re counting the days til the tomatoes are ready. With the van floor covered with fresh vegetables, we headed home.
