Big Creek, Great Smoky Mountains National Park. (photo: Garret K. Woodward)
When the trail bends sharply to the right, I know the waterfall is just behind the brush. I can’t see it, but I can hear it. This eternal rush of water cascading down from the farthest reaches of the surrounding mountains.
About two miles up the Midnight Hole trail in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, I stood in front of Mouse Creek Falls: in silence and in awe. Late Sunday afternoon, right when the sun finally disappears behind the ridge. Taking off my gloves and hat, I sat down on a large boulder in the creek and watched the rushing water.