Cowards Hollow (finally!)

Finally, the place that has haunted my dreams and taunted me in my waking hour has been found.  Cowards Hollow Natural Area has been an obsession since the beginning of winter and I, because of a friend who found the cascade, got to see it in person in early March.  I have been told, erroneously, that I would not be impressed once I saw the waterfall with my own eyes.  I kept telling myself that I wanted to see if even if I would not be impressed.  " I want to find it, no matter what it looks like and what it doesn't" I kept saying to myself. 

 The directions on the Mark Twain National Forest site are way off and the road it is near is unmarked and impassable for almost all automobiles.  I kept verbally berating myself for not finding it sooner because I was soooo close so many times.  The path is muddy and one must walk through the forest to avoid splashing ankle deep in water (the warmer months might be better for the path but waterfalls are best in spring and fall).  The trail is uneventful, although I did see a limb with fungi growing beautifully all over (picture is on your left).  I kept hearing the cascade in my head and kept looking around to see some kind of natural sign that I was near the natural area. 

I could hear the flow of the waterfall and I had a peculiar feeling in the pit of my stomach.  The feeling was child like excitement and that little feeling everyone has when an obsession becomes reality (a little bid sad that the journey is over).  The 20 ft chert cliffs caught my eye and I looked left and saw the creek fed waterfall cascading downward into the creek.  The chert walls definitely add a mystique to the place and a cave nearby magnifies the beauty of the natural area.  Most waterfalls come from strong bodies of water like fast moving rivers.  This fall was fed by a creek, which is cool because you can walk across the top and look down to the bottom with ease. 

I took a seat at the top near the water and just took it all in.  I did not want to blink, I did not want to move, and I definitely did not want to leave.  The tranquility, the ambiance, and air around me made me feel like an adventurer, like an explorer that braved the deadly sea to find new land.  Then, I remembered the story that this place was named Cowards Hollow because people during the Civil War and (later) prohibition hid here from the law.  Looking around at the beauty, I wondered what it must have been like to hide here during such tumultuous times.  No matter the war whether it be a real battle, a lawless act, or a kid in search of the meaning of life......Cowards Hollow is a magical place.