Part 2 of 2

We have been to Slabsides before in 2014. But we didn’t go for the trails. We only went for Slabsides, the log cabin that John Burroughs built with his son, because it was open to the public for that one day. Having developed an interest in any bit of history of the place we now called home, it was an opportunity we did not want to miss.

This time, though, I went for its trails. Not just once, but on three separate occasions.

I did not plan on going there multiple times, however. It was all the result of poor—\”no\” might be the better word—planning on my part.

The first time I went, I was only aware of the small cascade behind Slabsides and another small waterfall nearby according to a waterfall guide book I had. I found the cascade, but it was just a damp carpet of moss on some of rocks. There was no waterflow. It was supposed to be the larger of the two so I felt disinclined to continue looking for the second waterfall.

At the parking lot as I was getting ready to leave, I saw a couple doing the same. On the chance that they might know, I blurted, “You guys know where the second waterfall is?” shaking my head in wide arcs to give them a chance to quickly say “no”, be rid of me, and be on their way.

The woman beamed me a smile instead and gestured toward the road while the man I thought initially was sizing me up. Like, maybe he was pondering whether I was a stranger worth sharing a secret with. Go find it yourself buddy he seemed to say with his expressionless look.

But soon he added, “There are three,” and started giving me a jumble of directions that all seemed to simply say the trails may be tricky to navigate but you can’t miss the waterfalls.

Thanking them, I went off in the direction they pointed at leaving my car behind in the parking lot. I soon found the first waterfall and, no longer feeling empty-handed, I turned around and headed home.

The second time I went was when I found out on alltrails.com that there was a waterfall at the end of a one-mile out-and-back I didn’t take that was off the main loop. I thought, the waterfall had to be in the video I was making if I didn’t want my viewers to point out what a fool I was for missing it. So I went again.

The third time I went was because of a nagging thought gnawing at me. The couple at the parking lot clearly said, “three\”. Were they counting the others I had already found? Or were there actually two more waterfalls I hadn’t yet been to? I had to know. So with the possibility of going off on a fool\’s errand, I went yet a third time.

I stitched together the clips from all three trips into one video (although cut up into two parts because of the length) and made it look like I hiked to all the waterfalls in one day. I wore the same clothes and pushed off getting a haircut to maintain this illusion. But I did that because all the waterfalls at Slabsides are indeed hike-able and are meant to be hiked in one day. A half day, even. So I am counting on your forgiveness for this apparent deception and lack of planning on my part.

When we went to Slabsides in 2014, I remember we—as well as the many visitors that showed up—were greeted very warmly and with keen interest by the grand- and great-grandchildren of John Burroughs. They seemed happy to know that their late grandfather, John Burroughs, lives on.

I would like to think that this YouTube video of mine in two parts, however clumsily, hastily, and incompetently put-together, will somehow contribute in that regard.