We recently hiked down to the beautiful Eastatoe Gorge, to The Narrows Falls. The parking area is off Horse Pasture Road, which cuts through the stunning Jocassee Gorges Natural Area. From the trailhead, it's a mostly downhill hike (2.7 one way) to the overlook platform. The hike down is beautiful, starting in a chestnut oak forest, going through oak-hickory and cove forests, down to what was previously a hemlock-dominant forest by the falls. Tragically, the invasive hemlock woolly adelgid has decimated hemlock populations in the south, permanently altering forest community composition, structure, and function. Some researchers speculate that the rapid decline in hemlock and subsequent large inputs of detritus into the soil may lead to the shrub Rhododendron maximum to takeover in some areas (Nuckolls, April E., et al. "Hemlock declines rapidly with hemlock woolly adelgid infestation: impacts on the carbon cycle of southern Appalachian forests." Ecosystems 12 (2009): 179-190.).
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| Sam spotted this beautiful black rat snake along the exposed bedrock of hillslope |
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| Galax urceolata |
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| Hydrangea radiata or snowy hydrangea, is common in this area |
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| Hydrangea radiata |
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| Rhododendron maximum or great laurel |
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| Rhododendron catawbiense or purple rhododendron |
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| The trail branches, to the right it leads The Narrows and the viewing platform. The left leads to some designated primitive camping spots. Kermit and I camped there about 7 or 8 years ago. |
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| Tradescantia virginiana or spiderwort |
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| The view of The Narrows from the platform above |
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