Who Votes? What? This just in...

This is a link to the Nashville version of the "Scene", please click the title of the entry. And scream loudly!!!!

The Dragon Rockslide, Clean-up Schedule

This just in.... Work to clear a rockslide that closed U.S.-129/SR-115 is expected to begin early April. The Tennessee Department of Transportation will contract with one of two specialty contractors on Monday, March 29 with work expected to begin no later than April 5. This will allow contractors time to transport specialized equipment to the site of the slide in Blount County.
TDOT’s contract has a completion date of July 31, 2010.
Meanwhile, detours remain in place while the stretch of road known as the
Dragon is closed from the slide area to the North Carolina state line.
Motorists are advised to continue to monitor the TDOT website at www.tn.gov/tdot for updates and detour details. TDOT is also on Twitter. For up to the minute traffic information in Knoxville and the Tri-Cities follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/knoxville511. For statewide travel information follow www.twitter.com/TN511.

Take Some Action

Here is an opportunity to help protect some of Tennessee you've hiked or camped in. And yes, your voice does matter! (click the title of this entry)

Short Walks

Today was really nice w/ temps in the upper 60's and clear skies! Yesterday the weather was nice as well, all things considered, yet time only allowed for a short walk on the west prong trail/loop each day. Today I bushwacked a short route off the trail that connected back with the unmarked loop. Earlier this week I walked around the middle prong in the snowfall.
Haa! That was fun, as I sat looking at a Topo at the trailhead, 6 backpackers came down the trail from #28. They stopped and we started talking. Seems they were going to walk to the road and make their way back to Elkmont where they had parked a couple of days ago. I kindly pointed out to them the difficulty with that plan. To make a long story short they waited while I took a short walk. When I returned they loaded all six of their packs and themselves into my 240 DL wagon and off to Tremont we drove. Once there 4 of them got out with the packs and I took the other 2 over to Elkmont, via Wear Valley due to the rock slide, where they got the vehicle and I assume headed back to their mates.
Interesting thing was these guys seemed relatively prepared by looking at the gear they had and clothes they were wearing but apparently did not look at the map closely enough, or were hoping for a fellow backpacker to give them a ride. They left me with the welcome to hike Michigan; from where they had driven, and they'd give me ride if they see me. Well, I thanked them and thought that may happen after Big Ben, the Sawtooths, Tetons, Glacier, Ozarks, ..... Peace

Rockslide Update.....This Just In...

We just got this from the great folks at park HQ, today is Tuesday 3/23/2010.
We expect to finish scraping down the remaining loose rock on the face of last Thursday's rockslide by mid-day today. Then it will take several hours to dismantle the crane used to that work and get it out of the Park.
The final step will be to re-pave the stretch of pavement that has been damaged by the heavy, steel tracked equipment.
We expect to re-open that end of Little River Road by later this evening.

This Just In.....

Hello Folks, We got this today from the hard working women and men at the GSMNP.

A new rockslide has blocked the western end of Little River Road within
Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The slide is about 2 miles west of the Metcalf Bottoms, so an 8 mile-long portion of the Little River Road is currently closed between Metcalf Bottoms Picninc Area and the Townsend Junction.
Traffic that would normally transit that section is being diverted out of the Park unto US 321 in Townsend then north on US 321 to the Lyon Springs Road in Wears Valley, where motorists can re-enter the Park on the Wear Cove Road to Metcalf Bottoms and continue east on Little River to Newfound Gap Road and on to either Gatlinburg or Cherokee. Due to bridge weight limits, no large motorhomes or buses can use that alternate route. These larger vehicles must continue on US 321 into Pigeon Forge.
Park crews are enroute to get a good look at the new slide. No estimated
time of repairs is available

Today Was Sunday

So today I get out in a light rain w/ temperatures in the mid 50's, to do a couple of miles on the West Prong loop. As I'm walking out of the parking lot I notice 2 of the 3 cars there are from Indiana, and the third from Mississippi. Hmmm? I say to myself, "wonder if these folks are day hiking". As I approached the first streams coming off the steep gorges on the left I see this wood sitting as it is in the picture, and I chuckle.
The trail was slippery and quiet, with no human contact and a soft rain the meditative qualities of the walk were wonderful! In a few weeks it's going to be getting so green and w/ so many shades of green, it'll be much to wonder at, the degree of change in such a short time. Looking forward to it!
OK, so after I return to my car and I am getting my boots off; there's still a light rain falling, some folks pull up and begin getting some stuff out of their vehicle. I notice the one guy's got jeans on. as there are two adults and a young teen, and they start pulling out plastic trash bags and putting them on for rain gear. Once their "rain suits" are in place they gather up the paper and plastic bags they had in the car and began walking up the trail. I silently wish them luck....noticing the tag on the car is from Indiana, I wonder if they'll pick up the wood sitting on the log. Once in my car I chuckle out loud! Peace and Safe hiking.

Yesterday...

So yesterday we made a short hike longer, yet still relatively short. The route took me up from the gate on the road coming in from Dry Valley to access the Scott Mtn., and School House Gap trail junction. Which also provides a way down into White Oak Sink, and this is where I departed from the original plan to stay on the higher and dryer trails; since my boots were still soaked from the day before and I was wearing my merrels. I couldn't get excited about hiking the dryer route though so I dropped into the sinks. It was a pleasant walk with lots of rodo's and smaller trees pulled down over the already tight trail that became even thicker as I walked in the now light rain. Following the small creek, that is wet weather drainage on the surface and has made use of what was once a road, into the sinks. I took the necessary turns and came upon the Bat Cave where there were probably 15 people standing and taking pictures. One man asked from where I had come, we spoke and I moved on to Rainbow Falls.
This visit also took me back into the woods along a trail, which if I were a betting man and given careful study of a 7.5 topo, would allow access to the Scott Mtn. trail. Once last year I tried to locate a similar route coming off of the Scott Mtn. trail however I did so on a whim, without preparation. After descending along the side of a ridge off of Scott mtn. for about a mile and getting surprised by a bear I was given the awareness I needed to turn around. I'll check it out again later this year, if possible, and do it w/ some preparation. The walk back through the flat open area was very peaceful as the rain fell and all the people had since left. aaaah!

Thunderhead

This hike OTG gets better every time I take it a little further! I've been checking information on this section of the GSMNP, talking w/ folks who hiked this area and know better than I, and reading what I can find to prepare for some serious bushwacking up to the top of Thunderhead. Today I walked about 1/4 mile+ past where I usually turn around, and while the traveling soon got thick, steep and slow, from what I'm learning the "fun" hasn't even started at this point. Awesome streams w/ slick crossings, unavoidable rodo hells, steep terrain, w/ indicators of lots of wildlife in the area and I can't wait to get back. In a few weeks this will be complete with thicker foliage, stinging bugs, snakes, hungry bears, and beautiful blooms.
On the return just before I broke out of the rodo's, I spotted some chunks of coal lying in the old rail/road bed I was using to navigate, then when deciding where to cross the prong I saw the rock with "eyes". (See the picture)




And the rain held off minus a few sprinkles until after I got home!
The temperature was in the 50's, w/ dense humidity, and mostly cloudy above.
As I walked today I briefly considered those people who are unable to appreciate the many parts of such raw beauty. Blocked by spite and/or the pursuit for more stuff in an attempt at gaining a sense of well-being from this "stuff" despite the consequences of this endless pursuit on themselves, neighbors or natural systems. I was very grateful. Peace

Chestnut Top

This walk covered about 4mls. RT, and was along the Chestnut Top trail beginning at the Townsend 'Y' parking. That is the river access area just as you enter the GSMNP from Townsend. As noted before the trail has a relatively steep ascent over the first quarter mile or so and then dips and climbs over the next 1.5 give or take. There had been some recent maintenance on the trail where it looked like a tree had fallen and it's root had pulled part of the trail with it and some drainage run-offs added within the first half mile.
The picture of the cut tree caught my attention as the "spikes" of the branches that once stretched from it poked back into the tree. "Meg the Hiker" should be asked about this if you have any questions, as she is the Master Gardener. And the other photo of the mosses shaped like a mushroom caused me to think of pizza at the Mellow Mushroom in Chattanooga, by the aquarium. I was on my way out when that occurred and it was a good thing for I was hungry!

......This Just In!

We just got this today!!!

The TSRA, the Big South Fork, the Cumberland River and the citizens of Tennessee and Kentucky need your immediate help. In the last couple of days, I was made aware of a proposal to build a landfill on a tributary of the Big South Fork of the Cumberland. The landfill would be built on, or near, Bear Creek just outside of Oneida, TN in Scott County. Bear Creek flows northwest out of Oneida and meets the Big South Fork between Leatherwood Ford, and Blue Heron. At the bottom of the page, I have listed three links to the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation website, so you can view the proposals in their entirety.
I will list the highlights of the proposal below, so you can quickly see why we should oppose this landfill: The new landfill will fill in 0.82 acres of wetland.
The new landfill will fill in 1,417 linear feet (over a quarter of a mile) of a perennial stream. I assume this stream to be Bear Creek.

The landfill will accept the disposal of domestic wastes, commercial wastes, institutional wastes, municipal solid wastes, bulky wastes, landscaping and land clearing wastes, industrial wastes, construction/demolition wastes, farming wastes, shredded automotive tires, dead animals, and special wastes (see #4).
The landfill is also being considered as a disposal site for fly ash from the Tennessee Valley Authority coal ash spill in Kingston. The proposed landfill is only 57 miles straight up HWY 27 from Kingston.
See this article from the USA Today on Friday to see why there is a good chance the TVA will utilize it: http://content.usatoday.net/dist/custom/gci/InsidePage.aspx?cId=tennessean&sParam=32959265.storyI will spare you the legal arguments and scientific data and instead offer you plain common sense -Filling in a year round creek with waste is certainly something we should oppose. Filling that creek with the same toxic materials being removed from the Emory River is something the entire state should oppose. Fly ash contains arsenic, lead, and mercury along with other toxic heavy metals. Trash and toxic waste dumped into a tributary of the Big South Fork will certainly find its way downstream into the Cumberland River, where many communities, including Nashville get their drinking water. Please join me in opposing this landfill.

There is an opportunity for public comment at a hearing tomorrow:
Monday, March 8, 2010 in the Courtroom of Oneida City Hall, 19222 Alberta Street, Oneida, TN. From 5:30 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. EST, citizens are invited to inspect and discuss the permit application, draft permit, fact sheet, plans, and other materials with the DSWM and with representatives of the applicant. There will be an opportunity for public comments to be recorded or written and submitted from 5:30 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. The formal hearing will begin at 6:00 p.m. The DSWM will explain its tentative decision to issue the permit, after which the applicant's representative will describe the proposed facility. DSWM will then receive oral comments on the draft permit from the public.
If you cannot attend the hearing:
The public is also invited to submit comments in writing to: Mr. Mike Apple, Division of Solid Waste Management, 5th Floor, L&C Tower, 401 Church Street, Nashville, TN 37243-1535; telephone: 615-532-0780. Comments must be received by 4:30 p.m. CDT on Monday, April 5, 2010 to assure consideration. After considering all public comments, the DSWM Director will issue a final permit decision and a Response to Comments, which can be viewed at the Oneida Public Library or at the DSWM Field Office in Knoxville, Tennessee.
If you call, please identify yourself as a TSRA member, and tell them you oppose the Roberta Landfill in Oneida, TN.

Here are the links to the TDEC site:http://tn.gov/environment/wpc/ppo/arap/PH2009_024.pdf
http://www.tennessee.gov/environment/swm/ppo/roberta760281ph030810.pdf
http://www.state.tn.us/environment/swm/ppo/roberta760281.pdf

Please forward this email to anyone who would help in opposing this landfill.
Kind regards,
Trent Ganstine
President
Tennessee Scenic Rivers Association
tganstine@comcast.net
615.598.4190
Tennessee Scenic Rivers Association
P.O. Box 159041, Nashville, TN 37215-9041
www.paddletsra.org

It's Was New

So today I decide to locate and follow a foot trail I spotted on my return yesterday along Lumber Ridge trail, and see what "new, unexplored" territory Junior Ranger Fife, that's me, can find! Well after being on it for about 10 minutes it became pretty clear where I was going to end up which was on Buckeye T. near the water tower. I made some adjustments in my plans and continued towards the Spruce Flat Falls w/ the intention of bushwhacking; which I later learned was not necessary, to end up above the falls. Being someone who prefers an easier softer route I tend to over think some situations and add to the work. Well, I added some work to this effort however it was a challenge successfully met and I ended up locating the old road/railway, the difficult way, coming off of Meigs Mtn. and continues; I was later told by two gentleman who passed me along the way, on past to one of the one-lane bridges on Tremont rd.








Dudes! and Dudettes! What awesome falls up above the main batch! The section of falls which most people see especially in the summer needs to stay that way. In the summer you can't even see much above the main section and for the novice hiker the visible section should suffice. I look forward to learning more of this area and using what I picked up to today to travel new paths. Peace

Lumber Ridge

This walk began out of "The Institute" (Tremont), parking area and involved the Lumber Ridge trail, covering about 2 miles of the 4.1 to the intersection w/ Meigs creek and Meigs Mountain trails. The walk starts out with an incline right out of the parking lot at Tremont and continues to climb for the next 3mls. or so. The incline is not always steep it's just consistent. It can be tough depending on your pace and/or health. At this time of year there are some great views which begin less than a mile into the walk and this section also involves the steepest grades. It is a walk that is most enjoyable for me when I can extend it, reverse the direction and make it a one-way hike from the Sinks at Meigs creek trail and ending at Tremont. A direction and route I've covered a couple of times (1/09).

Blue Friday

Blue skies this Friday! On The walk up School House gap trail it was cold for a short section, say the first 1/8th of a mile or so. Then it warmed up and was quite pleasant 40's w/ sunshine, even in the sink. The trail was slippery and soft with melting snow and some mud.
And Dude! It was a good feeling as I found a spot in the sun in White Oak sinks beside a rock pile and remnants of old iron stove and I got still. It was extremely peaceful and I appreciated the time for quick personal assessment. Some birds were messing around. There were small ones, and I saw a Magpie as well as a large game bird I could not identify though it remained relatively close moving from tree to tree.
This walk probably covers close to 4 mls. over moderate terrain. Peace

Forever Green

Hello, if you enjoy hiking and camping in Tennessee, hunting or fishing in Tennessee, have a Greenway near your home, or you farm in Tennessee, Please review the link here by clicking the title of this entry. This Monday March 8th, at 4:30pm, in the Great Hall at St. John's Episcopal Cathedral at 413 Cumberland ave, Knoxville, TN., you'll have the opportunity to learn what the state ifficials did last year with the funds intended to improve these areas of interest and what you can do to make sure it does not happen again.
If you love Tennessee and our beautiful natural environment, our parks and greenways, our wildlife areas and our clean water, please attend this important meeting to join the effort to restore the TN Real Estate Transfer Funds and Forever Green Tennessee. Thank You.

Snow Along The Middle Prong

This day began w/ a call from a fellow hiker asking if it was snowing in the Smokies. I looked out the window to see, since I was asleep when she called, and saw snow! So later in the day I got on the Middle Prong trail and seeing only two men who were leaving when I arrived. Aaaaaahh! Winter in the smokies! Quiet w/ no crowds and beautiful snow today!

Spruce Flat Falls

Hello, this relatively short walk (2.5mls.), in what has become somewhat more difficult over the recent past, took place Monday the 1st, between Tremont and Spruce Flat Falls. This reference to difficulty is probably due to the wear this trail gets consistently from visitors to Tremont and that the last two times I've been on it it has been slick! I commend the groups who were being led on instructional hikes w/ folks from the institute as some parts of the route would require close attention to where and how one steps.

The falls were busting as this picture shows and the "staircase" (top of page) was new to me covering some of the type of terrain I noted earlier. The trails are now posted w/ what appears to be permanent signage even though they are not on the maps. Though this tends to be the case for some of the more pleasant hikes. Peace.