Lost Creek to Virgin Falls TTA

Joint hike Murfreesboro and Plateau TTA chapters, led by Sheila and Sara. 15 hikers hiked several uphill climbs to the beautiful Virgin Falls. Rylander Cascades had a great water flow. I saw leaves of hepatica and violets and Little Brown Jug getting excited about the warm weather. All the streams had water from the recent rain. Virgin Falls was beautiful today. Several of us hiked up to the top where the water flows out of a cave, and then climbed down the rocks to the trail heading back. Hikers from Murfreesboro: Joe, Jay, Sara, Tony, Craig, Lora. 

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Lost Creek Falls/Virgin Falls

Wildflower hike with waterfalls on a beautiful sunny day! We started at Lost Creek Falls and wildflowers were everywhere, we saw Jack in the Pulpits. So much rain lately, falls were magnificent! We were the only ones parked at the trailhead. We strolled along looking at the blooms. Stopped at Rylander Cascades and found Purple Phacelia. More of it was along the trail to Virgin Falls on the big boulders. They were covered with blooms. We had a hiker with two dogs pass us, we leapfrogged all the way to Virgin Falls. More water there than we've ever seen. 

Flowers: Jack in the Pulpit, Bishops Cap, Foam Flower, Little Brown Jug, Wild Ginger, Star Chickweed, Sweet Betsy Trillium, one Southern Red Trillium, Yellow Trillium, Long spurred Violets, Blue Violets, Yellow Violets, Purple Phacelia, Phlox, Trout Lily, Allegheny Spurge, Pennywort, Anemone, Hepatica, Squaw root, Spring Beauties, Dwarf Ginseng, Buttercups. 

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Lost Creek Natural Area

Lora and I headed out to Lost Creek Natural Area to hike their new trail going to Virgin Falls. The trailhead has a nice parking area and it is just before you get to Lost Creek. It is a 4.5 mile hike through the woods up and down. You get to see Rylanders Cascades at .5 in. There is a few small streams all along this route and you come in behind the falls.

This is the most water I have seen coming over Virgin Falls and the first time that I actually went up to the top of the falls to see that it comes out of a cave.

After hiking back we went on to Lost Creek Falls, cascade and cave. The water was tremendous here as well. We also passed a unnamed waterfall on the way in that we stopped by on the way out for pics.

Since we had to pass by Fall Creek Falls on the way back, we stopped and looked at Cane Creek Falls and Rockhouse Falls by the nature center.

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