Smith Creek Trail South from Anna Ruby Falls

Another beautiful hiking day with clear, sunny skies and temperatures between 58°F and 81°F. The trail "along the Sautee Ditch, which was a waterway dug-out during the gold rush in the 1800s" was in fair conditions with several blowdowns, all of which were passable. As in the past much of the first third of the hike was along narrow ledges, initially a rocky path. The latter two thirds of the hike was mostly a gentle downhill on a cushioned, earthy path with some exposed roots. Anna Ruby Falls at the start of our hike was impressive with more water flowing across the two falls (150-feet & 50-feet) than expected. The twin waterfalls are created by the merger of Curtis and York Creeks. The unexpected surprise today was the large number of wildflowers in bloom with Dwarf Crested Iris dominating much of the trail in places. This continues to be an easy to moderately difficult hike. Today's Hikers: Beth Hawkins, Charles Hawkins, Jim Driggers, Lynn Steele, Ken Pardue, Claudia Pardue, Edwin Pruitt, Jenny Bell, Gregg Nuessly, Julius Bryant, Angela Evans, Matt Henderson w/Toby & Mike Bell.