Crabtree Falls ... 25 victims have fallen to their deaths

The signs posted at Crabtree Falls in Nelson County are prominent for all to read:

DANGER
THE ROCKS ARE COVERED WITH A PLANT GROWTH THAT MAKES THEM EXTREMELY SLIPPERY. TWENTY-THREE PEOPLE HAVE DIED WHILE CLIMBING ON THESE ROCKS. VIEW THE FALLS FROM DESIGNATED AREAS ONLY.

Fences act as barricades between the trail and the falls. Warnings are posted that those between 18 and 25 years old are most likely to fit the profile of those who have plunged to their deaths in the past.

And, yet, the lure of the falls entices many to climb over the barriers and out onto the rocks.

Saturday's victim, 26-year-old Robert Slimak, had climbed over the safety wall and then slipped on the moss-covered rocks, causing him to fall into the river where he was swept over the falls to his death on the rocks 150-200 feet below. It was a tragic ending to what had been a fun-filled weekend with college buddies.

He was victim # 25.