Gregory's Bald

Day One:
Twenty Mile Trail 0.5
Wolf Ridge Trail 5.2

Day Two:
Gregory Bald Trail 1.2
Long Hungry Ridge Trail 4.6
Twenty Mile Trail 3.1
Total: 14.6 Miles

We did a special backpack this weekend. It was a Fathers Day hike with my Dad, a TTA hike with Sara and Lora, and an a wildflower hike to Gregory's Bald to see the Azaleas. This would be a first hike for Sara and Lora to Gregory's Bald and new trails for Dad and I.

Sara met me at the firehall after work and we drove home to get Lora. We were going to take The Dragon to the trailhead, which Sara was all excited about since she had never been on it. We stopped and picked up some Subway and then headed to The Dragon. When we got on 129 Craig said Wee, Lora said Wee, and Sara said STOP! I guess it wasn't too good on the stomach.

Well anyway, we met Dad at the Twenty Mile Ranger station. The trailhead parking was FULL! We finally managed to squeeze in a spot and a hiking we went. It was a beautiful overcast day. I guess it was about a mile from the trailhead that the rain began. As we all did the poncho deployment move, a gentle gale force wind started to blow. We heard a loud crack followed by more cracking as it seemed to be getting closer. I looked up in time to watch a large branch fall onto Sara, Lora, and myself. Luckily it hit me on the head and there were no more injuries. The rain came down and on we hiked. It turned into a drizzle for most of the afternoon.

We passed a lot of wet day hikers that were coming back down from the Bald. There were a variety of trash bags, a few ponchos, some rain coats, and lots of just wet people. Day hikers that were not prepared. Imagine that.

There were a lot of wild flowers along the trail. Fire Pinks, Sundrops, Buttercups, Indian Pipe, Spiderwort, Pippissiwa, Tassle Rue, Rhododendren, Flame Azaleas: Pink, Orange, White, Red, Yellow.

As we crossed Parsons Bald, we heard a loud Squeal, a few snorts, and then we got to see three hogs heading through the brush. That will get your attention!

When we got to campsite #13, which we had reservations for, there were plenty of tents already set up. We found us a corner and made camp. By the time we set up, collected water, got fire wood, and ate dinner, it was time to light the fire. After some good visiting we gave up and went to bed.

The next morning we woke up to the sound of thunder. The stars had been out all night, what is up with that? Now do you rush to pack up before the rain or do you sleep in through the rain? Well we didn't have to choose as all we got was noise. There were three deer that walked into the campsite and were hanging out by the other tents.

We packed up, ate breakfast, and then headed to the Bald. On the half mile walk to the top we walked into a cloud. So to see all the beautiful flowers we had to walk up to each bush. Needless to say the view of Cades Cove was not to be seen.

After the flower show we hiked on down the trail. Before you get to the Long Hungry Ridge Trailhead there is a side trail to Moore Spring. It is marked with a sign that says no horses beyond this point. We had never known that this was here, but found it in the trail description. So we had to check it out since we were here. It is a good strong spring. We got water here and then took the other trail from the spring that connects to the Long Hungry Ridge Trail. The trail description says that a cabin that used to stand here burned in the early 1970's. I don't remember it.

It was all down hill from here. We hiked down and took a break at campsite #92. This is a very large campsite and we explored it for a while since the description told of a three foot section of railroad track leaned against a dogwood. We never even found a dogwood.

Further down the trail we were talking about bears. Sara said that she had never seen a bear outside of Cades Cove. I told her that all she has to do is ask my Dad and he would schedule it for her. He has a track record. Sure enough on down the trail a black bear crossed the trail in front of us. All my Dad could say was "Anything else?"

We stopped at the Twenty Mile Cascades and took some pictures. After that the rain decided to kick in again. That is when Dad found that he had lost his poncho. Thinking that it was back at campsite #92 he declined the offer to hike back and get it. It quit raining right after that.

Another great hike with great company. This time on the Dragon, Sara said Wee, Craig said Wee, Lora said STOP! OH MY. We stopped on The Dragon overlook on the way back and then stopped to look at the "Tree of Shame" where they hang all the motorcycle parts of those that didn't make it safely down the Dragon.

Pictures:

TTA National Trails Day

We got to spend the day with the Soddy Tennessee Trails Association. They did a set up at the Rock Creek Section of the Cumberland trail and took hikers out on the trail and then fed them. It was a good time with some great people. Lora and I led a hike around the loop trail and then got some swimming in at the old swimming hole.

Pictures:

Citico Creek Wilderness Area

North Fork Citico Creek Trail #98 5.45
Cold Springs Gap Trail #149 3.2 Miles
South Fork Citico Creek Trail #105 8.5 Miles
Total Miles: 17.15

Trying to avoid Memorial Day crowds, we picked the Citico Creek Wilderness Area to hike in. We wanted creeks to keep cool in and it is somewhat close to the house. We have never been in this area.

After work I headed home and picked up Lora. We headed out and was on the trail a little after noon. Lots of people on the Cherohala Skyway and in Tellico. Even lots of people in the Indian Boundary area, but after a mile on the trail we had the mountains all to ourselves.

We used the trail description from "Wilderness Trails of the Cherokee National Forest" by Joyce Kilmer-Slickrock, and Haw Knob. Yes, you need trail description for all trails in the Cherokee National Forest because the trails are not blazed. There is a sign post at the trail intersections.

We parked at the #105 trailhead and hiked the .97 miles to the North Fork Citico Creek Trail. This trail follows the creek to the Cherry Log Gap of the Unicoi Mountains. It's a very pretty trail and you have many creek crossings, water falls, and cascades. We stopped at a forty foot water fall to take a break and cool down in the creek.

We took the Cold Springs Gap Trail #149 across to the South Fork Citico Creek Trail. This is an old road bed which was overgrown a bit. It cleared up a little bit when you get to the Benton MacKaye section. One section worked us over with the Stinging Nettles which burned our legs. Later, on the trail as the wildflowers and undergrowth was knee high, Lora screamed out "Jesus!" I looked up to see the glory as I myself have never seen him in person. With out seeing anything I looked down at a rabbit who had obviously never seen Jesus himself as he was looking up as well. Oh, I guess the rabbit must have scared Lora.

We hiked to the South Fork Citico Creek Trail #105. It descended quite steeply down the mountain side. I showed Lora a couple of advanced sliding moves including the hooking one leg on tree as you butt slide by it. Nothing really for an old pro.

When we got to the first flat area by the creek we made camp. It was 1.5 miles down. We got to watch the fireflies as we sat next to the campfire. The stars were out so we got to watch then all night.

We got up the next morning to another beautiful day. We had a rabbit in camp pulling up ferns and eating the roots. Lora didn't yell a name at him.

There was one place on the trail that was heavily overgrown with wild grape vines and blackberry bushes. It did have some good views here when you could see. We climbed the rest of the way down the mountain to the creek and took an afternoon swim. There were more creek crossings, waterfalls, and cascades. It is a beautiful place to hike.

After we got off the trail we explored the campground across the creek and the campground by the lake at Indian Boundary. It's a nice area. On the way out we stopped by Bald River Falls to check it out.

Pictures:

Grand Canyon

Day One: 9.3 Miles
Day Two: 11.5 Miles
Day Three: 9.3 Miles
Total Miles: 30.1

Well, neither of us had been to the Grand Canyon. We did the research and planning. We got turned down twice on our permits and finally they gave us the go ahead. You basically hike when they tell you to. The first time we put in, they said that 800 other people put in the same day.

We left after work and flew out of Nashville. Our second flight out of Dallas, they waited until we were all on board to tell us that we were on a maintenance delay waiting on a part. Good ole airlines! A little late, but we made it to Phoenix Arizona. We were just talking about the cactus and Lora had said that she has never seen the old western stand up cactus other than on TV. Well, she had to wait until we got to the airport before she got to see one. They were everywhere in Phoenix. On the bus, we sat next to a guy from Phoenix. He said that the people here were alot less friendly than we were used to in Tennessee. Everyone we met was friendly.

We got in our rental car with a sweet 92 degrees outside and headed North. The further North we went the higher the elevation and cooler the temperature. We stopped in Flagstaff for dinner. A little later we stopped again. This time because one of those friendly policeman wanted to talk to me. Something about the speed I was traveling did not match that of the speed limit sign that I passed. He let me off with a friendly chat and a warning.

The last fifty miles from Williams to the Grand Canyon felt like eternity as we were waiting in anticipation of the Great View. After we went through the gate of the park and finally made it to the visitor center the sun was getting ready to set. We hurried to the rim as you cannot see the canyon until you are literally standing at the rim. WOW............WOW.........WOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!! As far as you can see, the canyon just keeps going. There is no end or other side. It's like looking over the ocean. Then you look down. WOW! As the reality sets in, you notice that you are incredibly small and insignificant. You also wonder how the hell you are going to be able to hike down to the bottom of this mammoth hole. We scanned the cliff walls for any sign of trail. None! You could see tiny ant sized trails running down at the bottom of the canyon, but nothing on the walls. We stood in awe as the sun set down over the rim.

We found our campsite in the Manther campground and set up camp in the dark. The stars were wonderful and the night was only interrupted by the other people making noise in the campground. The next morning as soon as we saw a sign of light we were up and packed. Talk about excited and nervous. What were we going to see?

If you have a permit you can drive to the trailhead of the Hermit trail. They never gave us the code to get through the gate so we waited until a bus was coming and got the code from them. When we got to Hermits Rest, the trailhead, we met some people from North Dakota. They were actually from Minot so I got to do some reminiscing with them about the great Air Force days. They took our picture for us before we headed down the trail.

The Canyon was nothing like you would imagine. There was green everywhere with plants growing all over the rocks and flowers of every color growing everywhere. We saw a million lizards. We saw squirrels, chipmunks, Birds of ever kind, and lots of cactus of different types.

The trail dropped very steeply for the first mile then went along the canyon wall. You could only see the trail in front of you for about thirty yards tops at a time. It curved around the walls and there was a surprise around every corner. Sometimes you would catch a glimpse of it along the wall across from you or below you. You were walking anywhere from five to twenty feet from the cliffs edge as you wandered. That safety distance was steep down hill as well. The drop offs were anywhere from 500 to over 1000 foot drops. You could see the Tonto trail level of the canyon way out in front of you, but when were we going to go down?

We came to a shelter at Santa Maria Spring. It's a little hut in the side of the cliff with a trough that the spring ran into. Good resting place for the climb back out. There was one spot on the trail that I looked everywhere and we had a clear shot of the trail. I told Lora this was a good spot to use the bathroom. She got behind a bush and I was going off the side of the cliff. I looked down the cliff and a guy was looking back at me. The trail switched back under us. Oops! I told you that you couldn't see the trail.

The next major downhill drop was at the Cathedral Stairs. Steep switch backs and we dropped and dropped. Then the trail winded down to the Tonto trail. Everyone we passed were friendly to us and everyone spoke English. Up on the rim you couldn't find an American if you had too.

Finally we got a glimpse of the Colorado river. The Colorado river was in a canyon of its own. It's 950 feet down to the river off steep cliffs. If you were rafting, and we did see rafts, you would never see the whole canyon unless you did some hiking.

The next two and a half miles to Monument Creek on the Tonto trail was more like rolling hills. The heat started beating us during this section and there was no place to go for shade. We did find one spot where two rocks were leaning on each other with a shadow that we took refuge in.

The trail dropped into the creek gorge and we got to see the Monument of Monument Creek. A large stone tower that stands in the middle of the river gorge. From here it was right close to camp. There were two girls in camp already that were hiding in the shade of the canyon. There was a three seated toilet at the campground that was interesting. We set up our tent and I put my tarp over it to try to get some shade. We cleaned up in the creek which felt really good and relaxed for the evening. There was only one other group of campers that came into camp that night. The night cooled off and we got to enjoy the stars. No campfires allowed in the canyon.

The next morning we left the tent set up and hiked down to the Colorado river. It had a nice sandy beach and with the rapids right there it made waves come up on the shore. Yes, we had to get in. It was cold. It was very pretty down there at the river, like a little paradise. After we got our water fix we hiked back up to camp and then took the Tonto trail further East.

The day warmed up, but the wind kept us cooled off. Sometimes it almost blew us off the trail, but most of the time it was a gentle breeze. We headed past the Cedar Spring campsite which wasn't hitting on much and on to Salt Creek campground. The Salt Creek Gorge is beautiful and rugged. We ate lunch in that area and then hiked on to the furthest edge of the Salt Creek Gorge. We decided that this was far enough for one day and headed back to camp. On the way back we got to see some white and orange spots on the river below which were rafts.

When we got back to camp we got to relax in the gentle gail force winds. Later that evening there was another group of four that came in and camped on the other side of the campground. That night we got rain off and on all night long.

We got up the next morning and headed out. About the time that we got to Hermit trail it started to rain, but didn't rain long. It was breezy and cold on the hike out. Some of the hikers we passed were telling us about the snow and hail they had on the rim. Sure enough we got snowed on. The last mile out of the canyon we had to step it up because we could hear thunder and didn't want to get caught on the side of a cliff in a storm. After we got up to the rim it cleared up and we could look down into the canyon and see where we had hiked. We did the tourist thing and then headed back to Phoenix for the night.

The next morning we flew back to Nashville and drove home.

Pictures:

Smokemont

Day One: 3.6
Bradley Fork 1.25
Chasteen Creek to Campsite #48 2.4

Day Two: 8.2
Chasteen Creek to Enloe Creek 2.0
Enloe Creek to Hyatt Ridge 3.6
Hyatt Ridge to #44 2.6

Day Three: 8.0
Hyatt Ridge to Beech Gap 0.9
Beech Gap to Balsam Mt. 5.3
Balsam Mt. to Laurel Gap shelter 1.8

Day Four: 11.7
Balsam Mt. to AT 6
AT to Pecks Corner 5.3
Hughes Ridge to Peck's shelter 0.4

Day Five: 9.1
Hughes Ridge to Bradley Fork 1.8
Bradley Fork to Smokemont 7.3

Total Miles: 40.6

Well we again went from plan A to plan B. We had a five day hike planned starting on Thursday. Wednesday on the way through Woodbury going to work, I had waves coming down the road at me in the heavy rain. The water was getting deep and the radio was saying that Rutherford County was having the worst storms. It just happens to be where I was heading to. This was only the beginning of a long day. The storms were going to get worse.

The most tornadoes to hit in one day in history......wow! After working storm damage at work I headed home the next morning. The last conversation with Lora was when I told her it was all clear on the radar. The phone wasn't working at the house that morning. Finally I got a call from her telling me she didn't know how I was going to get up the mountain as the tornado damage has blocked the way I usually come up the mountain. Four people had died less than a quarter mile from our home and damage was massive. Lora had visited the basement while this was going on, but had no idea that the tornado had hit so close and so much damage had occurred. She found out when she drove down the road to get a cell signal. I got another call from her just before I got to the mountain and the police had told her they had cleared enough road to get one car at a time up the mountain.

I got the generator running as Lora grabbed food from her Mom's and sisters houses. With no damage at home other than replanting a couple of bushes, we loaded up some saws and headed out to help the neighbors. Most of them were waiting for the insurance people. We ended up just collecting belongings from fields and bringing what ever we thought was important back to the people it belonged to. Afterwards, since we didn't have any power and it would be days before we got it back, we decided to go ahead with our hike. We took our generator and food to Lora's parents and headed to the Smokys. On the way, Lora looked at her phone and said "What? 5:30pm already?"

We registered at 8:11pm. We left out of Smokemont. We had planned on hiking the Smokemont Loop today, but since it was now dark we hiked the 3.6 miles in to campsite #48. It was a beautiful night and the stars were shining so we left off the rainfly and slept under the stars. We woke up with the splashing of water in our faces. AHHHHH it's raining. I got up, grabbed the rainfly, and deployed. The rain had stopped before I got the rainfly strapped down. Oh well.

The next morning we got up ate breakfast and headed down Chasteen Creek going towards Enloe Creek. Lots of uphill this morning. We saw a black bear just up hill from us digging at a fallen tree. He turned and looked at us, then walked up to the trail above and ran off. When I took a step forward a turkey flew off. He was about twenty feet downhill. It's going to be a good day. These are some beautiful trails.

When we got to Hyatt Ridge trail we saw four Yankees at the junction. We knew they were from the North when they didn't return our "hello's." When we got to campsite #44 there was already a tent in the premo site, so we had to set up at the group site. Campsite #44 is a pretty site with a spring flowing through it. After we set up the tent, cleaned up, and collected firewood, the two guys who had the other tent showed up. They came up from the creek and had been fishing all day. No, we didn't see any fish. Later on one other backpacker showed up. He collected water and went back down the trail. Lora and I sat by the fire and enjoyed the stars.

The next morning we hiked down the Beech Gap trail where we took a lunch break at the Straight Fork river and aired out our tent and bags. After lunch we past our first hiker of the trip as we started the steep climb up to Beech Gap. On the way up we passed three Benton Mackaye hikers that were hiking the Smoky Mountain section.

When we got to Beech Gap we took a well deserved rest in the meadow. We saw a group of seven backpackers come up that were heading to Laurel Gap shelter as well. At the shelter we ended up with ten people from North Carolina, Indiana, and Florida. Here we also made the rookie mistake of leaving our food in the shelter while all these people were around as we fetched water and cleaned up. When we got back we found that a mouse had attacked the food bags. Not too much damage luckily.

We did kick up a Grouse on the way to the spring and heard more the next morning. Our time at the shelter was spent socializing with our many backpacking brothers. One even had a guitar and played some songs for us. He didn't know "Rocky Top."

We did have fun with their "Fire Master." He broke out the old flint, shaved some off, got a spark, and was blowing like hell. In between he asked how I started one. I told him with lint and a lighter. He gave me that surprised look and ask the golden question; "You have a lighter?" After saying yes, one of his fellow hikers said that he had one too. Mystified he asked his partner why he didn't tell him this the night before. "You didn't ask!"

The next morning after saying our good byes, we hiked the easy Balsam Mt. ridge to the Appalachian Trail. We got to see some Juncos flying from their nests on the trail. Once we hit the AT we met backpackers. Three Ladies just hiking the Smoky Mountain section and eighteen thru-hikers heading to Maine. This is just on the 5.3 miles that we hiked. We enjoyed the views as always. This is what I consider the most beautiful part of the Smoky Mountains.

When we got to Pecks Corner shelter there were three hikers there already. These men were from Kentucky and one recognized the "Outcasts". He had read our hikes on the Sheltowee Trace. By dark we had ten hikers total, two of which were thru-hikers. Some of the hikers had also climbed Half Dome like Lora had. We had some wonderful conversations throughout the evening and in the morning as well. We did get a phone signal that night up by the privy that one of the hikers tip us off to. We had gotten power back the afternoon before.

After saying our goodbyes we headed down the Hughes Ridge trail and took the Bradley Fork trail back to Smokemont. Talk about a wildflower hike. These are some great trails.

Pictures:

Ladies Spring Backpack 2011

Diane planned a three day weekend trip in the Smokies and 5 ladies said “I want to go!” I met up with all of them in Crossville at the Cracker Barrel. They drove from Nashville (Diane, Sue, Gloria Dale, and Nancy) and the ‘Boro (Sara). My sweetheart drove into the parking lot just before we took off. He was heading to Maryville to spend the weekend with his mom and dad, and I needed a hug before hitting the trails. We all took off for the mountains.

We stopped at the Subway at the Sevierville exit and then joined the millions of cars heading into the Smokies. Diane whipped out the road map and found 416 to Greenbriar. Yeah! No driving thru Pigeon Forge!!!! We got off 416 onto 321 just outside the road leading into the Porter’s Creek Trail. Lots of folks were along the river enjoying the pretty weather and holiday weekend. Lots of cars at the trailhead. We jumped out and sat down to eat our Subway sandwiches; then off we went.

Porter’s Creek Trail is one of the most popular trails well known for spring wildflowers and there were bunches! We saw so many different kinds: Yellow Trillium, Showy Orchis, Dwarf Crested Iris, Pink Lady Slippers, Phlox, Wild Geranium, violets, one of the violets has two different blooms on it; one purple, one white. So pretty. The Pink Lady Slippers drew quite and audience, fancy cameras and tripods set up waiting for the light to be just right. More flowers: Sweet Cecily, Toothwort, Fringed Phacelia, Squaw Root, Brook Lettuce, Torch Grass, and Frasier’s Sedge.

We checked out the old cemetery and saw the remains of a rusted old car. We passed Fern Falls, I got a picture of the falls waiting for everyone to cross the slippery rocks. We hiked to the campsite at the end of the trail and took a short break. It’s so cool to look up at Charlie’s Bunion looming over you. This is a great campsite and pretty. There were Painted Trilliums blooming close by. We were reading the trail description and some wanted to know where Fern Falls was; I told them we passed it on the way up and would make sure they saw it on the way down. We spotted Umbrella Leaf coming back down the trail.

Back at the trailhead we drove back to 321 and went to Greenbriar Island Campground to set up for the night. Sara brought a six person tent and it worked out perfect for our crew.
Watched the stars pop out and got a good night’s sleep.
Day one 7.2 miles


We got up early packed up and took one car to the Bullhead Trailhead, and drove back to Porter’s Creek. Looked at the wildflower show again on the way to the Brushy Mountain Trail. We stopped long enough to check out the old SMHC cabin built 1934-1936, a big barn and the spring house. Lot of history here. Then it was up, up, up the trail. And it started getting WARM. We noticed lots of piles of rocks on both sides of the trail, left from old settlements. We saw more wildflowers that we didn’t see yesterday: golden ragwort, chickweed, and lots of buttercups. There was an old washtub and a collapsed chimney at an old homesite.

When we got to the trail junction for Trillium Gap we took a long lunch break resting from the climb. 5 of us went on to the end of the Brushy Mt. trail while 1 watched our packs; she had already hiked this part before. The view from the top was of the towns below and sand myrtle was blooming along the way. Then up Trillium Gap. We found Ramps, nice oniony smell, lots of Spring Beauty, Trout Lily, and Bead Lily. We have now walked from late spring back into early spring wildflowers. We had great views of Brushy Mt. and Mt. LeConte going up. This is the trail the llamas are used to take supplies to and from the Mt. LeConte Lodge. We found evidence. I think they are trained to all go at the same spot on the trail. One poops, they all poop.

We made it to the top by 4 pm and found the shelter. Oh no! The door to the privy was lying on the ground. Anyone at the shelter can wave at you while you potty.

We walked back down to the Lodge and pumped our water. Rested for a while and then Yoga time. Stretch out those muscles. Thanks Diane and Nancy for Yoga class. We walked up to Cliff Tops to see the sunset with all the people from the Lodge. It was windy and sort of cloudy; the sunset was beautiful and made pink and orange swirls.
Day two 10 miles

I woke up sometime thru the night to look at the stars. Seems like you can reach up and touch them. I woke up at daylight and jumped out of my sleeping bag; I wanted to see the sunrise from Myrtle point. I hiked maybe ¼ mile past the shelter and there’s the sun! It rises earlier on the mountain top? It was cloudy on the horizon so the sun was shining thru the multi colored clouds. What a glorious Easter sunrise!

Back at the shelter everyone was up and cooking breakfast. The Easter Bunny showed up with treats for all and hopped along the trail with us the rest of the day.

We started down Bullhead Trail and down it is. Lots of pretty views going down. We got to the Pulpit and took a short break studying the trail description so we wouldn’t miss seeing the head of the Bull. Found it. Well, a couple of the ladies found it and spent some time trying to help some of us see it too. I think I saw it. Then on down we hiked to a rock house and stopped for lunch.

Just around the bend was another rock house, more room for sitting, and not as damp inside. Oh well. We finally made it back to level ground and to the parking lot. Picked up the other car at Porter’s Creek and headed back to I 40. Back in Crossville we ate supper at the Cracker Barrel and then headed for home.
Day three 7.6 miles
Total miles 24.8

Six Wild Wacky Wonderful Women Walking in the Woods, Watching for Wildflowers!

Pictures:

White Oak Sinks

I wanted to spend some time with my parents over Easter weekend. I was off Friday and Saturday to I went to the Ponderosa after work. We spent the day cleaning up brush from several trees that my parents had to have taken down. We got quite the fire going as we hauled piles of limbs over to burn. That night after a good dinner of fish from a local restaurant we had a serious game of cards, which Granny and myself won two out of three games.

The next morning we head to the mountains and did a five mile hike in and out to the White Oak Sinks. It is not on the official trail map but is off the Schoolhouse Gap trail. There is a water fall and cave in the sink area and this time of year all kinds of flowers.

After we got back we had a wonderful Easter dinner before I had to head home. Happy Easter to all of you out there.

Pictures:

Sugarland Mt.

Jakes Creek 0.6 Miles
Cucumber Gap 2.4
Little River 0.4
Husky Gap 0.3 Campsite 21
Husky Gap 0.3
Little River 1
Goshen Prong 2
Little River 1
Husky Gap 0.3
Day One Total: 8.3 Miles
Husky Gap 1.8
Sugarland Mt. 4.1
Rough Creek 2.8
Little River 4.6
Day Two: 13.3 Miles

Lora and I headed out for an overnighter. We hiked out of Elkmont in the Smoky Mountains. We parked a car at the Little River trailhead and hiked to the Jakes Creek trailhead.

It was a beautiful day and after the rain the day before, the rivers and creeks were swollen. We ended up wading about five times over the two days.

We saw people out on Jakes trail and Cucumber Gap trail checking out the wildflowers. They were all warning us about the water crossing on Cucumber Gap. Lora said the water was below freezing, but I didn't see any ice. She does a cute dance trying to get the feelings back in her feet and legs after each crossing.

When we got on Little River trail the river was running like I have never seen it before. Wow, what a current. When we got to the bridge there were four kayakers getting in the river. We had to stop and watch them as they headed out. It would be a wild ride for sure.

We had a bit of confusion on Campsite #21. When we got to Husky Gap it said it was 0.3 miles up the trial. According to the trail description it was supposed to be on the Sugarland trail which would be another 2.5 Miles down the trail. Well, we set up camp and then did a day hike up Little River and the Goshen Prong trails.

When we got back to camp we ate dinner and enjoyed an evening by the campfire. There were four other people that camped in the same campground.

The next morning we got up early and got to hiking. The weather was great and we got some good views going up Husky Gap and on Sugarland Mt. After we got on Sugarland Mt. trail we found the other campsite #21. It still has the bear bag cables and fire pits and is marked 21. Oh well.

Lora did teach me and a couple of other guys on the trail about Tea Berry. A little red berry that is eatable and taste pretty good.

On the other side of Sugarland Mt. we got some great views of Mt. LeConte and the Chimney Tops. We started down Rough Creek trail when we stopped for lunch in a sunny spot.

Rough Creek drops down in the valley and is a beautiful trail. We did a few crossings of Rough Creek which cooled the old feet down. We came out of one crossing and we walked through some mud. There was a small ditch full of water running next to the trail, so I got Lora's attention and said lets wash off the mud here. As I stepped off the trail I noticed that there didn't seem to be a bottom to this ditch. Actually my foot sunk a little over a foot deep in the mud. As I looked down the trail for my sidekick that is always there ready to help me, I didn't see her. I looked down and thought at first that she might have tripped. Then I noticed the tears in her eyes were not tears of pain. As she was holding her sides and rolling on the ground a distinct sound of laughter came to my ears. Seeing that she was in no condition to help me I pulled, and I pulled, and I pulled, until finally my foot came free. Lora was trying to breath at this time and I slowly collected up my pride that I had spilt on the ground. We continued on.

There were a couple of people at campsite #24 as we hiked by. Of cource as we got closer to the trailhead we saw more and more people out looking and taking pictures of the wildflowers. Here goes the list: Yellow, pink, and painted Trilliums; Showy Orchis; Wild Geraniums; Star Chickweed; Wild Ginger; Foam Flower; Bishops Cap; Fringed Phacelia; Bellwort; Trout Lily; Spring Beauty; Bluets; Purple and Yellow Violets; Squaw Root; Blue Cohosh; Brook Lettuce; Frasier Sedge; Toothwort; Wild Brue Phlox; and Tea Berry.

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Trail Maintenance

Sunday 4/10 Trail Maintenance
Nance Jo scheduled a work day for the Soddy TTA adopted trail section so after church I drove to Hotwater Road to join the work crew. I started up the trail with a rake, hand saw and clippers. A lot of this section had already been raked by the Soddy crew; last Sunday was when I saw Nance Jo raking. Walking up the trail to find the others, I got to see the wildflower show. Yellow trilliums, bluets, violets, phlox. and what I thought was really early honeysuckle. Later I was corrected by Caroline who told me that was pinkster. Alrighty then. Then I found a few fire pinks blooming by the trail.
When I caught up to the others, I had smelled the fresh dirt for a while and could see how hard they had already been working. Nance Jo, Cat, and Caroline were raking up a storm. I found a spot and got busy realizing quickly that forgettin to bring your work gloves wasn't very smart. Oh well, I did have my first aid kit so I wrapped my thumb with moleskin and kept on raking. Someone told me once that blisters build character. Hmmmm. Caroline didn't like the looks of a dead tree by the trail and started trying to push it over. As it waved back and forth the top broke loose and bopped me on the noggin. I must be hard headed cause it didn't hurt. I did pick up the broken pieces and get them off the trail. Think I'll get up ahead of Caroline and work the other way. We found a good stopping spot and Nance Jo marked our progress. Start here next time. We clipped as we hiked back toward the trailhead stopping long enough to saw a fallen tree and drag it off the trail.
When we got to the trailhead Caroline spotted a dwarf crested iris on the bank right behind the vehicles. So pretty hiding there all by its self.

I know the Soddy crew appreciates any rakers that show up to work. Come out and see the trail sometime!

Fall Creek Falls

Saturday 4/9/11 Fall Creek Falls

I drove to FCF to hike with Upper Cumberland TTA. Weatherman says it's gonna be a hot one-bring a hat and sunscreen!

The original plan was to hike the Upper Overnight Loop but that changed when the Ranger said turkey hunt--hunters with weapons. Plan B Lower Loop. We checked out Cane Creek Falls by the Nature Center. The sunshine on the mist from the falls made a pretty rainbow. We dropped one car at Piney Falls and drove the others to the maintenance shed overnight parking area. We sprayed down with deet - it's tick season you know-and started thru the woods. Eleven of us with Margaret leading the way. Some campers were at the first campsite, people out taking advantage of the warm weather. First snake sighting--a black snake coiled up asking us to not bother him; not a problem for me, I don't mind taking a wide berth. We saw several yellow violets and the leaves of puttyroot, pipsissiwa, and rattlesnake plantain in the woods. I was so looking forward to the wildflower show. We had a lady with us that knows her flowers and was a wealth of info for inquiring minds. I was carrying my wildflower guide but couldn't walk and read at the same time. But it did come in handy for verifying some of what I found when we stopped. We started down into the gorge and WOW the wildflowers were everywhere. It began with blue violets and phlox, then star chikweed, buttercups, green violets, white and purple violets. Next was hepatica, tall larkspur, anomone, bluets and cumberland spurge. We also spotted a woodpecker as it briefly landed on a tree and then took off again.

We stopped for lunch at the bottom of the gorge by the creek. Thanks to all the rain lately the creek was beautiful and guess what- more wildflowers; pennywort, jack-in-the-pulpit, white and yellow trilliums, and violet wood sorrel. Good food and some dark chocolate covered almonds (thanks Steve) got us ready to climb out of the gorge. And see more wildflowers. Purple phacelia all over the rocky hillside, blue cohosh and squaw root.

It's quite a climb up to campsite 2 and it was getting WARM! Found a stream and wet our bandannas and hats to cool down. Got to watch out for overheating, rest stops and lots of water!. I have only been on this trail one other time and the creek was dry then. I had never seen the waterfall at the top of the gorge. It was pretty cool. When we got to it, a few of our hikers stood under it to cool off.

When we got to campsite 2 there was a backpacker already set up for camp. The pump was working so we filled up our water bottles and sat down for a little while to cool off. Then on thru the woods. Piney Falls was really putting on a show, more water coming over than I've ever seen and I've seen it many times thru the years. Five of our hikers drove out from here and the rest of us hiked on to Fall Creek Falls where the others met us with a couple more cars. We decided it was getting too late for us to walk back to the maintenance shed. We had to see the waterfall. It was beautiful- 256 feet high- highest one east of the Rocky Mountains. YES we're proud of our Tennessee State Parks. I got a ride back to the parking area to get my car.

When I drove back thru Pikeville I checked to see if there was still singing going on at the John Ross House. They had performances all day and I was hoping to catch some of it. Carrie Hassler was just ending her set and the other performers were about to have a jam session. They call themselves the Sequatchie Valley All Stars and they played Southern Rock- a little Skynyrd, Hank Jr, Jackson Brown, and some Eagles. Watched the sunset and then headed home. Beautiful hike and a beautiful day.

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