Quick Jaunt to Anna Ruby Falls
Anna Ruby Falls is a short but very pretty walk in Unicoi State Park in north Georgia.
This past week, my wife and I joined two very good friends for a walk up to Anna Ruby Falls, a two-cascade waterfall in Unicoi State Park, which is in the Chattahoochee National Forest. I’ve been to Anna Ruby Falls a few times in my life, as Unicoi State Park is just outside of Helen, which is only a half-hour or so from where I grew up. But, it’s a good walk, and the scenery is fantastic, so I don’t mind going again and again. It also happens to be the trail to the Smith Creek Trail trailhead, and I hope to take that trail again, as I haven’t been on it in over ten years or so.
Anyway, this is a half-mile paved trail up to the falls from the visitor’s center. It’s a bit confusing, because you go to the Unicoi State Park entrance first, and if you’re just going to the falls, you tell them that, and you pay a car fee at the Anna Ruby Falls gate, not there. Even though Anna Ruby Falls seems to be part of Unicoi. Whatever, it works out, and you park in the parking area and begin your walk.
The walk to the falls does have some steepness to it, but not so much as to cause anyone any distress. Just enough to maybe get your heart rate up just a little. But this isn’t the point of this trail. The point is to enjoy the many different rapids, and cascades and flumes of water along the creek that is fed by the waterfall. The trail just winds around the creek, and crosses it towards the middle. The sound of the water flowing over the rocks is a calming white noise, backed by the actual falls themselves that you begin to hear the closer you get. One can even forget the other groups of people that are going up and down the trail, as it is a very popular attraction around North Georgia, especially on the weekends.
The main falls themselves are two tall plunges, visible from two wooden observation decks. The water was a little low, as one would expect, due to the drought in the South, but they’re still wonderful to look at. If you’re looking for a quick walk through the Chattahoochee National Forest, this is worth the drive up just north of Helen, Georgia.
