Linville Gorge Adventure Along the Crystal Trail
with Matt, Lianne, and Geoff
And a visit to Yellow Fork Falls
Linville Gorge Wilderness Area
Burke County, North Carolina
Saturday April 27th, 2019
Saturday April 27th, 2019
Linville Gorge Panorama
This past Saturday I was invited to join Matt Perry, Lianne Pierrard, and Lianne's boyfriend Geoff for a Linville Gorge "hike" along the Crystal "Trail". I have never even heard of this "trail" but I am always eager to join in on a Linville Gorge scrambling adventure!
Since the group wasn't meeting until 11:00am, I had plenty of time to do the short hike to Yellow Fork Falls (aka Paddy's Creek Falls) prior to meeting the others.
Yellow Fork Falls (aka Paddy's Creek Falls) is one of my favorite Gorge Area Waterfalls and it has been about 5 years since my last visit.
Yellow Fork Falls (aka Paddy's Creek Falls)
Yellow Fork Falls (aka Paddy's Creek Falls)
Yellow Fork Falls Selfie
Yellow Fork Falls (aka Paddy's Creek Falls)
The trail to Yellow Fork Falls is a little over a mile each way (about 2.5 miles out and back). It is not an official trail so it is not blazed, there is no trailhead sign, and it does not show up on most maps. However, most of it is easy to follow. It descends about 700 feet of elevation which makes the climb out is a bit of a workout!
Here is the GPS track from my hike to Yellow Fork Falls!
After my hike to Yellow Fork Falls, I met up with the others to begin our hike along the Crystal "trail".
The Crystal Trail is an unofficial scramble path that connects the Pinch-in and Dobson Trails. Again there are no blazes or signs and the "trail" does not show up on any maps that I have seen.
We decided to do the hike as a short shuttle starting from the Pinch-in and heading south towards Dobson!
Here is our GPS Track:
This hike is absolutely incredible, far exceeding our expectations! Here are some of the photos from our hike (in order starting North to South):
Lianne, Matt, and Geoff hiking down the Pinch-In Trail
The first of many low flow waterfalls along the Crystal Trail
Crystals along the Crystal Trail
Another Low Flow Waterfall along the Crystal Trail
along the Crystal Trail
Along the Crystal Trail
Geoff along the Crystal Trail
Beware of the Devil's Walking Stick
view from the Crystal Trail
The waterfalls just keep on coming along the Crystal Trail
Geoff along the Crystal Trail
view from the Crystal Trail
Lianne along the Crystal Trail
Along the Crystal Trail
Matt and Geoff along the Crystal Trail
view from the Crystal Trail
Matt along the Crystal Trail
Lianne and Geoff soaking in the views!
Another low flow waterfall along the crystal trail
Cave Sparrow Nest
Interesting Bird and Egg along the Crystal Trail
Tree Hugger Matt
Hiking along Dobson Cliffs
view from Dobson Cliffs
Geoff on Dobson Cliffs
Roadside view on the drive out of the Gorge
The perfect ending to an awesome day in the Gorge!
Thanks Matt for inviting me along on this Adventure! And it was great to Meet Lianne and Geoff for the first time!
My complete set of photos is posted here:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/8146392@N05/albums/72157691211856923
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