Autumn at McCormick's Creek

This is a trip that has been on my agenda

for a couple of years now.

I had to postpone it last year due to the drought.

No sense in going to see a waterfall

if it was dry.

As the weather was dry this summer

as well, I had to bide my time.

Then it rained and rained earlier this week

and I knew the time was right to visit

McCormick's Creek.

I had hoped that the Foodie Daughter 

would be coming along with me,

but she had to work.

Oh well, I'll just have to go it alone then.

Remember;

do as I say and not as I do.

Don't take pictures as you drive.

Fall foliage on the drive to McCormick's Creek.

These are the remains of several quarries that opened 

in the 1890s.  

Stone from these quarries was used to build 

the Immigration Center at Ellis Island.

A line of American Sycamore trees.

The entrance to McCormick's Creek State Park.

McCormick's Creek was Indiana's first state park

and was established in 1916.

Looks like it is busy today.

I have my annual park pass ready.

The sign says that the caves and sinkholes are closed

in order to help protect the park's bats

from White-nosed syndrome, 

a fungus that is killing bats in large numbers.

I stopped in at the nature center first.

Geodes.

We have those.

I can't dig in my garden without finding a geode.

Karsts are common in limestone country.

A karst is essentially an underground cavern, 

to put it simply.

I was here for the falls,

so I headed over to the canyon 

and began the journey down.

The falls from the overlook.

Looking across the canyon.

At this point I could have played it safe and stayed 

on the concrete pad,

or I could have made the treacherous journey

across the creek so that I could get better pictures.

Three guesses as to what I chose to do

and the first two don't count.

Colorful fungus on a fallen log.

Be a good steward and make sure that the

only things you take with you are memories and photos.

Looking up.

Looking downstream.

Fossils in a rock.

If you look very carefully, 

you will see that someone at sometime

scratched the skeleton of a fish on this rock.

More fossils.

After half an hour

I finally made it around to the other side of the creek.

Arrow-leaved aster.

Interesting pattern pressed into the surface of the rock.

Back where all those people are is where I started out.

The falls, up close and personal.

The falls are only about 12 feet tall, but they are lovely.

Now I just have to make my way back.

But for now I am taking a break.

Right here on a big rock in the middle of the creek.

This big rock.

After almost falling into the creek

I think I deserve a rest.

Whew, I finally made it back up to the top.

It was a lot easier going down than

coming back up.

I did have to take my asthma inhaler after

that major workout.

In all I spent almost an hour climbing up and over and around

rocks and boulders and ducking under fallen trees.

I found a shady place to park and ate 

the small sandwich that I had packed and brought with me

while I caught my breath.

Canyon Inn.

This inn was built on the site where a sanitarium was 

originally built in the late 1800s by a doctor 

who felt that this area was the perfect place for 

"the wealthy and weary to get away 

from it all and recuperate."

I can agree with that,

as I feel refreshed and rejuvinated.