Stinging Fork New trail

Craig and I explored the new segment of the Cumberland Trail being built between Stinging Fork SNA and the Head of the Sequatchie. Didn't know we would have a creek crossing, we didn't take crocs so we took off our boots and socks and waded across. Not as painful as January crossings, but Craig went slow enough in front of me to make it pretty refreshing. Lunch was by a pretty little stream.

We hiked until we found the End of Trail sign, then followed the flagging thru the woods for a little while until the holes hidden under the pine needles and the greenbriar got the best of us. I had heard the trail was 10 miles long and 7 of it had been built. The 3 miles needing to be built must be in the middle, where we were.
We will have to explore from the other end.

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Shakerag Hollow

Shakerag Hollow is well know for spring wildflowers, and it was right on track today. Sara, her friend Sara, Michael, Marietta, Marcia, Sherlene, and me. Not sure who was the most excited about seeing the blooms. Ooos and aaahhhs all over  the place. Sherlene pointed out so many blooms and found the Jack in the Pulpits and Dutchman's Breeches for me, first I've seen this spring. And the white trilliums were showing off. Then we saw the Red trillium. The Celandine poppys were gorgeous. Hillsides covered with spring beauties. Thank you Sara for the invite. We worked hard to not hug and stay the appropriate 6 feet apart due the the Virus of the Century. So many parks shutting down, we were happy to have this trail to hike on the Sewanee campus property.

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Little Cedar Mountain

Sunday afternoon hike with Sara. I got there early, paper was scattered all over the place from the turnoff to the kiosk. The parking lot was covered, it was in the grass too. I put on gloves and got a shopping bag out of the car and started picking up paper. Got bitten by black ants on my arm. People pulling in asked me if the papers were mine, LOL. A few folks that pulled int helped pick up some of it. I filled up both their trash cans with the paper. Looked like travel magazines you find in rest stops, someone had torn the pages out and scattered them. The police officer that drove thru waved at me, wouldn't even stop to ask questions. What would possess someone to trash this place???

Sara got there and we started our loop hike. Wildflowers were out! We saw trillium, larkspur, purple phacelia, stonecrop, Little Brown Jugs, wood sorel, and a yellow flower I think is Hoary Puccoon.

The views of Nickajack Lake were really pretty. Several family groups on the trails, everyone happy to be out on a pretty day.

Stopped on the way home at Stone Cave Bakery for some fresh baked bread. Washed my itchy arm in the cool spring water across the road from the bakery, swallowed a Benedryl and tried not to scratch.

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Mammoth Cave Weekend

Backpack on a rainy weekend? Nope, let's take the camper out. Decision made on Friday, Craig is at work, so I (Lora) packed the camper and hooked up the rig! We won't talk about how long it took....

Saturday morning I met Craig in Cookeville, we made it to Mammoth Cave National Park in time to set up camp, eat lunch and get to our 1:30 tour, the Extended Historic Tour with Ranger Steven and Ranger Steven. Ranger Steven #1 knows his history, stories and legends. I never imagined how mammoth the rooms in the cave could be. It's incredible to see, and then the fat man's misery tunnel you walk thru (sideways), the coffin, the elevator, so many cool things to see.  And then the Ranger turns off the lights so you can experience the darkness in the cave. One story was of a guy who got lost in there and they found him by the sound of him banging rocks together. He said he banged rocks because the quietness in the cave would make you crazy, all he could hear was his heart beating. It was pouring rain after our tour so we hung out in the camper, Craig sank my battleship, twice. It quit raining long enough for a walk around the campground with a headlamp.

Sunday morning, no rain in sight. We hiked the trails around Mammoth Cave. Down to the Green River, Sunset Overlook, River Stix, White's Cave, and a few trails not on the map and some on the map that were in the wrong place. Either the map needs work or the trail markers need work. We got to see woodpeckers, deer, squirrels, and chipmunks. There is a sight where the old ferry used to come into the park.

We made it back to camp in time to eat lunch and pack to go. On the way home we stopped by Standing Stone State Park and hiked along the lake. We parked at the visitor center and took the tea room spur to the lake trail and back up the cabin spur. Lot's of wildflowers out.

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Big Frog TTA

Jan and Kathy planned a hike up Big Frog Mountain on a beautiful sunny day. I met them at Thunder Rock Campground by the Ocoee River. A crew was there sawing trees that were down in the parking lot and campground area. The bathroom floor had been painted too. Spring cleaning I guess.

Another hiker Jan from Nashville met us and we carpooled up the forest service road to the trail. The ladies were telling us about their last time being here, that their directions took them on a scenic drive the wrong way on the forest service road. They had better directions this time and got us to the trailhead without any issues.
We didn't have any trouble finding parking space, we were the only car. Yay, we have the forest to ourselves!

Big Frog trail # 64 starts at 2,160 feet elevation. The top of the mountain is 4,220 feet. We climbed. There are lots of views as you climb, winter time views. No big open views, but so much beauty thru the trees. And the climb is a nice one, easy to moderate, and so many different  forest types. The top is tree covered so no big views at the top.
A couple of campsites at the trail junctions, and one at the top and end of the ridge. At that campsite I saw a little glass jar tucked into an opening in the bottom of a tree. Looked like tissue it it, so not knowing if the tissue was used or not, I didn't touch it. May have been a geocache, but who knows. After seeing the abandoned sleeping bag/bivy and gas canister at the trail sign, you never know...

Big Frog Trail has a lot of trail junctions, all of them were signed. The trail descriptions say there's an excellent spring wildflower display here, but we didn't find any. May have to come back later this spring.  I did find an old growth tree to hug. 

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