I hit the trails as soon as the weather broke last Friday, en route to waterfalls in Bedford, Amherst and Nelson counties.
Two days of heavy rain had turned our local cascades into Niagra Falls wannabes. Whitewater churned and thrashed down the rocks, sweeping away leaves and sticks in a violent current. The effect was stunning. The waterfalls were flush with danger and beauty.
Here are a few photos from my journey. I covered nearly 30 miles in 2 days, including “sidetrips” up The Priest and Three Ridges with a group of ultrarunners.
WATERFALLS:
Fallingwater Cascades with a view of nearby mountains. The last time I was here, it was drought season and the falls had been reduced to a sad trickle.
ABOVE: Another view of Fallingwater Cascades, the smallest waterfall I visited. Last week: not so small.
The descent to Apple Orchard Falls. Water was gushing down the mountain from all directions. In this case, the trail was overtaken by water and turned into a temporary stream.
Apple Orchard: A little waterfall that feeds into the Big Kahuna.
With the sun shining directly into my camera and the wooden viewing platform flooding with water, I failed to take a really good picture of Apple Orchard’s main drop. Here’s half of the main cascade.
The other half of Apple Orchard’s big drop, which is split by a huge boulder hung with icicles. It was exhilarating to hike to the falls but I did not linger long.
Upper pool at Statons Creek Falls.
More whitewater at Statons Creek Falls.
The BIG drop at Statons Creek Falls.
We snapped a shot on the summit of Three Ridges during our 23-mile run. We warmed up with a 9 mile out-and-back on The Priest (highest peak in background). Then we conquered the unrelenting climbs of the Three Ridges/Mau-Har loop. There was about 10,000 feet of climbing packed into our route. It’s known as one of the hardest training loops in the land.
The pack of runners descending Mau-Har. Weather was beautiful.
Kayakers completing a run on the Tye River. I loved their bright colored boats!
Moral of the Story: It was a great weekend to do what you love in the mountains.
March 16, 2011 at 10:15 am |
What a beautiful day. Hard to believe we will be climbing Apple Orchard Falls trail in a little over a month. One day I need to come up and run the Three Ridges loop with you all.
March 16, 2011 at 10:54 am |
These races are coming up so quickly. Can’t believe Terrapin is just a week away. Three Ridges/ The Priest is a tough training run, but a beautiful loop!