Laurel Falls Loop 6.11.2022

Six hikers enjoyed nice weather with comfortable temperatures and a good hike at South Cumberland State Park.  After the group assembled at the Stone Door Ranger Station, we started with the Laurel Falls Trail, a short loop of less than a half mile with a beautiful waterfall.  We then hiked the Laurel Trail, a mostly flat trail which winds through the woods.  There were some flame azaleas still in bloom to add some color to the scenery. 

At the end of the Laurel Trail we took the Greeter Trail out a short distance to Alum Gap Overlook where we took a short break and enjoyed the view.  Many buzzards were riding the air currents here and at the other overlooks we visited. Back up the Greeter Trail, we reached the next leg of our hike – Big Creek Rim Trail.

The Rim Trail has several great overlooks, and we had a nice long lunch at the first one.  This trail is also relatively flat, and the hikers did not seem to get too worn out.  Arriving at the Stone Door Trail, we explored the nice vistas there and peered down the Stone Door, deciding to save going down for another trip.  A short mile from there back to the trailhead and parking area and the five hour hike came to an end.  Folks seemed to have enjoyed the hike and had good conversation as well.

If you would like to see some pictures taken during this hike, click here.  

Fiery Gizzard and Grundy Lakes. 6.14.2022

 Beautiful hike on this day.  Nine of us braved the warm weather on this beautiful day.  According to the gauge on my camera,  the temps ranged from low 80's to mid 80's.  No so bad, especially in the shade.  The humidity was rather brutal though.  Do to schedule changes, we had a couple of mix-ups on the meeting place.  Once we all got together, we set off on a beautiful hike.  Joan, as usual, did a bang up job leading us on the first hike of about 2.5 miles.  Following along Big Fiery Creek, we gazed at numerous small water falls.  Each different and beautiful.  The hike took about two hours.  When we returned to the parking area we had our lunches at the parking lot in the shade.  We then loaded up and moved a few miles to Grady Lakes where we followed the Lone Rock trail around the lake.  We never did find the "Lone Rock".  The lake is beautiful and and crystal clear.  This hike was 1.2 miles and lasted about 42 minutes.  This hike was also very nice.  Following this hike, some of the hikers took a quick dip in the lake to refresh themselves. 

If you would like to see some photos, including an altitude graph and maps, taken during this hike, including a few taken around Grundy Lakes, click here.

Desoto State Park 5.31.2022

 It was a little warm for this hike, in the high 80's.  Not too warm to be enjoyable, but everyone was glad they had their water bottles!  It was otherwise a beautiful day with few clouds.  We wandered around in the beautiful woods and everyone had a good chat.  We had maps, but there were far more turnoffs than shown on the map and it didn't take long to realize that we didn't know exactly where we were.  Never the less we trudged on and soon found our way to a recognized trail.  Once on the correct trail, we stopped at a small falls and had lunch.  There were nine hikers on the 4.3 mile hike which I would rate as easy.  Following the hike we went for a brief stop at Desoto Falls, which strangely is not part of Desoto State Park.  You can recognize these photos by the dam in the background.  Following the hike we began our drive home which was an unfortunate adventure. Remember the song Chicken Truck? We weren't following a chicken truck but a very long slow trip home was the fault of a chicken truck.  That adventure will have to wait until another time for discussion.  

If you would like to see a bunch of photos taken during this hike, click here.  

Fall Creek Falls 5.28.2022

 Six hikers from the Scenic City Chapter and two more from the Sumner Trails Chapter enjoyed good weather and a nice hike at Fall Creek Falls State Park.  Our first leg was the Paw Paw trail, a loop meandering through the woods with, except for one, mostly obscured overlooks.  No one expressed an interest in descending the Cable Trail, which was marked with a sign that said “extremely dangerous.”

We then rested and had lunch at picnic tables near the nature center.  Lots of folks had arrived at the park by that time.

The second leg of our hike rewarded us with better views.  The Woodland Trail and Gorge Overlook Trail loop had several good vistas of the gorge and waterfalls, and despite the Memorial Day weekend crowd, six of us made the hike to the base of the falls for an impressive view.

Coming back to the trailhead, we encountered a (foot) traffic jam at the suspension bridge. One person had stopped on the bridge as it swayed widely back and forth, and one of our group with kindness and gentle humor guided her safely across.

The group arrived intact back at the trailhead.  We were happy to have met our new friends from the Sumner Trails Chapter, and folks seemed to have enjoyed the day.

If you would like to see a few pictures taken during this hike, click here.  

Spring Get-Away 5-2022

 These pictures are late since for some reason this time post did not share?  Anyway my apologies.  Members of the Scenic City Hiking Club were invited to an overnight get away for a few days of comradery and hiking in the Big South Fork area.  As you can see from the group picture quite a few hikers showed up for this outing.  Several different places were hiked among them were Arches Loop Trail, Poque Creek, Colditz Falls and Picket State Park/Big South Fork.  Everyone had a great time and more outing are being planned.  

If you would like to see a bunch of photos taken during this outing, please click here.