ROCK BOTTOM UP

Searching for unknown waterfalls is my hobby. There is nothing better than studying a map, pinpointing the location of a potential waterfall that is completely undocumented, and chasing after it. This usually involves crawling through mud, wading icy streams, and battling through horrific tangles of briers and rhododendron. That’s part of the fun, but the real thrill comes when you discover a waterfall that has somehow escaped everyone’s attention.

Pickens County, SC is loaded with potential waterfalls. Practically every stream running off the Blue Wall has the potential for a waterfall, or multiple waterfalls. There are quite a few that are well documented, and some are even relatively famous. But there are many more that remain under the radar. This is usually because they are extremely difficult to access.

I’ve had my eye on Rocky Bottom Creek for a few years now. Rocky Bottom Creek starts on the south side of Sassafras Mountain – the highest peak in South Carolina. It drops rapidly before passing through the community of Rocky Bottom. After passing under highway 178 it drops down into the Eastatoe Creek Gorge. I know that there is at least one waterfall at the lower end of the creek (Rock Bottom Falls on Rocky Bottom Creek), but I was intrigued by the stretch of creek farther upstream. It had waterfall potential, but I’d never heard mention of any waterfall discoveries there.

A few years ago Brenda and I discovered a high waterfall on a tributary of Rocky Bottom Creek. We named it Sassafras Falls since the stream starts out high on Sassafras Mountain. I returned a year later to see it covered in ice. Afterwards I attempted to hike to Rocky Bottom Creek. That attempt was thwarted by steep terrain, numerous gullies, and developed private property that prevented easy, direct access.

Recently I finally got the chance at another attempt. Brenda and Jennifer met me near the summit of Sassafras Mountain on a foggy, drizzly morning. We left a couple of cars there and rode with Brenda down the Clayton Highway towards Rocky Bottom. We parked and followed the same route we’d taken to reach Sassafras Falls. Originally we planned to include a quick visit to Sassafras Falls in the agenda. That requires a tough bushwhack and a steep climb though, so we decided to skip it. That was one of our better decisions of the day.

Initially we followed a network of old roads. However, they ended at the creek downstream from Sassafras Falls. I had made a previous attempt to reach Rocky Bottom Creek and failed miserably on that occasion. The terrain between Sassafras Creek and Rocky Bottom Creek is all steep ridges / cliffs and deep gullies. The ridges and gullies are all perpendicular to the direction you need to travel, too. That forces you either higher up the mountain, towards the cliffs, or down towards the developed private property surrounding Rocky Bottom Creek.

This time my plan was to stay as high as possible to avoid the worst of the gullies. From Sassafras Creek we climbed a steep ridge and followed it to the north. This enabled us to skirt above a whole mess of gullies. The terrain worsened though. Eventually a sheer headwall forced us down into a gully, but it wasn’t too deep. We climbed up the far side and stumbled upon a huge deer stand. At that point, the terrain above us was extremely steep. We dropped down into another gully, where we found a spring and a lovely little streambed filled with mossy green rocks. We immediately called it Emerald Valley, and that name stuck with us the rest of the day. It was amazing to see that much green in February.

While we were here Brenda got out a snack. It was noon, but I confidentially suggested waiting until we reached the first waterfall to have lunch.

Emerald Valley leads down into private property, so we had to climb over one more ridge. Once on it we were able to skirt above more gullies until we were directly above Rocky Bottom Creek upstream from private property. We headed down there. Once near Rocky Bottom Creek we fought our way through the jungle to head upstream. Several steep, muddy climbs and descents were necessary here, and they required a lot of crawling under tangles of rhododendron. Although we only had fog and a little light drizzle during our hike, we were soaked from the vegetation. We were also filthy thanks to the abundant mud.

The terrain ahead looked promising. The far side of the creek featured a sheer cliff, and there was an extremely steep ridge immediately in front of us. The terrain just screamed “waterfall”.

We crawled over the ridge and spotted a waterfall ahead! From the jungle-covered hillside we could see a 3-level cascade that we later estimated at 90’. We hurried ahead to claim our prize.

This waterfall is surrounded by thick rhododendron and mossy rocks. The greenery was overwhelming, particularly for February. I can’t imagine what this waterfall looks like in the spring! Sometimes waterfalls name themselves, and that was the case here. This would be Emerald Falls.

I didn’t think it looked photogenic from the very base due to abundant branches, leaves, and deadfall. Jennifer proved me wrong though, by taking one of my favorite photos of the day. After I scrambled and waded up to the top of the first section she got a great photo of me at Emerald Falls. I took photos of the lower 20’ section from above, as well as the middle 40’ section from the base. The middle section really is a lovely waterfall, even though the upper part is hidden from sight from this angle. The middle section is split into two channels by a massive rock in the middle of the creek. When I saw that rock I knew I’d have to stand on it.

As promised, we had lunch there. At the time I thought that Emerald Falls would be the highlight of the day. I was wrong. It was A highlight, but not THE highlight. That was still to come.

Progress from there requires climbing the middle section of Emerald Falls. Fortunately the waterfall drops over a series of ledges, which made the climb fairly easy. It was a little exciting with the high water levels and wet rocks, but we were able to manage it. I went first, so that Brenda and Jennifer could get photos of me on top while I took photos of them coming up.

When I reached the top of the middle section I was blown away. The upper portion is a 30’ beauty. My favorite part of Emerald Falls though is the brink of the middle drop. It is formed by a brilliant orange rock that spans half of the creek. The part of the rock that is above the water is covered in neon green moss, while the submerged portion is polished orange with black streaks. There wasn’t any way to incorporate that rock in a photo of the upper section, so I focused on including it in photos shooting down from the top of the middle section.

Brenda and Jennifer joined me and we spent some time enjoying this wonderful place. Then it was time to continue upstream. There was a substantial cliff on the left (facing upstream). The right side looked more open, so we waded the creek at the brink of the falls and began to climb. We scrambled high above the upper section of Emerald Falls. Too high, as it turns out. Before long we found ourselves separated from the creek by a sheer cliff. We backtracked and found a place to scramble down. That brought us to the brink of the upper drop of Emerald Falls. From there, the left side (facing upstream) looked more hospitable, so we crossed the creek and fought through a patch of doghobble. Not far from the stream we found the remnant of an old logging road. There wasn’t much left, but it was better than pure bushwhacking.

We followed the old road along the hillside above Rocky Bottom Creek. Before long we spotted a significant waterfall ahead. We bushwhacked and scrambled down to the base. Unfortunately the upper part of the drop is out of view from the base, and the longer view from above is partially obscured by trees. I decided to name this one Nina’s Falls for Christy’s grandmother, who recently passed away.

We climbed back up to the road and continued up the gorge. Before long another waterfall came into view. This one was similar. The view from above was impressive, but somewhat diminished when we reached the creek. At that point there was a 40’ steep cascade immediately in front of us, and a 20’ sheer drop below. There was no good angle for photos of this one, without wading out into the creek at the brink of the sheer drop. I decided to pass on that. I think it can be done safely at lower water levels, so I may try that when we return. I need a better photo of it, since I decided to name it for my wife. We’re calling this one Christy’s Falls.

We climbed back up to the old road. All of this bushwhacking up and down the hillside between the creek and the road was beginning to drain us. Above Christy’s Falls the creek goes on a long run of small falls and cascades. We knew we would never have time to explore every one. We skipped several that looked promising, but one small, sheer dropped called to us. Jennifer and I scrambled down to check it out. It was a 10’ sheer ledge, but it had a lot of deadfall. We didn’t name that one. Naming every 10’ drop on this creek would be overkill.

I thought the best features of Rocky Bottom Creek were behind us. We climbed back up to the road and continued up the valley. We turned a corner, and a huge waterfall towered ahead of us. I started laughing. Seriously? I thought there was a 50/50 chance of finding a waterfall on our hike. We found 4 major ones, and lots of smaller drops, too.

This one starts with a 30’ narrow cascade and then spills over a ledge that creates a beautiful veil. That begins the middle 40’ section. Below that is another 20’ sheer drop. We scrambled down the slope to reach the base of the 40’ section. This was probably the best discovery of the day. It is a true beauty. I decided to call it Firefly Falls. That is a name I’ve been saving for a while. I think it is a great name for a waterfall, and it is unique. A quick Google search for Firefly Falls turned up nothing. It’s also the trail name of a friend of mine, so I guess you can say that I named the waterfall for her, too.

We had a tough time leaving Firefly Falls, but it was getting late. We didn’t really want to be bushwhacking out of there in the dark! We returned to the road and continued up the valley. Before long we reached the forks of Rocky Bottom Creek. My original plan was to continue up the east fork. It looks like the east fork could have a waterfall, and that route would lead us to the Foothills Trail. However, the old road followed the west fork, and there was no hint of a trail along the east fork. We decided to stick with the old road, as it was a little better than pure bushwhacking.

It was only a little better. There were lots of fallen trees across it, but the deadfall kept getting worse. Before long we were basically just crawling along the roadbed. This was beginning to suck, and it didn’t seem like it was going to improve. The far hillside looked open, so I suggested crossing the west fork and heading up the mountain. If we did that we could head straight for the top of Sassafras Mountain, where we’d left 2 cars.

This worked beautifully. The initial climb was steep, but the forest was open. The grade moderated before long, and we followed a ridge on an easy grade. We picked up another old logging road, which was actually going in the right direction.

Somewhere along here I finally broke down and put on two more layers of clothes. I did most of the hike in a t-shirt and rain jacket. I was wet and chilled, as the temperatures were in the 40’s and it was breezy. When hiking uphill is no longer generating enough warmth, it is past time to add some layers.

Before long we stumbled into a recently logged area. This was ugly, but easy enough to hike through. We continued through there and came out on the road just below the summit. From that point, a couple of minutes on the pavement and then a short climb on a dirt road brought us to the summit of Sassafras Mountain. There was no view due to the rain and clouds, but we didn’t care. We had just climbed the highest mountain in South Carolina, off-trail.

We will return. I’m thinking spring, when everything is green and the water levels have dropped some. Next time though, we are going to start from the top, hike down to Emerald Falls, and then climb back out.

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