Posts Tagged ‘Hiking’

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Lynn Camp Prong

September 3, 2009
Middle Lynn Camp Falls, Great Smoky Mountains National Park. June, 2007.

Middle Lynn Camp Falls, Great Smoky Mountains National Park. June, 2007.

There are many popular areas in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park that almost everyone who visits the park have seen or at least heard about — Cades Cove, Laurel Falls, and Clingman’s Dome to name just a few.

Betsy and I have been to all of those places, but some of our favorite times in the Smokies have been when we visited lesser-known areas of the park.  One such area is along Lynn Camp Prong.

In southern parlance, a prong is a branch of a river.  Lynn Camp was a lumber camp before the park was formed.  Lynn Camp Prong is a small stream that runs through the location of that old lumber camp.

To reach Lynn Camp and the hiking trail you have to go past Tremont Institure (off the road to Cade’s Cove) to the very end of the road.  The trail heads up along Lynn Camp Prong as it tumbles over several cascades and small falls.  Although they are not very big, the falls are pretty.  The hike is not difficult, and the chances are that you will have the trail and the cascades all to yourself.  There are even a couple of benches along the trail at which you can enjoy the views.

If you would like to see more of our hike along Lynn Camp Prong click HERE.

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Middle DeSoto Falls

August 19, 2009
MiddleDeSotoFalls09080201

Middle DeSoto Falls, Turner's Corner, Georgia. August 2, 2009.

On our way to Florida earlier this month, Betsy and I did some hiking in the DeSoto Falls Scenic Area near Turner’s Corner, Georgia.  There we found a fairly easy trail along Frogtown Creek which led through the woods to Middle Desoto Falls.  The falls (above) is an 80-foot rollercoaster-like drop over four smooth ledges.

Middle DeSoto Falls is another of those smaller waterfalls in a beautiful setting that we like to visit.  The DeSoto Falls Scenic Area is named for the Spanish explorer Hernando DeSoto, who is said to have passed through this part of Georgia in the 1500’s.  Legend has it that early settlers found a piece of Spanish armor and attributed it to DeSoto’s band of explorers.

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What Goes Down Must Come Up

June 26, 2009
The view from Overlook 1, Tallulah Gorge State Park, Georgia. June 23, 2009.

The view from Overlook 1, Tallulah Gorge State Park, Georgia. June 23, 2009.

The picture above was taken from Overlook 1 at Tallulah Gorge State Park in Georgia.  The park contains six waterfalls, which made it a perfect place for Betsy and I to be on our anniversary.  I’ll tell you more about the park and the gorge itself in a future post.  Right now I simply want to say that the picture above was taken about 750 feet above of the floor of the gorge.  And I also want to direct your attention to the white water just to the right of center in the photo.  That white water is all that can be seen of Hurricane Falls from this overlook.

We had to be content with viewing the waterfalls from the rim because access to the floor of the gorge is by permit only.  So we walked along the North Rim Trail taking in the truly magnificent views.

When we got to Overlook 3 we saw a sign pointing to the trail and steps to a suspension bridge over the river above Hurricane Falls.  Since Betsy has more sense than I do, she said she would wait at the overlook while I hiked down to the bridge.  So off I went.

When I got to the bridge I admired the view and (naturally) took some pictures.  Then I noticed another sign pointing to steps leading down to the Hurricane Falls Observation Deck.  Having more curiosity than sense I started down this new set of steps.

Hurricane Falls, Tallulah Gorge State Park, Georgia. June 23, 2009.

Hurricane Falls, Tallulah Gorge State Park, Georgia. June 23, 2009.

Before long I found myself on a deck about five feet above the floor of the gorge with the beautiful view of Hurricane Falls seen in this second photo.  As I took more pictures I decided that the hike down was definitely worth it.

It was about then that I realized that I was now some 570 steps below Betsy and that the only way out was up.  I know you’ll find this hard to believe, but the hike up took much longer than the hike down.  On Sunday I had told my son that I didn’t feel 67.  After only about 200 of those steps up I felt each and every day of those years!

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Falls Creek Falls

March 16, 2009
Falls Creek Falls, Lake Catherine State Park, Arkansas. March 9, 2009.

Falls Creek Falls, Lake Catherine State Park, Arkansas. March 9, 2009.

On my birthday Betsy and I were able to do some hiking in beautiful 80° weather.  We got to western Arkansas fairly early in the day and went to St. Catherine State Park (near Hot Springs)  to check out a waterfall, Falls Creek Falls.

Falls Creek Falls is used to advertise Arkansas State Parks, so we were interested in seeing it.  Of course, there was also something of a personal connection as well.  Our ‘special’ place is Fall Creek Falls here in Tennessee, so we were eager to see what that extra ‘s’ would mean.  Actually, I guess we’re just gluttons for punishment, having to keep Fall Creek Falls separate from Falls Creek Falls!

We had a nice hike of just under a mile from the parking area to the falls.  Much of the trail followed the shore line of Lake Catherine,  which made for a nice hike.  Once we got to the falls we were able to enjoy the falls and the setting.

You can enlarge the collage above to get a better view of our visit to Falls Creek Falls.

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A Valentine Day Hike

February 16, 2009
Betsy and George at Short Springs State Natural Area. February 14, 2009.

Betsy and George at Short Springs State Natural Area. February 14, 2009.

As I mentioned yesterday, Betsy and I did  some hiking and waterfalling on Valentine’s Day.  It’s becoming something of a tradition for us.  In February there tends to be more water at some of the smaller waterfalls and the bare trees make it easier to find a waterfall when bushwhacking.

The longest hike we had on Saturday was at the Short Springs State Natural Area near Manchester, Tennessee.  Short Springs has a well-developed trail system which is both well-maintained and well-marked.  We hiked the Machine Falls Loop, which got us quite close to the base of Machine Falls.

Most of the time the trail was very moderate, although the descent into the canyon containing the waterfall was very steep.  There were several stone steps that would be difficult for my short-legged beautiful bride to climb on the way up.  To continue around the loop would be a longer hike, but what would the climb up out of the canyon be like?  We didn’t know.

But one of the nice things about hiking is that you meet some of the nicest people on the trail.  While we were admiring the stream below the falls, we met a boy scout leader who was familiar with the area.  (He’s the one who took the picture above).  He recommended continuing around the loop.  The ascent up Jesus Hill — so called because he felt that would be where he would meet Jesus when climbing up — was steep but contained no rocks to climb over.  We made it up the hill (slowly)  and had a nice hike around the rest of the loop.

Most of the time when hiking we have the trail to ourselves, which we very much enjoy — it’s a great way to feel close to God’s beautiful creation.  But once in a while we meet another hiker who shows us another aspect of that beauty.

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Scenic Sunday # 31

February 15, 2009
Pond Falls at Ledford Mill, Tullahoma, TN. February 14, 2009.

Pond Falls at Ledford Mill, Tullahoma, Tennessee.February 14, 2009.

This is my entry for this weeks’ Scenic Sunday.  To see more pictures from our beautiful world, or to join in the fun and contribute your own pictures, click HERE.

Betsy and I just got back this evening from our Valentine’s Day trip.  For the second year in a row we have gone waterfalling.  This year we managed to see six new waterfalls.  Saturday started out rainy in southern Tennessee, but it cleared up enough to make hiking very enjoyable.  We had one moderate-length hike and several short hikes in our search for these six waterfalls.

The waterfall in the picture above is the 300th waterfall in our ‘collection’.  It is Pond Falls, one of two that can be seen from the Ledford Mill near Tullahoma, Tennessee.  This falls is formed by overflow from the retention pond that supplied power for the mill.  The Ledford Mill is a gristmill built in 1884 and is listed on the National Historic Register and on the Tennessee Heritage Trail.  Restored in 1996, the mill is now both a museum and a bed and breakfast.

Betsy and I were delighted to add this pretty little waterfall to our collection.  We are also looking forward to adding more waterfalls to our collection in the weeks and months ahead.

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A Visit to Black Mountain

January 10, 2009
Betsy at the North Overlook on Black Mountainnn. January 9, 2008.

Betsy at the North Overlook on Black Mountainnn. January 9, 2008.

Yesterday, since we had gone out for the previous two days, Betsy and I decided we would stay home.  It was laundry day for Betsy and I had wood to bring up to the garage and Christmas decorations to put away in the attic.

We did quite well until the early afternoon, but the day was entirely too nice to stay in.  So we drove to Black Mountain Recreation Area near the town of Crab Orchard, which is only about seven miles from the house.  The recreation area is atop Black Mountain (I guess that makes sense) and features a 1.7 mile loop trail that connects two overlooks.  There is also a connection with the Cumberland Trail, which, when completed, will be a north-south hiking trail across Tennessee.

We’ve been to Black Mountain several times.  Betsy especially wanted to go back in the winter to see if it was possible to spot Fairfield Glade from the North Overlook when there were no leaves on the trees.  The North Overlook provides a view of Crab Orchard Valley which lies between Black Mountain and the Glade.  The picture above shows Betsy at the North Overlook, but we still couldn’t see much because of all the tree branches in the way.

We continued on around the loop to the South Overlook, which probably has the best view of the Cumberland Plateau and the Tennessee Ridge and Valley beyond.  The South Overlook is our favorite place on Black Mountain, but we couldn’t stay long yesterday.  It was getting late and I definitely did not want to drive down the narrow, one-lane road after dark!

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A Hiking First (For Us)

August 1, 2008

As I’ve mentioned several times, Betsy and I collect waterfalls.  We’ve been to 278 different waterfalls since our visit to Fall Creek Falls in 2001.  Some of the waterfalls have been big and well-known (Niagara Falls) while others are small and have been found mostly by accident.

Getting to many of the waterfalls involve a hike.  We’ve visited most of the roadside waterfalls in the area we know about, so our waterfall visits usually involve some hiking.  Although we don’t hike real long distances, hiking is something that both of us enjoy.

In June we visited our good friends Judy and Charlie Jones, who were camping at Cades Cove Campground in the Smokies.  Judy and Charlie like to hike and have probably done more hiking than we’ve done.  But Judy always worries about running into a bear on their hikes.  We kidded her about that, because Betsy and I had never seen a bear on any of the hikes we’d taken.

After leaving Judy and Charlie, Betsy and I decided to hike to the nearby Crooked Arm Cascades.  We knew from our guide book that the hike would be about 1.5 miles and was moderately easy.  Since we were in the Smokies in the early summer, we knew the scenery would be beautiful.

We had only gone about half a mile along the trail when we saw a mother bear and two cubs cross the trail up ahead of us.  We stayed back and still until they had moved away from the trail.  We were able to watch them for five minutes or so without any problems, but we had lost our excuse for teasing Judy about bears on the trail.

To see more of our hike to Crooked Arm Cascade click HERE.

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