US 129 falls

4/8/2011 - as I was driving home from driving up Dicks Creek, in Lumpkin County, to get new pictures, I just happened - literally - to notice a small, sliding falls right beside the road on US 129.  As many times as I've been up and down this road, I can't believe I never saw this before!  It's not too difficult to bushwhack down to the branch below the falls to get a better view, but the verge is narrow here and you have to just pull over as far as you can.

GMAPS does not show a name for this branch, but it flows into another unnamed creek that flows into the Chestatee River

GPS: 34°39'51"N 83°52'59"W

Directions and Information:  from Cleveland, GA

• north on US 129
• about 3/4 mile past White County line
• falls is on the left

Note: going north on US 129 this falls may not be visible from the road.  If you get to the cafe at Turner's Corner you've gone too far.  From Turner's Corner the falls is about 1.2 mi south on US 129 and is on the right.

Hidden Falls (Gwinnett County) (2 falls)

4/3/2011 - went back to try to get more pictures, but they didn't turn out very well.  However, I did discover that there is another falls upstream of the rock shelf.  To get to it you have to bushwhack a short way to the creek from the stairs below the pool area.  It was very bright on the water, so the photo isn't as good as I'd like...evening is probably a better time to photograph this one.

1/8/2011 Searching on the 'net for waterfalls I found sites mentioning a subdivision in Gwinnett County called "Hidden Falls."  I couldn't find a specific website for this subdivision, but there are many by realtors that have homes listed there.  It's easy to get to, not too far from Buford, GA and the Mall of Georgia.

I didn't find any directions to the falls, but the map shows that the subdivision is not big and there's only one creek through it, so how hard could it be to find?  At least one listing even mentioned that the falls can be seen from the back deck of the home.  So I just went to see if I could find it.  A short way into the subdivision I passed a club house and tennis courts, so I pulled in to see if anyone was there.  And when I got out of the car, I could hear the falls!  So that turned out to be easy.

The falls is small, double falls - the main falls is the biggest, and flows over a quite large shelf of rock.  It's hard to see in the photo, but the shelf is open underneath and goes back in quite a ways.  The other falls is much smaller.

 

Directions and Information: from Buford, GA

• south on Hamilton Mill Rd
• right on Camp Branch Rd
• right into Hidden Falls subdivision
• right on Hidden Falls Rd
• left into clubhouse parking

Note: as soon as you get out of your car you will hear the falls.  To get to the falls, take the stairs down the right side of the clubhouse, then continue down the stairs on the right.  At the bottom of the stairs there is a split trail, take the one that curves to the left - not the one across the wooden bridge.  The trail is short, and in pretty good shape until you get just above the creek where it just stops and there is a small drop-off to the creek.  This comes out between the upper and lower falls.  To see the entire falls, it's quite easy to cross the creek here, then work your way downstream, past the steps up that are on private property, to a small sand bar that gives a good view of both falls.