Rainbow Lake to Edwards Point 12.16.14

12.16.14    Today's hike was 4.6 miles.  The hike in was uneventful on this cool day.  Once at Edwards Point, the group separated and four of the hikers took a longer route back and finished about thirty minutes behind the others.  Everyone enjoyed this moderately tough hike.  To see a few pictures, click here or on the Rainbow Lake tab above.

Piney Creek Falls 12.13.14

There were six people on todays hike.  As you can see from the dress, it was a rather cool day.  It was especially cool and wet around the falls.  The group explored both the upper and lower falls and actually went behind the 70 foot falls.  To get to the bottom, they had to cross the creek and climb down using a rope for support.  It was a great hike and enjoyed by all.  I would rate the hike as strenuous, but I don't know the distance.  For a bunch of photos, click here or on the Piney Creek tab above.  Thanks to John and George for all the great pictures.

Raccoon Mountain 12.9.14

12.9.14    This description is a little confused since I'm not entirely sure of where the hike was.  I think it was Raccoon Mtn and if it was not I hope someone will correct me.  I am told that everyone had a great hike even though the hike leader lead everyone astray and they hiked several miles further than the planned four miles.  There were 13 hikers today on this moderate hike.  If you would like to see a few pictures please click here or on the Raccoon eMtn. tab above.

Roaring Creek 12.6.14

12.6.14  On this hike there were only two hikers?  Where was everybody?  Maybe they realized that the weather was poor and this would be a strenuous hike!  The day was very damp with a few  light showers and quite a bit of fog.  The pair hiked from the trail head to Gilbreak Creek and returned.  The total distance was 9.3 miles at a pretty quick clip.  They did not cross the creek because of high water and slippery creek boulders.  By the time they returned to the bluff the air had cleared and they had a beautiful view of the valleys and lake below.  To see a few pictures click here or on the Roaring Creek tab above.

Craven's House 12.2.14

12.2.14    Twelve hikers braved this cool day with light rain.  The hike was only four miles and I think most of the hikers enjoyed the meal afterwards at the Mount Vernon.  If you would like to see a couple of pictures, click here .

Heiss Mtn. to Soddy Daisy 11.29.14

11.29.14    This hike was from Heiss Mtn. to Soddy Daisy City Park for a distance of 6 miles.  Originally the hike was scheduled for 12 miles, but because of football games it was shortened.  This was still a strenuous hike and there was ice along the bluff that you can see in the pictures.  Everyone enjoyed the hike and got home in time for the games.  If you would like to see a bunch of pictures click here or on the Heiss Mtn. to Soddy Daisy tab above.

Sterchi Farms 11.25.14

11.25.14    On this hike before Thanksgiving Day, there were 16 hikers!  It was an absolutely beautiful day.  Nancy led this short hike which was probably the reason for so many hikers.  Every one had a great time.  If you would like to see some pictures, click here or on the Sterchi Farms tab above.        

Savage Gulf S. P. 11.21.14

11.21.14     There were 5 hikers on this very nice hike.  The hike went considerably longer than originally planned for a total of 14.7 miles!  Some hike!  I bet there were some really tired individuals that afternoon!  They started at the Savage Gulf Ranger Station and went to the Collins Rim Trail and back.  If you would like to see some pictures, click on the Savage Gulf tab above or click here.

Rainbow Lake to Signal Mtn. 11.15.14

11.15.14  This was a long strenuous hike.  It started at the Rainbow Lake trailhead and then went straight to the second bridge that crosses Middle Creek.  After crossing the bridge, the group turned onto the orange trail and hiked to the Signal Mountain HS loop.  After that the hikers went to Edward's Point for lunch and finally back to the Rainbow Lake trailhead.  It was very cold, but everybody was kept warm by the difficulty of the hike.  The distance of this hike was 9.5 miles.  If you would like to see a few pictures, click here or on the Rainbow Lake tab above.  

Fort Mountain State Park 11.8.14

11.8.14   Where was everybody?  There were only three people on this eight mile hike!  The three souls were George, Don and Tom.  It was a great hike and the weather was excellent for hiking.  Since this hike was in Georgia, it required some driving time so the hike actually started at 10:40 and finished at 3:40.  There were several beautiful overlooks on this trail.  I would rate the hike as moderate.  Thank you George for the excellent pictures.  If you would like to see a few pictures taken along the trail click here or on the Fort Mountain tab above.

Signal Mtn. H.S. to Hwy. 27

11.1.14    It was pretty cold and blustery on this hike.  Snow had fallen and was pretty on the trees and plants along the side of the trail.  The snow did not stick on the trail so that other than the leaves, the trail was easy to follow.  There were eight brave souls out today on this hike.  Lunch was had at the Suck Creek Bridge on their way back from Hwy. 27.  For a few pictures, click here or on the Signal Mountain tab above.

Soddy Ball Field to Heiss Mtn.

10.28.14    For the Tuesday hike we carpooled from the Soddy Ball Field parking lot to the Heiss Mtn Rd trailhead.  The weather was perfect for taking a leisurely Fall stroll from the trailhead to the Big Possum Creek Bridge and back.  The Fall colors were vibrant with their reds, yellows and all colors in between.  There were twelve of us that enjoyed the morning outing and although the hike distance was only approximately 3 miles there and back it was well worth our time.  I have to give kudos to my very good friend Bob McGavock for getting up off of his death bed (well maybe not his death bed but he did have surgery on his shoulder last week) and joining us for the hike.  I would say that he easily won our club’s hiker of the day award if we had one since he travelled the whole distance with us without incurring any more damage to his shoulder.  It was also nice to have his son Bob with us on this outing, come to think of it they may be eligible for another award as the first father/son team to make one of our hikes.  I will have to research further on that one but all in all we had a great day for a hike.  Please try and get out to enjoy the colors on any trail available to you, it will be well worth your time.  Happy Hiking!  For some pictures of the hike click here or on the Soddy Ball Field tab above.

North Chick. Loop

10.21.14    There were 10 people on the North Chick Loop Hike. The hike was scheduled for only 3 miles, but it was decided to do a little more so the total was 5 miles.  There were several trees down that the group had to go under or over.   They have been down since before June when the area was supposedly shut down to work on the trail.  I wonder what they meant by "work on the trail".  It seems pretty basic that trees down would constitute necessary work and that they would be removed.  I guess it was not important enough to whomever closed the trail!  The weather held and I would rate the trail as moderate.  For a few pictures click here, or on the North Chick. Loop tab above.
Thank you George for the report.

Piney River 10.18.14

10.18.14    There were only three people on this 9 mile Piney River hike.  I would rate the hike as moderate, but the distance was a little long.  It was a beautiful day with backpackers and other hikers on the trail.  For some pictures of the hike, click here or on the Piney River tab above.

Soddy Daisy 10.11.14

10.11.14    The hike was scheduled for Flipper Bend, but only two hikers showed up.  The hike was then changed to explore the now land that was purchased by Soddy Daisy.  The hike was about five miles and rated as easy.  The weather was overcast but otherwise a nice day for a hike.  For a few pictures, Click here or on the Soddy Daisy tab above.  

Retro Hughes 10.4.14

10.4.14    We had three hikers on a beautiful cool day.The hikers were Bob, George, and John. During the hike we met Boody and Gary returning to the trail head after doing a shortened version of the hike.  The hike we did was approximately 11 miles.  I would rate this hike as moderate except that the distance was a little long. To see a few pictures, click here or on the Retro Hughes tab above.

Prentice Cooper 9.13.14

 9.13.14    Prentice Cooper State Park It was just 3 hikers today (John, Bob, and George). We saw about 15 trail runners and about 10 other hikers on the trail. It was a nice day and lots of people were enjoying their time in the woods. Probably the threat of rain scared away some would be hikers.  I would rate this hike as moderate.  The distance was approximately 10 miles.  For a few pictures, click here or on the Prentice Cooper tab above.  

Signal Mountain HS

9.9.14    There were nine brave souls that started out the hike today.  While on the trail, the rains came down and just about everyone got soaked.  After the soaking a couple of hikers turned back while the rest continued to Mushroom Rock.  The distance was 4.5 miles and I would rate the hike as moderate because of the tough conditions.  Those that continued the hike had a very good time.  For a few pictures, click here or on the Signal Mountain tab above.

9.6.14    We changed the hike to be "Retro Hughes Road to Immodium Falls and return". The hike was about 8 miles total as we took the shortcut on the way back to Retro Hughes Road. The hikers were George, Tom, Lori, Joan, Bob, and John. The hike  rating was moderate.  For a few pictures click here or on the Retro Hughes tab above.

John

Upper Leggett to Lower Leggett 9.2.14

9.2.14    Tuesday’s hike with the Soddy Daisy Chapter was another day of fun in the sun.  We met at the Durham Street parking lot and by 8:00 a.m. we carpooled to the Upper Leggett Road Trailhead.  For most of the hikers this was considered a short and easy hike since the main body of hikers were going from the Upper Leggett to Lower Leggett Trailhead which included a short stop over at the Leggett Point Overlook along the way for an approximate hike of just over 3 miles.  The weather could easily have been described as Muggy, by that I mean hot, humid and steamy.  This condition would have been enough to contend with but add damp rocks along the path and they led to some slippery conditions all along the trail. 

There were fourteen adventurous souls for the hike and Bob “Boy Toy” McGavock was our able bodied hike leader for today.  Prior to the hike George Bonneau our chapter’s hiking coordinator had mentioned he was wanting to add another mile or so to the trek so he along with Boodie Fox and myself did the loop from the Connector Trail back to the Boiling Spring Bridge and then back up to the Upper Trailhead parking area.

The bulk of us agreed on meeting for lunch at the Blue Ribbon Café located in Soddy Daisy where we had a great meal with good friends.  I hope others were able to enjoy the trails today as well.  Happy Hiking!   For a few pictures, click here or on the Lower Leggett tab above.  

Larry

9.30.14    Black Mountain Hike.  There were 9 people who hiked with us. We saw one snake and hiked the
loops at the top of the mountain. Then we hiked down to the cave and had
lunch. After lunch we separated--three going back to the parking lot.  The
rest hiked to Hwy 68 where Boodie waited on his wife to pick him up.
  The rest hiked back to the parking lot for approximately a 9-mile hike.  

I would rate this hike as moderate.  For a few pictures click here or on the Black Mountain tab above.

Falling Waters 8.26.14

The Soddy Daisy Chapter met at the Wal-Mart in Soddy Daisy where we left by 8:00 a.m. and carpooled to the Mabbitt Springs trailhead located just off of Wilson Ave. on Glenway Ave..  Since Roberts Mill Road was closed due to continuing road stabilization George had to travel up Signal Mtn Blvd. and work his way north towards the trailhead with a few missed turns along the way - Lol.  He was familiar with coming in to it from the north but this way was a little new to him but we finally made it and everyone piled out of their vehicles and were eager to get a group picture made and hit the trail.  There is a parking pull-off on Glenway Ave (which will hold about 3 vehicles). You will see a little foot bridge that leads you to the trail.  The distance to Falling Water Falls is approximately 2.5 miles and would be rated as easy if it wasn’t for the total five miles to complete the hike so I would rate it as moderate but only due to the overall distance travelled.  The only negative for this trail is that it’s not marked so you have to look for a slight depression in the ground but I didn’t find that to be too difficult since you can tell that it’s a popular trail for this area of Signal Mtn.

Some local history for this area that I found was that in the 1870s with the outbreak of two epidemics, cholera and yellow fever, that fell on Chattanooga many of the wealthier families felt the need to escape the epidemic so the families traveled on horses and in buggies up Rogers Gap Road, today’s “W,” in hopes the high ground and cool air of Walden’s Ridge complemented by the waters of Mabbitt Springs would protect their families from the cholera.  Then again in 1878, the yellow fever epidemic started a second exodus from Chattanooga. The first families escaping the epidemics stayed in hotels that sprang up on the ridge and later established summer homes, especially in the area near and north of the top of Rogers Gap Road. The area became known as Summertown.

Located within a 136-acre, State of Tennessee Natural Area, this waterfall, named for Little Falling Water Creek that feeds it, drops 110 feet from this part of the Cumberland Plateau into Falling Water Gorge.  From the top it may not look that impressive (could have been based on my exaggerated fear of heights) so my next hike to this falls will definitely have to be to the bottom of the falls and I’m told that my favorite bush-whacking hiker, Boodie Fox, is the man I need to see to reach this location from the Soddy Daisy area.  Once we had a few minutes at the Falls we hiked back to the trailhead and agreed upon a location to have our usual Tuesday meal following the hike.  We drove to the Home Folks Restaurant (Buffet Style) in Soddy Daisy and had a great meal with good friends!  Happy Hiking!  For a few pictures click here or on the Falling Waters tab above.  

Larry

Snow Falls 8.23.14

8.23.14    Today there were 5 hikers who took part in the 10.6 mile hike to Buzzards Point & Snow Falls. We took a shortcut on the way back and cut off about a mile and a quarter of the planned 12 mile walk.

The hike participants were Zack, Tom, George, Lori , and John. We ate lunch at Snow Falls which was running pretty good for August.

The weather was warm but nice with the afternoon showers holding off until after our finish.

A few pictures are included. I would rate the hike as moderately strenuous.  For a few pictures, click here or on the Snow Falls tab above.  

John

Rainbow Lake Loop

8.19.14    The Soddy Daisy TTA Chapter was taking their usual Social Hike this past Tuesday and when I describe it as a Social Hike it would generally fall  between 3 to 5 miles with an intensity of easy to moderate.  Our hike on this day was leaving by 8:00 a.m. from the Red Bank Bi-Lo parking lot and carpooling to Signal Mtn for a hike around Rainbow Lake.  The total length was approximately 3 miles and I would rate it as moderate for the group since there were plenty of rock fields to traverse and earlier that day we had some rains which made many of them very slick to navigate.  We arrived at the Ohio Avenue trailhead near the Alexian Brothers Village.

There was a total of 12 hikers which showed up for this hike and we left the trailhead area and proceeded down the trail until we intersected the Bee Branch Trail and continued in a northerly direction where we crossed a swinging bridge and then reversed our direction in order to reach the Middle Creek suspension bridge.  At that bridge you can either take a right on the trail prior to crossing and heads toward Edwards Point or cross the bridge and turn right to head for Signal Point but after crossing we turned left where we started the ascent from the ravine passing the Rainbow Lake Dam and working our way up the ridge to the trailhead parking lot.

For a little history lesson on Rainbow Lake, the lake is a legacy of Charles E. James, who developed the 250 room Signal Mountain Hotel and some of the 4,400 acres which he purchased surrounding it back in 1913.  Mr. James constructed a dam in a ravine where two mountain streams met, and Rainbow Lake was formed.  The lake was 1,200 by 200 feet across, with an average depth of 15 feet.  It suffered a decline as the years passed by from silt flowing down into the lake and with people discarding old tires and trash in the ravine until the early 1980’s.  This is when the Friends of Rainbow Lake and scout groups began working to save it. The Town of Signal Mountain designated the area as a park and preserve, and Rainbow Lake is now connected to the Cumberland Trail.  As usual I digressed but I thought that tidbit of information might be interesting in how the area came to be.  Also while I’m highlighting the great work of the Volunteer community in saving Rainbow Lake for our enjoyment I would be remiss in not mentioning the outstanding work in the recent creation of brand new trail signage in this area by Sam Powell, Clyde Womack & Bill Fronk and the installation of those signs on the trail by the Wednesday hiking group of the Chattanooga Hiking Club which just happens to be led by the effervescent personality of Che Carico.

This story wouldn’t be complete without also mentioning what the Tuesday hikes are famous for and that’s going to eat after their ”long and arduous” hikes.  Today we went to Nikki’s Drive Inn on Cherokee Blvd., one of my favorites for hamburgers and homemade onion rings and you guessed it most of the attendees had their hamburgers with a plate of onion rings while several others tried their hand with the jumbo shrimp plates which looked equally good.  All in all we had a somewhat hot, humid, but satisfying day, thanks to the overall camaraderie of the group and the great meals we enjoyed.  Happy Hiking!  For a few pictures, click here or the the Rainbow Lake Loop tab above.  

Larry

Sluder Lane to Big Soddy Creek 8.16.14

8.16.14    Well it was another beautiful Saturday for a hike with the only downside being that the temps were to rise into the upper 80’s.  As usual the Soddy Daisy Chapter met for our Sluder Lane to Big Soddy Creek hike at the Durham Street ball fields in Soddy Daisy and departed by 8:00 a.m..  I guess it’s hard to stir up a lot of interest among our Chapter’s hikers when you state that the mileage is a minimum of 8 miles and they know it’s going to be Hot & Strenuous.  We did have five suckers, I mean hikers, that showed up with the mentality of no pain, no gain and I was one of them.  George Bonneau is not only our Chapter’s hard working Hike Coordinator but for today he was also our Hike Leader.  He surprised several of the group by saying that he wanted to bypass the shortcut out via the Rock Climbers parking lot and travel in and out via the Little Soddy Gorge, thus adding at least another 2 miles to our journey for a total of about 10+ miles.  I let him know the more the merrier for me but I would go with whatever he ultimately decided to do.  The others being Bob, John & Tom were not so easily swayed so they wanted to wait and see after we hiked over to Big Soddy Creek for a brief lunch before they committed to hike the additional mileage.

We arrived at the Sluder Lane trailhead and proceeded down through the Little Soddy Gorge but if you’ve never hiked this trail you would probably be a little dismayed at the old tires and a couple of rusty appliances along the trail that had been thrown down from the roadway up above.  At one time it was cleaned up by the State as I was told but the tires were left down there because the State had nowhere to dispose of them (that was hard for me to understand since there is a Hamilton County Tire Recycle Center next to the Silverdale Corrections Center) so for now they just sit down there in a pile or two as a reminder of how some people have no respect for themselves or our planet.  Otherwise it’s a nice trek alongside of the Little Soddy Creek where years ago they were actively mining coal from the area as labeled with some interesting signs along the trail.  One designated where an old home site had been along with several signs locating some old mine sites, a mule barn site and a stockade road.  We then climbed out of the Gorge and crossed over Hotwater Road where we proceeded along the trail towards the new Deep Creek Bridge.  On the way we passed Posey Point which provides no views except during the winter after the leaves have fallen, then the next point of interest is an abandoned Open Mine which makes you wonder if the miners were all midgets or had to work hunched over all day due to the low entrance height to the mine.  About a mile later we reached the Deep Creek Bridge and I’m glad to report that the State had returned to place a set of steps where once you had to climb down about five feet to reach the boulder below.  Many thanks to our local lead Ranger, Anthony Jones, and his team for adding the steps, now if I could just suggest that they add a cable mounted with standoffs along an upper boulder to safely traverse the crest of the lower boulder during wet and icy conditions until you can safely reach the main trail about 10 feet away.  I don’t want to push my luck but I’m just asking. 

We then left Deep Creek and trekked less than a mile to our “Ghost” Bridge at the Big Soddy Creek.  All of the Volunteers collectively put in thousands of hours I’m sure and worked so hard last summer in transporting the tons of ready mix concrete, lumber and steel beams down from the bluff up above and then zip lining it down to the bridge site below but that all came to an abrupt end late last year with Tony’s departure and the news that the State was to take over its’ completion.  We have the steel towers up, the cables and lumber had all been purchased with the grant money so the only thing left is to rig the cables and assemble the wooden bridge structure to be able to walk across which should be a “walk in the park” (no pun intended) but with the current priorities of the CT Park Manager seemingly not on the trail I can only assume we may be looking at five years or so before we actually have completion of the Suspension Bridge.  As I understand it the Deep Creek Bridge had a 2009 donation of $6,000 to his non-profit “Friends” group and it was constructed this year under his direction by State employees.  I hope he proves me wrong but only time will tell!  He was quoted in a May 1^st Chattanooga Times Free Press article concerning the Big Soddy Bridge completion (remember all of the material had been purchased last year by Tony while General Manager for the CTC):  “That one will be the "most costly," Fulcher said, projecting that expense at about $57,000.”???  Oh well, after reminiscing over the bridge project that never was we headed back where three of the group had decided to mutiny and take the shortcut out to Sluder Lane and George and myself returned back along the trail we came in on.  For my three fellow hikers that had cut short their adventure in search of their air conditioned comforts they still had a solid 8 miles racked up for the day (not too shabby) and for the other two, we had a minimum 10 mile trek for the day.  Either way I believe we all had an enjoyable Saturday and hopefully you did too!  Happy Hiking!  I would rate this hike as semi-strenuous.  If you would like to see a few pictures, click here or on the Sluder Lane tab above.  

Heiss Mtn. to Big Mountain Creek 8.12.14

8.12.14    The Soddy Daisy Chapter’s hike for Tuesday was scheduled to depart Durham Street parking lot in Soddy Daisy promptly at 8:00 a.m. and carpool to the Heiss Mtn trailhead just off of Hwy. 111.  To be honest I don’t usually hike the Tuesday hikes due to their short mileage and their difficulty level being typically easy to moderate but today I had a special invitation from a good friend to attend since we had not been able to hike together in a while due to his volunteer work on Saturdays.  Don’t get me wrong it’s not that I feel the short hikes are beneath me but it’s due to me trying to achieve the most bang for the buck (sort of speaking) when I’m out spending my time on the trail. 

So here we were Tuesday morning, the sun was shining, we had a good number of hikers show (ten I believe) and all was well with the world.  We even had the ever entertaining Bob McGavock as our hike leader to show us the way as he led us from the Heiss Mtn trailhead towards the Big Possum Creek Bridge which was to be our destination.  The mileage going in and coming out would amount to just under 3 miles but as Bob would put it, “this is the hardest 3 miles on the entire Cumberland Trail”.  The trail was damp from the previous rains over the weekend so that made the rock fields a little more of a technical challenge to  cross at times.  As luck would have it we made it to the bridge without any injuries but along the way Bob had pointed out some strange formations on the face of some rocks which you can see among the pics I took.  Those geometric shapes are really unusual and something that normally if I were hiking by myself I would never see since I keep my head down watching the trail for obstacles and not artifacts.  It almost appears like manmade square patterns which weave across the rocks but I’m sure it was either Mother Nature spending hundreds or maybe thousands of years in providing those rocks for our enjoyment or they were some form of a language left behind by extra-terrestrials.  Something tells me I should opt for the former or have a serious talk with my psychiatrist.  But as usual I’m starting to digress so back to the hike. 

We all took a break at the bridge for pictures and then headed back up out of the gorge and towards the trailhead where our vehicles were parked.  There we kicked around the possibility of having an early lunch together since this was a short hike and we made it out by about 11:00 a.m..  It was decided we would all meet at the Blue Ribbon Café in Soddy Daisy where we each had a great meal and some friendly conversation.  After departing from the group and heading home I came to the realization that I’m going to have to reevaluate my analytical way of thinking – where I only go on hikes that I feel benefit me solely for the health benefits because I definitely brought back more from the hike today than I left my home with earlier that morning.  That was the fact that I had forgotten how much in the past I’ve always enjoyed my time spent sharing thoughts and stories on the trail with fellow hikers that I consider my friends.  So I guess in the end I shouldn’t constantly judge my hikes by how many trail miles I can hike and how fast I can hike them but how many memories I can make on the trail with friends.  Because really isn’t that what life’s all about - making memories?   For a few pictures, click here or on the Heiss Mountain tab above.  

 Happy Hiking! 

Prentice Cooper-Pot Point Loop 8.9.14

Today's hike was almost called off due to lack of interest from our Chapter members.  I was scheduled to lead the hike on the Pot Point Loop at our local Prentice Cooper State Forest with the length being approximately 12 miles.  I arrived at the Red Bank Bi-Lo and immediately met two hikers, Lori (along with her dog Chance – a golden retriever) & Ed whom had just recently moved here from Pennsylvania & Connecticut respectively.  I waited on the usual chapter’s Saturday hikers and only John “Speedy” Politte showed up for this one.  I guess the uncertainty of thunderstorms today kept many from showing up but it was a strenuous hike with high mileage so that may also have discouraged others from coming.  We left Bi-Lo a few minutes after 8:00 a.m. and headed for the Pot Point trailhead where we arrived and hit the trail at about 9:00 a.m..  We were slightly delayed due to a dead tree which had fallen across Tower Road and although I knew my truck could easily make it around on the grassy shoulder I wasn't so sure about Lori’s car so we cleared a path that allowed us to stay mainly on the graveled road. 

I started the hike proceeding in a clockwise direction on the trail which took us near the Snooper’s Rock Overlook but the clouds were so heavy this morning we wouldn’t have been able to view the gorge below so we stayed on the main trail and I mentioned to the others that once back to the vehicles we would hike the approximate .3 miles down to the Overlook with the hopes that the fog would have cleared out by that afternoon.  The first Point of Interest on the trail was the Natural Bridge at about 3 miles from the starting point but it looked too muddy to scramble down below for a look at the stone arch forming the bridge so we continued on to the next POI about 3.7 miles later, the Raccoon Mtn Overlook, where we stopped for a lunch break but due to the heavy tree growth along the escarpment we couldn't see much more than a small portion of the river through the leafy branches.  So far two strikes for the Overlooks.  But this is where the hike really gets interesting!  Somewhere around a mile after we left the Raccoon Mtn Overlook, prior to reaching the McNabb Gulf Campsite, Lori and her dog Chance were a short distance in front of me when she sheepishly turned her head back towards us and yelled Snake!   There just beside the trail, stretched out the largest and most awesome looking Rattlesnake I’ve ever seen in the wild and actually the first venomous snake I’ve seen on any of my hikes for this season.  She and the dog had stepped just inches away from its’ head and while she was passing she heard the faint sound of a rattle.  The remaining three of us chose discretion over valor and walked up along the hillside to the trail, deviating a few feet away and letting it be (best option for all parties involved – didn’t want to scare the snake).  The snake appeared to be probably digesting a meal due to the enlarged area about half way down its’ body and seemed to be acting lethargically as it laid beside the trail.  It definitely had his attention focused at letting what appeared to be his most recent meal settle than creating havoc for us hikers.  After a few pics we left him just as we found him, undisturbed and happily digesting his meal.  What a story to tell our friends and family!  On well, back to hiking, about a mile later we passed through the McNabb Gulf Campsite but even with the rains this past week it was almost dry and then we proceeded on to Ransom Hollow Overlook where we were finally rewarded, for all of our hard efforts and near deadly encounter, with a picture perfect view.  About a mile later we passed by the Hemlock Branch Campsite and then less than .7 miles later we arrived back to our vehicles where we shed our packs and repeated the hike down towards Snooper’s Rock. You could continually heard ooh’s and awe’s from the new visitors that had never been to this Overlook before and after a few pictures by our party we returned once again to our vehicles where we departed Prentice Cooper with many more exciting and lasting memories than when we first arrived earlier that morning!

Oh, for anyone that maybe considering hiking this apparently little used trail (compared to the Mullens Cove Loop), let me shed some light on the trail conditions – generally the trail itself wasn't in bad shape but the undergrowth had enclosed the trail in many areas (which attributed to a number of chiggers that hitched a ride out on my arms and legs), downed trees were abundant, perhaps a dozen or more along the twelve mile route that had to be crawled under or climbed over (some of them could be removed with a good bow saw but others will require the use of a chainsaw),  the faded blazing should be re-applied, in one place early in our hike, we missed a switchback turn on the trail altogether but it became very apparent after about 50’ or so when the trail disappeared so I backtracked and easily found the turn - Happy Hiking and if you happen to see our friendly Rattlesnake along this trail please give him my regards!  For a few pictures, click here or on the picture to the right.  

Greenway Farms 8.5.14

This was a short easy hike.  The distance was only 4 miles but everyone had a nice time.

Lower Leggett Road to Rock Creek 8.2.14

      The Soddy Daisy Chapter met on Saturday morning at the Durham Street parking lot by 8:00 a.m. and proceeded to carpool to our starting point at the Lower Leggett Road trailhead.  I was very happy to see George Bonneau & John Politte back from their 15 day European River Cruise vacation and ready to hit the trails once again. After they visited the Red Light district of Amsterdam I wasn’t so sure they would ever return but I forgot that they had Sarah & Cookie with them and I’m sure they were on a very short leash – Lol.  John was our very capable hike leader today and for a very humid and muggy Saturday hike I felt we had a reasonable turnout with six hikers; Gloria, Joan, George, John, Tom & myself.  Our good friend Boodie Fox is still recuperating from his mishaps due to the poor trail conditions at the North Chickamauga Segment hike last Saturday so hopefully he will be getting back to the trail with us soon.

 

The hike was advertised as approximately 8 miles and slightly strenuous but it turned out with a little tweaking from our hike leader to be just over 10 miles and strenuous - Lol.  We left the Lower Leggett trailhead parking lot at about 8:30 a.m. and proceeded on the lower connector trail heading towards the junction with the main trail, after about 1.2 miles we arrived at the split and took what I would call the upper loop trail to the right which climbed steadily out of the Rock Creek Gorge towards the junction near the upper trailhead on Leggett Rd..  We paused for a minute as we were heading up to allow everyone to regroup and someone noted that there was nary a breeze blowing that morning and I made the mistake and mentioned it would probably be nice if we encountered a light shower along the way, not knowing what would come later.  Near the top we passed the side trail on the left, blazed in yellow, which leads to the Leggett Point Overlook.  We bypassed the Overlook today due to the fact that most of us had been there and done that before and we had a 10 mile hike to complete but the side trail does open up into a panoramic view of the Rock Creek Gorge and where it’s not uncommon to spot hawks and the occasional eagle passing by.  Further up the trail we took the junction trail on the left (what some refer to as the shortcut) and headed back down the ridgeline in a steep descent towards the Boiling Springs Bridge.  Once we crossed the Boiling Springs Branch we had about 2.3 miles to reach the Rock Creek Bridge, our final destination, but along the way we passed by or over the Rock Creek Overlook, Flat Branch Bridge, Rocky Branch Bridge as well as Leggett Branch (a great cascading waterfall to your right during the wet weather season but just a trickle today) and just before making it to the bridge we passed through the Rock Creek Campsite where we found a father – daughter duo camping for the weekend.  Once at the bridge there is a large sloping rock above the creek to sit upon and where we had a well-deserved lunch break.  We were all very fortunate today since Tom brought some of his fresh & delicious peach/blackberry cobbler for us to enjoy, thanks for treat Tom!  Well I guess that all good things have to come to an end so we gathered up our belongings and headed back towards the trailhead where we started.  About the time I reached the Boiling Springs Bridge on the way back I could hear the rumble of thunder in the distance and I knew my fellow hikers behind me would be picking up their pace to try and make it out before the rains came but that wasn’t going to happen.  This time instead of returning by way of the upper loop we had already planned to take the lower loop trail of the Rock Creek Loop back to the trailhead and after several more rumbles of thunder a light shower began about .75 miles prior to reaching the junction with the connector trail but with the tree cover it felt great.  By the time I reached the junction it was a steady downpour so I donned my poncho (it seemed that the rain stopped just after putting on the poncho) and just over 1 mile later I made it to the parking lot before 2:00 p.m. where I waited for the others to arrive.  I learned an important lesson today and that’s be careful what you ask for because you may just get it and then some!  Happy Hiking!  For a few pictures click here or on the picture to the right.  

Harrison Bay State Park 7.29.14

7.29.14    There were 10 of us on this  4.5 mile walk. As it was an easy walk there were several people that walked ahead and others that were walking slow enjoying the beautiful morning. If you would like to see a picture of the hikers on this hike, click here or on picture to the right.

Sent from my iPhone

North Chickamauga 7.26.14

7.26.14    Another hike on a very hot but dry summer day.  The Soddy Daisy chapter was scheduled to hike from the trailhead located just off of Montlake Road to Stevenson Branch Campsite, approximately 8.5 miles – there and back.  I volunteered to lead today’s hike since I had hiked it a couple of times this Spring prior to the month long shut down that the CTSP initiated for the month of June.  The CTSP was quoted as saying that it was required to do maintenance, construction, visitor protection, and resource protection projects in response to damage from years of unauthorized parking, trampling and erosion.  I’ll get back to the actual results from the month long closure in a minute.

We were to meet at the Soddy Daisy Wal-Mart by 8:00 a.m., although we never really know how many hikers will participate from week to week but I was not expecting a large group today due to the Summer months which deter many of our hikers from hiking the longer, more strenuous hikes in 90 degree weather.  As it turned out we had four hikers including myself to hit the trail this morning which included Boodie Fox, Tom Long, Zach Tate & Larry Hill.  After leaving the trailhead I led them up the Upper Hogskin Loop trail to the old mining road as we ascended the ridgeline to get to the footpath that would parallel the creek down below.  We were all eager to see the purported improvements that had been made to the trail.  The starting temp was in the lower 70’s but I knew before we completed our trek it would be approaching 90 or better so I brought plenty of water in case anyone else came up short.  Two of the hikers were unfamiliar with this segment and I warned them that once we crossed the waterfalls with the cable crossing that the remaining trail to Stevenson Branch was more of a goat trail than one that you would normally associate with the Cumberland Trail.  We stopped at the Boston Branch Overlook for a water break and so far so good but since I had not seen any maintenance thus far on the segment itself I wasn’t holding my breath for the upcoming portion leading to the waterfall crossing.  This upcoming portion has had large downed trees which you have to step across, crawl over or stoop under for at least the past two summers and as I suspected today it was no different with the exception that now the vegetation has overgrown over much of that portion of the trail, poor Boodie was trying his best to do some trail maintenance along the trail as he hiked which he is famous for but I believe he was even overwhelmed by the growth.  While he was trying to trim back some of the vegetation he slipped off of the trail and went a short distance down a hill very close to the creek bed and sustained several abrasions about his arms and legs which were bleeding freely but was able to be controlled with some “Wound Sealer” (available at your local pharmacy) that Tom had in his first aid kit, I’ve never seen it before but I would recommend that anyone that hikes carry some in their first aid kit since it really does work to clot the bleeding.  I’ve always admired how Boodie, who at 79 years young, has kept himself in tip top shape with his hiking and bicycling and I’m sure that his lifestyle had helped prevent him from incurring greater injury to himself from the fall than what he sustained.  Well after we had our lunch break we walked over to Cooper Creek and then crossed over where I was able to point out some stonework for a makeshift campsite and a few minutes later we began our return journey back towards the trailhead.  Just after crossing the waterfall for the second time, we were making our way through the maze of fallen debris and the last large log we had to step across was basically covered up in the tall grasses and as Boodie was bringing his leg across the log there was a branch stob that was hidden by the grass and he raked the front of his leg across it and it removed 2-3 inches of meat from his leg and appeared to almost go to the bone, this was definitely not Boodie’s day to be on the trail, at least not this particular trail.  The blood was running down his leg and into his sock so Tom found another packet of wound sealer and with his bandages was able to control the heavy bleeding until Boodie could get back to his vehicle where he was headed to N. Park Memorial for the ER. 

Let me interject one thought here and that is the CTSP Manager had this park closed for one whole month but apparently never got past the parking lot and access areas to the creek leading towards the Blue Hole.  The “real trail” was never touched for the trail maintenance nor the trail erosion that exists on the trail between the waterfalls and Stevenson Branch Campsite.   Also the lumber that I helped carry down for replacing the ladder in I believe late April is still stacked under the rock bluff and the old ladder with the safety issues still stands as it did then.  Much of what happened to Boodie today could have been averted if they had taken a day out of their busy schedule and at least used their chainsaw to remove the downed trees.  If he’s not going to use his rangers for this type of maintenance he could have at least hired an independent contractor to clear the trail and make it safer to hike.  I’m sure I could have found a few volunteers to go with me and we could have removed them (all in one day) and I and any other volunteers would have been glad to sign a waiver of responsibility so the State wouldn’t have any legal issues due to any possible injuries sustained during the removal.  Let me also preface this by saying this is not the fault of the local rangers, they can only work on what they are told, this problem lies squarely on the shoulders of the Manager who was the same one that banned chainsaw use by volunteers until they could be certified and since his edict last year the State has never offered a “Certification Course” with chainsaws in our area so as usual with this lack of management skill the trail and the hikers are the only ones that suffer!

Well so much for an ending to what could have been a great hike.  I can report that Boodie spent most of his afternoon and evening in the ER and after they cleaned out the wound they told him to come back on Monday morning to have it stitched up, I believe they wanted to wait until they could determine that the powder that was used to stop the bleeding wouldn’t cause any problems after sealing up the wound with stitches.  I hope your time on the trail this weekend was better than ours! This hike is obviously rated as severe.  For a few pictures, none of them gory, click here or on the picture to the right.   Happy Hiking!

Thank you Larry for this extreme report.  

Riverwalk 7.22.14

7.22.14    You probably couldn't have asked for a better July morning. A little humid a little hot and a blue sky. There were four of us on this 4 mile walk. We started at the Boathouse  and walked  2 miles towards the dam and the came back. We walked so fast that it was too early to go to lunch. And yet we took the time to smell the roses. Well at least look at the marsh area. Saw lots of birds, frogs, ducks, and plants.  This hike was easy.  For a couple of pictures click here or on the picture to the right.

Enterprise South

7.15.14    There were 6 of us on this 5 mile hike. Due to an accident on Hwy 153, we started out an hour late. The bad news was that Boodie was waiting for us and ended up walking by himself (sorry about that Boodie). The good news is when we finished walking it was lunch time.  It remained overcast and not too hot, so it was a fairly comfortable hike.  I would rate this hike as easy.  For a couple of pictures, click here or on the picture to the right.   

Board Camp Creek 7.12.14

7.12.14    The Saturday hike (7/12/14) for our Soddy Daisy Chapter was to take place on the Board Camp Creek trail of the Soddy Gorge Segment.  We met as usual at the Durham Street parking lot near the ball fields in Soddy Daisy and departed by 8:00 a.m..  Altogether there were five souls (Boodie Fox, Gary Selcer, Tom Long, Diane Walker and myself) willing to endure what was to become a very hot and humid 10+ mile hike.   Boodie drove us up to Jones Gap Road where we began hiking down a little over a mile towards the steps across the ROW fencing while he drove North on Highway 111 and found an emergency cross over so he could park his van on the Southern ROW near the same steps for the Board Camp Creek trail.  Today’s hike was rated as Strenuous only due to the mileage since I would normally rate the terrain easy to moderate.  Boodie was our hike leader for the day and I always enjoy his wit and humor when he’s around, the only drawback is if you’re following directly behind him you always have to be aware as he’s bending over to use his pruners to pursue his desire to maintain the trail that his hiking staff can and will take the shape of a weapon at times.  As he’s leaning forward the staff lunges back towards you – Lol.  Our initial intent was to hike as far as the “George Summers” steps with the handrail (cable) but we took a vote and lengthened it about ¾ miles further towards Big Soddy Creek.  On our way back we stopped for a break at the “Junk Yard” Falls as Boodie likes to call it, there’s no official spur trail but it’s about 50 yards off to the left of the main trail just before you hit the first set of descending steps and well before you reach the “George Summers” steps.   I believe there is more than one vehicle located on the opposite side of Board Camp Creek just above the creek bed (the one I could see was an old panel van).  When the water is running strong there is a small water falls (maybe 8’ high) upstream from the vehicles.   Well after the break Diane and I headed back towards the van so I could take advantage of some Blackberries on the ROW just before exiting the trail.  I found out quickly that the larger berries were the tart ones and the smaller berries were the sweeter ones, I’ve never picked them before but it didn’t take long to figure out which ones were the best for eating as I was exiting the trail.  I had never hiked with Diane before since I believe this was her second hike with our club but I found out that she could hold her on with any hiker in our Chapter – good job Diane.  As usual during the hot summer months I was soaked to the bone at the end of our hike but all in all it was another Great Hike!  Happy Hiking!  For a few pictures of todays hike click here or on the picture to the right.

Larry

7.5.14    Saturday’s hike for the Soddy Daisy Chapter was scheduled for Cloudland Canyon with a final estimated distance of just under 7 miles.   It was rated as Moderate too Strenuous on the hiking schedule for July but since most of us hiked over to the West Rim Loop and then went to both Hemlock & Cherokee Falls I would definitely have to rate it as Strenuous and in a second you will hear more about the Strenuous parts.  George Bonneau was our hike leader for this event and he kept up a very quick pace throughout the morning hike, good job George!  I honestly believe he was in a hurry to get back home to some of Sarah’s famous homemade Peach Ice Cream.  But I digress, we met at the Bi-Lo in Red Bank for an 8:00 am departure and we were pleasantly surprised to have not only seven of our regular chapter members but four new hikers by the names of Zachary Tate, Courtney Parker, Wayne Welch, and Melanie Welch.  Thanks guys for showing up and adding to our enjoyment.  By the time we arrived at Cloudland Canyon State Park we began our hike around 9:00 am and headed for the West Rim trail.  Once on the West Rim trail, the path follows Daniel creek for a short period before crossing it by way of a footbridge. The trail provides switchbacks up the hillside so be on the lookout for a couple of sharp turns, denoted by a double yellow blaze. Eventually you will come to a small footbridge and the Park’s information board with map.  Here, the loop part of the trail begins. The map description will follow the creek upstream making the loop clockwise.  This has to be one of the most scenic hiking trails in our area if not the entire Southeast, the trail provides magnificent views of Trenton, Georgia, neighboring Sand Mountain, and of Cloudland Canyon itself.  During the morning hours we were comforted with a steady light breeze which helped with evaporating the perspiration and making the temperature much more bearable.  Now let’s get to the part that aided in making this a Strenuous hike.  Once we completed the West Rim Loop we began our return towards the parking lot but before starting up the ascending staircase back to the parking lot we took a vote on going to both Hemlock and Cherokee Falls.  It didn’t seem like much of a quest to me at the time until we hit the multiple staircases going down towards Hemlock Falls.  I lost count as to the total number of steps going down but I believe they added some extra steps before we started back up.  I’ve since read that from the parking lot down to Hemlock it’s approximately 600 steps so if it’s 600 going down then that somehow equates to 600 to get back up to the top.  I guess you could say that it was worth the effort to be able to view a 90 ft. waterfall but somehow once we made it back up and then began our descent down to the 60 ft. Cherokee Falls it turned out to be a welcome relief from the first falls since it only had about 40 or so steps to be able to view it and it was, to me, a prettier setting with a larger pool than the first and was partly surrounded by an arching rock wall.  Also you were relatively closer to it at ground level than being restricted to staying on the viewing deck they had setup for the hikers at Hemlock.  The only sad part for the young and the young at heart is they don’t allow any swimming in either of the pools as they do in some similar settings at other parks.  Well after we bid farewell to Cherokee Falls we began our trek to the top and met up with the ones of our group that didn’t want to test their endurance by going to the Falls.  Oh and btw if you notice I don’t have my usual group photo included with this hike description it’s because I was convinced that I needed to let a bystander use my camera and take a full group picture which would have included myself  – well as luck would have it a nice lady volunteered, I’m not sure what button she pushed when she said she took two shots but when I returned home, guess what, no group shots on my camera!  My fault, Live & Learn  -  Lol  -  Happy Hiking!    For a few pictures of the hike click here or on the picture to the right.

7.8.14  Today was hot and muggy.  Everybody had a good time, but it was decided not to have lunch afterwards.  For a few pictures, click here or on the picture to the right.

Bob's Big Barbecue 7.1.14

7.1.14    What a day.  The Chapter decided to have it's July meeting at Bob's house along with a barbecue.  What a barbecue it was!  Not just your average Weber grill affair, but a barbecue prepared by a professional touring barbecue expert.  John, travels the country entering BBQ contests and we could surely tell. Ribs, Brisket and Chicken was the fair and wow was it good.  Everyone else brought different dishes so we really ate heartily.  Even homemade ice cream.  Bob even had his pool set up so many of the guests enjoyed a swim on this very warm day.  I would guess that there were about 40 people present.  A fantastic time was had by all.  I would rate this BBQ as easy.  For a few pictures click here or on the picture to the right.

Earl

Flipper Bend

6.28.14   The hike participants were Gary, Boodie, Jean, William, Tom, and John. We hiked 7 miles finishing about noon while the temperature was still in the upper 70's. We hiked to one of the North Chick overlooks for an early lunch via the Clear Branch Loop.  I would rate this hike as moderate.  For a few pictures, click here or on the picture to the right.

Craven's House 6.24.14

6.24.14    This hike was approximately 4 miles in length.  I would rate it as moderate.  George was the leader and a good time was had by all.  For a few pictures, click here or on the picture to the right.

Wolftever 6.17.14

There were 11 of us on this 4 mile "hike"  if you notice we are all in the picture. A gentleman was nice enough to take our picture. It was hot and muggy  out but we were under the canopy of trees almost the whole time. The flowers were beautiful, the creek was flowing and of course the company was the best. Followed by a good lunch.  I would rate this hike as easy.  For a few pictures, click here..

Donna

Sluder Lane

6.14.14    Today’s hike for the Soddy Daisy Chapter was to be from Sluder Lane to Big Soddy Creek and then back out via the Southeastern Climbers Coalition parking lot and road hike to Sluder Lane.  The total distance was approximately 7 miles and was rated as Strenuous.  Our taskmaster, I mean hike leader for today’s hike was John “Speedy” Politte.  Ever since he lost over 20 lbs. with his new diet he’s been burning up the trails and leaving most of the hikers eating his dust.  We met at our usual location, the Soddy Ball Fields, and left by 8:00 a.m. and hit the trail at Sluder Lane by 8:20 a.m. with the temp in the upper 60’s and too bad it didn’t stay there.  It continually climbed to the upper 70’s during the hike but with the Sunny conditions it felt like the upper 80’s but I guess that the price we pay for having fun.  The hike to Deep Creek was uneventful until we reached the new bridge, scratch that we just had the new logs to cross over on and while some brave souls walked across the logs heading for Big Soddy this poor soul crossed them on hands and knees, with my luck at falling I figured I just couldn’t afford to take any chances and who would see me anyway since I was among friends and we were a good ways from civilization but just as I climbed down on the other side I looked back and George along with three climbers were waiting to cross, oh well so much for embarrassment!  Three of our group continued on towards Big Soddy and the Two Great Wonders of the Big Soddy Gorge, namely our Suspension Bridge Towers that are waiting for the State to finish what we, the CTC Volunteers began last summer.  Please B.F. put their priority for completion above the next Music Festival or Nursery Sale, so sorry but I couldn’t resist!  They did look very lonesome just still standing there with the scaffolding still encircling them.   Well after our short lunch break we began our trip back to Sluder Lane where we met up with three of our hikers that either didn’t want to risk walking across the logs or didn’t want to swallow their pride and crawl across like yours truly.  Everyone had a great time and now we are already looking forward to our upcoming party/quarterly meeting at Bob and Edna’s home in less than two weeks, I can taste the Bar-B-Que as I write!  Happy Hiking!  For a few pictures, click here or on the picture to the right.

Larry Hill

The website is still having problems.  Sorry for the inconvenience.

Roaring Creek

6.7.14    The Soddy Daisy Chapter’s hike for Saturday, June 7^th, began with five of us gathering at the SD Ball Fields where we left by 8:00 a.m..  We headed up to Graysville, Tn for a hike on the Roaring Creek Trail where we met two more of our hikers at the trailhead.  This hike was originally listed as 10 miles on the TTA calendar and strenuous but based on wheeled distances it is actually 11 miles total in and out.  Our hike leader was the venerable Bob McGavock and he decided to carry his sling blade and try to cut down some weeds in the meadow on top instead of making the entire hike with us.  That’s just like Bob, always thinking of others.  It began as a warm, muggy morning for the seven members of this trek and by the time we hiked to our turn going up the mountain we were all pretty much glistening at that point (maybe I should have said sweating but our female members of the hike don’t sweat, they glisten).   We stopped at the first overlook which was the one for Roaring Creek and then less than a mile later we had arrived at the impressive Cranmore Cove Overlook where in times past you may have caught a glimpse of the lone goat foraging for food but not today (I hope he’s still alive).  After a short water break we headed towards the Gilbreath Creek crossing approximately 1.75 miles further up the trail and with the low water level it made crossing the creek a breeze.  From there we travelled about another mile to the “End Of Trail” sign and began our hike back.  We stopped for a short but enjoyable lunch back at Gilbreath Creek and then met Bob on our way back near the “2 Log Creek” as Caroline Woerner our local “Cookie Lady” calls it.  On our way back down the mountain we met a Dad and his two young children and it’s always a pleasure to see a parent bringing their children out on the trails at such a young age and you just have to wonder if this type of experience will plant a seed so one day they will be where we are, out hiking and enjoying the outdoors maybe with their children.  Once we made it back to our vehicles safe and sound we all agreed it was a great hike to celebrate “National Trails Day”.  Happy Hiking! To see a few pictures, click here or on the picture to the right.  

Larry H.

Due to a problem with Google or the website, you must double click on picture on the right to see additional pictures.  Double clicking on the tab will not work.  

Stringers Ridge 6.3.14

6.3.14  There were 14 adults 1 child and a dog on this  approximately 3 mile hike. It was pretty humid out there but at least the ground was dry. An easy walk. We got back just in time. A bus load of kids just arrived as we were getting off the trail.

Retro Hughes to Leggett Road

5.31.14    With today’s hike by the Soddy Daisy chapter we experienced low turnout but high temperatures so I guess it evened out.  We began by meeting at the Soddy Ball Fields prior to driving up to the trailhead on Retro Hughes Road.  Our hike was to take us from the Rock Creek trailhead on Retro Hughes over to the intersection of the Shortcut trail and the main trail which is about .1 mile shy of the upper trailhead on Leggett Road.  That would make our total distance for the day’s hike around 10.6 miles and should definitely be rated as “Strenuous” based not just on the mileage alone but the time and the temp that we did it in.  Our Hike leader today due to George’s absence was John Politte, who has many talents other than hiking – one being he takes great shots of the distant planets and planetary nebulae.  Oh well I digress, John took off on a pace that I can only describe as “Fast”, with the heat and humidity I was soaked by the time we climbed to our half-way point near Leggett Road.  There was four of us at the trailhead starting out but by less than a half mile in we could not hear any voices coming from our other two companions.  We stopped for a quick lunch at the Rock Creek Bridge where we caught up with the other two hikers that due to time constraints had originally turned around at the Rock Creek Overlook instead of going the same distance that we had travelled.  They took off to the parking lot while we ate lunch but we caught up with them about a mile from our finishing point.  I was really happy with the speed we maintained where we completed the entire hike in just under 4 hours after you take away our down time for 2 water breaks and lunch.  Thanks John, you did a great job of keeping up the pace for our hike!  Next time we need a few more water breaks, those leg cramps later that day were killers!  Happy Hiking! J

Larry H.

Enterprise South

5.17.14  There was 8 of us who went on the hike this morning.  It was a perfect day for a hike. We did 6 miles at a pretty fast clip ( for us) we finished and it was still morning. I would rate this hike as easy.

Cedar Mountain

5.13.14   Tuesday’s Hike for the TTA’s Soddy Daisy Chapter was being held at the TVA Little Cedar Mountain Trail at Nickajack Reservoir.  George Bonneau was our capable hike leader and we met in Red Bank at 8:00 a.m. and carpooled down I-24 just over the bridge on the Tennessee River.  If I remember correctly we had hiked this trail early last summer. The best part about the hike this year is that Tony Hook and others were hired by TVA to rework the trail and make it much more interesting to hike on.  Tony’s trail building expertise was evident as soon as we hit the new section of trail, it seemed to wind through the forest better than before and had much better flow thru the elevation changes.  Everyone was impressed with the improvements that were made to the trail since last year.  Now it seems to have better proximity to the water along with better water visibility along the trail than there was before.  To my knowledge the trail hasn’t been wheeled yet to determine the exact distances for our chosen route but the way we looped between the Outer Loop trail and the Pond trail we believe we hiked approx. 5.5 miles based on someone’s GPS readings.  After a little under three hours we completed our hike and headed back to the other vehicles parked in Red Bank.  I didn’t pick up one tick while on the trail and the weather was hot, humid and dry but who’s complaining, we all enjoyed ourselves and I would recommend this hike to anyone looking for an easy to moderate hike in the five mile range and if you carried a pole and some bait you may want to stop along the trail and throw in a line at the river and set a spell.  The map at the Kiosk in the parking lot is out dated based on the latest trail routings and I would recommend going to the TVA Trail Map page for this trail and print off a new map before trying out this hike.  The new map, dated 4/15/2014, can be found at http://www.tva.gov/river/recreation/dispersed/trail_maps/LCM_8.5x11.pdf   -  Happy Hiking!  I would rate the trail as moderate.  For a couple of pictures I would click here or on the Cedar Mountain tab above.

Larry

Lower Leggett Loop

5.6.14    There were 10 of us on this 6 mile loop.  Everything was really green-a beautiful morning  A very enjoyable walk.  Gail was gracious enough to be the hike leader even though she has never been on that part of the trail before.  With a little collaboration with Bob we were able to go the whole morning without getting lost.  Thanks Gail.   I would rate this hike as medium.  For a few pictures, click here or on the Lower Leggett Loop tab above.

Laurel Falls & Bryan Overlook

5.2.14    The Soddy Daisy Chapter of the TTA had scheduled one of their more popular hikes in our area, that being the Laurel Falls/Bryan Overlook Hike.  Today’s hike was led by our esteemed Hike Coordinator, George Bonneau and was rated as Moderate-Strenuous with the intended mileage being approx. 6.7 miles.  We met at the Soddy Ball Fields at 8:00 am and drove to the trailhead in Dayton, Tn with a beginning temperature in the low 50’s, perfect short sleeve weather when hiking at a brisk pace.  The hike begins on an old rail bed running along the side of Richland Creek and not far from the trailhead you pass the Richland Mine.  In May of 1901 more than 20 men died from an explosion in the Richland Mine and many others were so badly burned that day that they eventually died due to injuries sustained from the fireball that was generated by the explosion.  The local papers reported that the flame exited the mouth of the mine and extended over 300 feet into the air.  Sad to think about all of the families that were affected for generations due to that disaster.

Later down the trail we came to the 50 foot steel bridge which was inundated by a large number of fallen trees.  I had heard that this happened about a month ago and I’m assuming the reason why the trees haven’t been cleared from the path of the bridge by the State Park is the assumption that the bridge in its’ current state is probably not safe to travel across so we made our way down from the trail to Laurel Creek and rock hopped across.  As we approached Laurel Falls we could hear as well as see that it was running strong today considering the small amount of rain we experienced from the recent storms.  We made our way up the portion of trail that I will call “Billy Goat Hill” to the top of the Plateau where shortly we would do yet another water crossing at Laurel Creek just above where the falls begins.  Our first overlook past Laurel Creek was the Laurel Creek Overlook, duh!  But then it gets real interesting, I won’t mention who was leading the hike at this point but our next stop was supposed to be Bryan Overlook.  For the experienced hiker that would be familiar with this trail you know it’s only about one tenth of a mile away from the Laurel Creek Overlook, well approximately 1 mile later down what appears to be an old logging road with no blazes I might add, we stopped and I commented that I hadn’t seen any blazes on this dirt road, just turkey tracks so just then I pull out my trusty Don Deakins Map for this trail and announced to our hike leader that according to the map we were originally only 500 feet away from Bryan Overlook when we made our first overlook.  Oh well, it didn’t bother me ‘cause I love to see mileage added to our hikes, either intentionally or otherwise!  Btw, we did make it back to Bryan Overlook before returning towards the trailhead.  This brings up one more point I would like to share, about a week ago, Anthony, one of the local hikers in Dayton, was commenting about the quality of the Laurel/Snow trails and I responded that I agreed if only people had not started creating all of the short-cuts.  This is by far the worst CT segment when it comes to short-cuts marring the landscape.  Well to make a long story short we were blessed to have a young lady by the name of Penny join us on our hike this morning from Oak Ridge who just happened to have an appointment which required that she get back to Oak Ridge early that afternoon.  I believe the hike leader felt badly about the added mileage for our lone hiker from Oak Ridge so on the way back he started hitting the short-cuts to improve her chances of making her appointment back home.  The whole time I was following the pack I was thinking what a hypocrite I am!  Oh well, as usual the bad feelings didn’t last past the trail head and the hike ended well for all.  Happy Hiking!  For some great pictures on the Laurel Falls tab above.
Thanks Larry

Booker T. Washington SP 4.28.14

4.28.14    Due to all the rain we had Monday night  the venue was changed from Harrison State Park to Booker T Washington.  6 Hikers showed up ready to face whatever nature threw at us.  There were many branches down and lots of bushes hanging over the trail.  Mike brought a saw with him and spent a lot of time sawing his  way through the park.  It turned out to be a nice morning and we didn't even get our feet wet.  We did the 5 mile trail.  I would rate this trail as easy.  For a few pictures of the hike click the Booker T. Washington tab above.

North Chickamauga Loop 4.26.14

What a difference a couple of miles make! Our hike for the Soddy Daisy Chapter of the TTA was originally setup for an approximate 5 mile moderate hike with Bob McGavock as the Hike Leader. On Friday evening I received a call from Bob and he was going to be unable to hike on Saturday due to other commitments so I was asked to fill in for him – “oh happy days” (not because he couldn’t make it but because now I could increase the mileage somewhat). Based on my calculations the hike would originally have been 4.31 miles utilizing the Lower and Upper Hogskin Loop trail and then terminating our first half of the hike at the Boston Branch Overlook before returning to the trailhead parking lot. This was a little short for one of our typical Saturday hikes so the good part is as hike leader I could modify our hike somewhat. I decided to add 2.34 miles to the hike by stopping at the Boston Branch Overlook for our water and snack break and then continuing on just short of the creek crossing with the cable handrail.  The usual crowd of men had mysteriously taken today off from hiking for one reason or another and there turned out to be only three of us, men that is, but we had reinforcements from five women of the chapter. And the good news was that they took it in stride and didn’t mutiny when I announced the additional mileage at the beginning of our trek. What Troopers they were too! I believe I did hear something about getting even with Bob for shirking his hiking duties and letting me change the hike from the approx. 4.5 miles to my newly announced 6.5+ mile hike so I’m glad I’m not Bob! Well back to the hike, we began our hike with sunny temps in the lower 60’s and by the time we finished it was starting to warm up to the mid 70’s. As I previously indicated we started hiking on the Lower Hogskin Loop trail which was new to me since I had bypassed the Lower Loop trail back in January and kept to the Upper when doing a thru hike from the Barker Camp trailhead. The major portion of the hike didn’t seem to offer as wide of a variety in local wildflowers as I’ve seen recently on other portions of the CT but it did offer impressive views of rock bluffs along the mid portion of the hike. Once we enjoyed our break at the Boston Branch Overlook we continued on towards the Cable Crossing where we were met with several trees blocking the trail which we had to climb over or under to continue on our way. It would be really nice if the CT SP would offer a chainsaw certification class soon so I could legally backpack in with my chainsaw and remove some of the current obstacles we faced today (Hint!!!). It was on this portion of the trail that we saw several nice displays of wildflowers, some I’ve seen previously on other trails and a few I hadn’t. When I arrived at the Creek Crossing with the Cable Handrail there was very little water flowing down the creek and over the falls but that wasn’t too much of a surprise since the rest of the water crossings today were pretty much non-eventful. For me once we reached the end of our adventure at the Cable Creek Crossing I was already contemplating about returning to this trail in the next week or so and doing another thru hike beginning at Barker Camp. It will be enjoyable counting off the 22 switch-backs leading down through the Hemlocks towards the water crossing at Cooper Creek and then relaxing for a few minutes at Stevenson Branch Campsite before continuing on our trek towards Montlake Road. There’s always that next hike with their new experiences that makes life a little more exciting and worthwhile! I really hope you were able to make it out to a trail today where you could enjoy the outdoors. Happy Hiking Everyone! If you would like to see some pictures taken on the hike click here or on the North Chick tab above.

Larry

Greeter Falls and Big Creek Rim 4.19.14

4.19.14 Greeter Falls and Big Creek Rim  This was an absolutely beautiful day for a hike.  There were eight hikers on this hike.  There were several very active waterfalls.  The group enjoyed lunch overlooking the Gulf.  The distance of the hike was about six miles and I would rate this hike as moderate.  For a few pictures, click here or on the Greeter Falls tab above.

Signal Point to Mushroom Rock

4.12.14    Our Saturday hike for the Soddy Daisy Chapter was listed as Signal Point to Signal Mountain High School.  Approximately 8 miles.  Strenuous.  Our hike leader for this trip was George Bonneau and he coordinated the staging of vehicles at Signal Point as well as Signal Mtn. High School.  I believe this is one of the more popular hikes around the Chattanooga area since it has awesome views of the Tennessee River Gorge from several different vantage points.  Also it’s the southern tip of the Cumberland range and the southern terminus of our beloved Cumberland Trail.  With that said we only had five devoted hikers sign up for this trek.  That may have been due to the almost perfect weather we experienced and with the promise of rain by the first of the week it would have been an opportune time to catch up on some early Spring chores around the house.  Personally my motto is why work around the house when there is a great hike to take advantage of… the work will always be there waiting on you but the call of the trail with great company is overwhelming.

We exited the Signal Point Overlook and descended the steps to reach the trail below.  Once on the trail you’re challenged with several segments of rocky sections of trail on this side of the Middle Creek Gorge and a great view of the seasonal Julia Falls across the Gorge which happened to be running fairly well today.  Next we made it to the Middle Creek Suspension Bridge and began ascending steadily upwards towards Lockhart Arch where finally the trail sort of levels off and you’re treated to hiking along ledges, between boulders and several small creek crossings which includes the Julia Falls Creek as we were travelling towards Edwards Point.  We finally made it to Edwards Point and were greeted by none other than a gaggle of ATV’ers  whom I believe mentioned they were from a club around Cleveland and Harriman, Tn.  It was entertaining to watch several grown men crawl over to the rocks’ edge at Edwards Point to look down below while we were having our lunch/snack for the day.  It a shame that this beautiful Overlook is littered around the area with aluminum beer cans.  I guess the easy access to Edwards Point makes it prime for this type of treatment when no one is looking.  We then packed up and headed for Mushroom Rock and since this portion of the CT was new to me I was eagerly awaiting what new wonders I would find along the way and I wasn’t disappointed.  It began with some Overlooks of Raccoon Mtn. & Suck Creek Gorge and then there was an abundance of Rhododendron and Mtn. Laurel which was just beginning to bud out for their picture perfect viewing in late Spring, the multiple seasonal creek crossings and finally the arrival at Mushroom Rock and a new surprise awaiting us there.  I arrived ahead of the others and found tucked on a rock ledge, below the boulder on top, an Official Geocache box – the first I've come across along the CT.  After a short water break we headed out along an unmarked trail/road bed leading to the Signal Mtn. High School parking lot where we called it a day.   I hope many of you took advantage of the trails in your area today for a little rejuvenation of the soul!  Happy Hiking Everyone!  For some beautiful pictures, click here or on the Signal Point tab above.

Larry

Heiss Mtn. to Possum Creek and Return

4.8.14  
Heiss mtn to possum creek bridge and return. We had ten hikers. We had a perfect day for hiking - sunny,cool,and a nice breeze. The trail was in very good condition and the creeks and waterfalls were flowing well and pretty as can be seen in the photos. Part of the hike is short but strenuous (the hill coming out of the gorge on the return). Everyone made it fine and seemed to enjoy the outing.  The distance was approximately 3 miles and I would rate it as moderate.  For a few pictures click here or on the Heiss Mtn. Tab above.

John

Fall Creek Falls Wildflower hike

4.5.14    Not much to report on this hike.  It was accompanied by a ranger that described in detail the local wildflowers.  I'm sorry, but there are no flower pictures.  The hike was approximately 4.5 miles and rated as moderate.  For a couple of pictures of the hikers, click here or on the Fall Creek Falls tab above.

Rainbow Lake

4.2.14  This hike was a short 3 miles.  Everyone enjoyed the hike and the day turned out fine.  This hike would be rated as easy.

Snoopers Rock 3.23.14

The hike started out at Snooper's Rock instead of the main parking lot since since a trail runners race was scheduled to begin and end at the parking lot.  It turned out to be a great hike and was completed before the rains came.  I would rate this hike as strenuous.

Snow Falls 3.15.14

3.15.14    The Soddy Daisy TTA Chapter had a total of 9 hikers today as we met at the Soddy Daisy Ball Fields and then carpooled up to Dayton, Tn where we hiked the Snow Falls trail.  Our hike leader today was the very capable John Politte and with the side trip to Buzzard Point the hike itself was approximately 11 miles long and was rated as strenuous.  The day was gorgeous as it began partly sunny and in the mid 40’s when we met and by the time we hit the trail it was climbing into the low 50’s and heading towards the mid to upper 60’s, who could ask for more?  John & I struck out on a fairly fast pace so shortly into the hike the perspiration started flowing where some of the boys and girls were already stripping off their clothes or maybe it was just their jackets – not sure, with old age the memory is the first thing to go or so they say.   Well we arrived up on top and headed for Buzzard Point prior to traveling to Snow Falls and the overlook was outstanding although we didn’t spot the usual Black Buzzards circling the point as I had last July when I was backpacking Snow Falls.  Several of the hikers had previously stated that if Morgan Creek was up they would not attempt a water crossing to see Snow Falls.  So once we arrived at the creek it was going to be tricky to cross due to the depth of the water but 4 of us forged on across while the others stayed behind.  I was lucky enough to pick a path that didn’t get any deeper than my boots so my feet stayed dry as did most of the others.  At Snow Falls we stayed on top instead of hiking down to the bottom and viewing it from below so it meant several of us had to cross the creek again to gain a vantage point for viewing the falls as it was going over but it was well worth it.  Back in July when I camped out by the creek there wasn’t much more than a trickle of water flowing that day so this was a pleasant surprise.   After crossing the creek four separate times we had pushed our luck enough without anyone taking a fall so we headed back to the Snow/Laurel parking lot where we found it packed with cars and others enjoying the trails also.  I hope you had an opportunity to get out on a trail somewhere on Saturday and aid in the renewal of the body, mind & spirit! Oh btw I might mention that I brought home a hitch hiker in the form of a tick feeding on the back of my leg so I guess that means that we should start digging out the insect repellant for the upcoming Spring and Summer hiking season.  Happy Hiking Everyone!

Larry

3.8.14    There were 13 lucky souls who could have stayed home and worked around the house on such a warm and beautiful late winter’s day but instead decided to throw caution to the wind and make a sacrifice by driving up to the Cumberland Mountain State Park just outside of Crossville, Tn to share a 9 mile hike together.  Oh well it looks as though the work around the house will just have to wait for another day.  We had the pleasure of having two new hikers with us, one young lady from Dayton, Tn and a young man from LaFayette, Ga and they were a very welcome addition to our numbers.  Our hike leader was George Bonneau of the TTA, Soddy Daisy Chapter and he had set us up to  hike approximately 8 miles but several of us that were in the lead added at least another mile to it on the way back either because we were having so much fun or maybe because we made a wrong turn, I was happy with the way it turned out so it didn’t matter to me!  Beginning around 10:00 a.m. we left the Ranger’s Office and headed towards the centerpiece of the Park where the trail began, the old stone bridge/dam located less than a quarter of a mile from the Office.   The stone bridge/dam was built by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the late '30s and it’s still a beauty to behold.  We followed the steps down beside the bridge and began with the red blazes for the  Cumberland Plateau Trail.  Within approximately a .5 mile the blazes changed to yellow for the Byrd Creek Trail  and at about 1.25 miles we crossed a quaint bridge over a small creek that was built as an Eagle Scout project a number of years ago.   Shortly thereafter we started following the blue blazes for the Overnight Trail which included a campsite thus the label as the Overnight Trail as well as a Suspension Bridge over Three Mile Creek.  This trail was listed as a 6 mile loop.  I’m assuming that this trail doesn’t get a lot of traffic since it’s the most distant trail from the Ranger’s Office and that’s probably the reason it could use a little TLC when it comes to removing downed trees from the trail.  The loop intersected back to a segment of the yellow blazed trail and we returned to our vehicles at the Ranger’s Office.  I would like to say that everyone had a great time and returned home but that would be leaving out one of the best parts of the trip, the buffet meal after the hike at the State Park’s Restaurant.  This was probably the best lunch I’ve had in quite a while (it’s apparent that they have some awesome cooks in the kitchen) and I would highly recommend that it’s well worth the trip to get in a great hike and then replenish your calories that were burned off during the lengthy hike by stopping at the restaurant for the buffet.  I actually believe that I added many more calories than I burned on the hike but me and food are best friends!  Happy Hiking Everyone! J

Larry