Folly Mills Falls. — Photo by Bob Kirchman
If you live in the Staunton area of Augusta County, you are close to Folly Mills Falls. This unique little waterfall is a special treasure. Recently I have visited the falls and done some clean-up, but as Summer rolls around there will be more people visiting — and the area needs litter pick up and trash removal from the can at the trailhead.
It would be wonderful if someone (perhaps with a pickup truck) could go by once and a while to cart out the trash. Sometimes there is simply too much to stuff in a car trunk. Yesterday I was on part of the Appalachian Trail — all cared for by volunteers.
These days, so many groups appeal for money, but I am appealing simply for stewardship. We need these beautiful places. What if one day we drove up to the falls only to see a fence erected to block the way because the area had fallen into neglect? That would be a sad day indeed!
But caring for the falls, shared by the community, would be not a drain on anybody. It would be a great gift to the community. Friends of the Falls — your membership is stewardship. Your reward is satisfaction in knowing you are preserving a bit of wonder!
Folly Mills Falls in May. — Photo by Bob Kirchman
Family fun at Folly Mills Falls. — Photo by Bob Kirchman
Star of Bethlehem (Ornithogalum umbellatum) growing near the trail. It is a European plant that escaped a garden, but still pretty. — Photo by Bob Kirchman