N. Chick Creek - TN River

Lora and I put in at Greenway Farm in Chattanooga off Hamill Road. There ramps aren't really ramps, they are more like stairs to load your boat. More difficult for a canoe, but we managed. We headed upstream and made it just about to the Longview Drive put in. About six miles there and back.

It was a good day and we got to see lots of wildlife including river otters and owls.

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Sewee Creek - TN River

Lora and I put in at the Sewee Creek boat ramp off 304. We headed upstream until we came across a newly fallen tree which blocked the whole creek. We then turned around and headed out to the TN River. About 6.5 miles all together.

Pretty place to paddle. We saw lots of wildlife.

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TTA Hiwassee River Campout

Joan set up another great trip for the TTA. We met at the Gee Creek campground on the Hiwassee River. We got camp set up and then headed up to Reliance to put in at the boat ramp next to Hiwassee Outfitters. We had thirteen kayaks and two canoes. It was a beautiful river ride with a few rapids to make it interesting. Paolo entertained us by flipping over after hitting a rock. It took a while to get him back in the boat with the strong current.  Later on Dick and Debbie entertained us getting caught up in the trees. Lost paddle and Maui Jim sunglasses sacrificed to the river. We got the paddle back. The boat ramp is hidden with a quick current that led to a fast paced ending to our trip.

We had quite the spread for a potluck dinner that night with more people arriving. Lots of visiting around the campfire that night.

Day Two:

We got up and prepped for our trip today. We were leaving the campground boat ramp and going to the Dentville road bridge. We were waiting on them to start generating power so the river would come up. It kept getting later and later. Finally we just went and it worked out OK. Another wonderful section to float. Our entertainment for today was the pop up thunderstorm. God blessed us with a boat house and a friendly home owner. There were boats in the house, under the dock, and along the river side. The storm dumped about three inches in twenty minutes knocking down limbs from trees all around us. After it stopped and we bailed out the water, we continued our trip. Another great day.

Day Three:

Today the plan was to paddle Parksville lake. We put in at the Parksville lake boat ramp, losing one of our people on the way there. Sorry Paolo! We paddled across the lake heading towards the inlets. A juvenile eagle perched in a tree got out attention for a few minutes. Joan led us to the church camp area that we found last summer, so we had a pretty shaded grassy area to eat our lunch and get a swim in. Today was sunny and hot, making up for the storm yesterday. We paddled back and loaded up our kayaks and headed home. What a great weekend!

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Tennessee River - TTA

Joan led a float today. We started at Raccoon Mountain boat ramp and paddled up river about 4 miles. We ate lunch at Pot Point trail. We got to see deer, eagles, herons, a loon, osprey, and heard a barred owl. Joan picked out some beautiful weather for us. After getting back, we drove up the mountain to the Visitor Center and got a beautiful view of the Tennessee River. There is a really cool map inside that shows the whole river system. Check it out sometime, it's worth the trip.

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National Trails Day 2017

Brandy let me know about the National Trails Day event on the Possum Creek segment of the Cumberland Trail. Ranger Steven Rhudy brought lots of tools for the hike/trail work. We clipped, lopped, chopped, and pulled our way to the Big Possum Creek bridge. Stopped where the tree had fell and pulled part of the trail away with the roots. Bob was there ahead of us, working hard. We gathered rocks to fill in. We found some ripe huckleberries too!

We had lunch at the creek, got cooled off and heard some history of the area from Ranger Steven.

Lots of hikers on the trail today. Families, couples, solo hikers and quite a few dogs.

And scored a cool t shirt!









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Collins/Barren Fork Rivers

I met Craig in McMinnville at 127 boat ramp. It has a nice parking area, but you have to carry your boat a little way to the water. The current was too strong for paddling upstream. So plan B. We consulted the river map book and the TWRA site to find some other ramps. The VFW was the next one. It was crowded with kayaks and people that didn't know the rules of using the ramp. Craig did a great job maneuvering the trailer down between all the boats and gear.

We headed upstream fighting the current occasionally. Saw about a thousand turtles. We didn't see anyone until the confluence of the Barren Fork. We decided to paddle on the Barren Fork for a break in strenuous paddling. Found a shallow spot for lunch out of the sprinkles, then paddled as far as we could. Turned around and met the TWRA officers in their motorboat. They were cheating, anyone could go upstream with a motor. Started a faster trip back, no paddling, just steering, listening to the birds sing.

Got back to the VFW ramp and had the same issue with kayakers not knowing the rules of sharing a ramp, but they moved when the TWRA officers pulled in with their boat. We got out of the river just ahead of the rain.

About 6 miles round trip

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Sale Creek with Sara and Don

I met Don and Sara in Sale Creek for a kayak trip. We put in on Illes  Road boat ramp. This is directly across from Patterson road boat ramp. This was my first trip in the kayak this year, and had my new PFD too. The boat floated and I remembered how to paddle it. We went thru the marsh grass area to Rock Creek as far as we could go, then turned around and paddled to where you can see Brown's Bridge. We saw some ospreys and a few nests.


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Clear Creek - TN River

Finished exploring Clear Creek off  the Tennessee River North of the Hwy 30 Bridge. We put in on the East side of the bridge and paddled up stream to Clear Creek. Saw some baby ducks, they swam as fast as they could to hide while mama duck tried her best to distract us. Two different osprey nests were being fiercely guarded by the parents. They didn't like our canoe, As we paddled into a more shallow part of the creek we got to see lots of gar, and one swimming snake.
The waves in the river got higher on the way back to the boat ramp. Lora got some steering practice, a few close encounters with logs. More practice time needed...

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Hyatt Ridge

The Chattanooga Hiking Club planned this hike. I met Jamison and Ashley in Hixson and rode to the Oconoluftee Visitor's Center where we met Barbara our hike leader and the other 12 hikers. We loaded up and drove to Straight Fork Road and left a couple of cars at the Hyatt Ridge trailhead and drove on the the Beech Gap Trail. Four hikers took off for their 16 mile day, and the rest of us hiked uphill to campsite #44 where we had lunch. This campsite doesn't look as pretty as it did 6 years ago. Hogs have rooted up the area and the grass was high around the bear hangers. A couple hiked by and told us about a man-way that goes by the spring and continues on from here. Will have to check it out sometime.

Five of us left the campsite with all the car keys so we could collect all the cars and get them to the Hyatt Ridge trailhead. Joyce and I got to see a snake but it wiggled away too fast for me to get a pic. And no I didn't scream..... We saw lots of wildflowers; painted trillium, Southern red trillium, umbrella leaf,  wild ginger and more Solomon's seal than I have ever seen.

We moved all the cars and hung out until everyone came down the hill. I rode back to Chattanooga with Boe and Monty after a scenic trip around Big Cove and Cherokee.

It was a great hike and a fun time with CHC.

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Rainbow Falls - Benton Falls

Lora and I headed out to the Cherokee National Forest to find waterfalls on the Chilhowee Trail System. We went to the Tennessee Landforms website and located falls to search for.

We started out at the Clemmer Trailhead on Hwy 30. It was 1.7 miles out to the "Rainbow Falls" according to their map. On the trail sign it just said water falls. There were a couple of good water crossings to be done on the way out there going across Rock Creek.

The first fall you come to is the 20' Rock Creek Falls. Off to your left there is a path going up along the rock wall. Once up on the rock wall you continue hiking to the 40' Chestnut Mountain Falls. From there you will notice water coming in from the left. Climb up the bank through the rhododendron about fifty yards to the 25' Thornburg Ridge Falls Which flows from under a large rock bridge. Continue to work your way above the falls to find yourself facing the 16' Big Bluff Falls.

We hiked back to the car and then headed to the Benton Falls trailhead at McKamy Lake. We did the 0.5 mile hike around the lake first. You can just  go straight over the dam to get to the trail. As you head down to the base of Benton Falls you will notice a footpath to the right when the trail makes a left. This footpath ends shortly and you have to climb through the rhododendron to the 20' Silvermine Creek Falls. Straight ahead across the creek you can climb through the rhododendron to view the 20' Elora Falls. We headed back to the car and almost made it before the rain poured down on us.

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