The South Mountains State Park Trails - Connelly Springs, NC
“Variety's the very spice of life, that gives it all its flavour.” - William Cowper, 18th Century English Poet
“Life is like smoke… you can’t catch it as much as you try… it goes on” - Biplabi Jain
The Story -
On Saturday morning Ginger, Natalie, Alex, Sophie, and I hiked eight miles on a combination of trails at the rugged South Mountains State Park in Connelly Springs, NC. The diversity and variety of trails offered at North Carolina’s largest park are remarkable and perhaps might just be my new favorite park to hike in the state.
South of Eight Mile - Eminem
South Mountains State Park has over forty-seven miles of hiking trails yet few are visited outside of the popular High Shoals Trail. It is favored for good reason, following alongside the boulder-lined Jacob Fork River culminating with an awe-inspiring eighty-foot waterfall that rivals any in the state. Our loop hike on Saturday took us on six of the park’s twenty-two trails - The High Shoals, Headquarters, Upper Falls, Jacob Branch, Shinny Creek, and Hemlock Nature trails - each offering something unique and interesting along the way.
Spill The Tea -
The first mile of the High Shoals Falls Trail to the waterfall might be the most magnificent hiking mile in all of the state. It follows the Jacob Fork River towards a rugged gorge far below the High Shoals Falls. At first, you hike along a narrow path crossing over several rustic wooden bridges, becoming quite strenuous, rising almost vertically, requiring some agility and nimble rock scrambling. All the while, the sound of the rushing water is almost deafening as it crashes into and around enormous jagged boulders. And with the substantial amount of rain and snow in the area recently, the water was seemingly angry, violently rushing in-and-out from every nook and cranny. I think that due to the strenuous effort required to reach the waterfall, most people call it a day and head back down to the parking area, unfortunately missing out on much of what the park has to offer.
Forest Fires, Rebirth and New Growth -
We opted to continue our hike beyond the waterfall following the Upper Falls Trail along a steep ridge high above Jacob Fork River. Our effort was rewarded with several stunning views of the gorge and a unique trek through a new growth forest, still recovering from a devastating wildfire in 2016. The wildfire lasted for over one month, burning over a third of the park, or roughly ten square miles. Remnants of the fire are still abundantly evident, yet the area is now flourishing with copious amounts of new growth.
Surprisingly, fires can actually be a really good thing for forests, removing low-growing underbrush, cleaning the forest floor of debris, opening it up to sunlight, and nourishing the soil. It also reduces this competition for nutrients which allows established trees to grow stronger and healthier.
A link to an interesting PBS clip on the South Mountains fire can be found here. It gives me hope that the Pilot Mountain State Park will also be able to recover from a recent destructive fire there and thrive again like South Mountains State Park.
If The Good Lord Willing and The Creek Don’t Rise - Johnny Cash
Next, we turned onto the narrow Shinny Creek Trail, descending steeply to the creek basin below. The trail alongside the creek featured at least five creek crossings, of which three required us to remove our socks and shoes Bear Grylls style in order to cross the creek due to the high water levels. Fortunately, only one of us slipped on the rocks and fell in the water, losing not only his pride but also our only towel. To say the least it was cold, it is February after all 😂.
Leaving the Shinny Creek Trail, we finished on the easy Hemlock Nature Trail that runs next to the Jacob Fork River to the parking area. The Hemlock has many informational displays about the environment and ecology of the South Mountains as well as some insta-worthy views of the river.
Wrap It Up -
The South Mountains State Park is truly magnificent and should be included at the top of your list of parks to visit in the state. How about this weekend?
