Andrews Bald 4/09/2012

Andrews Bald is the easiest bald to access in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.  This hike is 1.8 miles each way starting from the Clingmans Dome parking lot.  Near the parking area are chemical toilets and a park store.  The store has maps, books, and souvenirs but no snacks or drinks.  As you leave the parking lot heading towards Clingmans Dome the trail head is almost immediately on your left.

 It is an short easy downhill walk to another trail intersection.  We take a left turn here and head further downhill.  The trail in this area is quite rocky but not overly difficult.  After descending the trail levels off and we have a view of our destination.  The bald is on the backs side of the far end of the ridge we can see ahead of us and to the right.

The trail is leveler here although still somewhat downhill.  We crossed several sections that were damp even on this dry day.  There are board "bridges" in these areas.  The earliest flowers of Spring were beginning to bloom along here.  We reached another trail intersection and continued straight ahead .  All of the intersections were well signed.

After this intersection it is slightly uphill through a peaceful woods to the edge of the bald.  When we come out onto the grassy area we still had about 500 feet to the open viewpoints.  We ate a picnic lunch and enjoyed the views here.  The bald was smaller then others we have visited but large enough for the several groups relaxing here to spread out and have some privacy.

There were several children enjoying running around on the bald as we were preparing to leave.  This would be a fun walk to take with children.  We enjoyed imagining animal shapes in the rocks and walking the "bridges" and we aren't children.  Just remember there is no water available at the trail head so come prepared.  And of course the walk back is harder then the walk out.

After returning to the parking lot we made the half mile walk to the top of Clingmans Dome.  The views are beautiful up there and the wind was really blowing.  The trail is wide and paved but uphill all the way.  This short trail actually felt more strenuous to me then the Andrews Bald trail.

Deep Creek Loop Hike Smokey Mountains 4/7/2012

The Deep Creek area of the Great Smoky Mountain National Park is accessed from Bryson City on the North Carolina side of the park.  There are picnic and camping areas, a large parking lot, and miles of hiking trails.  We chose to hike about five miles including visits to three waterfalls.  After parking I noticed the trail head for Juney Whank Falls near where we parked.  We would return by this trail.  To start the hike we went to the back of the parking where a gravel road follows the creek.  This road is level and well maintained making this portion of the hike very easy.  We passed the second trail head for Juney Whank Falls which we would take on the return and soon came to the first falls.  Tom Branch Falls is on the right across the creek.  It is clearly visible at this time of year but is  partially hidden by growth in the summer.  When you see several benches on the right side of Deep Creek look across the creek for the falls. 

At .7 miles from the trail head we reached a fork.  This is the point where Indian Creek joins Deep Creek.  To the left is a bridge and the continuation of Deep Creek Trail.  Straight ahead is the Indian Creek Trail.  Both of these trails are still nice, mostly level gravel roads.  Little side trails at this point lead down to the creek.

 We chose to continue straight along Indian creek and do the loop counterclockwise even though most trail descriptions turn left here.  The trail climbs above the creek for a short distance.  In a few hundred feet there is a very short but more difficult side trail on the left leading down to the base of  Indian Creek Falls.

Continuing on this still mostly level trail we passed the  Stone Gap Pile Trail head.  We had been seeing a variety of small patches of  wild flowers along the trail but now we began to see hundreds of dwarf crested iris besideon the right side of the trail.  There were occasional dogwoods in bloom in the woods.  The creek had dropped away from the trail.

At the next intersection we took a left on the loop trail and began a totally different type of hiking.  The trail here is single track and climbs continuously for about half a mile.  There is a small run alongside the trail and some wild flowers.   Although not steep this area is more of a challenge.  At the top the Sunkota Ridge Trail exits to the right.   There was a decent view at the top this time of year.

Immediately the trail began to descend on the other side.  There were a few muddy spots on this side especially where there seems to be springs but no large amounts of water to cross.  We could hear the creek below long before we reached it.  At the bottom we crossed the creek on one of the good bridges found along these trails.

We were now hiking along a level gravel road again with lots of wild flowers and dogwood trees.  This road led us back to a set of two intersections and across another bridge that we had passed on the way out.  All through this hike there were good signs pointing us in the right direction.  We retraced our steps to the right turn for Juney Whank fall.

These falls are only .3 miles off of the main trail but the hill up to the falls was steep.  We went up a narrow trail to the wider horse trail.  After turning left for a very short distance we dropped down  another narrow trail section to the bridge over the falls.  There is a place here to sit and relax before the short climb back up to the horse trail.  Continuing left on the horse trail soon led to a side trail back to the parking lot.

This area offers all kind of hiking opportunities.  We could have seen all three falls with a much shorter hike.  We could have walked many more miles of single track trails.  There are several hike in campsites further out on the trails.  Small children and even strollers are appropriate on the gravel roads.  This was our first visit to this area but I doubt it will be the last.

Boulder Area Crowder Mountain State Park 1/21/2012

Rain was in the forecast so we decided on a short hike on the Ridge Line Trail starting at the Boulders Trail Head.  My previous blog entry in March 2011 provides information on this trail head including location.  As in the earlier hike we followed the .23 mile spur trail to the main Ridge Line Trail.  This time we turned right and followed the wooded trail .58 miles to a crossing of the road we drove in on.

This is a well maintained trail that can be followed north for another five miles to the Kings Pinnacle Trail.  In less then a half mile we reached a sign for the Boulders Overlook.  There is a short section of trail to the left but no improved overlook.  There are boulders that can be climbed on and open views at a number of location both to the left and the right along the ridge.

We spent some time following the little "trails" around the rocky areas.  This would be a nice spot for a picnic on a warmer, drier day.  Many of the rocks look interesting to climb on but they also look like an area that snakes would enjoy.   As we followed the ridge from boulder to boulder we could see the main trail below us.  It was neccesary to backtrack to rejoin the Ridge Line Trail.

We followed the main trail until it began to switchback off of the hill and did not see another access to the boulders area.  At this point we retraced out route back to the trail head.  This trail follows the ridge of a very old mountain range going up and down hills rather then mountains until it reaches Kings Pinnacle.  It is not level but is not steep either.

South Mountain State Park Loop Hike 1/15/2012

We decided to get back out on the trail today with a short loop hike at South Mountain State Park.  We started from the parking area at the end of the road but took the less busy trail at the top of the parking next to the ranger's residence.  The Little River Trail immediately starts to climb.  Although not steep is gains elevation continuously for about a half mile.





The trail is an old dirt road that is well maintained.  This time of year there is not a lot of green showing along the trail but there were some ferns that have survived the winter weather.  There were also some Holly and Evergreens.  Although called the Little River Trail the only water we saw was a tiny run passing through a culvert under the road. 

The temperature was around 50 but the nights have been cold and there has been rain.  Near the end of this section of trail Mitch spotted some icicles melting away under a dirt overhang.  We began to get open views of the surrounding hills about this time.  At .7  miles we reached a trail intersection with clear signs.

We turned left and walked a half mile to the next trail intersection.  This area was a mostly level walk  with views on both sides.  The first trail allowed foot traffic only but this one is a horse trail and had evidence of such.  We had fun noticing the variety of horseshoe and hoof prints in the trail.  At the intersection there were more signs and an old bench.

Not wanting to make this a long hike we turned back to the first intersection and headed down the Raven Rock trail towards the River trail.  This trail seemed steeper then the trail we came up and had switchbacks and timbers added to retard erosion.  It was well maintained and not overly steep.  We came to a short fence that looked directly down on the park road.  The first step would have been a long one.

The trail crosses the road and goes a little ways down to the river.  From here it is a pleasant .4 mile walk along the water back to the parking lot.  We did not see a single person on the trail until we were beside the creek. This park may not have the spectacular vistas like the Blue Ridge Parkway oe the Smokies but it has many miles of pleasant trails to choose from.

Spence Ridge Trail Linville Gorge 11/5/2011

This trail is on the east side of the Linville Gorge accessed from the road leading from Gingercake Acres to Table Rock.  This is a much gentler but longer trail then the ones on the other side of the gorge.  The trail starts out almost level on an old road.  Don't be fooled though.  It is downhill all of the two miles to the Linville river which means uphill all the way back.   The backside of Hawksbill can be seen along this first section.



 After a short easy walk there is a sharp right turn at the only intersection we passed until we reached the river.  The trail begins to descend more quickly.  The leaves were wet and slick on the trail.  I was wishing I had remembered gloves as the morning was cold but the sun warmed us up about half way down.

We passed a spring that seemed to be right in the trail then began to follow a tiny run.  It became bigger as more springs and runs joined in until it was quite pretty.  There are several switchbacks as the trail drops lower into the gorge area.  We passed a couple of nice primitive campsites.  It is a pleasant descent till a short steep section right at the river

This trail reaches the river at the only footbridge in the Linville Wilderness area.  This spot is also known as house rock.  The trail that follows the river is on the other side of the bridge.  If you use one of the other trails on this side you must ford the river to access it.  The bridge is narrow but it is solid with a good handrail.

When we reached the bridge instead of crossing immediately we scrambled about 100 feet upstream on the rocks to a large rock with a pretty whitewater view.  This proved to be a sunny and warm but somewhat windy spot to have our picnic lunch.  While we ate several groups arrived at the bridge and all stopped to take pictures.

After lunch we crossed the bridge and followed the main gorge trail about a half mile downstream.  The trail immediately climbs above the river and stays where you can see the water but not easily access it.  This trail is technically more difficult being narrow and with many obstacles such as fallen trees.  This one rockfall beside the trail looked almost like a man made shelter.

We turned back and headed uphill fairly early because we knew getting out would be harder then coming in  This would probably make a good family hike to the river and the bridge but I would hesitate to take young children on the trail along the river.  The creek and rock formations along the way would be enjoyable for children and of course they would enjoy the long log bridge.

Price Lake Loop 10/15/2011

We wanted to enjoy the Fall color along the Blue Ridge Parkway while including a relaxed walk so we headed for Price Lake.  Starting the 2.3 mile loop from the overlook parking we headed counterclockwise.  The trail stays close to the parkway passing a small fishing platform, a section of the campground, the amphitheater, and the boat rental area with additional parking.

At this point the trail moves deeper into the woods with several bridges crossing the creeks feeding the lake.  The water was clear but we didn't see any minnows at this time of year.  There was much evidence of beaver activity both old and recent.  The lake is in clear view along most of the trail.  The trail on this side was mostly level with only a little mud.

This trail was busy today with family groups enjoying the views, picnicing, and fishing.  We have hiked here at other times of year and seen far fewer people.  It was still a peaceful walk with  many ins and outs of coves so that the trail did not feel crowded.  On the back side we came to one area that was quite wet from the rains this week.  This area is not normally this wet.

The last portion of the trail stayed really close to the lake with good views.  There were a couple of spots where we had to watch our footing as the trail crosses rocks sloping down to the river.  This is an easy trail but not obstacle free.  It is a fun trail for children.  The trail leaves the woods right beside the parking and across from the dam. 

De Hart Botanical Gardens 10/9/2011

The Grandsons, Matthew and Daniel, joined us for a walk around the Franklin County Nature Preserve of the De Hart Botanical Gardens south of Louisberg, NC.  The trail map that we picked up at the gazebo by the small gravel parking lot stated that there were 1.8 miles of hiking trails in each side of the preserve.  The trails  for the two sides meet only at the parking area.

We walked the area to the right first.  This section has  plants that have been brought here from other parts of North Carolina.  The trail leads up a small hill past some rocks to an overlook of the lake.  There were several varieties of flowers blooming.  Judging from the azalea bushes and the mention of other flowers including wildpink and Crane Fly Orchids this must be a beautiful place in the Spring.

Beyond the overlook the trail goes down to the lake and crosses on a footbridge.  The boys spotted Bass, Brim, minnows, and turtles in the lake.  We followed a loop trail through the woods and up the hill on the other side of the lake before finishing the loop around the small lake.  The last section of the trail led us through a stand of bamboo and back to the parking area.

We crossed the parking area and took the Waterfall trail.  This side of the preserve remains a natural habitat.  The trail is a loop except for a short section at the beginning.  We were disappointed to find the waterfall  almost completely dry.   On a short side trail to a historic home site I spotted this  log that looked like a alligator to me.  What do you see?

Beyond the short detour we passed a smaller lake.  This one is much more natural then the one on the other side of the preserve.  A frog jumped in the water from the bank as I approached.  The trail continues around and follows powerlines back to the beginning of the loop.  This whole area is peaceful with easy well maintained trails.