View Full Version : Fatal accident near Foothills Trail (SC)
OldStormcrow
04-27-2009, 17:25
A tragic and fatal accident this weekend near the Foothills Trail in upstate SC. A lot of folks go off trail to explore the waterfalls. There are literally hundreds in the area and the azaleas are gorgeous this time of the year.http://www.greenvilleonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=200990426002
That is terrible news. :(
So sorry to hear of this. Rule of thumb . . . NEVER cross a stream near the head of a significant waterfall.
Landshark
04-27-2009, 22:13
What a horrible tragedy. It happens, we forget.... last year I was just cooling my feet in Clarendon Gorge in Vermont (below the swinging bridge, near the Whistle Stop, how can you forget)? Not usually a dangerous spot but the water was very high. I slipped and fell and got pushed toward the waterfall, and without thinking about it I somehow clung to rocks thinking "now what." Another hiker pulled me out. Only then did I think about how stupid that was.
bigcranky
04-27-2009, 22:16
I worked with someone who's spouse fell from the top of one of those waterfalls and was killed. The victim wasn't climbing or fooling around or doing anything "wrong" -- just walking along near the top and slipped on a wet rock. The falls are beautiful but can be very dangerous.
What a horrible tragedy. It happens, we forget.... last year I was just cooling my feet in Clarendon Gorge in Vermont (below the swinging bridge, near the Whistle Stop, how can you forget)? Not usually a dangerous spot but the water was very high. I slipped and fell and got pushed toward the waterfall, and without thinking about it I somehow clung to rocks thinking "now what." Another hiker pulled me out. Only then did I think about how stupid that was.
Scary. Did you know that the Clarendon Gorge bridge was dedicated to a hiker who drowned there in the early 70's while crossing after the old bridge got washed out?
Nearly Normal
04-28-2009, 11:11
Bad news for sure.
There are at least 35 major falls in that area. I've hiked to many of them to photo. None are safe to climb on.
Slippery rocks and stream beds are no joke.
Some of the more tourist-visited waterfalls in Shenandoah National Park have been the scene of tragedies in the past. At some, the Park has erected signs and fencing in response, yet nearly every time I'm at one of these spots I see folks playing in the most precarious places. Go figure...
The slippery qoutient of river rocks is directly related to where I'm standing. Everyone else cruises right past me, seemingly effortlessly while I flounder around the creek slipping and sliding my way across. Just don't go where I go and you should be fine, and since I know I'm not good in that situation I avoid scenic spots that require me to step in the water.
I have some friends that I refuse to go camping with because they think it's cool to climb around on the rocks and show off in front of the girls and act all like they have some sort of skills or something, then the girls think they can do it and I'm sitting there telling them over and over again to get down and not to go out there and they just ignore me and then I get really mad and then they all act like I'm being outrageous and everythings ok, the last one said "hey im an eagle scout". Maybe I do get worked up about it but there's some people that I will not even consider taking into the woods once I size them up just around the house or something. I'm getting mad just thinking about it!!
Scary. Did you know that the Clarendon Gorge bridge was dedicated to a hiker who drowned there in the early 70's while crossing after the old bridge got washed out?
Yes. Robert Brugmann.