No wonder this hike is so strange....the first peak is 1600 ft elevation level. Twas a colder foggy morning, so I was spared 1/2 the misery of Van Tassel route
. About 10 or so hikers eventually ventured to the falls, and at least 4 of em missed the route back up 8), leaving me to say hello to the ticks again. A grimace, but its their home....the route in and out be insect territory! I'll be back... via the van shuttles 8) Most of these photos are off-trail...gathering potential route info, but alas the creek didnt offer much downstream of the falls....only the first stretch beyond the bottom of the falls had any scenic value.......I cut a hardware store rope dangling down the side of a short drop, that was damaging its tree anchor. Things went south because I was so lazy, I had grabbed a folding saw first, thinking it would snap in no time....not the case. The rope was far sturdier than it looked. Then it became an obsession to cut it by the saw, but still a couple strands wouldnt break. I tried to break it by hand, but no avail. Finally it was cut loose!
