IF you want a challenging hike and are looking to score a bunch of amazing waterfalls on the SAME…read moreTRAIL, the Thompson River Waterfalls trail is your Huckleberry!!! Google maps has labeled the trailhead HIGH FALLS TRAIL HEAD just off Whitewater Road. As you turn onto Brewer Road, you will see a wide trail entrance on the corner. We parked along the side of the road near the entrance. There are multiple waterfalls along the trail as Thompson River makes its run down the mountain, dropping approx. 1,900 feet over 5 miles as it makes is way to beautiful Lake Jocassee. There are seven names waterfalls along the trail and 3 that absolutely should not be missed: HIGH FALLS, RICH FALLS & BIG FALLS aka THOMPSON FALLS. THE TRAIL The trail initially ascends about 60 feet but remains at a fairly consistent decline of about 500 feet along the entirety of the main trail. First up was REID FALLS at around .9 miles, but we decided to skip it. A split in the trail at around 1.1 miles leads to HIGH FALLS, a gorgeous 50 foot sliding ribbon waterfall. There really is no way to get an excellent picture of the falls without getting wet. The best vantage of the falls is across the river and a scramble over some large boulders to a beach like area. The pool in front of the falls is better than 6 feet deep, but most of the shallow areas were only ankle or calf deep. Back along the main trail we continued our descent down the mountain and next came to SIMON FALLS, which we also opted to skip. All of the falls (except High Falls) require a scramble downhill to view. Reid and Simon Falls have the least steep scrambles, but we wanted to conserve our legs for Big Falls, the steepest of the scrambles. We also bypassed Rich Falls around the 3.8 mile mark as we decided it would be best to see how we feel after tackling Big Falls. BIG FALLS Listen, however easy the trail seemed up until this point was about to SEVERELY change! The descent to the falls is about 535 feet in less that a quarter of a mile. IT IS VERY STEEP and some areas require sitting on your butt and sliding, other require holding on to low branches or roots and one area in particular requires mild vertical rock climbing. NOT KIDDING! But all of it is doable if you take your time and don't have any serious physical or health challenges. All of the MAIN trail is very easy to follow, but I would highly recommend downloading the ALLTRAILS map because it shows the exact entry points for the side trails to each of the falls. The side trail to Big Falls is easy to follow, but can be very faint in some areas. Once you make it down to the river, look for a side trail just before the final descent to the riverbank. It will lead you through a thicket of vegetation that leads to a boulder entrance to the falls. Navigate them as best you can to get to a great vantage point to view the falls. If you are not skilled at boulder hopping, this area will be very intimidating! But you MUST do it in order to view the Big Falls, which is not visible otherwise. NOTES / TIPS ~ Download ALLTRAILS MAP prior to your drive to the trailhead ~ There are 3 river crossings and yes you will get wet ~ Most of the falls require getting wet for best view ~ No restroom facilities at the trailhead ~ BRING PLENTY OF WATER & SNACKS FINAL THOUGHTS On our return, we were just too exhausted to attempt to see Rich Falls, so instead we used every ounce of energy we had remaining to make it back to the car. I was thoroughly exhausted. The 3.5 miles back seemed more like 10 and we'd run out of drinking water during our time at Big Falls. I recommend a minimum of five 16oz bottles to do this hike and more if you bring salty snacks. I'd also recommend you chug one bottle at the parking area before you begin. All in all this is an amazing trail full of gorgeous waterfalls. Big Falls easily has become one of my top 5 favorite southern waterfalls... but it is a beast of a hike! ALLTRAILS LINK: https://www.alltrails.com/explore/trail/us/north-carolina/thompson-river-waterfalls?mobileMap=false&ref=sidebar-static-map 2023 / 12

A series of gorgeous waterfalls along beautiful Thompson River as it makes its way from the higher…read moremountain elevations down to the Jocassee River. The trail offers a great experience for anyone at any hiking level. If you are like me and prefer more leisurely hikes, The first three waterfalls (Reid Branch, High Falls & Simon Falls) are fairly easy to reach. High Falls in particular is great for families with small children and has a wading pool of water at its base of different depths. There is even a small beach like area to relax and have a picnic. Just know you must get wet in order to reach the beach area, which also has the best view of the falls since High Falls kind of sits recessed into a little nook making it difficult to see in its entirety. But for those who are more like my husband and don't mind a more difficult hike, Rich Falls and Big Falls further downstream will give you plenty of challenge. Although I must say, my husband was sore several days after his hike and while he thought Big Falls was stunning, he was miserable on the return. He said the side trail to Big Falls was extremely steep and challenging, both on the way down and especially on the climb back out. It drained him completely at age 54 and he still had to endure a 3.5 mile hike back to the car running on empty. Knowing him he'll do it again! MEN... LOL Also near the parking area is a trail leading to White Owl Falls. A very short hike to a beautiful 20 foot waterfall. Walk west on Whitewater Road from the parking area and look for an opening with a pink ribbon tied to a tree branch about 900 feet from the trailhead.

One of our favorite parks in NC! We visited during the winter on a sunny Sunday and spent six hours…read morehere exploring the hiking trails. We did Rainbow Falls trail, Bearwallow trail, and the short story trail to the overlook. Altogether we hiked 6 1/2 miles. We saw lots of dogs and families with kids - eve though the hike says strenuous it's certainly doable with young children. Rainbow falls is stunning the trails are fun. There are a few creek crossings with stepping stones and several places where you can leave the main path and walk down to the river to explore. Visiting center was nice as well.

Great time at Gorges State Park. Nice facilities , picnic tables, clean. Great waterfalls. Lots of…read morecamping options , from cabins to RVs to tents. We went hiking , but next time we come back we will camp. Not crowded on a Sunday afternoon in October

The view was amazing, the kids enjoyed seeing the falls. It was easy to navigate but hard to find…read morewhen you first pull up if you've never been there before. It is not wheelchair accessible, and can be a bit of a steep climb. Parking is on the side of the mountain. We had a great time while we were there and there is a small swimming hole at the bottom of the falls.

It's not where it says it is on the google and apple maps. We asked a park ranger where it was and…read moreshe put us on the path. We went on a Tuesday and luckily for us we had the place to ourselves, an occasional hiker would pop in and look around and one other couple came to swim. The water was crystal clear, cool mountain aqua. No trash or other intrusive nonsense was present and the spot is absolutely serene. We swam for a few hours and wrapped by jumping off the big rocks into the "deep end" . Good times for sure, beware of bears and all that jazz.

There's a big lake…read more There are mountains. There are rocks. There are trees. Most importantly, it's dog-friendly. I highly recommend stopping here if you're passing through Western North Carolina.

Lake Chatuge is a beautiful lake located in Hiawassee, Georgia within the Appalachian Mountains…read more The lake like all lakes in Georgia is a man made and was created in 1942 with the Chatuge Dam. The name comes from the Cherokee village that was once located there. The total lake covers over almost 11 square miles and has a maxium depth of 144 feet. The most common fish here are the spotted bass, channel catfish, black crappies and large and small mouth bass. If you have children a great place to take them is the Towns County Recreational Beach located at 525 US-76. They have a playground there and a beach for the kids to swim and play in. They also have bathrooms, picnic tables, bathrooms and showers at the beach. For those who plan to come to Lake Chatuge beware that during holidays, like Memorial Day weekend the lake is extremely packed, which makes it almost impossible to fish off the shore with the heavy traffic causing too much wake. [Review #542] (22nd Review Of 2018)

We had a late arrival but it was really easy to find the check-in. You receive an email in advance…read moreto so you know the location. They are in the process of updating the wi-fi in the units. You will get an access card to use the facilities at Sapphire Valley. The pool was nice. The place was a little outdated but in general it was good. There was no mention on the mini golf at the place. Basic course but well maintained. Our unit was very clean and remodeled. There was an electric fireplace to use. The four stars is for having to drive over a mile to get to use the facilities.

Can't say enough about the staff who helped make our stay perfect! Everyone from the front desk to…read morethe rest of the staff; especially, Hollie, Rus, and Josh. They even continually supplied us with wood & duralogs (and matches) for the fireplace! They were also very gracious coming several times to help fix the TV setup, the only thing lacking but not their fault!

This area is still recovering from the hurricane last year…read more This is Sunburst Falls. There is a drought going on so I think this one may be more majestic at different times of the year. Parking is very limited, but the falls can be seen from the road.

Amazing waterfall just off the roadside. There are only a couple of parking spots just down from…read morethe falls that are located on a curve of the road.

It is a beautiful, low key, Wonderful park. We had the ceremony for our wedding here which was a…read morebeautiful setting. Rented out the pavilions and the staff were extremely helpful making sure everything was ready for us. park is fairly large and the lake is beautiful.

A beautiful lake, especially inviting in summer. Many old homes and near iconic summer camps!read more

It's a beautiful spot for swimming, or to launch your kayak from. Great for picnics and it's very…read moreeasy to access and handicap accessible. The con is the putrid smell from the unclean restrooms and the garbage is overflowing. I went up several times with my grandchildren and truly it was not kept up. Such a shame as it is a popular tourist and local destination.

Good place to visit!…read more Duke Energy worked with the city/state/County? to build this beach/Park. Nice parking spots on both sides of the road. Bathrooms located up in the parking area. A nice ramp down all the way to the water. Seriously, you could wheel a wheelchair all the way into the lake. The sand is very nice. And you can easily swim out to and hold onto the barriers. There's a dock off to one side where you can fish off of. We'll thought out and done pretty well. They even have donated life jackets for kids hanging here at the beach! My reasons for 4 instead of 5 stars: Dogs. The path down to the beach was littered with dog poop. On the path, on the side, everywhere! It was gross and unsanitary. Don't know if dogs are allowed on the beach, but they've turned the park area to crap. The beach is quite small. I do believe too small to support all the parking. The beach is very steep. I know it's the mountains, but if you're going to drain the lake and make a beach, a gentler slope to the beach for the little ones would've been preferable. A larger swim area. Some people just want to swim! Maybe another 10 feet out into the lake for swimming, not just waking.