It’s hot out there! But this was the perfect time to hike Raccoon Mountain. Lots of shade, a few cool breezes, some elevation gain but not too much. The only tricky part was getting people to and from the right place for the shuttle. Just the right hike for a warm August day.
If you would like to see a couple of photos from this hike, click here or on the photo to the right.
Saturday's Perimeter Trail hike turned out not to be the hot humid hike the weather forecast predicted. The heat index was forecast to be 100 degrees at noon in Sewanee. As it turned out, it was hot and humid, but didn't feel like 100 degrees. I think the humidity was lower than forecast.
We set out shortly after
8:30 EST along the perimeter trail all the way to past Otey View overlook. There wasn't much of a view to be had at the
overlook due to the lush growth provided by the ample rains we have had this past summer. We
continued on the trail until we reached a point on the trail where we left the Perimeter Trail and hiked
to Bridal Veil Falls. When we arrived at the falls, there wasn't much water falling – just a trickle,
which was unexpected considering all the recent rain we have had. After we had our snacks, we hiked
back up the mountain to the Perimeter Trail and Morgan's Steep. From there we took the Proctor's Hall Trail back to the
Memorial Cross trailhead. The hike up
from the falls was the most difficult part of the hike. It was steep and what I would classify as difficult.
The hike back on the Proctor's Hall Trail was also a challenge. It was a narrow up and down trail on a steep grade. About 2 tenths of a mile from the trailhead, there was a steep rock climb up and through an opening in the rocks. This climb was steep and precarious enough that it resulted in a 3-way split up amongst the hikers. 2 hikers made the steep climb up and through the rock opening, 2 hikers made their way up an alternate near-by trail leading to a road above the trail where we could walk on the road back to the trailhead, and 2 hikers back-tracked back to the Perimeter Trail. The split-up resulted in the 3 groups arriving at the trailhead approximately 5 minutes apart from each other.
All in all, it turned out to be a good, albeit hot, 6 mile difficult hike.
If you would like to see a couple of pictures taken during this hike, click here or on the photo to the right.