Black Man 9.23.2023

 Saturday, a group of 7 hikers, ventured up Black Mountain. The cool weather & sunshine made it a perfect day to hike. We started at the bottom of the mountain; the trailhead on Rt 68, & hiked to Windlass cave. Peering into the entrance, we didn’t see any bats & obeyed the signage to not enter the cave. Up many switchbacks & through The Gateway, which is a wooden staircase between two house sized boulders, we arrived at the southern overlook. Spectacular view, lunch on the rocks, we could almost see to the Smokies but was a little too hazy in the distance. Rousing ourselves from the post-lunch lethargy, we continued on the summit loop trail. At the old springhouse, we decided to head back down the trail that goes just below the bluff & saw more ruins of a house of long ago. We traversed back to the trailhead, a little more than 8 miles for the total hike with about 1575 feet of elevation gain.

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

Grundy Forest Day Loop & Lone Rock Trail 9.26.2023

 This hike has always been one of my favorites.  The walk along Fiery Gizzard Creek is just beautiful.  Although it is a little more beautiful when there is more water flowing.  There were 10 hikers on this hike and the weather was perfect.  At the end of this hike, hike we we had our snacks at the entrance to Fiery Gizzard under a shelter with picnic tables and shade.  Following this hike we drove a short distance to the Lone Rock trail surrounding one of the Grundy Lakes.  The first hike lasted 2 hours and 14 minutes and covered exactly 3.0 miles.  The second shorter hike lasted just 51 minutes and covered 1.4 miles.  Following this most of us went to the Dutch Bakery in Tracy City and had a delightful lunch.   

Ten hikers enjoyed a beautiful early fall day on September 26 hiking in Grundy Forest and around Grundy Lakes.  The hikers were Will Latham, Joan Hartvigsen, Tom McElhone, Earl Helmer, Dorothy Hill, Clara Russell, Lee Prichard, Mike Wofford, Patty Bradley, Betsy Darken.  On the Grundy Forest Day Loop we read interpretive signs about the Civilian Conservation Corp (CCC) Camp located in this area.  We hiked along Fiery Gizzard Creek and saw cascades and large hemlocks.  We enjoyed our lunch at the picnic pavilion before traveling to nearby Grundy Lakes Historic Area.  We saw the Coke Ovens and hiked the Lone Rock Trail which circled beautiful Grundy Lake.

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

Savage Gulf, 9.19.2023, South Rim, Lollipop Trail

 What a great day for a hike!   We gathered a Savage Gulf for a wonderful stroll through the woods.  Not much water in the falls, but some great views of the gulch.  The weather was beautiful and cool.  The lazy designated hike leader coerced several of the hikers to lead portions of the hike, and they did a fantastic job.  There were 10 hikers today which is just about the correct amount.  The duration of this hike was 2 hrs. and 20 minutes with a distance of 4.3 miles. 

If you would like to see some pictures taken during this hike, including maps and altitude graph, click here.  

Rainbow Lake 9.12.2023

On Tuesday, September 12th, a robust crowd of 22 TN Trails members hiked the Rainbow Lake and Bee Branch Trail Loop on Signal Mountain.  Although the hike was relatively short at about three miles, the rocky and treacherous terrain provided a quality work out for all.  High humidity accompanied by lower temperatures made for a damp but pleasant morning.  About half of us met up for lunch and fellowship at Crust Pizza in Red Bank following the hike.  

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

Tims Ford Lake 9.8.2023

 On Saturday, September 9, thirteen TTA members hiked Lost Creek Trail, Marble Plains Loop and Old Spann House Trail at Tims Ford State Park in Winchester.  The hikers were from Scenic City, Murfreesboro and Highland Rim Chapters.  They are Tom McElhone, Jean Smith, Tim Booth, Marie Holland, Bob Anderson, John Prescott, Joan Hartvigsen, Albert Suppinger, Patty Deen, Amanda Carkhuff, Martina Terrazas, J.C. Saunders and Cody Bain.  We also visited two campsites: The Lost Creek Campsite and the Spann House campsite.  Both campsites had beautiful views of Tims Ford Lake. 

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