Hawks Nest State Park in Ansted WV

Hello, how fortunate I am to return to this part of Appalachia and experience the natural gifts as well as the fine people in this section of our country.  The folks at Hawks Nest SP were overly kind and accommodating from the check-in Tuesday evening to the server(s) in the restaurant that served us throughout our stay.
The ironic thing about the location of this beautiful area is that it sits in the heart of coal mining country, most of this mining now done by Mountaintop Removal (see ilovemountains.org), which ultimately takes all of it away, the mountains, streams, wildlife, and any economic value of the community. 
So again, I am grateful for having the opportunity to have experienced the people and other natural gifts of this region, before it is all gone. Peace

Views along the Walk

The kids have returned to school so there has been a big drop in the number of folks visiting the GSMNP, and I welcome this time. Shortly there will be thousands more as the leaves change and people from all over the world will roll the dice as they make reservations for "that peek week", when the fabulous portraits of plant life are in transition with the earth. Until then I'll continue to hike as much as possible without the distractions. These pics are from some of my more recent day hikes. Last week I got to hike in the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area which sits just north of metro Atlanta. It was a really nice area that is appreciated mostly by the urban and suburban folks who live nearby and walk the dog friendly trails. There were lots of different plants and animal life, with the river home for trout, bass, catfish and some 20 other species of fish. The Chattahoochee River is the southernmost trout river in the United States. As I began my hike I spoke with a Volunteer In The Park (VIP), who gave me a brief verbal description of the park and shared some stories on being a volunteer at the Chattahoochee. I will hike this park again, while I am working in ATL, and I'll remember my camera. This Fern plant continues to grow in this log each year. I wonder how it will change when, and if, it outlast the log?

Some Recent Hikes

This week I took a friend for what I believe was his first "real" (lol) hikes in the Smoky Mountains and on Wednesday he didn't want to leave. Monday we hiked two different trails, Grotto Falls and Meigs Creek. I had not hiked Grotto for several years and what I remembered was a quiet walk in the woods in which I saw only one family on the trail. NOT!!! anymore. Dudes and Dudettes!, what a trip. There must have been more than 200 people between the parking area and the falls during our in-out hike and it ain't all that much to see, in a relative sort of way. After that we hiked 4.4 mls RT to Meigs Creek Cascades, which was very pleasant as we encountered no one on the trail after leaving the area around the sinks. Here is a picture of "Schulz" in front of them.

On Tuesday afternoon we went up along the AT from Newfound Gap in the smokies and walked over to the "Jump Off" along the Boulevard Trail. Bummer was the "Jump Off" point was clouded in so the vistas were still only stories I have heard. However this was an awesome walk and now I know I have to go back for the full views. On our hike we got to speak with a man doing trail maintenance along the AT, this less than a year after having both knees replaced! Thank you!! Much of the AT in the smokies is maintained by volunteers like this man, and his wife who was down the trail doing some other work. We also were privileged to see these!

Tuesday morning we hiked the route to from Tremont to Spruce Flat Falls and got to chat with a couple in their 80's, who were doing the same route a little slower and enjoying it as much as we did! Another fabulous day of appreciation and gratitude for the gifts of nature.

Blooms and a Bear

The beautiful Mountain Laurel was everywhere in the park, and is still is but fading fast.  Now if the rodo's would appear all of a sudden for my friends who are coming up this weekend that would be great!  Not likely, though I have seen some stray rodo's blooming already and if you've seen any around the GSMNP let me know.  The young bear was just off one of the busiest trails in the park about 50' up a cherry tree and undisturbed by the visitors who were nearby taking pictures and admiring this "gift".   

Laurel Falls Folks

The fine folks in this photo found this emaciated dog trying to make it's way somewhere. The dog was one like many that are often turned loose in the park by the local owners to run big game out of the park and/or training them to do so at a later date. These folks walked with, carried, and led the dog to the trailhead where I had contacted a ranger to pick-up the exhausted hound. Hopefully this dog will find another home other than where it came from. In the years I've been hiking this park I have had several similar experiences where I have come upon a lonely exhausted dog deep in the backcountry and had them follow me out. One hound followed me for a day and a half coming off Gregory Bald to the Twenty Mile ranger station where I found a boar cage to put him in with some water and then I contacted a ranger. Thanks to these folks this dog will know another day.

Blooms in the Smokies

These are just some of the blooming wildflowers I've had the pleasure of seeing in the last couple of weeks in the GSMNP. They were seen on the West and Middle Prong trails, and vicinity.

Some Trails Closed in the GSMNP

Great Smoky Mountains National Park crews are making needed repairs on both Chimney Tops Trail and Noland Creek Trail which received significant flood damage this winter. In North Carolina, Park crews will repair a slide area along Noland Creek Trail. In order to make the needed repairs, the trail will be closed to all hiker and horse use from April 22 – May 2, 2013 from the trailhead to Backcountry Campsite 64. Note that Campsite 64 will remain open, but Backcountry Campsite 65 will be closed during the project. In Tennessee, the popular Chimney Tops Trail has been closed since January when high waters destroyed the pedestrian bridge across Walker Camp Prong at the beginning of the trail. Crews are working to replace the 70-foot long bridge to allow trail access and estimate reopening the trail by June 30th, 2013. At that time, the Park’s Trails Forever Crew will begin Phase 2 of the ongoing full trail rehabilitation which will necessitate closing the trail each Monday through Thursday from Monday, July 1 through Thursday, October 17, while the trail continues to undergo a major facelift. For more information about trail closures, please visit the Park’s website atwww.nps.gov/grsm or call our Backcountry Information Office at 865-436-1297.