Jump Off the AT to Sweat Heifer

This Monday we chose the AT from New Found Gap; crowded with many folks here for the fall colors, to Jump Off, and back to the Sweat Heifer Trail where we dropped down this beautiful path experiencing numerous cascading waterfalls, some bigger than others, but all very pleasing to the senses.  A few years previous we had come up Sweat Heifer from Kephart Prong and this was a much more difficult direction to travel as there is a serious elevation gain of approximately 2300' from the Kephart Prong Shelter to the AT (3.7mls).

The walk down Sweat Heifer was peaceful and we encountered no one until the shelter at Kephart Prong.  Sweat Heifer is a great trail to incorporate into a day hike or could also be involved in an overnight roue as well and one I would recommend for solitude from the people on that portion of he AT, it's two easy access points,  the waterfalls and streams along it, and the availability of the Kephart Prong shelter on the lower end of the route.  Among other things.  Peace

 

Jakes Creek and Fall Colors

Dudes and Dudettes! What an awesome day for a walk in one of the most biologically diverse ares in the world! (That being, this part of Appalachia in which the GSMNP is located).  And "The Mysterious One" and I were lucky enough to choose Jakes Creek Trail, which was in excellent condition; thanks to the trail maintenance crews, and there was no one else hiking as we went up and a few as we descended.
Once we had rested some and enjoyed some snacks; including, apples, some gorp, and stuff, in the intersection of trails at Jake's Gap I followed the man-way over to the remnants of the old fire tower on Blanket Mountain, which took a bit longer than I expected and had my hiking partner quite concerned.

 The colors which are beginning to peak, and which will probably meet their seasonal brilliance over the next week, are as pretty when looking from below as this picture demonstrates.   Peace

This ain't Kansas...or Tennessee

Hello, I have been fortunate enough to afford the time and expense to travel to Bozeman MT this month and visit with some old friends and a town I lived in while attending college some years ago. Bozeman sits in the Gallatin Valley and is graced with numerous natural gifts which make possible all kinds of outdoor activities. Being a hiker I am choosing to walk some trails that are about to be impassable or inaccessible due to the onset of winter. There was snow around 7000' when I arrived Monday and after the snow we had yesterday that line moved to about 5500', for now. This weather forced me to go and purchase some used winter hiking boots at a local store, Second Wind Sports, which is a frugal/practical hiker's heaven! With two levels of all types of outdoor gear including boots, packs, coats, and stuff I didn't have time to look at but I am going to visit again before my departure. I had only packed some hiking shoes due to limited room in my luggage and so I was ready to do this if needed, and I got what appears to be a good pair of winter boots that fit, are relatively light, are keeping the snow out so far, and for a good price. Well these pictures are from a walk I took yesterday (9/25), in the Bridger Mtns., Gallatin National Forest, on a trail to Sacagawea Pass and Peak. Due to the potentially dangerous weather at 9000'+ when I reached the pass I decided it would not be wise to continue the short distance to the peak as I would be on a completely exposed trail with winds at approximately 40mph, blowing icy snow, with low visibility, and I was alone. I was using the rock pile to block the wind and regroup before I made my descent along a short but intense trail which coming up gains over 1000' vertical per mile from the parking area. At this parking area there is a permanent unisex toilet facility and the Fairy Lake Campground. The lake is like less than 1/4 one way from the parking area. I have seen this trail described on websites as "moderate". However it may be moderate only in distance and it is wrong to give the impression that if you can walk in a mall or across the parking lot at "wally world" you can do this trail. This trail is steep, gaining a 1000' per mile over it's 2 mls to the peak and a narrow trail at times as it "switch-backs" along open rock faces of the mountain leaving you no shelter from sometimes extreme elements. Due to the fact that it was cloudy and snowing I was unable to experience the awesome vistas I was told about, and new this to be probable before leaving, however it gives me reason to return!

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".