Burdens Falling Away

Where have I been for the past week?  Besides going to the dentist to get a crown mostly just lying on the couch fighting a nasty cold.  I woke up last Saturday morning in my tent full of congestion and headed home a day early.  But have you seen these anti-viral commercials?  They shorten the flu symptom time by 1.5 days and the side effects include seizures, confusion, abnormal behavior, nauseau and vomiting.  Really?  I'll just sit at home with my box of tissues and muddle through.

Before I had to leave the Shawnee National Forest I did see that waterfall just down the road from Bell Smith Springs though.  The night before we'd had a lot of wind, so traveling the Burden Falls Road including stopping and clearing fallen trees.

The turnout for the falls is right on the road, impossible to miss.  As a matter of fact, I had to drive my car right through Burden Creek where it crossed the road.

The drop-off right next to the parking lot is short, but pretty. A real trail veered off to the left, but I chose the less traveled path to the right.

Views down into the ravine were plentiful with all the leaves off the trees.

In the distance I could hear more water falling, so I struck off to find a way down into the ravine.

No obstacles were getting in the way of my getting a waterfall shot.  I felt like one of Mark's gang, scrambling over boulder piles to get to my destination.

I finally made it to the bottom, patience and persistence paying off.

I set up the camera and tripod in a few different locations with different lenses to see what angle I liked best.

My new Dolica tripod weighs only 3.5 pounds but even something that light gets heavy after an hour as you pick your way over rocks.

Still, I'm glad I'm brought it. And maybe next time I'll try the well defined trail instead...

Who am I kidding?  I just can't resist poking around, there's nothing that will cure what ails you like an off-trail adventure.  I wonder where my wandering will take me next?