| Today’s hike was on two trails off of the Richard Russell Scenic Highway above Helen, GA. First we hiked the Raven Cliffs Falls Trail followed by the nearby Dukes Creek Falls Trail.Total distance today – 7.2 miles.
HIKERS – Dan Euliss, Pam Euliss, Linda Johnson, Alice Metzgar, Joe Metzgar, Wanda Miller, Wayne Miller, Rick Porter, Donna Presley, Tony Presley, Vic Robson,Dan Ross, Doug Russell, Pom Sinnock, Carole Wintle. TRAIL INFO. – Very popular trails in excellent conditon featuring two main waterfalls along with giant rock cliffs. Most of the hike was very close to the beautiful mountain streams with the pleasant sounds of rushing water. We saw lots of other hikers today which is unusual for a Tuesday. Raven Cliffs – 5 miles Dukes Creek 2.2 miles. Directions: Take GA 75 north from Helen for 1.5 miles. Turn left onto GA 356(75 Alternate) and travel 2.3 miles to the Richard B. Russell Scenic Highway. Turn right and travel 2.8 miles to the trailhead and parking area. Another great day for a hike! Mostly fair and warm! Temperatures ranged from the low 70’s to low 80’s F. WILDFLOWERS IN BLOOM: Rosebay Rhododendrun, Rattlesnake Plaintain Orchid, Healall, Indian Pipes, Flowering Spurge, Begger’s Lice, Black-eyed Susan, Mountain Mint, Tall Bluet and Whorled Coreopsis. Fish – Fauna: Trout and Grey Squirrel. BIRDS IDENTIFIED: Turkey Vulture, Junco, Pileated Woodpecker, Towhee, Goldfinch, Cardinal, Carolina Wren. |
 Our first hike starts here. |
 A 5 mile round trip. |
 All along the hike, we hear rushing water and see small waterfalls and rapids. |
 Edible?? |
 Another great day for a hike! |
 Indian Pipes (Monotropa uniflora) – A flowering plant which has no chlorophyll. It lives on the decaying roots of other plants. . |
 Raven Cliffs – Gigantic rock cliffs! |
 Raven Cliffs Falls |
 Next, we took the short hike to Dukes Creek Falls. |
 Another portion of the falls. |
 Lunchtime on the Dukes Creek observation deck. |
 The OFHC gang for today’s hike. (l-r front) Alice Metzgar, Wanda Miller, Donna Presley, Joe Metzgar and Tony Presley. (l-r back) Rick Porter, Dan Euliss, Wayne Miller, Doug Russell, Dan Ross, Linda Johnson, Carole Wintle, Pom Sinnock, Pam Euliss and Vic Robson. |