TTA Hike

The TTA Annual Meeting was held at Pickwick Landing State Park and was hosted by the Memphis and Jackson chapters. I had never hiked in this area of Tennessee so I decided to check it out. Craig and I drove to Eagleville on Friday where Marco treated us to a nice evening with a fire and cough medicine.

I got up REALLY early to start the drive to Pickwick. Got to Pickwick around 6:30 and registered. Found lots of hiking friends to say Hi to then found the breakfast line with all the hikers fueling up for their hikes.

My hike for the day was at Cane Creek Nature Preserve. 31 of us loaded into cars and had a caravan heading to Tuscumbia, Alabama. This property is privately owned by a lovely couple, the Lacefields, who welcome hikers, free of charge, to come see the beauty of the area. There are overlooks, waterfalls, rock walls, so much to see and enjoy. 413 acres and about 11 miles of trails with camping areas. They will provide a map that you’ll need to return to them when you come off the trails. Thanks to our hike leader Sara Hakim for a great hike.

The rain started after we got back to the Inn at Pickwick .After a good meal, we headed into the TTA Conference room for a final look at the silent auction items to see if we had been outbid. Then came the awards ceremony, and chapter reports, and the big auction. Some very cool items were up for bid; I scored with a big box full of nuts and dried fruit and chocolate covered stuff, good for lots of hikes!

Sunday morning dawned clear and pretty. Great day for a hike at Big Hill Pond. Eleven of us loaded up and headed west behind hike leader Wayne Simpson. Big Hill Pond is a really pretty park. Starting at the boat ramp we hiked the trail following the lake, Board Walk Trail and the trail to the Tower. There was a good view from the tower, worth the climb. We ate lunch there and then followed the Tuscumbia Trail to the junction leading back to the lake. Got into some areas that could have used a few logs or maybe another boardwalk. It was a great day and a great hike.

Off the trail, got a text from Craig from 2 hours ago saying the Outcasts had arrived and were starting out on the trail. Yep, there’s Marco’s truck with the Outcasts sticker on it.
Time for the drive home. Pretty drive back to Pikeville; got to see all the farmland I had missed in the dark Saturday morning. It was dark by the time I hit the ‘Boro, then 2 more hours driving. It was a great weekend and well worth the drive to West Tennessee to get to see everybody and make new friends. Thanks to Memphis and Jackson chapters for a well planned Annual Meeting. It was a lot of fun.