TTA Piney River

On a cloudy Saturday that threatened rain, 5 intrepid TTA hikers set out on a trek of the Piney River Section of the Cumberland Trail, near Spring City, TN.  We left a car at the picnic area on Shut-In Gap Rd. where we would come off the trail and drove up the mountain to the Newby Branch Trailhead where we began.  The trail  passes through dense mountain laurel, rhododendron, hemlock and hardwood forest.  The first scenic landmark we encountered was White Pine Cascades, (where there are no White Pines), a beautiful multilayered cascade that was in full glory.  We passed quite a few spur trails leading to rockhouses, picnic/camping areas and other waterfalls but did not choose to take them at this time.  We crossed Deep Pool Bridge, Rockhouse Branch Bridge, Pine Branch Bridge and the amazing Piney River 100 ft. suspension bridge.  These bridges were constructed by the Bowater Paper Company when the land was owned by them.  Our last landmark/obstacle before trail's end was MacDonald Branch, a boulder scramble across a wide drainage.  It was a little late in the season for wildflowers but we did see bluets, wild geranium, laurel, skullcap, hearts-a-bustin', spicebush, rattlesnake weed, stonecrop, partridge berry, milkweed, and one very frequent mystery flower.  And it didn't rain!

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Little Cedar Mountain and Dunlap Coke Ovens

Lora and I headed out for Little Cedar Mountain to do some hiking.  We had heard about it from Tony who had done trail work on it.  There is four miles of trail according to their map which if you do the pond trail you get five as an out and back.  The trails of course are in great condition after just being worked on.  The trails take you through good rock formations, good views, and along the lake.  Great hike.

After the hike we checked out Marion County Park on the lake and then went to see the Nickajack Dam where we got to watch a tug boat change out barges.

From there we stopped in Dunlap on the way home to see the Coke Ovens.  The museum was not open, but since they were working on the grounds, they let us in.  Really nice people.  The park is run on donations only and staffed by volunteers.  We enjoyed the museum and then walked around the grounds seeing the ovens.  We want to go back and do some more exploring in the area to see more of the historic sites up the side of the mountain.

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Crusher Hole and Fall Creek Falls

Lora spent the day out at Fall Creek Falls State Park.  She did the falls trail and the Crusher Hole.

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Hiwassee River - Flag Pond Slough

Lora and I have been busy with lots of stuff going on.  We did get out and do a short wildflower hike a couple of weeks ago and got the canoe out for the first time last weekend for a couple of hours.  We had a week of Grandbabies which was sweet.  We got spring planting done as well.

Well, we got a day off with beautiful weather so we loaded up the canoe and headed out.  We went to the Hiwassee river and put in at the boat ramp on Hwy 58.

As I back the trailer down the boat ramp, there was an elderly man walking down the ramp.  When I got out and spoke to him, he asked if there was a charge for water.  I told him no that the water is free.  He was carrying a kerosene tank with him.  Well, I started unfastening the canoe and a man coming down the boat dock said "hold on, I am coming"  I looked over and the old man was bent down trying to fill his container. The water at the end of the ramp was too shallow to put his container in and the man could not get back up once he had squatted down.  I was tore up for not watching this man or paying attention to him.  The other guy got him back up and I filled his container off the back of my trailer then took it back up to the parking area where the old mans van was parked.  I had driven around it on the way in and never put the two together.  His van had overheated.  Well we got his van filled back up with water and started for him and sent him off with a prayer.  I am so glad he did not fall in the water while I was not watching.

I joined back up with Lora, who had spent this time visiting with the other guys wife on the dock.  We pushed off and followed the coast line East.  We got to see lots of deer, water fowl, fish, and turtles.  We went as far as Flag Pond Slough which is under the bridge on Hwy 306.  We had lunch on the point before Flag Pond.  Then we paddled out and followed the island side back to the ramp which is about 7 miles. Another beautiful day on the lake.
 
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Ladies Spring Backpack 2014

Once again Diane inspired another backpack in the Smokys. She, Nancy and Judy planned the trails to take, Nancy made all the reservations.They, Amy and I met up at Cades Cove to start our trip. Judy's husband Gene brought her to the park, he loaded up all our packs and delivered them to the Anthony Creek trailhead while we walked from the Stable parking area. He is such a gentleman.  He wished us happy trails and off we went. 

The weather outlook for the day wasn't very good; possible high winds and rain thru the afternoon and night. Not too far into the hike, the ponchos were deployed and down came the rain, sprinkles and mist. It's good for the wildflowers and we got to see some on the lower sections of trail.Spring Beauties, Trout lily, Hepatica, vinca, Rue anemones, violets, and wood betony. 

We hiked into a cloud of fog at Spence Field. The shelter was getting crowded, with 4 thru hikers and 2 other backpackers. 5 of us. The shelter sleeps 12. Judy had brought treats for the thru hikers, a little trail magic. We set up for the night, I walked back up the hill and got a cell signal to call Craig and let him know we made it here. Back at the shelter we were trying to decide when to eat, it was still early but rainy and wet outside, not much room to move around inside. We sat out around the cooking area with the thru hikers and had good conversations, enjoyed talking with the blue collar Kansas guy; he came from a farming family, and had a little white lightning in his family history. We have a lot in common. We climbed into our bags to get warm. Nancy got a rousing game of dots going with 2 of the NBers. We had 2 more hikers come in around 9 and asked to squeeze in, they had reservations too and couldn't understand why it was so crowded. Welcome to thru hiker season in the Smoky's. I got up in the night to visit a tree and it was so foggy, I barely found my way back to the shelter. The reflective hiking poles outside the shelter really helped.

Day 2
We packed up and started up Spence Field in a cloud. We were looking for Stinkin Jenkins, aka Jenkins Ridge Trail. Someone had done some great trail work, this trail isn't very popular and is usually overgrown in places with briers and brambles. It looked good today. Nice work! We could see ice on the timber on the ridges around us. and then on the ridge we were hiking. Steep downhill hike. Diane stirred up some turkeys, she counted 8, I saw one of them. Judy saw a grouse. We saw flowers, trailing arbutus and pussy toes. Good brakes kept us upright on the trail, oops except for Judy. She had an adventure trying to tumble down the hill. We reached the junction with Hazel Creek and set up camp at 84. We found a cool pair of sunglasses, a nice water shoe, a bandanna and a sock. We collected firewood to last thru the evening. Then every one abandoned the fire one by one and left me to watch for the stars. 

Day 3
Nancy, Diane and I set out for the Bone Valley Trail. Amy and Judy had already hiked this one and decided on a leisurely morning of fire watching and laundry. Diane had hiked it twice before but graciously hiked it again for us. We had to cross Hazel Creek 4 times. The water was refreshingly bone chilling COLD. Just like in January. And July. The little brown book describes the crossings as knee deep in normal conditions. It had rained 2 days ago and I don't know how tall the writer of the trail description was but he wasn't 5'1 and 1/2. Four crossings plus Mill Creek which was only ankle deep. At the trail's end is Hall Cabin, the most remote historic structure in the park. The Kress family built a mansion here, the foundation and chimney are still here. It was a base camp for wealthy sportsmen who fished the creek for rainbow trout. 

We hiked back to camp and ate lunch by the campfire that Amy and Judy were lounging by. Packed up and headed to the Lakeshore trail to camp at 86, the Proctor site. We were setting up camp and a next door camper came by to say hi and offer his luxury camp to us for the night. Steve is a fishing outfitter and had set up 5 tents with cots that have memory foam mattresses and he wouldn't have guests until tomorrow and feel free to enjoy the luxury for the night. We checked out his camp. Nice digs. I walked to the lake shore, two kayakers had come in and Steve was transporting stuff from his boat to the camp from there also. The kayakers wanted to know where to get a wheeled cart to haul their stuff. I told them about Steve's camp. They found a cart there. I got back to camp and Steve had served the ladies apple turnovers and they saved one for me. Nice. I sat in the sand by the creek and dipped my bare feet in the cool water. I noticed little blue butterflies, the ones you see on horse manure and poop. And some pretty yellow butterflies.....they were feasting on my boots and socks. Surely my boots don't smell THAT bad! Back at camp, Amy had packed up and moved next door, then  Nancy packed up and joined Amy in the Taj Mahal of tents. They did join us for dinner and built the campfire. Some of us stayed up late enough for the stars to come out. Amy and I stayed up a little later and a big noise by the creek got our attention in a hurry. We both thought bear, but no other noise and our headlamps searching eased our minds a little. Amy went to bed and I stayed out listening to the night sounds of the creek for a while. Just after I turned in, the coyotes started singing. Wow they were close. After much prayer I went to sleep too.....

Day 4 
After a good breakfast of gravy, biscuits, and venison sausage (my breakfast) Steve came in with a group of folks. He also brought coffee and crumbcake. Then we started uphill on the Lakeshore Trail. Always uphill after breakfast. We tried for phone signals on the top of this first ridge. I had no luck, maybe Judy did. Simple phone, yes, Smartphone, Nope. Onward and upward. This section of Lakeshore has a lot of homesites with old rusty cars and parts of cars. There are good views of Fontana Lake on this trail. We hiked to the Eagle Creek Junction and headed toward the creek. We got to the first crossing and sat down for lunch. Diane walked into the creek to see how deep it was, got out and pulled out the map to check out other options in case we changed our minds. Each one of us put on our water shoes and they decided I was the shortest, I could check it out. I got in and it was up to my thighs and I wasn't in the deep part yet. The water was moving swift and I didn't like the was it was talking to me. I shook my head and heard the creek laugh at me. 
It sang Fe Fie Fo Fumb, I smell the blood of hikers dumb. 
If you dare to wet your feet, it's not my fault if your pack I eat. 
You're not the first to try your luck 
If you can't swim, you'll be sunk. Bah ha ha ha ha!!!!!!
Not today Eagle Creek, we will toast you with the Butterscotch Schnapps and come back another day. 

Back down the trail to Lakeshore Trail and on toward Fontana Dam. We saw a lot more wildflowers today on the ridges around the lake. Lots of trilliums and violets. We stopped to get more water. Everyone was out at the same time. As we got close to the dam, we met  hikers looking for wildflowers. We hiked across the dam and used the phone to try to get a shuttle back to Cades Cove. Gene was our shuttle. He shared a lot of history with us, as he had grown up on Hazel Creek. He said as a boy, he dug night crawlers and worms for the fisherman at the Kress Sportsmans House for $3 dollars a day. He is in his 80's now so $3 a day when he was a boy was a lot of money. He wanted some more today, @ $25 dollars  per hiker for the shuttle. I guess with the park history and info on where to dig ramps and how to cook them and for the adventure of the drive across the Dragon Tail, the Foothills Parkway and into Cades Cove defying the speed limit to get us back there before dark, it was worth it. 

Our hike was shortened by a day but it was a great spring backpack once again. 
Thanks Diane, Nancy, Amy and Judy!

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Diane Pictures:
  

Local Falls Exploration

Lora and I headed out in search of four waterfalls in our local area.  We headed towards Graysville and found a pull over just at the west end of the chicken houses on Brayton Road.  We headed into the woods in search of Moonshine Falls that some of the family told us about.  0.15 miles in we found it and were able to climb down to the bottom of it as well.

From there we headed to the Cumberland trail Rough Creek segment and hiked in.  We stayed on the roadbed past the cut off for the Cumberland trail.  We hiked a total of 1.42 miles to where the roadbed crossed Brush Creek.  Just up from there is Polecat Falls.  Then we did some bushwhacking along the bluffs 0.14 miles to Skunk Tail Falls.  We had lunch just upstream from there.

We headed back to the car and drove to the top of the mountain again and parked just past the sharp curves to hike to the Brayton Road overlook.  From there we followed the roadbed down to Flora branch and walked the creek down to Flora Branch Falls.

It was a great adventure with lots of wildflowers and falls.

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Cumberland Gap

Day One: 7.4
Thomas Walker Trail 0.7
Object Lesson Trail 0.6
Harlan Road Trail 0.8
Ridge Trail 5.3


Day Two: 12
Ridge Trail 10.8
Sand Cave 0.4
White Rocks campsite 0.6
Ewing Trail 0.2

Day Three: 4.3
Ewing Trail 2.9
Road to Ewing 1.2
Wilderness Road 0.2

Total Miles: 23.7

Lora and I headed up to Kentucky at the Cumberland Gap for a backpack.  We headed to the visitor center and left our car there.  The staff is actually quite knowledgeable, which we are not used to.

We used the paved Thomas Walker trail to get started to the Object Lesson Road trail.  We went up to the "Saddle of the Gap" and took the Harlan Road trail to Fort McCook where there is a cannon and overlook.  From there we continued to the Pinnacle Overlook for a great view from the mountain top.  Yes, all of this has been uphill.  By the Pinnacle you can stand in Kentucky and Virginia at the same time.  They do have a Tri-State Peak where you can stand in all three states going the other way from the Saddle of the Gap.

We took the loop around Fort Lyon where there is another cannon and started the Ridge trail from there. The Ridge trail is a old roadbed that follows the ridge up and down across the mountain top.  There are many views from the trail of the valley below especially in the winter.  We hiked 5.3 miles of this trail to Gibson Gap campsite for the night.  We saw deer twice on this hike so far.

At the Gibson Gap campsite there are bear bag cables.  The spring is 270 yards down hill in a Rhododendron patch. After you climb your way in there is a black pipe with water running out of it.  There is a large rock formation next to the camp that you can climb for an aerial view of the campsite.  We talked to the owls that night and enjoyed an evening around the campfire.

Day two:

We got up this morning and ate breakfast.  It had rained during the night and was sprinkling as we headed out on the trail.  The rain continued on and off all day so we did not get many pictures.  We stopped for lunch right before Indian Rock which is a rockhouse.  We went by the Hensley Settlement and continued on towards White Rocks.

We passed another couple who were headed out to Martin's cabin for the night.  The wind started picking up and we took a short break as we headed down to Sand Cave.  Sand Cave is a 75-foot high sandstone overhang that is decorated by at least seven different colors of sand. In rainy seasons, a small waterfall cascades over the edge.  The room is over an acre in size and the water fall was going strong for us.  You do have to climb a fifty foot pile of sand to get into it.

From here we headed to the White Rocks campsite for the night.  The wind was blowing so strong we couldn't hold the tent still to stake it down so we headed back up over the ridge top and started down the Ewing trail until we found a flat spot to make camp.  After we set up the freezing rain started and then the wet snow.  We ate in the tent and wiped the snow off the outside before going to sleep.

We woke up with a thud and the tent was in my face!  I told Lora that our tent had collapsed and we started pushing up and banging the snow off.  After we got the tent back in standing order, I got out and swept the three inches of wet snow away from the sides.

Day three:

The next morning we ate breakfast inside again.  After we got all packed up Lora didn't feel well so we hiked the Ewing trail down to Ewing VA and started hitching for a ride.  Nobody picks up hitchhikers anymore.  We went door to door for a while and finally got someone to tell us it is Sunday and that is why everyone is gone.  She did not have a car so we kept looking.  We saw the guy come home in the first house we checked so we went back and met him.  He is a very nice older gentleman who gave us a ride back to our car.

In the parking lot we met the other couple that was out for the night.  They froze in the cabin and were wet.  

This is a beautiful area and we will have to go back to see all the trails and sites we didn't get to cover.

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Prater Place - Fall Creek Falls

Lora and I went to Fall Creek Falls for their Spring Hike.  There was 13 people plus the Ranger.  We had a great time and met some very nice people from Middle and East Tennessee.

Fall Creek Falls hosts Spring Hike

Mar 22 @ Fall Creek Falls

Meet Ranger Matt at the Nature Center at 9 a.m. CT to carpool to the Prater Place Trail Head. This trail is 2.9 miles one way into Camps Gulf and features beautiful wildflowers in the spring and a small but gorgeous waterfall called Hemlock Falls at the end of the trail. Be prepared for a 6 mile roundtrip hike with a few steep slopes. A parent or guardian must accompany youngsters 12 years old and younger. Contact the Nature Center at 423-881-5708 by Friday the 21st if there have been heavy rains since there is a seasonal creek crossing involved. For more information call 423-881-5708.

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Break Away 2014

Lora and I got the opportunity to spend some time with the college students building the Cumberland trail on Graysville Mt.  We met them at the trail head and hiked in to where they were working in the Gilbreath Creek area.  The students have built close to a mile so far this month.  We got to celebrate Larry Hill's birthday at lunch time with the traditional Happy Birthday song.  It's good exercise, you get to meet good people, and it makes you appreciate the trails you hike.

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Baxter Creek - Smoky Mountains

Two days off and Craig had to work. Hooked up with Amy and we headed for the mountains and Big Creek Ranger Station in the GSMNP. There were lots of cars in both parking areas, the campground was still closed. Our trail crossed the creek and went uphill. And up, and up and up. The elevation profile looked almost vertical, from 1700 ft to 5820 ft. 6.2 miles. We saw a few violets blooming and the leaves and buds of trilliums. This trail is filled with ferns and moss. And some of the rocks were covered with really large lichens. We did see a few huge trees. Then we really started climbing. We saw a huge rock that looked inviting for a lunch spot but two guys with chain saws had the best seats so we kept going until we found another sunny spot. Then we really started climbing. We had a view of the valley below, looked for the power plant, only saw a tower. We did see a HUGE chestnut stump and some giants that had fallen. Higher up we started seeing red spruces. There were blackberry briars further up but I don’t think I would want to do this climb when it’s hot enough for the berries to be ripe! We kept thinking we were at the top and the trail would turn and we kept climbing. We met some folks coming down the mountain. One man and 3 young ladies from Indiana on their first backpack ever. And they picked this trail, and it rained on them last night. They were still so happy to be there and I find that very cool. They said they would definitely be back.

 Then we really started climbing. We passed the trail to the water source and knew we were near the camp. The Firetower greeted us at the top. We looked around for a flat spot to set up our tents, most areas are somewhat slanted except at the tower and that spot was taken. We set up and then climbed the tower. The views were incredible. Thankful for clear skies. We hiked back .2 miles to the water trail. We found a small stream, where it was running over and down a rock Amy started collecting water. I hiked on down to find the pipe. It was a trickle. The better source was where Amy stopped. Back at camp the wind had picked up. And then it howled, and howled, and ……we cooked our supper, potato soup for Amy and pinto beans with roast beef for me. We decided against building a fire in the howling wind and walked up to warm up at our neighbor’s fire. The sparks and smoke chased us around for the few minutes that we could stand it. We gave up and went back to camp. We were going to hang our food at the bear cable but there was a tree laying on it and only one cable was usable. And it was being used. We found a limb for our food bag, tied the rope to a stick and the fun started. I made a half dozen efforts. Makes me remember playing ball with my nephew when he was 5 and telling me “Aunt Lora you throw like a girl” so Amy tried tossing the stick over and got it on her first try! Unfortunately the rope wouldn’t pull over the spur in the limb. Back to the start, a few more tosses and picking the line out of the bushes and it finally went over in just the right spot. We just hoped the wind wouldn’t take it down. Bed time. Couldn’t tell if we had any wildlife visitors or owls talking thru the night. I had to use earplugs to block out the howling noise. The little brown book says this is one of the highest campsites in the park, and I believe the coldest because of the wind.  

Up early next morning, wind was still blowing. But the sun was shining! We broke camp and started across the ridge on the Mt Sterling Trail to the connection with Mt Sterling Ridge Trail. It’s a beautiful ridge walk. We went down the Swallow Fork Trail and Amy found it much more pleasant this time. Last time she walked up it in cold rain. We had some beautiful views from this trail and lots of streams. We also ran into several hikers, one that we thought was a news guy from the network political scene. When we started down the Big Creek trail we saw the devastation from storms. So many trees had come down from the tornado last year it must have taken weeks for the chainsaw crews to get thru here. As we got closer to the campground we started seeing lots more folks on the trail. This is a beautiful creek trail. It will be full of blooms in the next week or two. We saw some of the yellow trilliums opening in the sunshine. The parking lot was full again. This is spring break week for a lot of schools and the young people were out in force. Good to see so many young people out on the trails. Back on the road, I took Amy to her car in Crossville, she headed to Nashville and I headed home.

Beautiful trails and a great time in the mountains.

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