Reedy Cove Falls, also known as the Twin Falls are located in Pickens County.
The water that feeds these falls are from Reedy Cove lake leading into the Eastatoe Valley.
These falls are easily accessed from the parking area via a short 300 yard hike to the viewing platform.
The Geological Formation of a Waterfall Typically, a river or a stream in this case, flows over a large step in the rocks which may have been formed by a fault line.
Over a period of years, the edges of this shelf will gradually break away and the waterfall will steadily retreat upstream, creating a gorge of recession.
Often, the rock stratum just below the more resistant shelf will be of a softer type, meaning undercutting, due to splashback, will occur here to form a shallow cave-like formation known as a rock shelter or plunge pool under and behind the waterfall.
Eventually, the outcropping, more resistant cap rock will collapse under pressure to add blocks of rock to the base of the waterfall.
These blocks of rock are then broken down into smaller boulders by attrition as they collide with each other, and they also erode the base of the waterfall by abrasion, creating a deep plunge pool.
These Particular falls are made from Slate rock and Limestone which are very common in the Blue Ridge Mountain System, even in the South Carolina region.
Classification of Waterfalls...
Block - A waterfall in a Block form occurs over a wide breadth of the stream. The waterfall must be wider than it is tall. A waterfall with this form does not have to be a solid sheet of water across it's entire width.
Cascade - A waterfall of a Cascade form descends over, gradually sloping rocks, a series of small steps in quick succession, or a rugged sloping surface of some kind. Cascades can be both gradual and steep.
Curtain - Curtain waterfalls occur along a wide breadth of stream where the falls must be taller than it is wide. A waterfall of this form often becomes narrower in low discharge periods.
Fan - Waterfalls of a Fan form occur when the breadth of the water in the waterfall increases during it's decent, causing the base of the falls to appear much wider than the top of the falls.
Horsetail - Horsetail waterfalls are characterized by the constant or semi-constant contact the water maintains with the bedrock as it falls. Horsetail waterfalls can be almost vertical, as well as very gradual.
Plunge - The classic and overly cliched waterfall form, where the water drops vertically, losing most, or all contact with the rock face. This waterfall form has also been referred to as a "Cataract" and a "Vertical" form waterfall.
Punchbowl - Punchbowl waterfalls, coined from the famous Punch Bowl Falls in Oregon, occur where the stream is constricted to a narrow breadth and is forcefully shot outward and downward into a large pool.
Segmented - Segmented waterfalls occur where the stream is broken into two or more channels before descending over the cliff, causing multiple falls to occur side by side.
Slide - Similar to a cascade, a Slide type waterfall descends a smooth, gradual bedrock surface. Slide waterfalls maintain constant contact with the bedrock, and are often associated with the granitic family of bedrocks.
Tiered - Tiered waterfalls are characterized by multiple distinct drops in relatively close succession to one another. Whether or not a waterfall with two visible drops counts as a tiered waterfall is up to the beholder. I typically require tiers to be visible together and within a given distance of each other.
Logging Requirements…
1)-How high or tall do you estimate the waterfall to be?
2)-Looking at the rocks, how wide would you estimate the waterfall to be after a heavy rain?
3)-Using the waterfall classification guide above, what classification of waterfall do you believe the waterfall is?
4)-Optional: Take a picture of yourself and your GPS with the waterfall in the picture from any angle and post it in with your online log.