Sid’s Falls
| Height: | 100 feet |
| Stream: | Shoulder Bone Branch |
| River Basin: | Savannah River |
| Elevation: | 1,392 feet |
| Landowner: | United States Department of Agriculture |
| Recreational Area: | Sumter National Forest, Andrew Pickens Ranger District |
| Nearest Community: | Long Creek |
| County: | Oconee |
| State: | South Carolina |
| USGS Map: | Rainy Mountain |
| Difficulty: | Strenuous |
| Accessibility: | Forest road, trail & scramble |
| Trail Blaze: | None |
| Admission Fee: | None |
| Hike Length: | 3 miles |
| Waterfall GPS: | 34.755765 -83.307745 |
| Parking GPS: | 34.741807 -83.298934 |
Understanding Waterfall Listings
Overview
Sid’s Falls is named in honor of the remarkable waterfall enthusiast Sidney Holmes Ballenger, Jr. (February 6, 1918 – November 9, 1991). Sidney, along with his two close friends John Danner and Maxie Duke, self-published the first known book about waterfalls in Oconee County, South Carolina on September 24, 1983, titled Some Waterfalls, Shoals, and Cascades of Oconee County, South Carolina. They produced a total of nine books, keeping three for themselves and donating six to various places, including the Oconee County Library in Walhalla, the South Carolina State Library in Columbia, the County Planning and Development Commission, Walhalla High School, Walhalla Middle School, and the Stumphouse Ranger Station (Sumter National Forest, Andrew Pickens Ranger District). Of those nine books, only one is currently known to exist, which is the copy given to the South Carolina State Library.
Driving Directions
From Walhalla, South Carolina. From the intersection of SC-183, head west on SC-28 for 6.1 miles and turn left onto Whetstone Road. Drive 0.7 miles and turn left onto Cassidy Bridge Road. Drive 7.4 miles and turn left onto Academy Road. Drive 1.5 miles and turn left onto US-76. Drive 0.1 mile and turn right onto Damascus Church Road. Drive 0.8 mile and turn right onto Battlecreek Road. Drive 3 miles and turn right onto Damascus Church Road. Drive 0.8 mile and turn right onto an unmarked gravel road (Opossum Creek Road FS-2616) that has a red metal gate. Park without blocking the gate!
From Westminster, South Carolina. From the intersection of US-123, head north on US-76 for 12.9 miles and turn left onto Damascus Church Road. Drive 0.8 mile and turn right onto Battlecreek Road. Drive 3 miles and turn right onto Damascus Church Road. Drive 0.8 mile and turn right onto an unmarked gravel road (Opossum Creek Road FS-2616) that has a red metal gate. Park without blocking the gate!
From Clayton, Georgia. From the intersection of US-441, head east on US-76 for 10.6 miles and turn right onto Orchard Road. Drive 2.4 miles and turn right onto Battlecreek Road. Drive 2.6 miles and turn right onto Damascus Church Road. Drive 0.8 mile and turn right onto an unmarked gravel road (Opossum Creek Road FS-2616) that has a red metal gate. Park without blocking the gate!
Hiking Directions
From the parking. Head around the gate and follow the road a short distance to a fork and keep right. Continue following the road for 600+ feet to the first of five wildlife clearings. Continue for 0.20 mile to a fork into two wildlife clearings and head right. Continue following the road for 0.63 mile to the forth wildlife clearing on the right. Continue following the road for 0.26 mile to the fifth and last wildlife clearing and head to the end of the clearing to a trail. Follow the trail for 900+ feet fork and head right. Continue down the trail for 250+ feet to where the trail becomes relatively steep and carefully make your way down to the waterfall.
My GPS track can be found down below. Click on the track name to be taken to the Gaia GPS website where you can save the track to your phone or computer.
