Anna Ruby Falls
Our First Senic Destination
Anna Ruby Falls was the first place we went to checkout after eating a good breakfast. All the water in Unicoi State Park Lake was fed by the stream that overflowed Anna Ruby Falls. We actually drove by the St. Parks beach house and around a couple of mountains before hitting the falls.
Arrived
We were expecting the park to be packed because it was such a nice day out. Some of the other campers were saying that the weather's been pretty crappy the last couple of days. To our surprise the park was pretty empty. So I leashed up the dog and we headed off.
The Hike
The hike in had to be one of the coolest walks I've ever taken. Everything was so green and the trail followed along and crossed over a cool stream with huge bolders and fast running water. The scenery was like something out of a painting, but better. There were also these plaques along the trail with facts about the surrounding area. The photo to the right is of this huge tree growing right of the rock. The root system is rooted all through the rock and through little caverns into the soil below. Some troll creature popped out and asked us to pay a tax for crossing his trail, but I told him we already payed his buddy before we entered the park. He seemed a little pissed that another troll has been stealing his business. Well... This place is that surreal.
Reaching the Falls
We could see the top of the falls start to come into view as we hiked UP the trail. As we got closer and closer, the falls got taller and taller... WOW! It was about 80 or so feet to the top; However, there was no trail. There were three platforms at the bottom of the falls along the edge of the stream that made for some great photos.
As you look up you can see there are actually two seperate falls. Water was coming down pretty good because of all the rain the area's been getting. We could see huge tree trunks all gathered at the bottom along with big boulders and sharp rocks. After chilling for a while and taking it all in, we decided to head back to the truck. At least the hike back is all downhill.
