Chinnabee Silent Trail

TALUS ON CHINNABEE SILENT TRAIL

I have finally recovered enough to check in here and give a few details about my latest adventure. Ok, so the truth is that it's been more of a case of the lazies, than a need to recover.

Feb 10, 2010 - I arrived at the park a little after noontime, and by the time I checked into the lodge, got my gear together and studied the trail map, it was already early afternoon. One of my requirements in reaching the state high points is that the hike cannot be the easiest route to the top. Many of the states highest peaks have been turned into attractions that the general public can take advantage of by accessing the area by vehicle. Mounts Washington, Greylock, Brasstown Bald, Clingmans Dome, all have roads that lead to, or nearly to the summit. In my mind, to go this route and claim it as an ascent of the mountain is akin to cheating. I want each summit to require more effort than a drive and a walk on a paved path to the top.

With this in mind, I decided the best way to "work" for the summit would be to travel south down Hwy 281 to where the Chinnabee Silent Trail crosses the road, and access the Pinhoti Trail via the Chinnabee Silent Trail, then hike north.

The Chinnabee Silent Trail proved to be a difficult, but beautiful climb, with the last 1/2 traveling through a very rocky, talus strewn landscape. By the time I reached the Pinhoti Trail ( 1 hr 17 mins), it was obvious that the trip to Cheaha Mountain, plus the return, could not be accomplished by dark. I thought about continuing the hike, sleeping in the lodge, then hiking back to the car in the morning. However, posts on the web about cars left overnight being vandalized in this area made me decide against that.

I walked north on Pinhoti for a while, then back to the trail intersection where I hiked east on the Odum Scout Trail for about 20 minutes out and back. I was hoping for a scenic overlook to the southeast, with no luck. Obviously, I didn't travel far enough as I have since read that there are some spectacular views from this trail. Eventually I retraced my steps to the car and drove back north to the lodge and enjoyed the sunset from the deck of the empty restaurant. The wind was whipping and added an extra chill to the already frigid air.

After snapping a few photos, I retreated to the warmth of my room, thankful that I wasn't going to weather the cold wind all night in a tent. I dined on a banana, some wheat thins and roasted peanuts while studying the park maps and began plotting my route up to the Cheaha summit for the next morning.

SUNSET LOOKING SW FROM CHEAHA MOUNTAIN

Cheaha Mountain, here I come!

I'm headed to Cheaha Mountain (AL) to check off state high peak number seven. I have previously bagged New Hampshire (Mount Washington), Vermont (Mount Mansfield), Massachusetts (Mount Greylock), Connecticut (Bear Mountain), Georgia (Brasstown Bald), and Tennessee (Clingmans Dome).

After Alabama, I still have NC, SC, VA, KY, WV, MD, PA, NJ, NY, & ME to go on my quest to hike the highest peaks in every state that includes part of the Appalachian Mountain Range.

Following a day or so of hiking, it's off to Mobile, AL for some Mardi Gras parades and some Moon Pie catching. I also hope to add at least 10 birds to my list on this trip. I'll report soon!

Benton MacKaye and Duncan Ridge Trails

After a day of on and off sleet and snow flurries, the curtain of clouds peeled back far enough to see the ridge tops near Brasstown Bald. The higher elevations definitely had snow and the trees were coated with rime. A good hike before the Superbowl was exactly what I needed before settling into three plus hours of football and commercials.

One of the main trails in this area that I haven't trekked on was the Benton MacKaye Trail. The trail begins atop Springer Mountain and follows the Appalachian Trail before peeling off to the north and west going into Tennessee and North Carolina. A fellow hiker recommended a nearby section so I decided today was as good a day as any to check it out.

My trip began as I parked on the side of Skeenah Gap Road at the border of Union and Fannin County. The trail is easily missed as there are no signs other than the small trail markers to let you know it's there. The parking area consists of a hard shoulder on the south side of the road. From here I headed south on my way to the summit of Rhodes Mountain.

I don't know what the elevation is at this point, but it didn't take long before I found myself surrounded by rime. This direction is mainly an ascent, not terribly hard, but a good workout nonetheless. Not until you get near the intersection with the Duncan Ridge Trail (1.5 miles) do you find some downhill relief. Taking a left at this intersection, it is a short climb up to the Rhodes summit via the Duncan Ridge Trail.

The ice was thick on the vegetation with about an inch of snow on the ground. And, of course, there was a considerable amount of fog and the vistas for the most part remained shrouded. At the summit, there is a nice open area where I caught a glimpse of the opposing ridge (see top photo).

Wildlife spotted: Several Carolina Chickadees; a Raven harassing an unidentified hawk; and, not exactly spotted, but a Bobcat and a rabbit had evidently used the trail that morning. For the rabbit's sake, not at the same time. It was pretty quiet as most creatures were probably bedded down in a warm spot.

I'm definitely gonna do this stretch again. Next time, on a blue sky day.

Arkaquah Trail at Trackrock Gap

Taking advantage of one of the few dry days as of late, I decided to rush home after work yesterday and take the dogs on a workout hike. Our workout hikes consist of 1 to 1 1/2 hours on a trail, usually without a day pack unless it's summertime when water is needed. These small hikes give me a chance to get off of the pavement and into the woods, mostly for a change of scenery, but also to really work those hamstrings and calves on the ascents and the front of the thigh on the descents.

Of the three trails located conveniently close to the home, two of them involve tough uphill approaches that last about two miles before any relief is offered. The third trail is the one where I was nearly disemboweled last time out (see previous post), so I figured I better wait until ALL of the downed trees have been removed from the path before I go that route again.

I didn't feel like fighting the students of Young Harris College for a parking space and it had been a while since I tackled the uphill meat grinder of the Arkaquah Trail at Trackrock Gap. So, I loaded up the dogs and made it over to the trailhead parking area and we were on the trail by 5:05PM. I love this time of year because the days are progressively getting longer and the light in the early evening is fantastic as it illuminates the bare naked forest of tree shafts and rock formations.

Trackrock Gap is a well known (well, mostly in archaeologic circles) site of the only petroglyphs in Georgia that remain in their original location. These rocks contain the carvings of pre-European people that are estimated to have existed as far back as 9000 B.C., or as recently as the Cherokee Tribe in 1500 A.D. (read the historical marker is the photo for more on this site)

Whichever group did these carvings, I like to imagine their presence as I look around the area that I am hiking, wishing I could go back in a time machine to the days of the virgin, unspoiled forest, a woodland teeming with animals, clean water and native people. I get the same feeling when I find an arrowhead. It blows my mind to think that I am holding something that may pre-date the voyages of the Vikings or Christopher Columbus.

As we snake our way around the lower portions of Buzzards Roost Ridge, we top a hill that gives a commanding view of a small cove that runs east to west and contains a small spring branch in the bottom. Across the cove, the dogs notice a trio of white tailed deer scrambling up the far side of the cove. They get about half-way up then freeze, literally blending into the surrounding woods. Rocket begins to bay and they take off again, white tails flashing as they pass over the ridge and out of sight. This will be the only wildlife we see today.

After climbing for about 40 minutes, the trail begins to get a lot steeper, with a light snow cover left over from Friday night. That combined with the rain from this weekend began causing me to slip periodically. This and the setting sun made me decide it was time to turn back. On the way back down I decided to leave the trail and cross over a couple of ridges and bushwhack our way down the opposite side of the cove. Once we reached the southern overlook of the ridge, I could see through the naked forest, Coosa Bald, Slaughter Mountain, and Blood Mountain, with their tops partially shrouded with clouds. I wish we had time to just sit and watch as the clouds formed and rolled over the mountain tops, but darkness was chasing us.

We continued down the ridge until we again met the trail on the south side of the cove. The dogs really like going off trail and I don't mind as long as the underbrush is not too thick. It allows me to keep a trail that I have traveled several times from being ordinary.

Back at the car by 6:10PM it was time to head home to collect our rewards of dog treats for them, and a Blackberry smoothie for me. A great workout hike in one of my favorite places, with no serious injuries, for which I am grateful.

The Trail is Closed for a Reason.

The Saturday night before last brought some particularly strong wind to the Brasstown Valley. By the next morning, several trees reached the end of their life cycle. The combination of saturated soil and high winds is never a good thing for those trees with weaker root systems. When I arrived for a short hike with the dogs on Sunday, I was disappointed to see the sign that plainly stated "Trail is closed due to downed trees and hazardous conditions." Disappointed, we got back in the car and headed to another destination.

Well, last Saturday I again arrived at the trailhead hoping that it would be open, but the sign was still up. I wondered, 'How bad can it be?' and decided to throw caution to the wind and headed down the path with the two dogs leading the way. We didn't get very far when we came upon a downed pine that blocked the trail entirely and forced us to swing very wide through the underbrush before returning to the open path. Taking two 80 lb dogs on leashes, through underbrush is no picnic. They never seem to guess correctly on the path I wish to take.

We staggered our way around a couple more of these road blocks when we came upon a double hurdle. The dogs passed over the first one pretty easily. On the second one, the dogs failed to consider that their master couldn't quite get over the first one with the grace and speed of a four-legged animal.

They lunged over the second one as the very tip of my boot hung on the first one. The combination of their exuberance and my plodding led to a quick belly flop onto the second tree. Unfortunately this tree had some broken branches sticking up like stakes. I managed to fall, very quickly, taking one of these stakes right into my abdomen, then dropped chest first onto the ground. The dogs simply looked back with expressions of, 'why'd we stop?' or 'is it treat time already?'. They aren't the sympathetic type.

I knew that I fell hard, but my vanity always requires that I pop up and dust myself off as quickly as possible. On down the trail we went and finished up our one hour workout hike without another such incident.

It wasn't until I got home that I realized that my stomach was really hurting, and for good reason. The limb/stake actually tore a hole through my fleece and ripped a large hole in my t-shirt underneath. The photo below shows you the damage done to my flesh (sorry for those of you that don't want to see such a doughboy belly).

Luckily, it was a glancing blow that was more blunt-force trauma than flesh ripping puncture. When the sign says Trail Closed, heed the warning and go hike somewhere else.

Knoxville, TN

This wasn't exactly a ridge walking adventure, but it did involve a part of the southern Appalachians. I took a drive up to Knoxville, TN for a couple of reasons:
1. Because I had never been there before.
2. To sample some eats from a little soul food place called Chandler's Deli.

I decided to travel Hwy 129 north, which ended up being slightly hazardous. At the higher elevations north of Robbinsville, NC, it was snowing lightly, but it was enough to require caution and a lot of slow driving. At one point we sat for about 10 minutes as a car was pulled back onto the road after some unfortunate driver slid a little down the mountain. Seeing that made me a little nervous and more cautious.

Once we got there, the food was pretty good. I had a fried chicken breast, a pork rib (sold individually for $1.80 each), broccoli and cheese casserole, mac & cheese, and green beans. Downtown Knoxville seems to be undergoing a revitalization process with a lot of projects. Great architectural structures of different eras. Lots to see. I just wish we had more time, and plan on coming back for an over night stay at some point.

We thought we'd be smart and take a different route back, only to get detoured by a rock slide east of Cleveland, TN on Hwy 64. This added about 100 miles to our trip. It's safe to say that there is no easy way to get from NE Georgia to Knoxville.

Rainy Christmas

Every year at Christmas time, I make my way back to the family in Augusta, GA, which is about a four hour drive south of my home. This morning I awoke to thunder and a heavy downpour of rain. More rain. It just will not stop. I'm just hoping or a respite lasting long enough for me to get in a decent walk.

This year, I received one of the most awesome gifts ever for Christmas. When I was a kid, I used to go to bed with a radio. Handed down from my folks, it was one of those clock radios that had the flip display for the time. Once they got a digital display clock radio, they had no need for that clunker.

At night I would lay on my side, radio turned so the speaker pointed right at me, with the volume turned down as low as I could hear it. I would flip the switch to the AM setting and slowly turn the dial until I began to hit the signals from radio station transmitters. I remember hitting WLW out of Cincinnati, OH or WOWO from Ft. Wayne, IN; a station from Pittsburgh with the crazy call letters KDKA; WNBC in NY,NY.

I would listen to their music, imagining some kid my age living up north listening to the same program at the same time. Traffic reports, snow alerts in the winter, local news...all fascinating to me. I can even remember tuning in to one station from Cleveland and listening to the Cleveland Cavaliers, back when Jim Chones, Austin Carr, Walt Frazier, Bingo Smith, and Foots Walker played there.

Usually, I fell asleep, with a hand on the dial. Cloud cover, the earth's rotation, or whatever the reason, caused the stations to fade out at some point, leaving a churning mix of static in my ear as I slept. Sometimes my Mom would come in and turn it off. Sometimes she would come in and yell at me to turn it off, claiming that I wasn't getting "good sleep" with that thing blaring in my ear all night long! I thought she was just hassling me because she was a light sleeper. Now I know the importance of restful, quiet, dark sleep.

Since I have moved to the mountains, radio reception has been horrible. I have threatened Jennifer on more than one occasion that we are gonna spend money on satellite radio. Well, she solved that problem with my gift this year, a Logitech Squeezebox radio. People, this is the coolest thing ever. It is a radio that allows you to listen to any radio station in the world that streams its broadcast on the internet! The radio picks up the signals from a wireless router.

I can listen to NPR, clear as a bell. I can listen to UGA basketball games. I can listen to Car Talk whenever I want. It has a search feature that allows you to type in call letters, or cities, and it will remotely play all of your mp3s from your desktop. It's awesome. My mother even approves of it because it has a sleep timer that will shut it off after 30 minutes, once I am fast asleep.

And, yes, I have re-introduced myself to WLW, KDKA, and WOWO, many years later, using technology that seemed as far away as the stations I listened to as a kid. Again, I lay in bed, searching the dial until settling on a station. Thank you Jennifer for allowing me to capture, again, some of the spirit of my childhood.