Jones Gap State Park - Middle Saluda River - August 26, 2000 - Member Trip Report
| Hike Name: | Jones Gap State Park - Middle Saluda River |
|---|---|
| Country: | United States |
| State: | South Carolina |
| Trip Rating: |  |
| Trip Date: | August 26, 2000 |
| Duration: | 2 days |
| Trail Conditions: | Excellent |
| Trail Traffic: | Heavy |
| Trip Weather: | Sunny, Partly Sunny, Partly Cloudy, Cloudy |
| Trip Winds: | Light |
| Trip Precipitation: | Showers |
| Trip Temperature: | High: 81-90, Low: 71-80 degrees Fahrenheit |
| Trip Report: | 8/26/00: ALE and I missed our 11am check-out at the Jameston Inn by 30 minutes. She and I rolled off I-85 at Exit 19 at the exact same time last night – around 11pm – and got the last room. Today we headed to a nearby Waffle House for breakfast then drove first to Jones Gap State Park (where we left her new Volvo) and then to Table Rock State Park (where we set-up camp in a drive-in site #45.) By 3:00pm we made it to the Raven Cliff Falls parking area and hit the trail. Saw no hikers the first few miles, but there were many people as we closed in on Jones Gap. Passed about twenty kids on a wilderness rehabilitation hike. There are a few nice waterfalls on the trail (Jones Gap waterfall being the nicest) and a number of choice campsites – specifically #18, #13, #10, #9, #8, which are all along the creek. We had nice weather for hiking today (except when I got stung by a yellow jacket from a nest on the trail that the dog stirred up.) The Jones Gap trail is shaded which protected us from the summer heat. Daisy was all over the place, and the dog has a lot of energy. We finished the hike in just over three hours, then backtracked to the Raven Cliff Falls lot to pick up my truck. A ranger asked for my permit since he hunted lost hikers until 10pm last night because they didn’t fill out the paperwork. At the state park campsite, we had a nice fire and cooked up dinner on the Coleman duel-burner. After dark we also had a few brews, but kept it low key since there is no alcohol allowed here. The stars were out in force tonight and it was warm this evening to hang out. We ended up crashing about 11pm. 8/27/00: Woke to Daisy whining, so ALE put her outside which didn’t seem to stop it. After about 30 minutes it started to rain, so we packed up quickly and hit the road. ALE and I stopped in Greenville at a Huddle House for breakfast around 11am. Afterward ALE split for Charlotte and I took off headed for Atlanta. Made it back home by 2pm. The weekend was pretty fun for throwing it together at 8pm on a Friday night. |
Trail Map For This Area
There are no comments yet.