White Rock Mountain,
White Rock Creek Cascade
January 29, 2006
When I finally got a break from a hectic
winter work schedule, I headed to the woods with Joey to catch
the sunrise from White Rock Mountain and to hike a section of
the Shores Lake-White Rock trail. We parked where the White
Rock loop trail crosses the road on the north end of the
mountain. It was a short walk to a couple of spots with views
to the southeast. Without any clouds in the sky we knew there
wouldn’t be a colorful sunrise, yet the orange Ozark Glow
rose high over the horizon.
Photo © by Joey Bentley
Next we drove back down off the mountain a
couple of miles to where the Shores Lake - White Rock trail
crosses a jeep road just off the main road. The mile-and-a-half
hike was pretty much downhill all the way, with a few flat
spots that allowed us to take well-needed breathers. One bench
above White Rock Creek, a sunlit cloud of fog drifted through.
The trail landed on the east side of the
creek. We managed to find a spot to cross without getting our
feet wet and walked downstream a short distance to White Rock
Creek Cascade. Thanks to a heavy rain the day before, the
cascade was running. We hung out in the area for over an hour,
shooting pictures of whatever caught our eye that morning, or
simply relaxing within view of the falls.
What impressed me most on this hike was how
narrow and tight the White Rock Creek valley was. It was almost
a canyon. Hiking back upstream, where the trail turned to leave
the flat terrain beside the creek and started going up the
steep side of the valley, I had a strong desire to keep going
straight and see more of that valley. The trail leveled off
briefly beside a group of boulders with a scenic view of the
valley. I’d noticed them on the hike in. There was
something about that spot.. I just wanted to stop and sit on
those boulders for a spell.
It took us an hour to get back to the
truck. Not bad, considering it was all uphill and I
hadn’t been on a serious hike in three months. Near the
jeep trail crossing was a nice unobstructed view of the big
bluffs on the southwest end of White Rock Mountain. It
was a great finale to a great morning in the woods.
