Some southern waterfalls....and Rock Mills

[WolfVanZandt]

I just dropped 6 photos of some lesser promoted waterfalls in the General Trail beauty gallery - mostly southern Alabama waterfalls.

 If there are some other hard-to-get waterfall pictures you want to see, I may have them - let me know.

Has anyone hiked in Buck's Pocket?

[Joshua Szulecki]

Cool! The only other photos I've seen of two of those were from ACE, and I don't think I'd heard of swimming hole falls before. You seem to be the S. Alabama waterfall go-to guy.

[WolfVanZandt]

As far as I know, the Swimming Hole Falls has no name, it's just a popular swimming hole. The water just below the falls is as cold as waterfall water usually is but just a little further downstream, the creek merges with Chewacla and the water there is tepid. It's sorta like a Roman bathhouse without the hot tub. BTW, thtis waterfall is pretty spectacular at flood state.

[weathermansam]

I've been to Buck's Pocket a handful of times, most recently last fall for a camping trip.  The overlook's great, but the waterfalls were dry.  We drove down to the primitive camping area and camped at the very end spot next to the lake.  Was quite a nice trip. 

[WolfVanZandt]

Yeah, I stopped by there in July last year and even the Sauty was gone. But when the water is running, the waterfalls are spectacular.

One thing that was memorable last year was that i was the only one in the campgrounds next to the ranger station and at sunset, all the fireflies (Lightning Bugs for all you died in the wool Southerners) came out. They stayed near the ground, lighting in the bushes. And then they synchronized. I'd heard of that happening but had never seen it. There were thousands of them blinking in concert, looking like strings of Christmas lights. It was literally hypnotic.

[weathermansam]

That I would have loved to seen.  All we had were a few leftover mosquitoes to entertain us in mid October. 

[WolfVanZandt]

Buck's Pocket is one of the most underrated jewels in Alabama. The scenery is nothing short of spectacular (especially when side trips to High Falls of Towns Creek, Pisgah Gorge, Lake Guntersville, and Cathedral Caverns and Sequoyah Caverns are added in), there are bouldering, and climbing areas, wildlife and wildflowers are very interesting (such as theh wide variety of trilliums that grow there), and there's even wild caves. Camping, fishing, boating, hiking, swimming, all the usual stuff. And sitting here I can remember eight spectacular waterfalls not counting all the smaller and intermittent falls.

[weathermansam]

I like taking the 'trail' right before the overlook that goes sharply down and around the base of the rock outcropping.  Another one of my favorite spots....if you cross the pedestrian bridge at High Falls and turn right, and not too far,  after plowing through briars, is another, shorter waterfall that cascades down.  I also like the falls on Scarham/Whippoorwill Creeks by the red mill in the tiny town of Double Bridges.  Cherokee Rock Village is another local favorite, and yellow creek falls is close enough to visit [private property, but I've met the locals and they're never had an issue with me hiking back there.  If you find the way to the top of the falls,  and go upstream, there are others as well.  Unfortunately my camera batteries bit the dust that day, but it's definitely worth seeing.  Pisgah I would like to visit again once it's cooler. 

[WolfVanZandt]

Aye, that area is almost as good as Bankhead for waterfalls - not quite as many but still a lot. And, of course, you have to see both because waterfalls are like people; every waterfall has a different character