This hike was a pretty good hike considering the weather –
overcast, rainy, and cool at the beginning, and ending partially cloudy with sporadic
sprinkles but still nice and cool. Seven
hardy hikers, one of which was visiting from Scotland, departed the trailhead
at around 9:30 am to begin our ascent to Cranmore Cove Overlook. On our way, we hiked along Roaring Creek,
which was roaring after the recent rains.
About a half a mile in we began the climb to Hells Kitchen turnoff and
continued up reaching the pine forest area along the bluff. We crossed the top of Wild Cat Hollow Falls
at mile 2 and continued along the bluff to Cranmore Cove Overlook at
approximately 3 miles. Not much to see
there because of the overcast – we were above the cloud cover. We continued on to Gilbreath Creek at 4.9
miles. 2 hikers, because of previous
commitments, departed the group at 4 miles and returned to the trailhead. The rest of us continued to the creek and
arrived at around 12:30 pm. We had our
snacks and enjoyed the falls and new bridge that spanned the creek. We began our return around 12:50 pm. We took a 10 minute break at the overlook on
the way back and were rewarded with a clear view of the valley below which we
were denied on the ascent. We arrived
back at the trailhead around 3:30 refreshed and ready to do it again –
not. It was a 9.8 mile moderate in and
out hike with around 1040 ft altitude gain.
If you would like to see some photos taken during this hike, including a trail map, click here. If your are trying to view the photos through the TTA website and having trouble, please go directly to the BLOG at www.sdctta.blogspot.com. Google Chrome is the preferred browser.
If anyone is
interested in taking a hiking tour in Scotland, contact Trish. The visiting hiker with us was a hiking tour
agent for Scotland and I believe Trish has her contact information.