We had a group of five today for the hike to Laurel Falls from Dennis Cove. This hike is entirely on the Appalachian Trail. It is only 1.3 miles to the falls so it is the most popular starting point for this hike; however you must negotiate 310 stone steps when hiking from the Dennis Cove end. The hike today was quite chilly with the temps in the forties and low fifties with a steady breeze. The hike began on a wide, leaf strewn path and crossed a couple small footbridges. It progressed into the gorge with sheer rock walls in several places. The trail was the former site of a standard gauge railway which was built in 1911 and operated for 14 years, hauling timber out of the mountain. We crossed Koonford bridge, which was the site of a rail trestle, at 0.8 mark. From there, it was mostly downhill. Lots of steps, 310 to be exact, to descend. They were dry though, so we just took our time down, down, down to the base of the falls. The falls are one of the biggest in our area. Quite amazing, but hard to capture in a photo as usual. The trip back up the staircase, though dreaded, was easier than going down. The sun made an attempt to peek through on our way back out, which made the fall color more brilliant. We got back to the parking area before noon. Nice hike.
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| Koonford Bridge |
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| Admiring the falls |
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| Big falls, but not nearly the volume as our last visit. |
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