Longfield Branch Trail BSF

 

Cheryl led 5 of us on a snowy hike at Big South Fork. Had a couple of creek crossings, we took our time and didn't get wet feet. One couple had family connection in the area of Rance Boyatt Farm and grave site. We found frost flowers all over the farm area, always excited to see these. Back across the creek, onward to Maude's Crack. We all made it up thanks to the rope someone has left there to help you scramble up or down. 

Hikers: Cheryl Smith, Zary Rahimi, Lori Olinger, Gayron and Marla Franklin, and Lora

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Cotton Patch Loop, Bear Creek Loop, and Lee Hollow Loop

Day one: 7 miles

Day two: 9.25 miles

Day three: 4.2 miles

Day one started at the Steven's Branch trailhead. We hiked the Cotton Patch Loop trail counter clockwise. It was a beautiful day and we had a lot of nice views. They have been working on the horse trails by bulldozering them and putting down large chip rock. This makes it very hard to walk on and I am sure the horses are not very proud of it either. We stopped and made camp at Tappley Creek crossing. We had a nice campfire to listen to the owls and coyotes.

Day two we continued on the Cotton Patch Loop to Bear Creek Loop. We went around the Bear Creek Horse Camp and then took the Lee Hollow Loop counter clockwise. When we got back to the Bear Creek Loop we made camp at the crossing of Bear Creek. Another beautiful night around the campfire listening to the owls and coyotes.

Day three we continued on the Bear Creek Loop and took the Cotton Patch loop on the way out. 

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Big South Fork

Day 1: Lora 2 miles, Craig 6 miles

Day 2: 8 miles

Day 3: 7.3 miles 

After getting chores done, Lora and I headed out for our first backpack of the season. We headed up to Big South Fork for three days. We started at the Middle Creek trailhead and headed towards Charit Lodge. We set up camp just across Fork Ridge Road along side the creek. When we got to unpacking, I noticed the camera case zipper had failed and the camera was gone. So after setting up camp I headed back along the trail and finally found it back near the car. Added four miles onto my hike. It was a pretty night around the campfire.

Tuesday we got up, packed, and headed towards Jakes Place. When we got near the Needle Arch a bear coming up the trail headed quickly off the side and down the hill. We walked around the corner to find a second bear heading our way up the trail. When she finally looked up and saw us, she took off down the hill as well. We took a break at Jake's Place and tried to figure out a plan of where we were going to go. We stopped at Charit Lodge for a break. The lodge cat enjoyed rubbing all over me as we decided to go ahead and have lunch there. We sat at the picnic table where the cat joined us. After lunch we headed down Station Camp Creek trail. They have bulldozed and rocked this trail which made it very hard to walk on. We set up camp along the creek. After everything was ready, we decided to walk on and went as far as the Bleven's cemetery. We passed a thru hiker of the Sheltowee on his twenty forth day. After getting back to camp we rested along the creek bed until dinner time. Another beautiful night around the campfire.

Wednesday we got up and hiked Fork Ridge road taking a lunch break by the Johnson cemetry. We had two deer walk across the road in front of us and a hawk flew by. We found ripe muscidines hanging over the road. Yumm! We returned to the car by the Middle Creek trail.

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TTA Big South Fork Campout

Joan put together a fantastic weekend camping and hiking at Big South Fork. We hiked all the trails at Pogue Creek State Natural Area. We also hiked to Angels Falls Overlook and Rock Creek Loop. Fabulous hiking, wonderful weather, and nights clear and star filled. TTA hikers included Craig, Lora, Joan, Ruth, Sara, Marietta, Dawn, Celia, Jane, Patty, and Chuck.

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Big South Fork Camping/Hiking TTA

Joan and Tony set up a camping/hiking weekend at BSF, Bandy Creek Campground. 9 hikers/campers in 4 campsites. I got there late and the others were on a hike. I set up in the woods behind one of the campsites. It was the most level and had the right spaced trees. The first hiker back walked into the campsite I was setting up my hammock at, I didn't recognize him and asked if he was with TTA, he is, hi Jeff, I'm Lora, I thought this was Marietta's campsite. Oops.

Everyone had been at the Sunset Overlook Trail. They were ready for supper. The wind was blowing, not good for a campfire so the lucy light gave us a bright glow to sit around. Marietta had brought her own birthday cake, chocolate on chocolate from Julia's Bakery in the Boro. Yumm and Happy Birthday to Marietta! John got there just as we were getting ready to call it a night. So we stayed up later. After getting in my hammock I heard a whippowill and two owls.

Saturday morning Tony arrived, John cooked eggs and fried potatoes. We headed out to the Grand Gap Loop. It was cool to see the overlook where Craig and I said "I DO". Lots of memories on this trail. We admired the beauty of the overlooks and hiked on. My stomach was saying lunch was way overdue, but Joan wanted to eat at the next overlook. I told her there was no more overlooks, but we pressed on and came back to our exit sign where we sat down for lunch. We could have eaten in the cars that were parked 1/10th of a mile from this spot. When we got back to camp, we cleaned up a little and headed to the Visitor's Center. The Spring Planting Festival was winding down. We missed the mules plowing, and the garden planting. But we caught some of the music. John and Jeff found the food vendors. Swamp cabbage??? The rest of us found a shuttle to Lora Blevins home-site where we talked to the folks that planted the garden and gave talks on making moonshine. Lora was a man, a Baptist minister. The gardener gave us some left over tomato plants and marigolds. We walked around at the cemetery and then caught the shuttle back, going by the Oscar Blevins home-site that had some farm animals still there. The shuttle driver was nice enough to take us all the way to camp. Lazy hikers.....

Joan had made chili for our group dinner, everyone else had sides to go along with. Joe worked some magic with a dutch oven and a chimney with charcoal. Peach cobbler and it was yummy. No wind tonight, the ladies gathered firewood and I got the fire started, Joe kept it burning.  We gathered around, good conversation, jokes from John, good and bad......Beautiful sunset, peaceful night. One hiker departed in the night.

Sunday morning was warm and pretty. John baked cinnamon rolls for breakfast, he packed up and headed for the Cornbread festival. Marietta headed for home. The rest of us headed to Pogue Creek Canyon. We were searching for the elusive exit on the gravel road just past the parking lot. We drove and drove and stirred up dust. We stopped a few times asking the dune buggy riders if they knew where it was, turned on some rough road that they play on and finally gave up the road became impassible. Headed back to where we saw a sign coming from Pickett's trails. Sara called the Park office and that was where our exit road was. It had a cable across the road and no signs for Pogue, no kiosk, no trail markings. We left cars here, Sara shuttled us to the kiosk, we looked at the map on the kiosk that only shows the loop and the spur to the overlook. We hiked the right side of the loop to the overlook, saw the Upper Canyon Trail sign just before the overlook. That took us down into the canyon. This is a beautiful/rugged/awe inspiring trail. One spur led to an arch. We saw a new segment being built that was flagged and roped off. On the way out of the canyon we found another spur trail to an arch and mesa. No indication of mileage to the arch so we looked around a little and decided not today. This requires some research. We had to climb a steep roadbed to exit the area. Wondering if the State is making a new exit with some switchbacks (I hope). More research to do.

Thanks to all for a great weekend. Joan, Tony, Sara, Jennifer, Marietta, John, Joe, Jeff.

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John Muir

Lora and I headed to the Big South Fork for an overnighter. We got a late start Friday waiting on her to get off work. We drove the Divide road and parked next to the John Muir trail. We headed East towards the John Muir Overlook. When we got to what we thought was our last water source, we stopped for the night. We had a great evening for looking at stars and a good campfire. We listened to owls and coyotes.

The next day we got up and continued to the overlook. We found that there was more water now looking at the map. It was a beautiful day and got up to 75 degrees. We enjoyed the overlook and then headed back to the car.

After the hike we stopped by the General Store in Clarkrange for some ice cream.

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Honey Creek/Twin Arches

I drove to Big South Fork to meet up with the hikers from Highland Rim, Nashville and Murfreesboro. I was also looking for the road to the Double Arches I had heard about from the Nature Conservancy. I found the road, then drove to Honey Creek. 9 hikers today, most had been here before, some had not. We had a few creek crossings, with a couple of wet feet, but we never changed into our water shoes. We managed to rock hop and log hop, and maneuver our way thru and across. Lunch was at a rock house with entertainment from 3 young backpackers climbing and jumping and making us wonder if we would need Michael's big first aid kit. Trying to figure out meal times between two time zones could make a hiker hangry. But I made it.

When we got back to the parking lot we drove to the parking for the Double Arches. It's just a short walk in and you walk across the top of the arch then down and around to see the one underneath. Such a cool thing to see. Then 5 hikers headed for Nashville and Tullahoma, and 4 of us headed to Bandy Creek Campground. Marietta, Kathy and Jan had camped Friday night and had firewood and snacks ready. I set up my hammock and we started collecting firewood. Kathy got a good fire going and we kicked back and enjoyed our evening. We watched the stars put on a show and got to hear a whippoorwill sing.

Early Sunday morning I heard a Barred owl talk for a little while. It was a chilly morning so I got a fire started so we could warm our fingers while packing up. Kathy decided to head back toward home and sight see along the way, so Jan, Marietta and I drove up the Divide Road to the Twin Arches.

There were quite a few cars in the parking lot but we had room. We hiked the Twin Arches/Charit Creek Loop. We had a snack at the lodge while Jan checked out the facilities for a future stay. It was a beautiful hike with lots of wildflower sightings. Yellow and red Trilliums, Spring Beauties, Blood root, white, yellow and purple violets, Bishop's Cap, Cinuefoil Hepatica, Anemone, Columbine, Little Brown Jugs, Star Chickweed. If I missed some, someone remind me.

We said goodbye see you soon, I stayed and ate my lunch at the picnic tables in the parking area. I don't know when these were added but it looks fairly new. As I drove out I noticed a small shallow pond and stopped to check for salamander eggs, but found tadpoles instead.

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Laurel Fork Creek Trail - BSF

Lora met me on Thanksgiving Day at the Middle Creek Trailhead of Big South Fork Recreation Area. We left my car there and drove to the West Entrance Trailhead. We hiked to the Laurel Fork Creek trail and headed Northwest crossing the creek 15 times on the way. This is a very pretty hike with lots of opportunity for camping along the creek.

We got to see one snake, two backpackers, and two horses with riders that should not have been on this trail. The sign said NO HORSES

After we completed the 8.5 miles we drove out to the Leatherwood Overlook and hiked the 0.5 out to the actual overlook.

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Laurel Fork Creek - BSF

Day One:
West Entrance trail 1.7 to
Laurel Fork Creek trail. 6.9
8.6

DayTwo:
Fork Ridge Trail 3.8 to
Black House Branch trail 2.0 to
Jacks Loop Trail 1.0 to
road walk .5
West Bandy Creek Bike trail 1.4
8.7

Total Miles: 17.3

Lora and I headed out to the Big South Fork for a weekend backpack.  We started at the West Entrance trailhead and took the West Entrance trail to the Laurel Fork Creek trail. The weather was great and the water was still cool for our eleven or so crossings of the Laurel Fork Creek. Lots of wildflowers on this trail. We hiked to the John Muir trail and then backtracked to the first good camping spot on the Creek.

While we were hiking, we met one of the rangers. He filled us in about the ten or fifteen year project where the Big South Fork is installing pavers on the horse trails. They got a grant and stock piled pavers which they located all over the BSF. Every year they put in one or two crossings. He also told us about the five year plan they have for clearing trails throughout the park.

There were two lost horse riders, and two other sets of backpackers that first day. We also saw a grouse, many migrating butterflies, turkey, and lots of birds. We saw a large bull frog which was hopping so high he would make anyone proud at a frog jumping contest. That night, there is no telling how many owls we heard. They talked all night long.

The next day we took the Fork Ridge trail back to the Black House Branch trail. Fork Ridge is a steep climb; the signs tell riders to lead their animals. We crossed the Laurel Fork again and headed up to the Jack's Loop trail. Lunch time we sat on a gate by the road. 3 lady horse riders came by and inspected and critiqued our lunch. We didn't tell them about the brownies we had for dessert. From Jacks Ridge we hiked back to the road and then took the bike trail back to the West Entrance trailhead. We met one bike rider. He was definitely going to get a workout on this trail. It goes up and down the ridge into creek gorges, past rock overhangs. Much more interesting than the road walk with gravel dust flying.

It was a beautiful hike.

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PilotWines Loop - Big South Fork

Three of my backpacking friends had agreed to go on a wintertime overnight with me (with disclaimers: not too cold, no ice/snowstorms/not too far away/ect.) This weekend looked promising. Other than the updates I was getting from Craig and the Outcasts from their trails.

We drove to Big South Fork, Station Camp East trailhead to hike the Pilot/Wines trail. The parking lot was full of trucks and horse trailers. We were hiking the trail counterclockwise. They all went the opposite direction maybe to the Big Island Loop. The trail was in fairly good condition after the rain/snow earlier in the week. Not too much mud. We got to see the Wilderness Resort cabins and stable on the border of the park; they have immediate access to trails from their cabins.  I was able to find Pilot Rock for the ladies to see. It really is impressive. We got to the river level and hiked up the creek to find a campsite out of the mud. There was plenty of firewood and a log to sit on by the campfire. It stayed cloudy thru the evening but we did see the moon shining thru.

Sometime thru the night, it rained a little, then the thunder woke us up at daylight. We got packed up and started cooking breakfast under my tarp when Nancy’s fuel canister rolled down the bank into the creek. I ran down to the crossing to try and catch it. It got stuck between a rock and a hard place, so I grabbed it.

We headed out to cross the creek, sprinkles came and went. We got to the Dome Rockhouse and had a snack in the dry. When we got to the car all the horse trailers had disappeared, I guess horses don’t like rainy days. Just as we were loading up, the rain came down. Good timing! We stopped at the Hitching Post for something to drink and talked with the owner and his companions. You can’t get permits here for overnight backpacks anymore. The park service has an online option or at the Visitor Centers. It was really handy to get them here in case you weren’t going into the visitor center areas. He also runs a lodge in case you need a place to stay.

We got to the Cracker Barrel to the other car and during swap over Amy noticed her poles were missing. She had left them in the Station Camp parking lot while changing shoes. After a quick call to the Visitor Center, the Ranger told her he would check it out when he got off work. Hope he finds them so she can get them back.

Thank you to my adventurous backpacking friends for agreeing to a February backpack J

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Wednesday Hike - Rugby

Wednesday hike with Plateau chapter. I drove to Cracker Barrel to find only Harry and Harold there. Where was the big hiking group? Just when we decided we were it, along came Bill and then Pat. We loaded into Howard's SUV and to the trails we went. 

Rugby was our first stop, the Gentleman's Swimming Hole, and Meeting of the Waters loop. It's a very pretty trail, we didn't swim, but the water looked very inviting. The Meeting of the Waters is where the two creeks, the Clear Fork and the White Oak merge and become the South Fork, which as it picks up the streams and creeks on its way down into the gorge becomes the gorgeous Class IV and V Big South Fork River .

On to our next hike; only we found an interesting store first: R.M. Brooks GEN MDSE. It used to be the Rugby Post Office. There are a few antiques and a nice lady that runs the place and she makes really good sandwiches. We had lunch here. They also have bikes for rent and a campground. There is a trailhead here for Brewster Bridge. We drove a little further on 52 to find what Bill wanted to show us. The new bridge and the old bridge where the trail from the store comes to. The road to the old bridge has places you could launch a canoe. Pretty. We also saw a large buck standing by the guardrail. He was beautiful!

On to our next hike: Colditz Cove SNA. We saw 2 pretty waterfalls and Pat found lots of wildflowers and identified them for us. 

We had to stop for ice cream at the General Store in Clarkrange. Turtle tracks in a cone Yumm!

Thanks Plateau for a great day!

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Cotton Patch Loop - Big South Fork

Day one: 7.6
Cotton Patch Loop

Day two: 6.8
Cotton Patch Loop 2.9
Split Bow Arch overlook 0.6
Split Bow Arch Trail 0.7
Bear Creek Overlook 0.6
Road Walk 2.0

Total Miles: 14.4

We headed to Kentucky to do the Cotton Patch Loop in the Big South Fork.  We started at the Slavens Branch Trailhead.  You walk down the road and turn on to the Cotton Patch Loop.  You start right off heading down for your first of five water crossings.  You are in and out of creek gorges and a lot of flat areas of hardwoods.  This trail is all old roadbed.  The one extremely steep area with a warning sign, they have build a handicap ramp for the horses.  You do go up and down a lot but it is not a strenuous hike. Beautiful area to hike.

We collected water out of the Tapley Branch and set up camp in a flat area just before the Bear Creek Loop intersection.  It was a really nice evening to stand around a campfire!  We set up our hammocks and enjoyed the evening. Lora had spotted an Great Horned Owl on our way out of Bear Creek Gorge and we got to listen to one at camp.  We also heard a Screech Owl.

The next morning we turned up the roadbed at the Bear Creek Loop trailhead and hiked a mile up to see Split Bow Arch Overlook. We then hiked 0.2 back to hike the 0.7 Split Bow Arch trail, and the 0.3 Bear Creek Overlook. The Split Bow Arch is an impressive 50'x34' arch and the trial goes through it.
From there we walked 0.8 back to our trail and headed down to Bear Creek again.  This time next to the Cumberland River.  We saw the old water gauging system next to the river.

This crossing is the deepest of the creek crossings and we were knee deep in it.  Might wanna watch it in rainy weather. From here you climb back to rim level and back to the car.  Another great hike.

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Bandy Creek Hike

Day One: 10.4
Oscar Blevins Farm Loop 3.6
Collier Ridge Loop 1.5
West Entrance Trail 2.4
Katie Trail 1.0
John Litton Farm Loop 1.9

Day Two: 4.7
John Litton Farm Loop 3.7
Katie trail 1.0

Total Miles: 15.1

Lora and I headed up to Big South Fork.  We started at the Bandy Creek Trail head and went to the Oscar Blevins Farm.  We did the tour and then took the farm loop to the Collier Ridge Loop going towards the West Entrance.  We then took the West Entrance trail back to the Oscar Blevins Loop and back to the car to pick up the backpacks.  Very nice section of the park.  We even got to see some historic horses at the farm and one historic cat.

When we got our backpacks we hiked to the campground and took the John Litton Farm Loop to the Fall Branch Falls.  It was getting time to make camp and there was a campsite at the falls with a bench, fire ring, and a good stack of firewood.  Lora asked " should we camp here or hike a little farther?".  After a quick rap to the forehead she came to her senses and said this would be a good place to stay tonight.

Soon we had a fire going and camp set up.  We had the view of the water fall to eat our dinner by.  Three other backpackers came by, looking at us with envy, and continued down the trail.

After a wonderful evening we got up and had breakfast.  It was warm already this morning as we headed out to finish the loop and toured the farm.  We had planned to continue to the Jack's Ridge Loop when the rain changed our minds and we headed back to the car.

On the way back to the car I lost dear Lora in the mud.  Well, it looked that way when we hiked back looking for her hat that had fallen off and was laying in a big mud bog.

On the way home after hiking in the heat, we passed a brine truck spraying the roads.  What???

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TTA - John Litton to Leatherwood Ford

Upper Cumberland scheduled a hike in Big South Fork, I signed up, Craig was working (somebody has to). I met the others in Clarkrange. We drove to Leatherwood Ford and left a car, then drove to the Bandy Creek Visitor Center and chatted with the Ranger. I asked about trail extensions toward Honey Creek and he reported the trail work had started and was flagged for a way. It will be great to have the O&W area connected to Honey Creek. Future plans hopefully will include connecting the Sheltowee Trace with the Cumberland Trail either in Wartbug or Frozen Head. How exciting!

We started the John Litton Farm Loop at the trailhead by the swimming pool. In the parking lot we talked with Steve Barbour Director of the Sheltowee Trace Association. He was waiting for a group of backpackers to come down the trail (about 20 of them). I mentioned Craig and the Outcasts and he said Yes I know the Outcasts, tell them I said Hi.

We got started and as always in BSF the trail was beautiful. There was a lot of ice left from the cold weather earlier in the week. Lots of icicles hanging from the rocks and bluff walls especially along the creek, and they were melting. Watch out! Lots had already crashed along the trail. The ladders weren't icy, just wet. We saw a few trees that had been chewed on by beaver. After a few miles we started meeting the STA backpackers. Lots of nice folks, a few kids among the adults. We knew the one bringing up the tailend, Curt, and stopped to chat with him. We hiked our way up to the top of the bluff on the Grand Loop trail. We stopped at the overlook where Craig and I got married and Gary took my picture and I said "I still do"  The wind had picked up and when we got to our lunch spot, Angel Falls Overlook, we had to brace ourselves against the wind and gusts, and try to keep our lunch from blowing away. Richard had baked some awesome persimmon walnut bread and shared it with us. Yummy. The views of the Cumberland River from here are beautiful.

We headed back to the trail junction and started down along the bluff heading back toward the river. Another ladder and some icy rocks made it a little challenging. Gary watched to make sure we got past the challenging section, I went on down the trail and across the creek on the bridge. I saw Gary coming down the ridge and kept thinking he would catch up to me, I take two steps for each one of his. Next thing I knew there was Gary ahead of me taking to Richard and I said "what the.....how did you get in front of me?" He said he can fly. He must have crashed cause he was a little muddy. He had crossed the creek on a log and scooted his way across. The log was slicker than he thought. Anyway we got to the Leatherwood Ford crossing and the hiker bridge was closed for repairs, part of it had washed away. We hiked up to the road, crossed the bridge and back to the parking lot.

Another great BSF hike and good friends to hike with. Thanks Richard, Gary, Pete and Cathy.

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Charit Creek

Charit Creek Trail 1.0 Miles
Hatfield Ridge Trail 6.8
Charit Creek Overlook 1.4
DAY ONE: 9.2
Station Camp Creek Trial 4.3
Charit Creek Trail 1.0
Black House Branch Trail 4.4
DAY TWO: 9.7
TOTAL MILES: 18.9

Back to Big South Fork for another weekend backpack.  To add a little excitement to our hike, we did some off trail adventures in search of natural arches found on our Tennessee Land Forms Link.

We started at the Charit Creek trailhead which has been moved since the book and map have been printed.  It is now 0.2 miles back up the road where they built a horse trailer parking lot and a hiker parking lot and gated the road.

You pass the Fork Ridge trailhead and the trail starts at the back of the old parking spot.  This trail is also now part of the Sheltowee Trace.  The trail drops down a ladder and follows the creek down to Charit Creek Lodge.  We left the trail and climbed back up to the rock bluff wall.  Near the end of the wall we found Bob's Arch which is 12' x 10'.  At the bottom is another opening that goes all the way through.  It was 1' x 6'.  We then hiked the trail down to the lodge.  Behind the lodge we picked up the Hatfield Ridge Loop trail and headed uphill.  On the map it is labeled as the Charit Creek Lodge Connector trail.  We left this trail in search of the 25' x 30' Hatfield Ridge arch which we did not find.  After further study, I feel we started too low on the hill side and even though we climbed up another level we should not have left the trail until you see the large rock formations at the top of the climb.

By now we had a pretty good work out in and decided to abandon our further searches for arches and just hike the trail.  We took the side trail to the Station Camp Creek (Charit Creek) overlook.  It had a wonderful view of the valley and an aerial view of Charit Creek Lodge.  We then headed back to the Hatfield Ridge trail and hiked down to the end of the ridge.

The trail circles around the end of the ridge with some views of the Big South Fork of the Cumberland River.    The trail now joins the John Muir trail and we made camp at an existing campsite on Station Camp Creek.  We had a warm campfire and saw the stars in between the clouds.  We got to hear an owl and I scared some large critter off when I went for more water after dark.

The next morning we got up and headed up stream on the Station Camp Creek trail.  They have made some changes and rerouted the trail / roadbed to avoid creek fording.  We were let down as we are always looking  forward to some old fashion foot washing.  We stopped at the Hatfield Cemetery and also at the pond that was dammed up by a beaver.  You could see some fresh cuttings as we removed one from the trail. When we got back to the lodge we took the Charit Creek trail back to the car.  We scared five deer on our climb out.

We swapped to day packs and hiked back to the Fork Ridge Trailhead and took it to the Black House Branch trail.  This follows the new Sheltowee Trace trail across to Jack's Ridge Loop trail.  We made a steep decent down to the creek crossings.  We crossed the Black House Branch three times and the Laurel Fork once before we started up the other side of the gorge.  This is also where the Laurel Fork Creek trail crosses.  On the way up there is a very large rock laying next to the trail and also a really impressive rock house to check out.   After we got to the Jack's Ridge Loop trail we turned around and hiked back to the car.  The creeks had not warmed up since the first trip across.

Another good hike and workout.

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Sawtooth / Dead Deer Arch / Rock Creek / Buffalo Arch

Sawtooth Overlook and back 7 miles
Dead Deer Arch
Rock Creek Loop 9 miles
Parker Mountain Trail 0.6
Buffalo Arch 0.5
Total Miles: 17.1

Off to Big South Fork we went with an adventure in mind.  We started off on the Map listed as Hicks Ridge Trail and Sawtooth Ridge Trail.  In the book it is listed as Laurel Fork of North White Oak Creek.  Anyways the trailhead is on Darrow Ridge Road and the sign says 3.5 miles to Sawtooth Overlook.  Just up the trail is a new trail "Darrow Ridge Horse Trail"  that goes 2.1 miles East to Hippy Cave.

Our trail is old road bed which passes a cool looking rock wall on the left.  The Wild Cat Den is at 0.6 miles, which is a large rock shelter which has opening in the roof making it a natural arch in formation.  From there you ford the Laurel Fork on pavers.  Even at 24 degrees outside, the calf deep creek felt cold.  The roadbed goes up the other side with a steady climb.  When you get to the top you will find the longest straight trail in the BSF.  We hung a right at the intersection with the Sawtooth Ridge Trail and headed out to the overlook. The trail to the left is supposed to go out to what Google shows as Montgomery Lane off 154.

The Sawtooth Canyon is totally different than any other in the BSF.  From the air it would look like a saw blade with the teeth facing each other from both sides of the canyon.  The Laurel fork works it way back and forth between the high rock walls of the canyon.  We walked one of the teeth out to the end.  It started snowing on us there and we had a couple of white outs as we were eating our lunch.  Then we followed our trail back to the car.  We did not find the trail listed on the map as Pond Ridge Trail.

Next we were going to drive down to Hippy Cave.  Just past the Sawtooth trailhead there is alot of roads built for land that was for sale.  Maybe a quarter mile down the road turned into a mud pit with a field on the side.  We stopped and walked around the mud pit and saw that the road continued along the side of the field  but you would need a tractor or a good four wheel drive to make it.  We saw a trail heading into the woods and followed it for a bit and it connects to the new trail Darrow Ridge Horse Trail.  So we called this adventure off.  All the other trails off Darrow Ridge Road must be for hiking in dry weather only.   Maybe mid summer.

Next on our agenda was Dead Deer Arch.  This is an unmarked arch with no path going to it.  A hunter found it while looking for a deer.  The deer fell in the crack that makes the arch.  We found it in the book.  We drove the 1.8 miles up Divide Road and pulled off to the left.  We found the two signs on the post for the Pickett State Forest and Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency and started our bush whacking for the 0.1 miles down into the gorge.  Lora found a rock wall on the right with an opening so we headed that way.  After we explored the area around the creek and did find a small waterfall, we decided that we were in the wrong area.

On the way in I thought I saw a large rock wall over the next hill so we went and followed the next draw back up towards the road.  Here we found the arch.  It has a 40 foot span and is higher than the advertised 18 feet high as you can tell from our pictures.  After exploring the area, we headed up the North end of the arch and in about fifty feet we were back on the road and came across a tree with the same signs.  So if your looking for this arch, it is between 1.7 and 1.8 from TN 154 and look in the woods for the drop off you can see about 50 feet into the woods.  Go in by the tree with the two signs.  This is before you get to Watson Branch Road.

Next on the agenda was 9 mile Rock Creek Loop.  We hiked it clockwise to get to a campsite with water within a mile.  There was a group of Boy Scouts camping across the street from the Southern trailhead.  We parked up the road at the main trailhead and walked the road back to the Southern trailhead.  There was about a half inch of snow on the ground when we started.

We dropped down into the gorge and to Rock Creek.  There was a campsite at the junction with the JMT so we made it ours.  We collected alot of wood for the 19 degrees it was going to get down to.  We had a peaceful evening with a clear sky, lots of stars, and a moon so bright we didn't need flashlights.

The next morning we continued our hike of Rock Creek.  We were looking for the intersection of Coffee trail from across the creek, but never saw it.  It was another plan that we were considering as a trail into the Rock Creek loop.  We also found out that the Sheltowee has been rerouted for anyone that has hiked it.  It used to end at Pickett State Park, but now it is following the JMT and crosses over to the Charit Creek Lodge and goes back to the JMT and on to Leatherwood Ford.

The Rock Creek Loop is a beautiful trail covered with rock walls, the creek, a waterfall, and lots of green.  We had lots of icicles too this time of year.  The prettiest section is the rail bed out of the gorge with the waterfall and rock walls.  We passed four backpackers from Ohio along Rock Creek and one bicycle rider on the last section before the graveyard.

Now for the Buffalo Arch.  We drove back out to TN 154 and drove North past Pickett State Park.  We passed the trailhead for Coffee Trail which is a gated road, and headed into Kentucky to FR 562.  The first road to the right off FR 562 is the Parker Mountain trailhead.  You follow this trail 0.3 miles and the Buffalo Arch trail is a 0.25 mile spur trail  off to the right.  This is an amazing looking arch as it comes off the end of a rock wall.  It spans 82 feet and is higher than the advertised 19 foot clearance as you can see in our pictures.

So back to car as time runs out for this weekends adventures.  Life is Great!

Pictures:

Maudes Crack TTA Hike

I went to Big South Fork Saturday to hike with the Upper Cumberland Chapter of TTA. Talking to Craig along the way and he was asking the usual questions of “did you remember your….” and I thought I did remember…Only when I was almost to the park I started looking for my wallet……no wallet. I called Mom to go to my house to see if I dropped it somewhere between the house and the car or the mailbox. She found it in the garage and offered to bring it to me. (two hour drive) I declined the offer and watched my speed from that point.

I started down the Divide Road and was almost to the trailhead when I saw a ditch in the road. I stopped and thought “what would Craig do?” and drove thru it slowly only dragging the hitch coming out of it. Then found 4 more ditches dug into the road. I got to the trailhead and no one was there. I waited a while and started wondering if the others might not be able to get thru the ditches. I drove back to look for them, met up with a couple of hunters with their dogs. I asked about the ditches in the road and they explained about water bars. They must be expecting floods. I found the other hikers, warned them about the ditches and turned around to follow them back to the trailhead. We managed to get thru without losing a muffler or oil pan.

There were 7 hikers ready to get on the trail with Kathleen leading the way. We hiked the Longfield Branch Trail to No Business Creek and crossed in our sandals. Pete showing us a better way, used plastic bags over his boots. We hiked the JMT up to the JMT overlook then back to the No Business Trail. We reminded Kathleen that our lunches were calling to us so we stopped along the creek to eat. We saw old homesites and one had daffodils budding and one blooming in early February!

Then on to Maude’s Crack where we followed Pete up and thru, then a view from the top. We followed Maude’s Crack Trail back to the cars. We found firewood in the parking lot and Lillian the engineer came up with the idea to use the firewood to put in the ditches to try to keep our vehicles from dragging so much. They put this plan into action with Lillian and Richard placing the wood, letting us drive across and then taking the wood to the next ditch. In and out of the van till we got thru all 5 ditches. I told Lillian she should get a job with TDOT.

The others headed on to another adventure at the Twin Arches and I headed home, without my license, driving responsibly and not stopping for ice cream, boo hoo. My fellow hikers did offer to give me money if I needed some, I knew I had enough water, a snack and enough gas to get home. Wasn’t thinking about ice cream until I passed the Sonic in Crossville. Lesson learned.

Pictures:

Cumberland Valley Loop - Big South Fork

Gernt Trail 3.3
Gernt Overlook .3
O&W Trail 2.7
Coyle Branch Trail 2.1
North White Oak Loop 11.4
Groom Branch Trail 2.4
Total Miles: 22.2


Lora and I headed out for an overnight backpack at the Big South Fork.  We hiked the Cumberland Valley Loop and part of the North White Oak Loop which are all old road beds.  We started at the Cumberland Valley trailhead and hiked the Gernt Trail.  We did the side trip to the Gernt Overlook which is worth the time.  Great views and just a short side trail.  The sign says .3 one way but I think that is round trip.

After the Overlook, the trail drops down into the gorge to the North White Oak Creek.  With the cold weather, we got to see lots of icicles hanging off the rocks and frozen puddles on the trail.  It is a very pretty trail down to the creek.  Once at the bottom we took the O&W  trail along the creek heading East.  The first fording was of the Groom Branch.  Yes, the water was a little cool for the old fashion foot washing. It was a lot shallower than the North White Oak Creek ford that you would have to make to get to Long Ridge Trail that we saw there.

North White Oak Creek was up pretty high and made for some beautiful sights and some good swimming holes if you were up to it.  There were some good mud holes that we had to climb around too.

The next fording was of Coyle Branch, which was cool as well and a little bit wider.  There is a large area for a horse camp there where we turned and hiked the Coyle Branch trail up and out of the gorge.  The Coyle Branch trail was another beautiful hike with all the rock overhangs and icicles.  We bypassed the Leatherwood Overlook because the amount of miles we were already hiking.

We turned onto the North White Oak Loop trail and hiked it along the area that the wildfire had occurred some years ago.  We had many small creek crossings and wandered in and out of the Scott State Forest.  We ended up camping across one of the small creeks uphill into the woods.  According to the description it was around the 5.3 mile mark.  It was a cool night and we had to thaw the ice off the wood before it would burn.  We stayed warm by the fire and enjoyed the light of the full moon along with the stars in the clear sky.  We heard some coyotes during the evening.

The next morning we got up and continued our hike on the North White Oak Loop.  Once again we bypassed the White Oak overlook because of the miles.  The trail wondered along both sides of the gorge without any good views.  We did see two brave horse riders out just before we got to the Groom Branch Trail.  On  the Groom Branch trail we did see a wild looking growth in the top of hemlock tree.  It looked like a bush growing up there with lots of branches and the same needles.  First we have seen anything like that.  Over all it was a good hike.

On the way out we noticed a sign that said "Permits" at the Hitching Post General Store by the trailhead.  So we stopped in a found out that you don't have to drive all the way to Bandy Creek Visitor Center to get a permit to backpack in the Big South Fork.  That would have saved us lots of miles over the years.  They do serve food here and they are open on Sundays which is a rarity.  The owners Jim and Claudia also own the Big South Fork Lodge.  So stop by and see them next time your in the area.

Pictures:

Big Island Loop

Pilot Wine Loop 1.6 miles
Big Island Loop 16
Pilot Wine Loop 1.6
Total Miles: 19.2

Lora and I headed to Big South Fork for an overnight hike.  We parked at the Station Camp East trailhead and hiked to the Big Island Loop from there.  We did this so that we would be on the river for a water source for that night.

Right off the bat, Lora found a wallet on the trail.  We figured it would be from a horse rider as there were about eight horse trailers in the parking lot.  When we got to the split for the Big Island Loop we met our first batch of horse riders and asked them if they knew the person we were looking for.  No, they did not know them.  We headed on.  The trail was muddy in places as any horse trail is.  The cold temperatures from the night before kept the mud hard and the puddles were frozen over.  We passed a couple of hunters that were hanging out at their van on Big Island road.  They didn't have any luck with deer hunting.

The trail swings around and meets the road again at the dead end.  We met the same group of horse riders at the dead end.  They headed out and we started the decent down to the river.  We took a break at the Big Island Crossing.  That trail was pretty much a creek and we took it down to the river.  It looked a little too deep to ford this time of year.  It started sleeting on us here and we hiked on.

Not far down the trail we had two other horses pass us and neither one of them looked like the ID in the wallet.  Soon afterwards two horses came toward us and both of them were looking on the trail.  One happened to be the guy we were looking for and he sure was happy to see us.  We found out that he was part of the first group that we met, but the guy went by his middle name not his first name.  He was part of a group of eighteen which we met at the Burke cabin, which is an old cabin that they keep in good repair and is used on a regular basis.  It has two bedrooms and a large loft along with a main room with a fire place.  The horse riders really wanted us to stay there for the night.  They said it was the best place on the river to stay.  They just don't understand backpackers.  We hiked on.

We played tag with the riders again before we stopped for the night.  We were just shy of Station Camp crossing.  We set up on the side of the river and enjoyed a peaceful evening by the fire.  Late into the night we got to hear the owls talking. 

The next morning we went about a quarter of a mile to Station Camp and checked out the crossing there.  It too is way under water.  Then we did the climb back to the top of the plateau.  At the Slaven Cemetery we walked to the road and went to the Chimney Rocks which are right by the cemetery and beside the road.  Two really cool rock formations.  After that we got back on the trail.  The trails crosses Station Camp Road and then Big Island Road.  Lots of rock formations to look at.  We passed by the Indian Rock House, which is a really cool place to visit, because we had just visited it last hike here.  From here we hiked on to the car.  The mud had thawed which made it more interesting.

Another great overnight hike at the Big South Fork.

Pictures:

Pilot/Wine Loop Trail - Big South Fork

Day One:
Pilot / Wines Loop 8.2 miles
Day Two:
Pilot / Wines Loop 5
Dome Rockhouse 1.2 miles
Pilot / Wines Loop 1.6
Bronco Overlook trail 1.8 miles
Total Miles: 17.8

Lora and I headed out for an overnight hike.  We went to the Big South Fork area and hiked the Pilot Wine loop plus a little extra.

We started out at the Station Camp East trailhead and hiked counterclockwise.  We passed a quite a few horse riders out this time.  The last time that I hiked this trail with Troy, we missed Pilot Rock.  I was determined not to miss it this time.  Once again as we hiked through the rock wall section when the trail turned steeply downhill off to the right, I pulled out the trail description.  There is no trail to Pilot rock.  There may have been at one time, so Lora and I headed straight out the ridge and BANG, there it is.  You cannot see it from the trail, but a few yards in and there is a huge rock sitting on top of the ridge.  I was excited to find it this time!

After Pilot rock we headed down to Grassy branch where we followed the horse trail off down stream to find a place to camp.  If you stay to the right and go upstream on Williams branch there is a place in the woods that makes a good campsite.  We did some exploring in the area after we set up camp and collected firewood.  We heard a couple of owls that night.

The next morning we got up and started the steep climb out of the river gorge.  The leaves that were still hanging on were green or red making a pretty picture.  There were so many leaves on the trail that we didn't hear much wildlife let alone our conversation with each other.  When we came to the second connection with the Big Island Loop we meet some horse riders that were trying to figure out what to see today.  We told them about stuff in the area and they too took the trail to the Dome Rockhouse.

The Dome Rockhouse is like a large room in a cave with a large opening.  It is really cool with the rock being different colors in the dome part.  After that we hiked back to the Pilot Wine Loop trail and made it back to the parking lot. 

We dropped the packs and hiked the Bronco Overlook (Station Camp East Overlook) trail.  This is an easy walking trail through the woods to a good overlook of the Big South Fork Gorge.

Pictures: