Located along Crooked Fork Creek of Morgan Country, in Wartburg, Tennessee, these photographs are available as prints and include:
Tag: waterfall
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Chute of Water
More specifically, this is the upper half of Lower Lynn Camp Falls, a beautiful waterfall situated along Lynn Camp Prong in the Tremont section of the Smoky Mountains of Tennessee.
And, you can enjoy this natural landscape scenery from any room in your home, when you purchase a print from my gallery. Several options are available, so come by today and enjoy the great outdoors for many days to come, on a wall of your choosing. Thanks very much!
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Over the Ledge
Jagged rock ledges terrace the gorge of Crooked Fork Creek, housing the picturesque Lower Potter’s Falls on the Cumberland Plateau in Tennessee.
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Lynn Camp Falls
Comprised of two parts – Upper Lynn Camp Falls and Lower Lynn Camp Falls – this popular waterfall in the Smoky Mountains of Tennessee offer visitors a picturesque and peaceful experience. Located in the Tremont section, the hike to the falls is only approx. 1/2 mile from the trailhead of Middle Prong Trail.
You can find great prints in my gallery, with several options to suit your individual interests – framed, canvas, metal, art, wood, acrylic, poster and tapestry. Perfect for the home or office…or, as a great gift-giving idea!
Read this post to learn more about Lynn Camp Falls & Middle Prong Trail.
Thanks for stopping by!
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Lower Potter’s Falls
A short distance further downstream from Upper Potter’s Falls is, you guessed it – Lower Potter’s Falls. A two-tier waterfall located along Crooked Fork Creek on the Cumberland Plateau in Tennessee, it’s a picturesque setting with several large boulders resting on geological terraces.
Prints are available featuring my photography, with several options to suit your interests – framed, canvas, art, metal, poster, wood, acrylic and tapestry. And, framed prints may also be customized.
Thanks for stopping by!
I.G.Y., by Donald Fagen (1982) – see lyrics here.
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Upper Potter’s Falls
Prints available. Upper Potter’s Falls stands 18-feet tall and is located in Morgan County along Crooked Fork Creek, a tributary to Emory River, on the Cumberland Plateau, in Wartburg, Tennessee.
As visible in the video (above) and photograph (below), there’s a rope swing for folks to enjoy during warm weather. Also, the tree featured is practically flat – only a foot above the water at shore, and 8-feet at the edge of the falls. For purposes of recreation, one must climb on the tree (over the falls) in order to access the rope.
A Note About Waterfalls
Despite spending countless hours hiking around waterfalls, it never ceases to amaze me how much wind is generated from falling water. In addition to mist wafting into the air, oftentimes requiring ones camera-lens to be cleaned, there’s also a vacuum created near the waterfall.
This is most easily observed when (case in point) a rope swing is present: note in the video and 2nd photograph how the rope slants backward, toward the falls. This creates a false perception that a given photograph wasn’t level when shot, and appears most pronounced in views from the side of the waterfall.
Hence, if you were wondering why it is that I erased the rope swing from the header image, ponder no more.
Thanks for stopping by!
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Lower Catawba Falls
The picturesque Lower Catawba Falls stands 100-feet tall and is located in the Pisgah National Forest, east of Asheville, North Carolina. It’s usually simply referred to as Catawba Falls, as a second waterfall upstream – Upper Catawba Falls – is infrequently accessed; however, a trail is being developed.
If interested, you’ll find prints and more available in the following galleries:
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Cumberland Falls
Standing 60-feet tall by 125-feet wide, the picturesque Cumberland Falls in Kentucky – also referred to as the “Niagara of The South” – is a popular travel destination. I shot this photograph quite a distance downstream and across the Cumberland River, near the trail to Eagle Falls.
You can bring the great outdoors into your home for enjoyment year round, with one of several prints (and more) available in my galleries, here:
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Small Waterfall
Photograph of a small hillside waterfall, with moss and scattered logs, located the Tremont section of the Smoky Mountains, in Tennessee. See prints available.
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Waterfall
This 30-foot tall waterfall located in the Smoky Mountains of Tennessee is Spruce Flats Falls. You can see more when visiting my gallery, where many prints are available. So, check it out…
Thanks for stopping by!
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Black and White Waterfall
More specifically, this is Eagle Falls, a 30-foot tall waterfall located along the Cumberland River in Kentucky, near Corbin. It can also be found quite easily by visiting my galleries at Pixels and/or ArtPal, where you’ll discover an assortment of wonderful prints available to enjoy at home or work.
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More Waterfall Shots
After my hike up the mountain, I shot these photographs of Upper Spruce Flats Falls – before, and as the sunrise created a lens flare effect. Though not visible from 30-feet below at Spruce Flats Falls, an expenditure of substantial effort is required in order to visit this site…climbing quite a distance up the steep mountain, and then down along a different track to eventually reach a viewing area probably not more than 8-feet wide. You can see more in my gallery. Thanks!
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Spruce Flats Falls
Before hiking off-trail to locate Upper Spruce Flats Falls, I enjoyed visiting the picturesque 30-foot tall Spruce Flats Falls, capturing this image. You can enjoy this scenery on a wall at home or work, when selecting a print from either of my galleries at Pixels or ArtPal. Many print types are available. Thanks for visiting!
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Upper Spruce Flats Falls
It had been quite a while since first I saw another waterfall above Spruce Flats Falls. During autumn of 2021, as leaves fell from the trees, I’d caught a glimpse of whitewater through bare branches as I traversed a mountain trail in the Smoky Mountains.
Of course, I had to find a way to access these newly discovered falls, but, over time, that proved to be difficult. There was no way to climb up and over the 30-foot tall Spruce Flats Falls, as it ran down a vertical wall of slippery, wet rock. On the right side of the gorge is a tall mountain, with several sections of imposing cliffs and no visually discernible route of ascension.
I’d tried the left side, before, successfully climbing up some distance, though, without seeing a path forward, turned around. Yesterday, however, I tried again.
The hillside is very steep and always wet, due to both airborne mist from the falls, and given that its proximity is somewhat shielded from direct sunlight. Under wet leaves, the soil remains damp and slippery. This means that, to advance uphill, there are often instances when footing is reliable for no more than a few seconds.
As such, it’s important to avoid open areas which lack handholds – rocks, exposed tree roots, trees and bushes (especially Rhododendrons, a hearty shrub).
After an arduous climb, I reached a relatively flat space and stood to rest for a moment. I also laughed, because, as I caught my breath and thought about how strenuous that climb had been, I saw an old tree with many persons initials carved into the bark. Well, I thought…I’m sure they were younger than 59 years old!
Thus far, stability and continuity of movement were of primary concern; if I’d lost balance and started to slide down such a steep face, I probably couldn’t have stopped. To such ends, I expended a great deal of physical energy, which, at times, included essentially crawling uphill to increase the breadth of my grip, where little was present.
With this endeavor, challenges were constant, and the need for caution, continuous. In order to access the base of Upper Spruce Flats Falls, I needed to keep climbing much higher before then descending across the mountainside along a diagonal trajectory – I knew where the falls where, but only generally how to go about getting there.
Looking forward I could see that I first needed to reach higher ground, some 20-feet above my location. To do so, I’d either have to backtrack a fair distance in order to climb up a rocky section; or, alternatively, I could try a route directly in front of me, across a narrow leaf-covered ledge and then up a short but steep hill, also with leaves.
As I mapped out an ascent in front of me, it appeared that there would be sufficient small rocks in place to establish safe handholds. Well, that turned out to be a mistake.
Halfway into the process, I realized that the ground was more slippery than anticipated and, while a few fixed rocks had decent edges for gripping, the consequence of slipping would entail a fall of 20 feet. I quickly gathered myself, and, very slowly, climbed down in reverse from whence I came. Once safe, I opted for the other route.
After an exhaustive hike up the mountain, than across and back down again, through dense shrubbery and vines with thorns, my legs were gashed and bleeding in several spots. Nonetheless, I’d finally arrived at the approx. 25-foot tall waterfall!
Prints available in my gallery.
Lessons From the Trail
A note about trekking poles. Walking sticks provide hikers with the capacity to achieve better balance, and I surely could not have reached this waterfall absent such aides. However, more commonly, I used my trekking poles continuously to brace myself from sliding downhill, as push-points for upward locomotion, to test surface footing underneath leaves, remove debris from underfoot, and, on my return, as points through which to gather my weight during descent.
A note about leaves. Leaves can be deceptive, as often a flat blanket of leaves does not accurately represent an underlying surface. There may be crevices or a hole. Also, leaves accumulated on a hill against the upside of a log may simply be stacked in suspension. Either way, it’s important to always check for stability before trusting your step.
A note about handholds. For safety, every handhold should first be tested whenever possible. One should never assume, for instance, that a tree will support ones weight, particularly when its the only point of stability being relied upon. In such situations, grasping the base of the tree near the ground increases the likelihood that a tree won’t break.
A note about focus. The cost of weak moments can be significant and, just as the physical demands of such a climb left me exhausted, so too did the need to retain focus. Herein, in order to remain safe and to accomplish my goal, each step had to be considered, and each movement methodical. Furthermore, as previously noted, it’s always better to err on the side of caution and take the time to be thorough when weighing options to proceed; to recognize a diminished state of mental acuity, and not allow oneself to hurry.
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Cave Behind Waterfall
This photograph was taken from inside a massive cave underneath the 40-foot tall Big Laurel Falls, located in the Virgin Falls State Park. Although the water level along Big Laurel Creek was low during my visit, its interesting that the entire area sits on top of a broad network of subterranean caverns. As such, this waterfall (and others) disappear underground, oftentimes to reemerge some great distance away.
You can find a variety of fine prints featuring my photography in the following galleries, including such options as framed, canvas, art, metal, wood, poster, acrylic and tapestry. Other products are also available…
Thanks for visiting & enjoy the great outdoors!
Phil Perkins • Photography 