Tallulah Gorge State Park has a waterfall for everyone. The park is home to five waterfalls.
Hikes in the park vary in difficulty ranging from easy to very difficult. The easiest waterfall to discover is L’Eau d’Or Falls. The translation of L’Eau d’Or from French to English is Golden Water. The beginning of the trail is inside the beautiful Interpretive Center. It is surfaced with recycled rubber and is only a tenth-of-a-mile long. We found the trail well maintained and not steep at all. The best view of L’Eau d’Or Falls is from overlook number two. The triple-tiered waterfall is 45 feet high. The stairs to the gorge floor begins just beyond Overlook Number Two.
For those who are more adventurous and in really good shape, the trail continues on to the floor of the gorge. In some sections, the gorge is almost 1,000 feet deep. To reach the floor it is necessary to descend 310 stairs to a 200-foot suspension bridge that is 80 feet above the gorge.
From the bridge, another 200-stair decent is necessary to reach to the bottom.
Other waterfalls can be viewed along the way to the floor. A rugged trail continues once at the floor. A free permit is required to go to the floor. One hundred permits are issued each day. The permits are not issued during adverse weather conditions.
It is important to remember that if you go down, you must come back up.
Cindy and I put our heads together and decided we could probably make it to the floor. After a little more thought, we decided that the only way we could make it back up was if they brought in a helicopter to rescue us. I guess that happens to people in their late 70s.
Directions:
From Highlands, take Highway SR 106 for 15 miles to US 441. Turn left on US 441 drive approximately 18 miles to the park entrance on the left. The entrance road leads to the Interpretive Center.
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