Rainbow Falls  11-11-07

7-7-08 - Bad news people - the temporary gravel Grassy Creek parking area of Gorges State Park off of Hwy 281 was closed starting March 2008 and will not reopen. Gorges SP has begun construction of permanent facilities and this lot is not a part of the master plan. That means there is no parking for access to the Horsepasture River at this time. You cannot park along the road where there are 'No Parking' signs at any time. You cannot park in the driveway for the construction entrance for Gorges State park at any time. You will be ticketed and towed with no exceptions. You should also not be parking on any nearby private property without permission. This is becoming a problem and I wish people would show some respect. The Nantahala National Forest has relied on the Gorges State Park lot while plans for their parking area have been on hold - since 2003. I just spoke with a nice gentleman at the NNF office and he apologized for the inconvenience and said that there were plans in the works, but nothing for 2008.

The Horsepasture River is where my passion for waterfalls began. It's popularity has increased tremendously since my first visit in 1998 and a lot has changed. You can no longer park along Hwy 281 and you can no longer slide down Drift (Bust Yer Butt) Falls. This has been true for several years now. The former is for safety reasons and the latter is because it is now on private property. The boundary is right in front of Drift Falls, so you can still go to that point for a view and a picture.

Directions:  I can tell you how to get to where the old parking area is, but since you can't park there any more... From Brevard, take Hwy 64 west for about 15 miles to the Lake Toxaway area. About halfway you'll pass Headwaters Outfitters where you can get trail maps and area info. Keep winding up the mountain and pass the right turn for Hwy 281 north and continue up to the bridge across the top of Toxaway Falls. (Pull off on the right before the bridge and carefully cross Hwy 64 for a view.) Continue past the bridge for about 2 1/4 miles and turn left on Hwy 281 south. Drive about 1 mile and you'll see the construction entrance for Gorges SP (Grassy Ridge Rd), then the closed and blocked entrance for the gravel lot that has been used, then the gated road which has been the trail head for the Horsepasture River. Again - do not park where you don not have permission. When Grassy Ridge Rd opens near the end of 2008, you will turn in and drive back maybe 3/4 mile to a parking lot and a trail that will take you to the Horsepasture River below Rainbow Falls and above Stairway Falls. Remember that the Horsepasture River is not a part of Gorges State Park. It is part of the Nantahala National Forest and they have done little to nothing to maintain the trails or anything in this highly visited part of their forest. It is my opinion that this stretch of the river would be better served by being a part of Gorges State Park.

Anywho - if you find yourself at the gated gravel road - you can always have someone drop you off - take the gravel road back into the woods. The gravel road (trail) leads into the boundaries of the Gorges State Park, then leaves the Park and enters Nantahala National Forest. You'll come across a sign saying this road isn't recommended as a trail, but this is the only way down. (Don't be surprised if this road and overly eroded trail are permanently closed to the public in the future.) You'll also go by an open area on your right - this is where the rescue helicopter lands to fly out the injured. When the trail crosses back into the national forest, there's an info kiosk. There's a hand drawn map of 5 waterfalls. This is the lamest attempt I've ever seen at a trail map. Drift, Turtleback, and Rainbow Falls are easy to find. Stairway Falls is more difficult and the Forest Service has no business sending anyone to Windy Falls. Leave the kiosk with that in mind. The last part of the trail gets a little rocky and steep, so don't twist an ankle! I've seen young and old folks down here so I'll say it's family friendly - just keep a close eye on children and use common sense! It's about a 15 minute hike from the road, and you'll come out above Turtleback Falls. Just stay to the left when you get close to the river. Turtleback has become the place to slide in the area since you can't do it at Drift Falls any more.

sliding at Turtleback Falls

Drift Falls is actually the first main falls on the river. To get to it, take the trail to the right once you get to the river and follow it up river for about 10-15 minutes. People used to slide down the 60-70ft incline and the falls was referred to as Bust Yer Butt Falls. The land that the falls traded hands a few years ago and the owner will prosecute trespassers. I was in there one time and there was actually a security guard on duty. The boundary is just this side of the pool at the base of the falls, so you can get this view. If you are pushed for time or have small kids, I would skip this one.

Drift Falls  10-19-06

Head back towards Turtleback Falls - a nice little ledge falls with a drop into a good size pool that has become a popular area for waterfall sliding and swimming. The river is all swim at your own risk. I'll warn you - people have slipped, hit their heads and been knocked unconscious, then drowned attempting to slide off of these falls. On warm summer week ends, this area could become very crowded. The trail stays on the left side of the river, passes by some large boulders, then crosses a small bridge over a wet area. Just after that, there's a huge boulder you can get out on for this next view of the falls. The first picture is more normal water flow. Notice the chug hole becomes obvious in low water levels.

Turtleback Falls  10-19-07

jumping at Turtleback Falls

Continue down the trail and look for the little side trails on the right that lead out to views of the river. On a dry day, you can head out on the bed rock and walk next to the river below Turtleback and above Rainbow Falls. People swim here also, but the current is very strong in high water flow and you are near the top of a 125' waterfall! 2003 was a deadly year. Over Labor Day week end, two people decided to swim in the river above the falls and were caught up in the current and swept over the falls. It was the same scenario as over July 4th. Young man and woman go over the falls - woman dies, man miraculously survives. On Labor Day, it was 21 year old Sarah DiGiovenale, over the 4th it was 19 year old Helen Mannweiler - 2 young lives are tragically ended because of bad judgment. These next pictures are from the area between Turtleback and Rainbow Falls.   

From the main trail you may notice 2 rocks on the right with a narrow gap between them near the top of Rainbow Falls. Head through that gap to the very top of falls. If the rock is dry and you aren't afraid of heights and aren't clumsy, you can head out to the end to enjoy the view of the river below. Again, use common sense and don't bring small children out here.

The trail continues down next to Rainbow Falls. Stay to the left and down to come out at an overlook with the view of the waterfall seen in the 1st picture on this page. Please don't go down the heavily eroded drainage path directly in front of the upper railing to get to the base. If the river level is high, the spray from the waterfall might be too heavy to get a picture here. In the winter with heavy spray this area becomes a winter wonderland. In lower water levels and barely any spray, you can safely get out on the huge rocks below the waterfall and you may see people swimming and jumping from the cliffs and maybe doing other stupid things. The goat trails to the right you noticed on the way down lead down, but it's better to head to the viewing area first, then look back and notice a trail heading back into the woods up towards the waterfall. Follow the railing and you'll see where people go down There are some good views from the side even if you can't get down to the base. From this point you'll see the way down to the rocks. These rocks have a layer of something on them that makes then extremely slippery when wet. Danger Will Robinson! If you do make it down safely, the big rocks are a great place to hang out on. Go in the morning on a sunny day to catch a rainbow.

click here to continue down the Horsepasture River past Rainbow Falls

or you can click here to see this section of the Horsepasture with a LOT of water