tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14593680108054278862024-03-05T00:24:10.318-06:00Rex's AdventuresOutdoor Adventures of all Types Through the Eyes of Rex's Camera and His WordsVideoRexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16342756961482992738noreply@blogger.comBlogger28125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1459368010805427886.post-55105603319285545172015-11-21T23:04:00.005-06:002022-01-20T22:46:50.213-06:00Trying to Connect Back With You<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Thank you to many of those who E-mailed me wanting to know where I have been and wanted more blogs. I appreciate those E-mails! The reason I have been away is a number of things.I lost my job as a video producer a number of years ago, which forced me to start my own company. Since that time, I am involved with work most of the time and little time to write. I still have been going on adventures. I have discovered some amazing sites that few people know about and many would be shocked at what is hidden out there. I hope to return and share, but it may be a while when I have time to write again. I may start a YouTube channel since most all adventures are recorded with my GoPro now. In the meantime, I hope you enjoy the past, and hopefully the future will bring back more adventures to share with you. Most of the information shared with you remains the same as it did when I wrote the articles. Many of this is not going away, and is still hidden out there in the leaves to explore. Thanks again for your support! Get outdoors! Life is short and you aren't getting any younger putting if off. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhlmWhYRAavk1Ux_OIw-3o1BWN0aWskivtC10dV2pUcOCdBVuHHoDDPPId3C4ljZHU3LfogyJ7MRh8GO_YDsA32AmvTF6OyYKSWcbSGYwLlgT1Rdr9hLF3GWBz97VrVIRn6OLCzO-jI04bueHp-KnNhSIXV3YNMK7xmTFJgQB7K5xQT79iFWu_aUSht=s4032" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="297" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhlmWhYRAavk1Ux_OIw-3o1BWN0aWskivtC10dV2pUcOCdBVuHHoDDPPId3C4ljZHU3LfogyJ7MRh8GO_YDsA32AmvTF6OyYKSWcbSGYwLlgT1Rdr9hLF3GWBz97VrVIRn6OLCzO-jI04bueHp-KnNhSIXV3YNMK7xmTFJgQB7K5xQT79iFWu_aUSht=w240-h297" width="240" /></a></div><br /><br /><br />
VideoRexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16342756961482992738noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1459368010805427886.post-65122259686148378922013-12-19T16:23:00.002-06:002013-12-30T14:59:49.501-06:00The Hidden Secrets of Turkey Creek-Bankhead National Forest<span style="font-size: large;"> It's Not Just a Waterfall-It's a Community Long Gone</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Turkey Creek Waterfall</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of the most confusing waterfalls on Turkey creek . It has no name (but is beautiful) and is mistaken by many as Turkey Creek Waterfall as people walk up the creek from Sispey Recreation Area for the first time. They don't bother to walk any further and miss seeing the true Turkey Creek Waterfall. This waterfall actually IS on Turkey Creek, but with it being smaller, most folks term the larger one up stream as Turkey Creek Falls instead.</td></tr>
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There are so many places in America that hold a history of the past. As we walk the earth, we tend to think we are the only ones to be here. As we walk in places, we rarely tend to think about the past. Did someone else walk here in this same path? If so, what did it look like? Few even give it a thought. Today on this journey, there are a lot of neat finds, and a question of what this place looked like 80-150 years ago. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A large tunnel routes Turkey Creek under Cranal Road. Many local people have no ideal this exists.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Remains from the Mize Grist Mill Site</td></tr>
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As you hike the woods in Bankhead National Forest, you must remember that a lot of what was there before it became a National Forest, is locked in time, undisturbed in many respects. When homesites were abandoned for the U.S. Forest Service to come in, many things did not get cleaned up. They merely started the slow fading away process that time imposes. One of those areas we are talking about on this day is the Turkey Creek area of Bankhead National Forest. Many people have been here to see the small, but beautiful waterfall and also a small waterfall with no name nearby it. It is a simple walk to get to compared to other places in the Bankhead. Some have even walked down and visited the old Ford 1936 car shell under a bluff. Those are really neat places to visit, but few have bothered to probe deeper on this creek for anything other than waterfalls and a wrecked car. On this simple day hike in Bankhead, it opens up new questions and lots of great scenes to see if you love this National Forest in North Alabama called Bankhead.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9MKe8zlbcoxHCdej5Le3Yuwert45Ioc4RataZRymcVo32X8D9SUf9KrWQntwfuaFs-57KVymM-XXUNzV6tPSicBZlfNviTfrjEuzwXuSJlw4YlmNQR6fAz7A0Kkks6-cr9gajMuhWWyU/s1600/Rex+at+Turkey+Foot.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9MKe8zlbcoxHCdej5Le3Yuwert45Ioc4RataZRymcVo32X8D9SUf9KrWQntwfuaFs-57KVymM-XXUNzV6tPSicBZlfNviTfrjEuzwXuSJlw4YlmNQR6fAz7A0Kkks6-cr9gajMuhWWyU/s1600/Rex+at+Turkey+Foot.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Remains of steps carved in rock at the old Mize grist mill site. The mill was located to the right of this picture. The steps probably helped support lumber for a dam to hold water for the grist mill. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCAsKDQFxI9nb5H16ftag0ZAj5PLfrKqHGQzRrGvicloXHIjJQBiF-bKY5JwVVXZRgeUsioZb6U3cZ6Ue6m4MOt89h-BbSKYvQJY7vv9jbVtVO6l7e2Iw3Yul_VbmZM0VQvwSjzA9HQVw/s1600/100_6658.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCAsKDQFxI9nb5H16ftag0ZAj5PLfrKqHGQzRrGvicloXHIjJQBiF-bKY5JwVVXZRgeUsioZb6U3cZ6Ue6m4MOt89h-BbSKYvQJY7vv9jbVtVO6l7e2Iw3Yul_VbmZM0VQvwSjzA9HQVw/s1600/100_6658.JPG" width="223" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">More Steps carved into the rock at the old Mize Grist Mill Site above Turkey Creek Waterfall. Again, they probably were used to help anchor lumber to support a dam structure for the mill. </td></tr>
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My hiking and camping buddy Thomas, another friend Tom and myself head out for an all day adventure in two areas of Bankhead. First is Turkey Creek, and second on tap for the day is the Kinlock area. To start off with, Turkey Creek is first. We head west on Cranal Road off of Alabama Highway 33 in Bankhead, passing the well known Sipsey Recreation area. After we pass the "rec area" and proceed on about a half a mile, topping a tall hill and going down, we pull off to the left side of the road and park at a small parking spot that is the entrance to an old logging road. It is considered by many to be the "shortcut" to get to the Turkey Creek Waterfalls. Many people enjoy parking at Sipsey Rec area, walk under the overpass over Sipsey River, turn left, and head up Turkey Creek. Others that want to just see the falls, take our route.<br />
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As we park and head down, Thomas takes me on a separate path I have not been before. This is typical of Thomas, and as a result of a non-typical route many times, he discovers a treasure trove of interesting items on our journeys exploring. It is a route he had taken about a week before with his aunt, and I am glad he lead the way. He already knew of some of this, but obviously wanted to surprise us with his find. In that respect, he certainly did! Instead of crossing the road from your parked vehicle on the south side of Cranal Road, we exit out and go off to the south side of the road into the woods. As you do, move west (to your right) and you will come across your first surprise. There is a massive double concrete tunnel for Turkey Creek to flow through. Thousands of people have traveled on Cranal Road (myself included) over the years, but very few know of such a large structure under the road about 20 feet down. We walk through it and take pictures of it. If you do the "little kid thing"and yell or try some crazy sounds, you will hear some very interesting sounds out the other side! The acoustics of this tunnel are really weird! As we move down through the tunnel and Turkey Creek towards the main waterfall, Thomas points out some interesting things he spotted on a previous trip. There are large poles in the ground as if something was situated on the creek. Further inspection reveals some really neat features I had no idea we would come up on. He points out steps carved in the rocks, as well as holes that reveal the classic signs of a grist mill on this creek. As we cross the stream, Thomas finds the foundation of an old building beside the creek. It must be a grist mill! We snap photos and keep exploring. As you keep looking around, we discover that the foundation for the grist mill is on very flat ground, about 15 feet above Turkey Creek. We notice an old road bed that led up to this apparent mill site. Research later shows that this was the site of the Mize grist mill, just off of Cranal Road, that is the OLD Cranal road route. More on that later. There was a residence nearby this mill, and even a Post Office not far from there. The mill site is really interesting in that it is truly hidden in the leaves and deep foliage. Most people would never have a clue of the history being hidden at this special place in time.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXFd6HfYIDPcaiR7MG5E_N06fvmEYhRo3U4Sa3AXg4AUJofGNx_8IcLwLeKKPKT5-revQvwV_WCzmzmPKZ0NlUow07iGKnJNMfVkrM4HLZ7ULUpl0SAzX3PbVm84lb47JWKYhK8CQUvug/s1600/100_6773.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="223" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXFd6HfYIDPcaiR7MG5E_N06fvmEYhRo3U4Sa3AXg4AUJofGNx_8IcLwLeKKPKT5-revQvwV_WCzmzmPKZ0NlUow07iGKnJNMfVkrM4HLZ7ULUpl0SAzX3PbVm84lb47JWKYhK8CQUvug/s1600/100_6773.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The foundation to the Mize Grist Mill, just above Turkey Foot Waterfall.</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;"> The Old Cranal Road Route</span><br />
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Further walking and exploring yields some interesting things I have never known about, and I have lived around here most of my life of 53 years. It is the grown up site of the original Cranal Road! That was very interesting to me in that we found an old sign on the old abandoned road saying "Black Warrior Management Area Bankhead National Forest. This was probably posted up on the side of the road in the 1950's. Clearly, the current Cranal Road was moved up higher than what the original road was in places, and this sheds new light on the old car that has remained as a monument near the creek and talked about for years by many. It shows that although this car came off a steep bluff and who knows the ture story behind how the car got there or if anyone was indeed hurt while driving it, but it shows that the car would not have had to go far off the old road to land at the base of the bluff. It did not come off from where the road is now. Supposedly, the old story passed down is that someone back in the late 1930's, lost control and went off the road. Nobody was hurt, but the car and horrified people on board supposedly plummeted off the bluff with those people in it! Also, according to what I have read, nobody was injured badly either. One note of interest is the fact that back then, nobody had the equipment to pull a car out of such a steep ravine, or if they did, nobody could afford to pay the steep price to recover the car in this extremely rural woods area of Alabama. Over the years, parts have all been robbed and taken off of it. Old timers in their 80's at the time of this writing say mules carried or pulled the engine and main parts out. Today, only a shell remains, and within the last 6 years, a tree fell and center punched the middle of the body, making it now a truly crushed and warped old car. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPg1PJmde2OTNtPjaMkfTjSxm1qMFrEyakNFYhJFcdoOFkl5FinHrSjgeEGwqM63VN6f9goYI1OWUOcuH8juw5rkYjOKBGJYrtjozIzgazJyTtiZAmQq0_butJL9D8v4p0pYu1lME-zJE/s1600/Cranal+Road+Photo.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="297" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPg1PJmde2OTNtPjaMkfTjSxm1qMFrEyakNFYhJFcdoOFkl5FinHrSjgeEGwqM63VN6f9goYI1OWUOcuH8juw5rkYjOKBGJYrtjozIzgazJyTtiZAmQq0_butJL9D8v4p0pYu1lME-zJE/s1600/Cranal+Road+Photo.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This old postcard shows the Sipsey Recreation Area. Notice that the road looks new. There are not even any Forest Service signs showing Sipsey Recreation Area. Also study the old wooden bridge to the right that is still there. You can see that Cranal Road truly has been changed entirely from what it used to be. The old road actually went around to the right side of the hill in the distance. Turkey Creek empties out here at Sipsey River to the left of the bridge. The new road actually buries the old road on the west side of Sipsey!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is a section of the old Cranal Road (elevated section), just north of the current Cranal Road. At one time, there was even a Cranal Road Post Office. Mize Mill and Turkey Creek Falls were just a short piece off to the right on the old road as you traveled west on Cranal Road. </td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Some things will not go away. A section of the old Cranal Road still is still telling it's story of a road long gone in usage.</td></tr>
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It does not take a long time to explore more in this small canyon. Another hidden item in this small little canyon is a very small, but very deep Indian Mortar Rock up under a bluff. It is a reminder of a time when Indians lived in this place, and every day brought new challenges and adventures. Beneath the leaves of time in the ground all around Turkey Creek, is hidden evidence of a heavily used grist mill facility built along the creek above the falls, belonging to the Mize family. They owned vast amounts of acreage during that time. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A 1936 Ford treats you as you walk up from Sipsey Recreation Area. If it could talk! This car went sailing off the old Cranal road (with people in it) and dropped some 40 feet off a bluff to where it is today down near the creek. </td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Indian Mortar or Milling Rock along Turkey Creek</td></tr>
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A recent trip to the Lawrence County archives has no mention of the Mize mill, not a sign. It truly is a <br />
place holding tons of history, long forgotten by those of us alive today. There are numerous books out by Jim Mannasco and Butch Walker that talk about this neat place if you are interested in reading more details about the area. This area actually had a post office (we are still searching for the exact location of it) and on down the road a little further, Turkey Foot Ranger Station built by the Conservation Corp back in the 1930's. It was torn down in the 1970's and the site is growing up in under growth. What a find, and right underneath us everywhere we walked. Buried somewhere is the hidden history of this place, but for most, it is just there telling a story that nobody seems to have records easily of. This place teaches us that just because a "road" is named a certain name, it does not mean the road has remained in it's current path over the years. Improvements and shortcuts are made on any road over time, so some roads change and so does the scenery. Places continue to tell stories long after most everyone has passed on. It's just that most people don't take the time to listen. The trash thrown out the window of a car in the 1930's may be a treasure for someone in the 21st century to find, all because a road changed paths, and locked the item in the leaves of time for someone to find. <br />
After some lunch, we move on over in Bankhead to another very well known historical place, Kinlock. Another blog perhaps, and another day. Thanks for going along with us on this day. VideoRexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16342756961482992738noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1459368010805427886.post-32997033606960119762013-11-20T14:01:00.000-06:002013-11-23T19:04:26.223-06:00Exploring the Old Covered Bridges and Other Sites in Blount County AlabamaOne of the little thought about elements of America is it's rich history, even on a local level in your own town, city, or community. Such is the case in a small area of Alabama called Blount County. Located in the central part of Alabama, this area has something that few places in America can brag about. It's very old covered bridges. In fact, it has the United States tallest covered bridge over water.<br />
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The very first question that comes out when you mention "covered bridges" is this: "Why would you cover a bridge?" The reason is simple if you lived 100 years ago. Strange if you live in the 21st century. The reason they were coverd was to protect the wooden structure from decaying or breaking down as fast. After all, they were primarily built of wood that goes down with time. Early wooden bridges had a lifespan of about 10-15 years if left uncovered. If you have worked 3-7 years building a bridge, then it does not last long in terms of the energy and time spent to built it verses the years it will last! Thus, the covered bridges came about. It is easier to replace lumber on the covered structure than to replace critical timber underneath it. This also provided protection from storms for those on horse and buggy. After all, it would be a muddy, messy road during storms. Why not take cover under a covered bridge?<br />
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In Blount county, Alabama, at one time (according to my good friend Brett that showed us around his county that day) there were 12 covered bridges. They are now down to 3 still standing. Floods, arson, vandals, and a number of factors have taken there toll. Of those 3 left, there are all built in 1927-1934. If you ever want to do something interesting and you might live within driving distance of these amazing structures, I encourage you to take the time and drive over and see some living history. If you are passing through Alabama, then put it on your list "to do".<br />
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One weekend, one of my camping buddies named Brett called and asked me and other friends to come down and stay at his house. My other buddy Thomas and I responded and said we are coming! Since we are all "outdoors guys" and that is what we all do when we get together, it is only fitting that like a bunch of "boys", we camp in his back yard filled with woods! We arrive one Friday afternoon at Brett's house. He and his wife have the red carpet laid out for us in terms of food and accommodations. A large 15 foot high fire place is located in the woods behind his house that Brett built, so we set up our hammocks out in the woods by the fireplace. We cook hot dogs and hamburgers Friday afternoon/evening just shortly after arrival, stay up late and enjoy conversations by the fireplace, and then hit the bed in our hammocks for rest.<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;"> <b>Horton Mill Bridge</b></span><br />
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A full day is in store for us on Saturday. After a quick shower, we are off to our first covered bridge to see, Horton Mill bridge, located on Highway 75. It is right off the highway and signs will keep you from missing it. The Horton Mill bridge is the tallest covered bridge over water in the United States. Built in 1934, it spans 220 feet long, and 70 feet high above the Calvert Prong of the Little Warrior River. After seeing one of these bridges for the first time, I observe something interesting. Construction on this bridge, and later seeing the other 2 are all the same. In fact, after seeing the oldest covered bridge in California back in 2007 on a video shoot for the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers, it and all of these are built the exact same way. They all have iron rods that extend down from the covered structure that supports the main foundation of the bridge. Sounds kind of silly to notice small things like that, but interesting to me and perhaps some others on how they all were built by the same style of construction. Truth be told, that construction practice probably dates back to Europe when the early settlers came over. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaEmOWbX95GWYGTHunw2gokvkGvrNmpI4cLkBh1RtRm-jpEaM5g5kqaktM5j1oS7okfFiWzXQwBmnT2S7GATzz-Qw3WxB09jFObIrBi-cepvyPy9AU_b35zkSX1Il9WVb3oDCmGz-X4ls/s1600/100_6455.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaEmOWbX95GWYGTHunw2gokvkGvrNmpI4cLkBh1RtRm-jpEaM5g5kqaktM5j1oS7okfFiWzXQwBmnT2S7GATzz-Qw3WxB09jFObIrBi-cepvyPy9AU_b35zkSX1Il9WVb3oDCmGz-X4ls/s320/100_6455.JPG" width="179" /></a> We walk all around the bridge, under the bridge, and across the bridge. We snap pictures and shoot video of just about every angle you can see of it. A trail leads you down to the creek where you can walk up underneath it before it spans out over the water. Boring to some, fascinating to others. I enjoyed every second of it myself. According to history, this bridge was built by 15 men, working from sun up to sun down, supervised by Talmedge Horton. His crew also built the other two bridges we will visit. According to history, Mr. Horton had to ride on horseback to Birmingham, Alabama to receive payment for the bridge. When he got there, he apparently was paid in silver. The weight of the silver riding back to Blount County took a toll on his horses, with the hides being rubbed raw from reading history on this bridge.<br />
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Driving over these bridges in your car is an experience as well. If you roll the windows down and drive across, you are treated with a "pop" and "crack" sound every now and then from the wood in the bridge. It is a little "un-nerving" listening to these sounds as you drive across!<br />
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The address of the bridge is:<br />
25 Covered Bridge Circle, Oneonta, Alabama, 35121 <br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;"><b>Palisades Park</b></span><br />
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After we finish up there we move on over to a special park that few counties have. It is one of the coolest county parks I have seen. I have traveled in many states, but few can claim as cool of a place as Palisades Park. On the internet it is termed "Blount County's Best Kept Secret", and it truly is! My good friend Brett carried us there and I was truly surprised at everything I saw, and in every direction!<br />
What was in my mind, a simple county park we were driving to, turned out to be worth every second of being there. The park is located at about 1,300 feet in elevation. It has the usual swing sets, old log cabins donated and moved there by family members, meeting cabins and buildings to hold most any event, a very old 150 foot U.S. Forest Tower that we had to climb, massive bluffs for the rope recreation folks to practice on, hiking trails, picnic areas, and more. The old forest tower is off limits to climbing, but on this day, the gate was wide open. We just had to check it out. The Forest Tower truly is an historical monument as well. Almost all have been abandoned by the U.S. Forest Service, so that decay away each day. I have read where there is great debate on these structures. The Forest Service does not know what to do with them. They want them torn down, but other folks see a different picture. They want them preserved. The debate continues as these old historical structures decay every day in time. <br />
At any rate, I was totally set back by the views of this park and you can see when you arrive that it has something for everyone, young and old. <br />
If you can, make sure and take the time to drive to this park.! The views are stunning. Make sure you go over to Meditation Point (see picture below) and absorb the view. Hopefully you will go on a sunny day as we did. You can see for almost 50 miles.<br />
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The address for your GPS to get there is: 1225 Palisades Pkwy, Oneonta, AL 35121<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;"><b>Swann Bridge</b></span><br />
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It was hard to leave such a really neat place as Palisades Park, but time to go see the other highlights of this county before the sun goes down. We he<span style="font-family: inherit;">ad over to another amazing and very old bridge, Swann Bridge. It is the longest surviving bridge in Alabama. It was built in 193</span>3, and is 330 feet long. It spans over Locust Fork. We drive across the bridge with the usually creepy "creaks and pops" of driving over a covered bridge in a modern heavy vehicle and park. As we saw at Horton Bridge earlier, there is always cars parked and people admiring the bridges. In fact, I see some of the same people we saw over at the other bridges, all of us making the circuit. Again, I notice the same construction type as the first bridge, and the covered bridge I have seen out in California that is said to have been built just after the Civil War. Again, I image construction practices were just about the same across the U.S., even during those times. Swann Bridge, make this your 3rd stop on your tour in Blount County. My good friend Brett grew up and around all of this since he is from Blount County and I was so glad he offered us this tour. More to see, so let's move on!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCKMRVxDH1o7ztrwjQ4w1tKsLQYAYBSDs-rQBFK8Iv-ld2urVpdu6qSq0022Jq3_j4MSLmHO9XtMUaSeapPNRRVTvpH1XnVBm2CfT6P0zjCxcD-RrA1_Nly5KNbGCMrtlYbW7wX-3BcR0/s1600/100_6531.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCKMRVxDH1o7ztrwjQ4w1tKsLQYAYBSDs-rQBFK8Iv-ld2urVpdu6qSq0022Jq3_j4MSLmHO9XtMUaSeapPNRRVTvpH1XnVBm2CfT6P0zjCxcD-RrA1_Nly5KNbGCMrtlYbW7wX-3BcR0/s400/100_6531.JPG" width="223" /></a> <span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirSkWEq5h7FxKi6ep4w3U3VTkhDZtWQkTMh7lxQ8OUWA2hVeG-crxTcdjBjZTs2HFDU8sm6fG4ZlI_c-5fz4rrnCGxF7JXgp1dowMMI30owbIxwxsJjdWq0WNCuomibcMlBq9-vM499_E/s1600/100_6548.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="220" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirSkWEq5h7FxKi6ep4w3U3VTkhDZtWQkTMh7lxQ8OUWA2hVeG-crxTcdjBjZTs2HFDU8sm6fG4ZlI_c-5fz4rrnCGxF7JXgp1dowMMI30owbIxwxsJjdWq0WNCuomibcMlBq9-vM499_E/s400/100_6548.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">The directions to get to Swann Bridge are: <span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text"><span style="line-height: 15px;">From U.S. Highway 231 in Cleveland, head west on State Highway 160 for 2.8 miles to Nectar Circle. Turn right (north) on Nectar Circle for half of a mile and then turn right (north) on Joy Road. Follow Joy Road north for 2.4 miles and then turn right (east) on Swann Bridge Road. Just follow Swann Bridge Road for 1.5 miles until you reach the historic bridge.</span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text"><span style="line-height: 15px;">The address is: 1590 Swann Bridge Road, Cleveland, Alabama, 35049 </span></span></span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcK-CF1JqKtsEq5XVkRPWOu4z9BxE48RsCA1ecMhM-Kenr-hUqjIK0ZK63MZkiBjMsRaFibQVbuE5igFecV8YnDlf13WVQAJzrIDLbVRY_hUVnKjhjxFTSu_s-M88SjjPHaBWiaa87Sz8/s1600/Swann+Bridge.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcK-CF1JqKtsEq5XVkRPWOu4z9BxE48RsCA1ecMhM-Kenr-hUqjIK0ZK63MZkiBjMsRaFibQVbuE5igFecV8YnDlf13WVQAJzrIDLbVRY_hUVnKjhjxFTSu_s-M88SjjPHaBWiaa87Sz8/s640/Swann+Bridge.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;"><b>Easley Bridge</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">Our last stop for the day before supper, is the third covered bridge in the county, Easley Bridge. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">It is the oldest of the three. Built in 1927, it spans 95 feet and is the shortest bridge. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">It stretches over a small stream called Dub Branch, which feeds the Little Warrior River.</span> This bridge was the least scenic of the three in my opinion, but it's beauty is in the age. The bridges have all undergone reconstruction in 2011 as vandals, weather, age, and time had put them all out of commission at various times. During some of those years, no vehicle traffic was allowed. This bridge, be it small, is still worth stopping to see, if not for anything but to say that you have seen all 3 very old covered bridges in Blount County, Alabama. It is not that much further out of the way and deserves to be admired. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-size: small;">The address of the Easly Bridge is: </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-size: small;">440 Easly Bridge Road, Oneonta, Alabama 35121</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;"><b>To Top Off The Day</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-size: small;">A great way to top the day off for us, and it will be for you as well, is to stop by and eat at a Bar-B-Que restaurant called "O'so Good" Barbeque restaurant. It is located on U.S. 231. Their address is 55545, U.S. Highway 231, Oneonta, Alabama. They did not pay me a dime to pitch them, but they have some good Barbeque to top off the end of a wonderful day in Blount County, Alabama. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-size: small;">It has a great atmosphere to relax, eat, and talk about the sites of the day. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-size: small;">The next day on our "boy's trip" yielded an even greater surprise, but I cannot publish it, since it was on private property and I respect that. It was a view into a world of an old Indian community site, and man what a day! It just continued to make the weekend one I will not forget for a long time. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-size: small;">Enough teasing you with that, since I cannot publish that experience, so I leave you with a view into the history of time in a county older than the State of Alabama. If you are in this area, I strongly suggest you devote a day to seeing some sites you will never forget, and a day you will talk about for a long time.</span></span> Until the next adventure in God's country, we will see you then!<br />
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<b><i>A great map of the bridges and how to get to them is located at the website address below. </i></b><br />
<b><i> It is a PDF map of the bridges:</i></b><br />
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<a href="http://co.blount.al.us/documents/Covered+Bridge+Trail.pdf"><span style="font-size: large;">http://co.blount.al.us/documents/Covered+Bridge+Trail.pdf</span></a>VideoRexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16342756961482992738noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1459368010805427886.post-67956207972034457272013-01-23T15:42:00.000-06:002013-02-02T23:54:54.568-06:00Key Mill Branch-Bankhead National Forest-A Historical Site of Tradegy, Beauty, and History Little Known to Many<b><i>Preface to late 2012-2013 adventures:</i></b><br />
<i>Before we start this adventure, a little note to pass on to you. Since you share adventures with me, you might of noticed the adventures have been a little less lately. That's because in late August of 2012, I was told at my full time job for almost 13 years, that everyone in the department was being put on temporary 20 hours per week with no benefits. The economy going south in the United States has hit me in the gut! When you have worked all of your life without the slightest worry in the world about a job and the trap doors are pulled out from under you, it puts a new perspective on things. My attitude has to be readjusted on a regular basis, or else you fall into a pessimistic view of life. Fortunately, my parents taught me long ago to never count on anything permanent, and so years ago I started a part-time business. Thanks to it, I am getting by and can focus back on the good life in the outdoors again and the values I cherish with my family. My budget to explore and travel has been cut in half, but my passion is stronger than ever to explore and enjoy life in the outdoors. The 2012-2013 winter camping season is here, so lets get going! </i><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMesXCK6VPbTXGjYc58H5NDK2ER874NqA0IYWc2Ir3QvEDhY6HD6u3dH_pFXmUk0i1JCCaycZTvI8WXNX4at3bPXkfKrS_rAzcHK4Zx2KUBApciu-aPsTGqYd-yReHpfYdW0GUUNx38sI/s1600/249964_4194443216243_535012805_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMesXCK6VPbTXGjYc58H5NDK2ER874NqA0IYWc2Ir3QvEDhY6HD6u3dH_pFXmUk0i1JCCaycZTvI8WXNX4at3bPXkfKrS_rAzcHK4Zx2KUBApciu-aPsTGqYd-yReHpfYdW0GUUNx38sI/s400/249964_4194443216243_535012805_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A view on one side of the massive shelter looking back towards the other side of the shelter just down stream from the Key Mill site. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-bAYCx4fbPSC8d4c2_Pmuw-fNyS-JrZJjaewg6k26tYeLyx95XRDQU15SurXGc1UmRJn9QFn4HdCRe4b5DoUaLR8h8sj70pyrUugoIKZTRThVkfmlw2iqrkKLXIH4Z68ZAuuQPCHOQYI/s1600/541945_4194443176242_163252278_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-bAYCx4fbPSC8d4c2_Pmuw-fNyS-JrZJjaewg6k26tYeLyx95XRDQU15SurXGc1UmRJn9QFn4HdCRe4b5DoUaLR8h8sj70pyrUugoIKZTRThVkfmlw2iqrkKLXIH4Z68ZAuuQPCHOQYI/s400/541945_4194443176242_163252278_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Located back in the back of one of the rooms in the massive bluff shelter, we find 1909. The 9 is backwards, as we find so many times with tree and rock carvings. All we can gather is lack of knowledge on spelling and letters back then. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhw6k52a91RZ5FdIKEuUcPnzrhnjonKGgzl4oXfwj0mmH7NxsFumUx_Yqo01oCdrFxwL5Fagqcph2PtherNglE9s-Y3CuhFV0Vw1EcBSN9UzRRaMbVwCN3irnSzJfg-3zQsGirL28WHYb0/s1600/64496_4194441936211_499727649_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhw6k52a91RZ5FdIKEuUcPnzrhnjonKGgzl4oXfwj0mmH7NxsFumUx_Yqo01oCdrFxwL5Fagqcph2PtherNglE9s-Y3CuhFV0Vw1EcBSN9UzRRaMbVwCN3irnSzJfg-3zQsGirL28WHYb0/s400/64496_4194441936211_499727649_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">An extremely large bluff shelter just down from the Key Grist Mill Site. This is on one side of the shelter. The picture above shows the other side of the shelter. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhM7QrW8LoHFZ7vgd6o9P72v9hKdz3NXuqE0oJ5yK-GO1TFvw6nAqp5k26Ssh1KTG8bNDsly9qJgNzKhzOZD2fOpj_N7zZjof7T9nVCItv4kgx2P7h_WBztsiBiI6wIxrSSEiEDNPN7SEM/s1600/546237_4194448176367_1722374006_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhM7QrW8LoHFZ7vgd6o9P72v9hKdz3NXuqE0oJ5yK-GO1TFvw6nAqp5k26Ssh1KTG8bNDsly9qJgNzKhzOZD2fOpj_N7zZjof7T9nVCItv4kgx2P7h_WBztsiBiI6wIxrSSEiEDNPN7SEM/s400/546237_4194448176367_1722374006_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A beautiful swimming hole just up the branch that feeds the old Key Mill Site. How many kids swam in this hole while there fathers were at the mill waiting on the corn to be ground at the mill site. Time only knows.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj33fooHi89NC8to7SQ-gtYe-BG6hwbUw4pWS7ChfUCOoyaw-35A2GwGrBC7PYymuz7Kxw3Rvqx5nnaAouZTuREhYX4foseBrhd8GJz7QJhBGsnPNDDD4NrF4ElHXAgLBayIZc-i__CndI/s1600/602874_4194491857459_879667421_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj33fooHi89NC8to7SQ-gtYe-BG6hwbUw4pWS7ChfUCOoyaw-35A2GwGrBC7PYymuz7Kxw3Rvqx5nnaAouZTuREhYX4foseBrhd8GJz7QJhBGsnPNDDD4NrF4ElHXAgLBayIZc-i__CndI/s400/602874_4194491857459_879667421_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A very cold morning causes water to lock it's grip on some grass by a small waterfall. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg28d8jvDz2vzyW5gYLUI0SZpBkO6mtwp1Z-QyLxE_VuQhci-JpEnt2LoQ-RXbmGWpcDcrUmbXaK59hXJwJn9oxD8Tq5SCILV22nRkHGH__IWApHIHc2nexWxvEC-MlxBEXYafB0jXAX8s/s1600/65028_4194441656204_1905113074_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg28d8jvDz2vzyW5gYLUI0SZpBkO6mtwp1Z-QyLxE_VuQhci-JpEnt2LoQ-RXbmGWpcDcrUmbXaK59hXJwJn9oxD8Tq5SCILV22nRkHGH__IWApHIHc2nexWxvEC-MlxBEXYafB0jXAX8s/s400/65028_4194441656204_1905113074_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of several waterfalls from branches that drain into Key Mill Branch. </td></tr>
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I have been blessed to have made a couple of trips before this writing, but just did not have the frame of mind to write and share them with you. I apologize for that. One of those trips though, has been a true blessing and I want you to discover it with me. It has opened up my mind of areas we walk and think little of. If those areas could talk to you, you would sit down, laugh, cry, and wonder about past times of those before you. We walk this earth sometimes thinking we are the only creatures to do so. We live only for now, thinking all that has been discovered is discovered by us. If we be truthful with ourselves, we are one of thousands walking the same paths on this earth. With those thoughts in mind, I want you to take a trip with me to a very neat and untraveled area of the Bankhead National Forest in Northern Alabama, rich in history, and sadly, a site of tragedy in the last few years. It is a historical site in many respects, and reflects many years of human stories worth telling. Before it was engulfed into the United States National Forest program, it was an area where a family raised children and operated a grist mill for years. It is a site where the founder of the grist mill, died from injuries at this site. His father fought in the American Revolution, and he fought in the civil war. It is also the site of a very tragic helicopter crash in 2007 that claimed a young man's life. The stories that make up this site are interesting and sad, all combined with beauty in a small area called Key Mill Branch.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhA6DHAZ9DQwH4l2Yg0JIC2PDbyD92XVXarTA2yktCJaGVJIssTd9lkro6sNiopAMG3VECIdDBYPBkIZhisB0zQj0PeAc1Z_IhEaLEkNmgpKc7AV8ptSWg35zvstbNkjLAtWuHanlixJck/s1600/190716_4194445856309_1022490379_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhA6DHAZ9DQwH4l2Yg0JIC2PDbyD92XVXarTA2yktCJaGVJIssTd9lkro6sNiopAMG3VECIdDBYPBkIZhisB0zQj0PeAc1Z_IhEaLEkNmgpKc7AV8ptSWg35zvstbNkjLAtWuHanlixJck/s400/190716_4194445856309_1022490379_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The historical Key Grist Mill Site. Notice the Iron Ore seeping from the rocks. </td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Worn gears that could tell some stories of days gone by. The gears left from the Key Grist Mill.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhA8RopCmi3pfOF_qmlNYPI4kUXCaU0EaYqACu7raY_ECfo84iBf6X2OtaTKnbS20ngywCEyX_ciPPPFstFCRSPnIxMJLoQ-Z0-F2IAuPl3Ll4MbWerXo2tFczVKSD6TxagzAznpie5Uas/s1600/533683_4194446256319_920000158_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhA8RopCmi3pfOF_qmlNYPI4kUXCaU0EaYqACu7raY_ECfo84iBf6X2OtaTKnbS20ngywCEyX_ciPPPFstFCRSPnIxMJLoQ-Z0-F2IAuPl3Ll4MbWerXo2tFczVKSD6TxagzAznpie5Uas/s400/533683_4194446256319_920000158_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Another view of the gear cogs left at this site for explorers to enjoy and for time to hold on to. </td></tr>
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Key Mill Branch, named after an area of land owned by Joseph Francis Marion Key, a very colorful character that served in the Civil War and married several times, bearing children with each new wife. He homesteaded this area around the early 1890's. The story of this man is very interesting, and a link to the full story of this colorful character is below. He served in Gettysburg, Spottsylvania, and other key battles of the civil war. His dad served in the revolutionary war. Time does not allow me to slide off into family history here, but I encourage you to read about this man and his family. As mentioned above, Joseph Francis Key had 3 wives. The last wife was one tough women they say. Mary Jane Key, was half a Cherokee Indian and died in 1962 at the age of 101. She operated the grist mill at this site where we are exploring until she was 92 years old. Her husband Joseph, died of injuries from the mill in 1918. Remnants of the mill are still there as you walk the small but beautiful canyon of Key Mill Branch. The canyon is again small but again, extremely beautiful. The site where the grist mill was, still has the gear cogs of the mill, the holes in the rock where the mill perched on the top of the falls, and you get a sense of an area that is extremely rich in history. Iron ore (orange color) seeps out of the walls of this grist mill canyon area. Even the old road bed is still there with ruts in the wagon wheel tracks indicating a heavily traveled road. If you like history, this area is very odd in that you sense this was a hub of activity for many years for many family members. It is all abandoned and left for the elements of time to consume now. Most people passing by have no clue of the history that has happened on the grounds they walk. We hope we can change some of that as you read. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Part of the Instrument Panel of the Hughes 369A Helicopter</td></tr>
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As we first enter into the canyon, little did we know we were stepping into such a gold mine of history and later to find out, tragic area of history. We will share this story with you as you read on. It is captivating. After about 15 minutes of walking into the canyon, we come across a shiny burnt piece of metal laying on the ground. Closer inspection yields it is part of an instrument panel out of some type of aircraft. Wow! What the devil is this about? Looking around further, we find what looks like either a door handle or a tie down point used on some aircraft. Wow, there must have been an aircraft that crashed here some time ago? We take pictures of the instrument panel part, the handle or tie down point, and we move on. As we walk down the canyon, we notice that apparently the U.S. Forest Service burned the area off some time back, because we saw elements of trees burned years ago, and even the aircraft parts were burned. As we move down into the canyon, we are stunned to find a massive shelter near the Key Mill branch. It has two rooms in it. Further inspection yields carvings on a rock inside one of the dark rooms! It has 1909 carved on it, with a 9 backwards. So strange. We come across this all the time on trees in the Bankhead. Is it illiteracy back during those times? Was it a fad? Who knows. Also beside it was the letters KE. Either it is a sorority letters from a college or letters of someone? The shelter is amazing in it's size, and is well worth the trip to see it. We knew there was one there but had no ideal of it's size. It is just across on the other side and down from the actual Key Mill site. We take tons of pictures, look in amazement at the size of the shelter, and then move on up stream to the mill site. Justin who is with us, has already seen all of this, so we hinge on him on where to go. When we arrive at the mill site, it was a little disappointing in some respects. It appears to be just this small little canyon area that has a rather small 15-20 foot high waterfall. As we approach the waterfall, Thomas, one of my hiking buddies points to the ground. There are gear cogs from the mill! Awesome! We have hit the jackpot! We take tons of pictures of the gears and the area. There are even holes cut into the rock up on top of the falls, indicating where the foundations of the mill were planted to hold the massive gear water wheel and grist mill components. As you listen to the waterfall sounds and enjoy the beauty, you cannot help but think back and imagine a building on top of the waterfall with the gristmill. Wagons bringing corn to the mill, it was a bee hive of activity I am sure in it's time. All of this is now silenced by the sounds of water and forest undergrowth of times gone by. As we decide to venture on upstream from the mill site on the branch that feeds the site, we hit another awesome find! A beautiful and tall cascading waterfall with a deep green/blue water hole at the base of it. Pictures, pictures, pictures. What a place! These kinds of sites make you wish you could come back in the summer and take a dip in the clear pool of water, but then again you think about the ticks, chiggers, snakes, and mosquitoes you would have to contend with. OK, enough of that thought! At any rate, what a place to visit! We discover old road beds that lead to the mill with deep ruts, indicating again, this place was heavily used over the years. <br />
Our camp overnight is rather uneventful other than a few hoot owls and coyotes in the night, but the area we are in is unbelievable! After our return trip home, Thomas digs up the history about the mill, and Justin uses the internet to trace the aircraft crash parts. WOW! What a story to tell on both sides! If you want to read about the family history of the place, then use the link at the bottom and read an article from the Moulton Advertiser Newspaper from 2005. You have got to read it to believe it. This family, and this place are quite a story to tell!<br />
Now, lets focus for a moment on the tragedy of this location in more modern times. Justin's research on this aircraft reveals a very, very, sad, but interesting story. The following has been taken from FAA crash investigation reports. Turns out, this site was the impact area of a helicopter that crashed on May 13, 2007. The story behind this accident is both tragic, but interesting at the same time. Records viewed online about the crash submitted by the FAA are highlighted below. My heart cringes when I read this report and while you read it, your heart sinks to your stomach. This had to be a horrific crash at the Key Mill branch area. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Part of a tie down point on the bottom of the Hughes 369A helicopter.</td></tr>
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On May 13, according to various news sources on the internet, a 26 year old pilot by the name of John Scott departed Merkel Field in Sylacauga, Alabama with a newly purchased but used Hughes 369A helicopter that came from Lakeland, Florida. Scott had been flying helicopters since he was 18 according to news reports from the internet. The helicopter he was piloting this day was a 1968 OH-6A Army helicopter that had been refurbished and renamed as a Hughes 369A. It had been purchased in Florida and it was his job to fly it back home. He departed at 4:45 p.m from Merkel Field. He was headed for Muscle Shoals, Alabama/Northwest Regional Airport to refuel and work his way back to his home town in Kansas in "hops", as many helicopters do on long journeys. He checked in with Birmingham airport via aircraft radio as he moved up Alabama. He notified Northwest Regional Airport by radio as well that he was headed that way. At about 6:30 p.m. over Bankhead National Forest, something horribly went wrong while in the air. He crashed at Key Mill Branch in the Bankhead National Forest. It was not until a couple of days later on May 15th that locals discovered the wreckage, and part of that was due to a massive fire set off by the impact. The story of this pilot is tragic even more so. Apparently, the rotor blades of the helicopter just ripped apart and separated in mid-flight, and the helicopter descended from over 1,000 feet up, dropping like a rock from the sky. The impact was so severe it set off a major forest fire that burned a large part of the forest area, so that is the reason we saw so many trees and evidence of a fire in the area. It was not from a planned burn by the forest service as we presumed, it was from the tragic crash! Here is where the story gets a little more strange and interesting at the same time. Amazingly, NTSB/FAA officials found near the impact, the pilots personal GPS hand held unit that revealed even more clues to this horrific event along with personal property that was returned the family. The hand held GPS was not severely burned or damaged from the crash and apparently fell far away from the impact and fireball of the main crash area and fuselage. After examining the data from the hand held unit, the GPS shows the helicopter was traveling towards Muscles Shoals at around 110 mph when the blades apparently separated. The helicopter he was piloting was traveling at 1,314 feet when the event apparently happened. Because of the in flight separation of the rotor blades, it basically broke the helicopter in many pieces. They are scattered all over and around Key Mill Branch area and will be there for many years to come. The U.S. Forest Service had to build a road back to the crash site for the remains of the helicopter to be removed. Remnants of the road still exist and to this day, the Forest Service employees coin that road "helicopter road". The helicopter apparently burst into flames while in the air because there are two separate areas on each side of the canyon that as of this writing, still show where fires burned around the area. One area is on the south side of the canyon where these parts shown were found. The other main impact area of the fuselage was on the north side of the canyon and pine trees exhibit fire damage as high as 8-10 feet high up on them. According to the FAA/NTSB report, The exact cause of WHY the blades on the helicopter separated could never be fully determined and the report also stated aircraft doors, blades, and other parts were scattered in a wide area from the break up in mid air after the blades came off the helicopter. This leads me to believe that as time goes by, other explorers of this area will find pieces and parts left from this tragic day and wonder as we did. The log flight book of this aircraft was never recovered. Did it burn in the crash, or is it scattered into this remote area for someone to find one day? Only time will tell that. So as I held that piece of aircraft in my hand, truly, sadness pours over me now. Remnants of a horrific helicopter crash that claimed the life of a very young 26 year old pilot one afternoon in 2007 at Key Mill Branch. Life is always full of twists and turns as we walk it's pathways. Bankhead is always full of surprises.As I have always said on my journeys to Bankhead National Forest, you just never know what you will find or experience.<br />
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Until the next journey in God's outdoors, we will see you later! <br />
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For more fascinating reading about Joseph Francis Marion Key and the colorful character of his last wife, Mary Jane Key, go to this website:<br />
<b><i>http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~jordanfamily/keyfamily.htm</i></b><br />
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The full accident report of the helicopter accident is quite interesting for those that might be interested in this: Go the the ntsb.gov website and search accident records for a May 13, 2007 aircraft crash in Moulton, Alabama and read the full report. Your heart will cringe as you read the report. What a horrible way to pass from this earth for a very young pilot. <br />
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<br />VideoRexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16342756961482992738noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1459368010805427886.post-10506985301828207112012-08-06T10:27:00.002-05:002012-08-06T10:41:10.153-05:00Canoeing/Kayaking Bear Creek in Alabama<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Want some fun in the summertime? Like to canoe or kayak? Do you enjoy days with friends and family outdoors? Look no further than this small "spot on the map" that thousands enjoy every single summer in the south. It is about the ONLY place (during the hot summer months) within 80 miles of it where you can find a controlled and predictable water level every single weekend to float down a creek and have a blast! <br />
I have known about this place for years, and so have locals. Over the past few years, it has exploded in popularity enough to where a commercial outfitter operates on this creek now. Where am I talking about? It's called the Bear Creek Canoe Run in Marion County, Alabama. It is just a few miles out from the small town of Bear Creek.<br />
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The Bear Creek Canoe Run or "Upper Bear Creek Run"is a stretch of water that has become famous over the years among those that love small boat sports. <b> </b><br />
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<b>As described by TVA on their website:</b><br />
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"Upper Bear
Creek Reservoir is one of four dams that provide flood damage reduction, recreation, and
water supply in northwest Alabama. The others are Bear Creek, Little Bear
Creek, and Cedar Creek. The Bear Creek area
is popular with all types of boaters, including canoeists and kayakers.
The Bear Creek Floatway, which flows from Upper Bear Creek Dam into Bear
Creek Reservoir, is a popular spot for teaching first-timers to negotiate
rapids and work with the current.</div>
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Below Bear Creek
Dam, the Lower Bear Creek Canoe Trail provides a more leisurely float,
running a total of 34 miles down the creek and all the way to Pickwick
Landing Dam on the Tennessee River."</div>
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<b>Some more facts on this place as stated on their website:</b></div>
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Upper
Bear Creek Dam was completed in 1978. </div>
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The
dam is 85 feet high and 1,515 feet long. </div>
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Upper Bear Creek Dam is not a hydroelectric facility. It has no power generators and produces no electricity.</div>
Upper
Bear Creek Reservoir extends 14 miles upstream from the dam. <br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>GETTING THERE </b></span><br />
Now that you know the background behind this place, lets talk about the canoe and kayak run. <b>This blog is predominately written for first timers interested in going down this run</b>. The trip is perfect for whitewater kayaks, canoes of all sizes, and most all kayaks. It is a bit small for a 17 foot kayak but anything below that will work. It is perfect for the popular 9 foot kayaks that are selling everywhere. My wife, being tongue twisted with words talking to my daughter and I about us going out in our canoe and kayaks one weekend, used the term "Cohniacking". We belly laughed at her and the term has stuck in our family. It is the perfect trip for canoes and kayaks or Cohniacking". The trip I have been on many times is stated on the Alabama Whitewater Page as being 7 miles. My GPS twice has shown this to be a 8.86 mile run. Regardless, it is a day of fun you will talk about for a long time! I see many first time whitewater kayakers going down this stretch. It is perfect for anyone that wants to experience moving water for the first time. For the advanced folks in larger kayaks and canoes, I call it "The Chill Trip". A chance to chill out and relax and a chance to chill from the miserable heat of the summer months with this cool dam fed water. The water pours out of the bottom of the dam, so it feels ice cold.<br />
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The first thing to do is get there of course. The Bear Creek put in is located on Highway 241 just inside Marion County. For you GPS folks, the put in is N 34 degrees, 16 minutes, 41.21 seconds by W087 degrees, 43 minutes, 08 seconds (WGS84). For you non GPS folks, the put in is just south of the Highway 172 and 241 intersections in Marion County, Alabama (NW Alabama). It is a very small area beside the bridge crossing Bear Creek. There are NO restroom facilities here so plan accordingly! Ladies take special notice of this! TVA runs the constant flow rate guaranteed of 220 CFS during the summer months only, but this makes it a magnet for boaters since most other creeks are dry this time of year. They only run this guaranteed minimum rate during weekends of the summer months and it ends on Labor Day weekend. You can poke around on the internet and find the TVA site for more information. Just enter "TVA Bear Creek" on a search engine and it will come up. While we are this subject, another good source to read about this run is AlabamaWhitewater.com. During the summer months, I suggest getting there early, say 8 a.m. till 9:30 a.m. to unload your boats. Past 9:30 a.m. on Saturdays, traffic gets heavy and clogs the parking lot and will sometimes run out into the highway. I have had to unload my boat at times parked out by the highway. That is very dangerous and a pain to carry a boat so far. What really hoses the traffic, is when the one and only outfitter arrives with a van and a trailer full of boats. He or she expects to deliver their boats close to the put in location (understandably so) and this can really clog the small parking lot. Once you unload your boats, naturally you will want to take a second vehicle to the take out and drop it off. The take out is located on the right side of Highway 172. To get to the take out from the put in, come out of the parking lot, turn left, cross back over the bridge and proceed north on 172. You will wind around up a hill and around a large curve and you will want to stay on Highway 172 proceeding north. You will pass the Highway 241 intersection on your right. Stay on Highway 172 until it dead ends into Highway 237. This is several miles so don't panic about missing a turn. There is a church at this intersection where 172 "T''s into 241, so it is a good "bench mark" for marking your turn coming back from the take out point. When you arrive to 237 at that church, turn left, or Southwest on what continues as Highway 172. At this church intersection that you are at, if you turn to the right, it is Highway 237 to Phil Campbell. Left it becomes 172 to Hackleburg. After you turn left on Highway 172, proceed on down a few miles and start watching for large TVA power lines crossing the road. Down past that a mile or so you will start going down into a canyon area. Look for Yellow posts on the right hand side of the road JUST before the Bear Creek bridge. This is the TVA take out point. Pull in here and I suggest parking up close to the road rather than pulling down as close as you can to the take out point. The reason is, it can get very crowded and if you park there close to the loading area, you might be there a while waiting on traffic such as the commercial outfitter rolling in with his trailer ready to pick up folks and blocking you in. To my knowledge, there has been little problems of break ins in this area, so don't worry too much about the safety of your vehicle. There is a constant flow of people in and out of this area all day. Same is true at the put in. Once again here, there are NO restroom are changing of clothes type facilities. Guys will sometimes go off in the bushes and change into dry clothes here. The ladies seem to be out of luck. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnVdJCYAnfHubK5ONPZ18KJAP4QsPkK4DpkzdndUjoZpzYoMddKd6YgZmMJaYQn6NYKMgp5dVn_WNQ3562x4oc_zMN6fn3ePd9-8DAm8bj6XfKUr8j50AowpA1BQwyXsO-JLMyUpEbsiI/s1600/DSCN0559.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnVdJCYAnfHubK5ONPZ18KJAP4QsPkK4DpkzdndUjoZpzYoMddKd6YgZmMJaYQn6NYKMgp5dVn_WNQ3562x4oc_zMN6fn3ePd9-8DAm8bj6XfKUr8j50AowpA1BQwyXsO-JLMyUpEbsiI/s400/DSCN0559.JPG" width="400" /></a><span style="font-size: large;"><b>THE TRIP</b></span><br />
The run is actually one of the best runs in Alabama in my opinion for introducing people to running water. It is only a Class II at the most for every run except Factory Falls or maybe a class III just at the base of the falls. It is a mandatory portage because area and it is death warmed over if you decide to go off it. Signs warn you but many people can't or don't want to read them. The overall trip will start off with fast moving water and will go into some quiet areas, then pick back up. It goes back and forth like this until towards the end, where there is a small stretch where you have to paddle some, even with the current flowing. There are a couple of highlights of the trip to take in. Not to far down the stream from your launch is the famous "Rope Swing". You see it pictured on this blog. This is where "men become boys", and there is lots of fun here. Be careful because the bank and rocks are very slippery. I know a friend who lost a nice pair of prescription glasses here when his canoe flipped while getting out. If I told you of every rapid coming up, it would spoil the trip, so I will leave that for you to experience. It is spots like this that make it an ideal family trip. <br />
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<b>"THE ROCK"-LUNCH STOP </b><br />
About halfway on the trip, you will approach the strongest rapid on the trip, next to the one below Factory Falls. It is called "The Rock", and is THE place to take a lunch break. Everyone congregates on this rock to eat lunch, hit the bushes for natures facilities, and to relax and watch people go through this rapid which is right beside the large rock. The best thing to do is park your boat BEFORE the rapid. Haul your lunch over to the rock and watch people go down it. You will soon see the best way to go down it. After you eat your lunch, then go down the large rapids. From the rock, you watch people from all classes of society, all walks of life, and all skill levels come through this rapid. Some ace right through it while others turn over and articles in the boat go everywhere. It is great entertainment while you eat your lunch. When the water is low enough, people put on their life jackets and slide down the slippery slope that feeds into the rapids and go through it without being in a boat. I even watched a 5 year old go down it this way, several times! Most women could not stand to watch this and I agreed. The parents seemed so clueless of the dangers in this. If you go down this without a life jacket, I say "stupid is as stupid does". You are leaving no room for any error if you do this. THE ENTIRE area around this rock that has any water on it, is dangerous slick. If you are not careful, it will slam you to the ground like a 350 pound Sumo wrestler. Many like to creep across the stream before the rapids walking and go over to the other side where a natural water slide with an added rope by man is waiting you. You can slide down the rocks at incredible speeds. It is a great place to have a ball and to possibly break a leg if you are not careful. Most of the injuries in Bear Creek happen in this entire rest stop area, so be careful. You can also jump from the large rock off into the water. You can wade your way slowly out to the deep waters below the rapids to cool off. With the water being fed from the base of the dam, this is the most welcome water you could ever ask for in the middle of the summertime. The entire trip, the water is so cool, your body begs to take a dip. It is the perfect middle of the summer fun. I have been down this stretch in January, and you have to really watch water levels then, because it is not controlled. It is at natures mercy. It can be a fun float trip, or a raging dangerous place to be. If you search the YouTube channel, you will find bold kayakers going down Bear Creek when it is roaring, even down Factory Falls. Factory Falls with this high water level can be done fairly easy by experienced kayakers, but during the summer months, it would be a death trap to try it. You would plummet straight down into a large bolder.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>FACTORY FALLS-MANDATORY PORTAGE</b></span><br />
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Just a couple of hundred yards past the rock, you come to the mandatory portage of your boat on the trip-Factory Falls. Stay to the right side as you approach this area and pull your boat up onto the rocks. Use this moment to walk to the left over and look down at Factory Falls. It is a great time also to look over and see where you will be putting your boats back in after the portage. Some bold people put them back in on a class III rapid just below the falls. Unless you are somewhat experienced, I would not recommend that. You should put your boat in just about 20 feet past that last rapids. Here the water is calmer and you can put your boat up in a calm area (eddy) while waiting on your party to get all the boats in the water with you. The picture above shows the put in point just below the rough water. Other boats are waiting on this boat just to the left out of the field of view. Take your time portaging your boats down to the put in point below the falls. It is all rock and a great place to slip and fall.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>THE LAST STRETCH </b></span><br />
<b> </b>At the time of this writing (August-2012)<b>, </b>Strong storms a couple of months before dropped trees left and right along this last stretch. It is so bad that there are about 4 trees you will have to navigate through because they have fell into the water. It is not a major deal, but if you are not careful, a great place to try and do the limbo, and the creek will win! Take your time on this last half. You are finished with all the fast moving water that will make beginners nervous. Enjoy the trip, and if it is hot enough, it would be a great time to pause for one more swim. A cue that you are getting close to the take out point is power lines crossing the creek. Not to much further down you will see the bridge or Highway 172. Go under the bridge, shoot through some small moving water and on the right up ahead is some concrete steps. MAKE sure everyone in your party is aware of the take out point. Miss this and you will go for several miles before the next place to take out is. Worst case you would come out by the Bear Creek Outfitter by another highway, but you will be doing a lot of paddling because the water goes down to little flow rate by that point. Most trips I have taken show a put in around 9:30 a.m. and a take out from 3:30-5:00 p.m., depending on how long you stay at the rope swing, the rock or elsewhere. Have fun, be safe, and be sure and relax on this trip. Regardless if you are a veteran whitewater kayaker, or a first time canoe or long boat kayak paddler, this trip has something for everyone and almost any small boat. Don't have a boat and want to go on this trip with friends or a group? Check out the one and only outfitter at Bear Creek Canoe Rentals out of Hackleburg, Alabama. Their address and phone number are located on the web. Last question many might ask is, "Can I camp overnight along this route?". The answer is definitely NO! It is ALL private property along the way. TVA has campgrounds around Bear Creek Reservoir. You can find out more by poking around on the internet. One of these days property owners are going to stop the casual use of their property if the trash gets out of hand. I dread that day if it comes. Also, the water level at dark is returned to normal which is little more than a wimpy creek with little to no water flowing. At sunrise Sunday morning, they crank it back up. Remember, the water flow only runs like this during the weekends and only during the summer months! See you outside for another trip again down the road!<br />
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<br /></div>VideoRexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16342756961482992738noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1459368010805427886.post-69898036048271286942012-07-23T14:45:00.000-05:002012-08-06T10:28:31.366-05:00Burgess Falls-Tennessee's BEST Kept Secret!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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America has so much to offer in terms of beauty and history. Much of what it has to offer is hidden "under the radar screen" for people to easily find and explore. Such is the case with a discovery a good friend of mine made in July of 2012 in the southern part of the United States. He shared the discovery with me and oh am I glad he did!<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Background</span><br />
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I was traveling north one Friday morning with my wife and daughter up the great state of Tennessee to a place called Sparta for a weekend wedding. I had been asked to run audio at a small church for a friend of mines son's wedding. We were staying in the city of Cookeville, Tennessee Friday night with the wedding on Saturday. My good friend David, along with others from my local church were driving up that way as well. On Friday of the drive up, I opted to travel the back roads and end up in Cookville rather than take the usual GPS routing on interstates. David, with his family, decided to do the same thing as well. The mistake I made was selecting to go to a store in Cookeville and shop upon arriving. David was looking for a place of nature to take his family, so he was looking for signs pointing him in the direction of nature and trails. David chose to follow the signs of a little known State Park to go see. I am glad he did!<br />
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Friday afternoon, when we met up at the hotel we were staying at, I asked him, well, did you find anything? With a look of anxiousness, he replied, "oh yeah, I got to show you a place that we found!" In a conversation later on after we got moved in to the hotel room, we decided to head out early Saturday morning about 6 a.m. and check it out. The wedding was not until 2 p.m. so we decided we had time to check it out and get back in time. I was up for adventure and exploring, but had no ideal what lay ahead and how it would change my outlook on what I have seen in the south so far.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The Exploration Begins</span><br />
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Saturday morning, David and I head out with him as the driver. We head south out of Cookeville, Tennessee. As we get off the beaten path onto some roads, it is clear we are headed into the middle of no where. Very few signs dot the landscape as you drive along. Only an occasional 3x3 brown sign with white letters that says Burgess Falls State Park with an arrow. As we pull in, I am somewhat disappointed. A very small mini-park is all I see with a small building for the headquarters, playgrounds, picnic tables, and a restroom. The sign says park closes 30 minutes before sunset, opens at 8 a.m. No one in the park after dark. This is not even a campground, it is just a day use picnic area I thought. That is about it. As we exit out of the van, David says "wait to you see this." I am thinking to myself, from what I have seen so far, it doesn't even come up to the expectation of a "State Park". As we start out walking down a fairly large trail beside the creek (Falling Creek it is called), I see what I would call a fast moving river instead of a creek. There is a sign that says "100 foot waterfall" on the first sight beside the trail. The usual water flowing sounds abound! The scene is pretty and well worth the time to stop, take pictures, and admire. As you move on down the trail, you come upon what appears to be an old bridge with the cables still in tact that supports beams that go across the creek. This shows that some kind of bridge from long ago that extended across the creek. It looks very old, so I stop to take pictures of it. As we move down the trail, we notice lots of tributary streams that normally empty into this creek and flow under the trail/bridges along the way, but with the drought going on lately (July of 2012), nothing excess is flowing into the stream. It is all dry, however, the main river or creek rages with water flowing and the noise is intense. As we move on down, we come upon a sign and we can hear the noise of another waterfall. A sign says "Middle Falls". We soon see a beautiful waterfall that has a sharp slope on it. Water is raging down this slope and the waterfall is wide and beautiful. I snap some pictures and shoot some movies of it. You have a great vantage point to take pictures of the entire falls. David says "and now for the grand waterfall, lets go". We move on down the trail and come upon a site I have never witnessed while living or traveling throughout the southern United States. It was this massive, monstrous, shaking the ground with thunder loud, waterfall! An observation deck allows you to move up to a point and get a view that is soothing to the soul. It is a massive canyon that opens up with this massive waterfall spilling into it. It is like a scene taken from South America, on a much smaller scale. I am beside myself with words, so I just start snapping pictures and taking video left and right. David had brought his family up to this point the day before and had to turn around and head back. It is a 3/4 mile trail to this point and easy walking, they were just out of time. After I bathe in this beauty from the observation point, David smiles and points to a sign and says "are we up for the challenge?". The sign says "To the base of the waterfall-Difficult Hike" or something similar to this. We both say, hey, we got to do this! We head down the trail and wind around getting closer to the top edge of the falls. The noise is intense. As we get right beside the top base of the falls, we see some elaborate metal steps going done to the base of the falls. A long descent in 2 or 3 sections. We head down. As we get to a level spot, we see we are about half way down in the height of the falls. I pause to shoot some video and snap some more pictures. We continue on and realize at this point, we are going to have to climb down rocks to descend to the bottom of the falls. We finally arrive at the bottom and he and I are really taken back. You don't know what to say. This massive and tall wall of water is tremendous in terms of size, noise, and beauty. There are what is called "Katabatic Winds" that cause a tremendous and continuous 20-30 mph winds that race outward from the base of the falls. It has a jet mist spray and the foliage is roaring back and forth from the outflow winds of this waterfall. There is a vat of 2-3 feet of dirty foam that is in on one side of the waterfall that "jiggles" every now and then from the strong outflow winds. Occasionally, you see a chunk of foam blow off from this and sail off into the wind. David and I are beside ourselves. We are on an emotional high. I have traveled all over Alaska and I have seen waterfalls there, as well as in Washington State, Oregon, California, North Carolina, Virginia, Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee and other states. THIS waterfall is THE most beautiful waterfall I have ever seen in the Southern United States. Little known, little talked about, off the beaten path, hidden from the majority of the public, and absolutely one of Tennessee's BEST kept secrets in my book!<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Rich in History</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdB3XMdY35PuDEmUHj6KcIKYmgv_rDanK60fe9JsUo_xVjARqQy-sFG-ObHkPZjZa9b_0dHDkCrh_xHF3hTiqQQ5ogaY5d1r-W0we35INqdMwxOIEO-ATRZ_N3yj4pPxAs0cyhVsaWFz0/s1600/DSCN0457.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdB3XMdY35PuDEmUHj6KcIKYmgv_rDanK60fe9JsUo_xVjARqQy-sFG-ObHkPZjZa9b_0dHDkCrh_xHF3hTiqQQ5ogaY5d1r-W0we35INqdMwxOIEO-ATRZ_N3yj4pPxAs0cyhVsaWFz0/s640/DSCN0457.JPG" width="640" /></a><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;">This area is teaming and rich in this countries history. The land on which this very small 150 acre park rests dates back to 1793. Thomas Burgess, was paid his final veterans compensation for service in the Revolutionary War with a land grant from the newly formed United States Government. The Falling Water River played a central role in the nearby logging and farming community in later years. The river once powered a grist mill and a sawmill. The City of Cookeville recognized the power production potential of the river in the early 1920's, long before the Tennessee Valley Authority or TVA was formed. An elaborate gravity-fed piping system channeled water from a concrete dam (still there) down flumes and across the creek with an elaborate bridge of cables and supports (still standing to see) and weaved it's way down to a pump house (foundations still there) near the base of the falls. During it's path, it even when through a tunnel in the mountain (now closed off to the public). The power plant where this ended provided power for the area and for Cookville. In later years when TVA was formed in the south, they rendered the the system obsolete and it was all shut down. The remnants of this site remind us of the resourcefulness and engineering skills of the people in this area and from this time period.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: large;">"MUST SEE" LIST</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;">Regardless of where you are reading this blog from, put this area on your "must see" list. It will only take you a half a day or a full day to explore, but you will never regret it. I plan to spend many more trips up here to explore this absolutely beautiful and historical place in America at a tiny footprint in the road called Burgess State Park. </span></span><br />
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<br />VideoRexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16342756961482992738noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1459368010805427886.post-12128620222555618642012-05-15T16:15:00.002-05:002013-02-02T23:59:42.428-06:00Discovering Forgotten History in the Backcountry of the Great Smokey Mountains National Park<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Few times in ones life do you have the opportunity to go to a remote place and find history all around you in living color. For some people, they pursue it for a living, such as a treasure finder looking for a sunken ship out in the Gulf of Mexico. For historians, they read the history and then go seek the facts on location. For adventurers, they stumble into something of historical value and realize it later! That was exactly what happened to us. On this yearly trip going to a familiar place in the Smokies, we discovered secrets that had been around us for years hidden in the woods and we simply had no clue.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of my favorite views every time we kayak into the GSMNP from Fontana Marina. </td></tr>
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The location I am talking about is in the backcountry woods of the Eagle Creek area in North Carolina. I was introduced to this beautiful area by my friend Charlie in 2002, and have not stopped coming here every year. Little known to many, the southern side of the Great Smokey Mountains National Park yields nothing but pure beauty without all of the commercialization. It has been this way for years, partly because you are in a U.S Forest Service area and a U.S. National Park area all together in one spot, thus, little to no commercialization is in place. The area I am talking about is Fontana Lake. Fontana Lake has what many come here for, and that is nothing but beauty. They come to see the mountains in it's natural form. Fontana Resort, formed after the area was a large community to support the construction of the dam during WWII, took on the tourist role when the dam was completed. Fontana Dam by the way, is the tallest dam on the east coast and well worth seeing, at over 480 feet high. On the southern side of Fontana Lake, it is ran by the U.S. Forest Service with it's Cable Cove Campground right beside the lake. On the northern end of the lake, it is all National Park Service territory. It can be the quietest vacation trip you have ever taken if you want it to be. The closest town away is Robbinsville or Bryson City.<br />
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With all of those facts in hand, lets head out on our trip! We are heading out on a 3 day trip into the back country woods of the Smokies. As I have stated on blogs here before, we just basically head out across the lake over to one of about 3 remote back country campsites. You are totally on your own. There is no cell phone, very little radio contact, and nothing but wilderness. A permit is required to do this, so with the necessary paperwork complete, we all start our journey. You had better have your stuff together in this place. Help is NOT that fast and easy. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Boats parked at Eagle Creek Campground or Campsite #90</td></tr>
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We depart the Fontana Marina with 4 kayaks loaded with camping gear and two canoes with more camping gear. One person for each boat. We paddle Friday morning out across the lake to an area called Eagle Creek camping area, back country campsite #90. I have been doing this again and again since 2002. We either camp at Proctor or Eagle Creek. I have always known that Eagle Creek has a rich history with the timber industry BEFORE the construction of the Fontana dam from 1942-1945. It basically flooded the area and washed away an area deep in history. What I just did not realize was how important the area was and truly how much of a central "beehive" of progress and activity the area had from 1920-1938. The Great Smokey Mountain National Park or GSMNP for short, was started in 1938. When the Park Service took over, they basically cleared everyone out! The area was basically "frozen" in time if the lake did not consume it.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Further research on the internet reveals S. Flory Mfg. made lots of steam engines. </td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">An old boiler is left to tell the stories of history here. </td></tr>
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In 2010, my good friends Steve and Thomas, along with myself, began an extensive search for a mine operation near the mouth of Eagle Creek. My handheld GPS several years ago was showing a mining symbol less than 1 mile from where we camp, so the 3 of us looked and looked for it with no luck. We decided the mine did no exist or the way point on the map of it was incorrect in it's location. This year, all 6 of us agreed to help look for it again on this trip. After setting camp up on Friday, we set out in our boats. Paddling along the shore looks like "looking for a needle in a haystack" as the old southern saying goes. After all, it all looks like woods! My camping buddy and close friend Thomas had a great ideal. Paddle along the shore and we might find some kind of trail possibly where others have been to the mine site. Using the symbols on the GPS, studying the maps on the GPS, and looking at a paper map I had of the area, we slowly move along the banks. After about 30 minutes of searching, finally, we found a trail! All of us park our boats and start slowly looking for snakes as we inch up the small trail. May of 2012 seemed to be the year of the snakes, because after parking to set up camp just a few hours earlier, there were water snakes everywhere! One of our guys while at camp went over in the weeds to relieve himself and almost stepped on a baby rattlesnake! The weather was absolutely perfect with crystal clear blue skies. That may well be why all the snakes were out, the warmth of the sun. <br />
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As we make our way up the trail slowly, John points out hey!, railroad tracks! Bingo! We are hot on to something. The railroad metal is gone, but the ties are still down with a small stream bed running over the top of the tracks. We ease on up the slew/hollow and look and see a massive what we later determined was a steam boiler, seen here on the blog pictures. About 300 feet up, we hit the jackpot! 3 mine shafts with fencing around them! The park service has some fairly new fences up and some pretty stout warning signs about NO entrance is allowed due to the declining bat population. So we stand in amazement wondering about the mines and what is down in them. We can only speculate since the fines far exceed the amount of money I can afford to pay, not to mention jail time. John, Sam, Thomas, and Justin ease on up to explore all three mines while Eric, my nephew, stays with me snapping pictures and shooting video left and right. After about 10 minutes, someone yells out "awesome!". Eric and I look up and see this massive roughly 15 foot wide by 12 foot high cable assembly right straight across from the main mine or largest opening. It has massive 2 1/2 inch wide cable on the spool. Further inspection of it (see picture) seems to point that it was steam powered instead of motor powered. Words on this page cannot describe the feeling of seeing something that very people have seen and seeing items literally out of the 1920's to 1940's era left just as they were used. It is a moving experience for me, and a trivial event for some. My mind starts to wonder 10 thousand things about this place. We ease on down from the spool and head over to the boiler we saw when first coming up. There are numerous concrete pillows and foundations as part of the copper mining operation. If this blog fascinates you like it did my friends and me experiencing it, I invite you to click on the links at the bottom of this page and read further. You will quickly see that much of the history of this site is hidden in the water of Fontana Lake! When they dammed up the area, it killed out a lot of history. Be sure and check out the old pictures of the site. You can see that the lake engulfed much of it on it's creation. It must be pointed out that this area was already a massive timber operation, so life in those times and living in this would be a mixed blessing/curse. I am sure it provided hundreds of jobs and a good living, but pictures and history have told that this area was absolutely raped of timber and minerals. The industrial revolution had put everything as "free for grabs" back during these times, and management and proper stewardship of the land were about as Greek as the word "iPod" would be used back during that time. Upon reading further history of this mine AFTER I got back, at least one person died at the mines, and many were injured. 4 miles of narrow guage track and two locomotives, along with 10 ore cars were used. The "cable" assembly we found out lowered men and ore carts 2000 feet at a 45 degree angle into the main mine. There were also different levels and shafts of the mine. The research I read told of a boiler house and a shower room just down from the mine. I think that is what we may have found with the thick steel boiler drum out (see picture). Further reading yields a school, a doctors office, and homes all around the area. Some of this is buried in the lake and some of the foundations still exist on the other side of the hollow from the mine up in the woods. Thomas and Steve, my camping friends did find that 2 years ago, but we had no ideal what was hidden in the woods on the other side of the water!<br />
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The next day, my nephew Eric and I hiked up to Shuckstack abandoned fire tower and took pictures. I wrote about this trip a year ago here on this blog, so I will not bore you with that. I will share a picture of a mother bear and her cub that we shot pictures of just 50 feet down from the base of the forest tower. They were not the least bit afraid of Eric and I as we snapped pictures on our descent down. It just topped off a second amazing day at this beautiful place that God made and man visits. John and Sam, two of my other friends kayaked over to Proctor, another remote back country area rich in history. It was once the largest town in the Smokies. It was a massive lumber mill and town. We will save that writing for another trip. I have visited this place many times before I started my blog, so I hope to cover that area down the road in a future blog. It has a cemetery that tells the story of this place, of short life spans of families, and all the trials of hard times back then.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bears in trees about 100 feet below the base of the forest tower. Not a care in the world towards us as we snap this picture. </td></tr>
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Our third day, we woke up to rain, rain, rain, and more rain. We broke down our hammocks and tents down in the rain, we paddled in the rain back to the marina, we loaded boats in the rain, and drove over 5 hours in the rain. It was all good though and very much worth it. I would do it all again in a New York second. One of the many things I learned from this trip is this: Sometimes you just look and see a mountain with trees, and that is all you think of. What you don't realize is what wildlife, and more importantly for this article what treasures of the past it hides.<br />
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As we wind up this trip, I thought I would leave you with a video clip taken from the over 4,000 foot high at Shuckstack tower overlooking Fontana Lake, Fontana Dam, and the Smokies. It was taken with my head band HD camera or "nerd cam" as I call it. I hope you enjoy the view as we did.<br />
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Until another day of adventures, we go back to the grind of work and the routines of life. See you on the next trip! Below are some resources and history of the Eagle Creek Mine if you are interested in reading more.<br />
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http://www.northshoreheritagememories.com/eaglecreek.html</div>
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<a href="http://www.ecjones.org/scenery/_Great_Smoky_Mtns_NP/_Eagle_Creek/Fontana_Mine/Fontana_Copper_Mine.pdf" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1337116188_3">http://www.ecjones.org/scenery/_Great_Smoky_Mtns_NP/_Eagle_Creek/Fontana_Mine/Fontana_Copper_Mine.pdf</span></a><br />
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<span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1337116188_3"><span style="color: black;">FOOTNOTE for history buffs: </span></span><br />
<span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1337116188_3"><span style="color: black;">It was pointed out to me that one of the pictures that shows the cable spool manufacturer- "S. Flory Manufacturing" on the side of it, is a very old company that produced steam locomotive engines for trains and other steam powered industrial equipment for years. This verifies that indeed, the mill equipment was ran by steam powered equipment rather than gas engines. </span></span></div>
VideoRexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16342756961482992738noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1459368010805427886.post-13397414095071224812012-04-13T12:02:00.000-05:002013-02-03T00:00:28.848-06:00Canoeing Sipsey River in the Bankhead National Forest-Alabama<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiewZxItuQajOVgA06VPJTonm9TJ7vGdJfW3QHYwM-KSwJwk6FB-F96OSxZvArYPZFH277_0CjyvDxrrFj5Js72GFtzUnSYosi6WKVumRnZ8F7gC_VvSFhBGTmHHIUx2CoJBOyHOll6EaY/s1600/DSCN0251.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiewZxItuQajOVgA06VPJTonm9TJ7vGdJfW3QHYwM-KSwJwk6FB-F96OSxZvArYPZFH277_0CjyvDxrrFj5Js72GFtzUnSYosi6WKVumRnZ8F7gC_VvSFhBGTmHHIUx2CoJBOyHOll6EaY/s320/DSCN0251.JPG" width="320" /></a>Writing about an area you live 30 minutes from can be somewhat boring for some places, but living this close, to this kind of beauty, well hey, I am more than happy to tell you about it! We are talking about the Sipsey River canoe and kayak "standard run". This standard run that the locals call, is about a 9 mile stretch from the Sipsey River Recreation Area on County Road 60 (also called Cranal Road) to the takeout that is underneath a large bridge on Alabama Highway 33 going to Double Springs. This is a half day to full day, to even an overnight trip if you want. The main thing to remember is timing it right for the water levels. We will discuss that later on.<br />
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<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Planning</span></b><br />
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If you want to plan to do this trip then you will need to have two vehicles of course to start with, and you will need to watch water levels and the weather closely. This run is very popular almost all times of the year except the dead of summer when it is very dry. The best times are January-May, with February and March being about the peek times because of rainfall. Sipsey is not regulated by man and is regulated by God and the weather, so prior planning is important to ensure a fun trip. Poor planning will result in dragging your canoe or kayak down the river with a rope rather than riding in it. A great place to start watching the water levels and learn more about this river is to go to Alabamawhitewater.com. If you explore this site, you will see a whole page devoted to tips and water levels to watch for. Remember too, that canoeists over the years have always referred to the "level" or "gauge" being the gauge on the side of the concrete bridge for years. More recently, the U.S. Governments gauge that can be viewed on the internet is viewed as "cubic feet per second". Most people just have problems using that as the gauge, so they always go back and refer to the old fashioned system of the "gauge on the side of the bridge". It is measured in feet. From my experience, if you want an easy float trip with little challenges, look for a 1-1.5 foot guage. The website I spoke of above will help you in converting the "wooden gauge" or "gauge at the bridge" to cubic feet per second. Sipsey can offer anything you want just about, from a Class IV to a Class I. In other words, never take Sipsey lightly as being easy. It all depends on mother nature. I have a friend who has canoed and camped Sipsey for some 13 years. He almost died by drowning on the Sipsey and will tell you in hair tingling details of being trapped under his canoe in ragging water about on his last breath, so he has great respect for this river. As with any trip, expect to be turned over and pack accordingly by securing everything in your canoe or kayak. Throw everything in the canoe not tied down at certain times of the year will guarantee free "gifts" to those on the river at some point in time. I remember like yesterday, floating down Sipsey and finding a dazed and confused guy standing in about 3 feet of water holding his kayak, soaked to the bone. He simply said "If you see a Magellan Meridian GPS floating down the creek, it's mine". I thought, that's about a $400 item. I guess he will tie the next new GPS he buys down, because that one is gone!<br />
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Be prepared for stunning scenery, as this is a National Forest and there is nothing but God made materials all around. Park one vehicle at the take out on Highway 33 going to Double Springs. The takeout is easy to find because it is the ONLY large bridge span you will encounter on your way traveling through the forest going on Alabama Highway 33 to Double Springs. Bear in mind, that you are parking your vehicle on private property and not on forest property. It is done all the time, and the people that own the property allow this knowing hundreds of people want to paddle Sipsey, and this is the only place to really park your vehicle and use this place as a takeout. I have recently been disturbed at the number of garbage that is piling up around that area. I realize at some point, the people who own this will get tired of this and say, no more! At that point it will become about impossible to practically take this trip with no really good takeout point. On the put in side, park your second car or truck at Sipsey Recreation Area on County Road 60 or Cranal Road as it is called by locals. Be prepared to pay the U.S. Forest Service $3.00 for the privilege of parking on property you help pay for. It is good for one day. If staying overnight, then add another $3.00. You will fill out a form and hang it on your windshield or put on your dash. Everyone that comes from out of town always asks "is my vehicle safe here?". I have parked at the recreation area many times over many years, and only once in about 10 years did I hear of a short rash of cars being hit at those two places. Most of the time you are safe to leave it there. Keeping important items out of site is important as it would be anywhere you park and leave your car. They have an upper parking lot where I recommend parking and a lower parking lot where you will cross a very old (I remember playing on it in Boy Scouts in the 1970's) wooden bridge. Take this route to park and put your canoe in the water, then park it up on the upper parking lot. Security wise it is safer and theft wise it is a better more open place to park. Also, bear in mind there is absolutely NO cell phone coverage in the forest except in some high places or on the southern end of the forest, so tell your loved ones where you going because there is no calling for easy help.<br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><b>The Trip</b></span><br />
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If the water levels are right, you can shoot down and finish this trip in about 3 hours, but I highly recommend you plan a full day, or even an overnight. The majority of folks take the one day trip. There are many hidden waterfalls along the way and breathtaking bluffs that are hidden back in the trees, but you must stop at least at one place, Hurricane Creek Falls. It is located on the left just past the 100 yard dash. The 100 yard dash as it is called, is a long stretch of class II water that you shoot down as the river gets narrow. A lot of people camp here overnight and watch people come down this stretch for entertainment. For many amateurs, if they are going to get dumped out then this is the place. If you do camp here and want to be a good samaritan, then take an extra garbage bag with you to help haul out trash that "low life folks" left behind at the popular camping spot. There is nothing more sicking than sitting around the camp fire with 22 empty beer bottles and cans surrounding you. This last time we camped there, mice would come out at night while we were around the campfire. A sign that too much garbage is being left behind this at this place! When you are on the trip, take your time when floating down the river, listen to nature, and try and absorb the spectacular scenery. I have been all over the United States and all over Alaska, and still to this day, Bankhead offers scenery that cannot be found in other places.<br />
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<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Hurricane Creek Falls</span></b><br />
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As I mentioned earlier, just down from the 100 yard dash, start looking for the first creek or inlet on the left. This is the area you will want to pull in and park your boat. Walk about a quarter of a mile up the creek and canyon to see the stunning Hurricane Creek Falls. Take the time and sit down to watch, listen and absorb the beauty of this waterfall and the canyon it spills in to. You will not regret it. There are several other falls along the way to see, depending on the water level, the time of the year, and the amount of time you have to see them. Hurricane Creek Falls is "a must see" in my book.<br />
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Many of the locals in North Alabama and Eastern Mississippi have this trip slotted just about every year, and its popularity is growing. The run and water itself is really nothing spectacular, but the color of the water, the beautiful bluffs, foliage, moss, and scenery around you cannot be described nor seen in almost any other place. Remember that monitoring the water level is important or else you will have hiked dragging your boat down Sipsey, or missed the narrows of death from the ragging current. Sipsey can toss both of those at you without prior planning. Have fun!VideoRexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16342756961482992738noreply@blogger.comCounty Road 60, William B. Bankhead National Forest, Double Springs, AL 35553, USA34.285304262527852 -87.3989868164062534.259063762527852 -87.438468816406257 34.311544762527852 -87.359504816406243tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1459368010805427886.post-91516561183937587082011-11-15T08:28:00.013-06:002011-11-22T19:20:40.178-06:00Hiking to the Highest Lodge in the Eastern United States-Mount LeConte Lodge<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8CXmF3pbYM2WZ_FzHd_r2Z9RH3PHrGOKjJvehnInG6t8tHMl0DmL6adsNSCQ1PQAkgpjmCBXOFLuRsikr_UZI8b0F326iLhw0gx6Ej2mGCxdAlaugcp5_jHlTFbyurAbRZ4d4z0mEI4o/s1600/100_4654.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8CXmF3pbYM2WZ_FzHd_r2Z9RH3PHrGOKjJvehnInG6t8tHMl0DmL6adsNSCQ1PQAkgpjmCBXOFLuRsikr_UZI8b0F326iLhw0gx6Ej2mGCxdAlaugcp5_jHlTFbyurAbRZ4d4z0mEI4o/s200/100_4654.JPG" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjzlJCUjzmSSkwNLGAHAlfnsLGSmYrejpC9MNKxzr8RCQluGM5bRE0zJOUp0Xh50OFCrSui0TWygOnadeNAB169t-50qh9o0WEIrctQY2dO16pIbAQaq_2MAEWg_c4Xr81XBpxznQHOyY/s1600/IMG_1269.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><br />
</a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjzlJCUjzmSSkwNLGAHAlfnsLGSmYrejpC9MNKxzr8RCQluGM5bRE0zJOUp0Xh50OFCrSui0TWygOnadeNAB169t-50qh9o0WEIrctQY2dO16pIbAQaq_2MAEWg_c4Xr81XBpxznQHOyY/s1600/IMG_1269.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="97" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjzlJCUjzmSSkwNLGAHAlfnsLGSmYrejpC9MNKxzr8RCQluGM5bRE0zJOUp0Xh50OFCrSui0TWygOnadeNAB169t-50qh9o0WEIrctQY2dO16pIbAQaq_2MAEWg_c4Xr81XBpxznQHOyY/s400/IMG_1269.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">A few times in your life, you are offered a unique opportunity to do something. Many people do not realize this opportunity in their life and simply pass it by. Others say I don't have time, maybe another day or another time in my life. There are a few that say "hey, I am doing this at all cost! I may not have another opportunity!". This is what fell my way recently with this trip and it will go down as another one that I will remember until the day I die. </div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">This is a story and an adventure trip about Mount LeConte Lodge in the Great Smokey Mountains National Park in Tennessee (USA). Pack your day pack up and go along with me. All you need is a change of clothes, some lunch on the trail, water, and a few toiletry items. Before we start, here is a background on this amazing place. It's impact on my wife, my friends, and myself will live with us forever. </div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">About 8 years ago, I went to my doctor and I was telling him about all the backpacking trips I had been on that year in the hopes he would tone down on chewing me out for high cholesterol (it didn't work). He replied with "my son and I just got back from Mount LeConte Lodge in the Smokies and had a great weekend". I told him I had never heard of this and he began to explain. I consider myself to know a lot about the Great Smokey Mountains National Park and he threw one over on me with this one. The ole "Google search tool" later on when I got home was the answer to a lot of questions he presented by telling me about this lodge. I became more curious and decided to get a group up and go. For 3 years, I fought to try and secure reservations at this amazing place and failed. I called and called, sent E-mails, and no luck. They either did not answer the reservation phone or never returned E-mails. My good camping friend Brett changed all of that this in 2011. He made it happen. How, I don't know but he made it happen. That is all that matters!</div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Mount LeConte, is one of the three tallest mountains in the Great Smokey Mountains National Park. It is right up there with Clingman's Dome (6,643 feet), Mount Guyot (6,621feet), and then Mount LeConte at 6,593 feet. There is controversy over this mountain's name and which member of the LeConte family it was named for, so we will not go there. Paul Adams, an enthusiastic hiker and explorer that had moved to Knoxville, Tennessee in the early 1920's started out with tents up on the mountain to promote the beauty of the mountain to customers. He later built a lodge. The National Park Service took over the land where the lodge is located but contracts the use of the lodge out, continuing a tradition that was started many years ago. Mount LeConte lodge is now a series of buildings or cabins. The main office and lounge area were built in the 1960's, but the first lodge built still stands. On this trip, we got the honor of staying in this first cabin that was built. The first site was actually at a different spot, just a short piece back up the trail. The current lodge cabins can accommodate a total of about 50 people. The most amazing part of the lodge is that it is a trip back in time! Relics from the 20's are still up there. There is no power available, and only kerosene lamps light your way in the cabins. The workers and all guests MUST hike to this place. Lamas are used twice a week to deliver supplies up the mountain. A helicopter changes out the propane tanks every so often. This practice has only been done the last 3-4 years. Prior to the propane tanks, they had used kerosene heaters since the 1920's. The lodge is open from March until November of each year, and some lonesome sole or soles have the duty of staying at the cabins all winter long to watch and care for this amazing place during it's closure of the winter months. More about this place later on. For now, grab your pack and lets head out in the car to get to the trail head!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCuLLnxweizMeyqy9A09APPDJwHxbPMVD1Auu2ws5RvdPwbXufTkK2tQphnN06VO7Qb5GxV3oeKPevmL-3NTZA6hyphenhyphencNoiRdFBoXSt672eR3MYDBEZcNgnrX9DDL3U2P58FZoRHmcXVGoM/s1600/IMG_1248.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br />
</a></div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b>THE LONG HIKING JOURNEY BEGINS</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Sunday morning, November 6, 2011-We meet at a pancake house in downtown Gatlinburg, Tennesee for a large breakfast to start the hike out. The route we are taking up is one of about 5 trails available to reach the lodge. On this trip, we have picked the shortest (5.3 miles) but also the steepest! After eating, we drive on down to the Sugarlands Visitor Center of the Great Smokey Mountains National Park to meet all parties in the group. After we depart from there headed on up to Chimney Tops and Newfound Gap, we stop just past Chimney Tops on the left at Alum Cave Trailhead. Being the "geek" that I am on electronics, I am constantly watching my altimeter watch as we climb higher and higher in altitude with our cars. It is here at the Alum Cave Parking we get out all of our packs, hiking staffs, and mentally start preparing for the big challenge. My wife has been nervous about this part for some 2 months. I too, not having been hiking in a while have some visions of what lay ahead. It is a beautiful day. The high temperature in the low areas is in the mid 60's. The high at Mount LeConte is in the upper 50's. Lows are forecast in the mid to upper 30's, so not too bad with the cold (Interestingly enough, Mount LeConte has never recorded a temperature warmer than 80 degrees F due to it's high elevation). An almost full moon is scheduled to greet us in the night, so with almost no clouds, a spectacular sunset looks like it will play out for us tonight! At 9:18 a.m. we head out, with Brett, my camping buddy and friend leading the way with his wife. This will be his 5th trip up, and he knows this place well. Ask him and he will tell you 5 x50 is how many more times he will go and stay at this place. He loves it. I know now that if Brett loves it, I am sure I will too. Steve and I have talked about this place for years. It just never seemed possible to actually get a reservation. We start out stopping at a sign not too far down the trail that says "Mount LeConte Lodge-5.0 miles". We snap pictures here to start out the epic journey (in our own little worlds). The normal rate for most folks to ascend to the top is 3-4 hours. It is never a race for anyone, at least you would think. I soon found out that it is for some. In our party, we had all skill levels of hikers, so Brett had told us that we can take our time. We have all day to get to the top. It is a good thing we did have all day, because that is about what it took. One of the members in our party had recently been diagnosed with only 60 percent of his lungs were working up to full and some others in the party had not had much hiking experience. For the first hour, we marched along at a fairly brisk pace, partly because we were refreshed and ready to go and second because the terrain was not that bad. After about an hour into the hike, it quickly became apparent that this will be a "mind game" to overcome the uphill forces of nature and gravity! I had warned my wife beforehand that hiking in this kind of terrain involves a lot of mind games. Your mind goes through waves of "I am not sure I can make this" to "Just a little bit further, I think I will make it just fine". People that do not hike very much and take on this trip don't know how to cope with this. I had some good hiking friends early on warn me about this. If you hike/walk/backpack long distances, your "mental drive" is just as important as your "physical drive". If you allow your mind to tell you for 3 hours that you cannot make this trip then guess what, you probably won't make this trip because you quit. "Mind over body". Ever hear this expression? That is everything in hiking in remote wilderness areas. As we walk and walk and walk, making our way up the mountain, the beauty gets better and better. If you take your thoughts off the pains in your legs and focus on the beauty, it becomes a much better trip. The crowd of 3 couples and one individual on this trip (we will come back down with another couple that arrived a few days before us) starts to spread out as the hours go by. As you pause to catch your breath, you are stunned by the beauty around you. With the elevation, most all of the leaves are gone off of the trees, and so this yields to spectacular views looking across the mountains. Around lunchtime, we stop at near the halfway point. It is Alum Cave. The smell of sulfur is clear in the air here. This was a key ingredient in the making of gun powder, and so I am sure this place has some historical stories to tell. It is a large bluff type shelter with the pungent odor of sulfur. We sit down, catch our breath, and grab some lunch. With such a steep angle of terrain, it makes for some really weird pictures (see attached of crew with packs and hiking staffs-Photo courtesy of Dewanna Jones). Around 2 p.m., the mental anguish kicks in with everyone except Brett and his wife, who have made this journey so many times. Brett informs us that we are about to encounter the worst part of the hike. It is the last mile and a half. We later named it the "torture mile". It is a very steep incline that just keeps going up and up and up with little to no flat areas. At times, the trail gets very narrow with cables secured into the rock to help you hang on and keep from slipping down the extremely steep ridges the trails are built on (see picture of trail area like this). The edge drops off hundreds of feet in places. If you are afraid of heights, just don't look off the edge and look straight up the trail and you will be fine. Many of the trail parts have solid rock which at times were slippery with ice left from the snow that had melted and refroze. We were told the lodge had remnants of snow from a few days before and this explained the ice. I have to say, this is the toughest part of the trail. It is a good thing that it is in the last mile or so. It it were halfway, many folks would simply turn around and go back. As we made our journey up, I had forgotten to zero the trip odometer on my GPS, and so all we had to go on was the elevation. Knowing the top of the mountain was 6,593 feet, just about everyone in the party was asking me what our current elevation was. I had a watch on me with an altimeter, and so I just kept calling the elevation out and informed everyone of our progress by shouting out elevation levels at various times. We also asked folks coming down the mountain from the lodge "how much further". Both of this methods has pros and cons. How much further might depend on how much in shape they were. Elevation levels being called out may also discourage you as well. You are are 5,400 feet, your legs are shot, and you know you have another 1,000 feet to go! Not good on the mental state! The average time to get to this neat place is about 3-4 hours you may recall. On this day with all the parties, it took us 6 hours! As we get near the top, the elevation finally leveled out. After 15 more minutes, we arrived! Mount LeConte Lodge, elevation 6,593 feet. The flat hiking trail was EXTREMELY slick from the packed down snow that had become ice from so much foot traffic. We had brought along foot traction to add to our shoes. It was such a short stretch to the lodge that we decided to just take our time and not fool with putting them on our boots. Final arrival time was 3:05 p.m. EST.</div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b><br />
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<b>ARRIVAL AT MOUNT LeCONTE LODGE</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Arriving at the lodge offers a unique view that you might not expect. Extremely old cabins, wooden roofs, and a about as rustic as you can go in appearance. No modern day brilliant colored signs, but rather simple wooden signs that pointed the way- Dining Hall, Cabins, and Lodge Office all with arrows. The now famous signs that are hanging above the dining hall show today's date, something that is changed out manually every day. The main focus areas of the lodge are the dining hall, the office/lounge, where you can purchase shirts, mail a letter from the lodge (transported down by lamas), the rest rooms in which are housed in two buildings. One building is the older "latrine" style (rarely used now), and the newer flush toilets (heavily used and appreciated). The remaining buildings are used for storage, employee cabins, or for guests. They vary in size and accommodations. Depending on how large of a party you have may determine what type/size of cabin you are given. Upon arrival, we are greeted with hot chocolate or coffee. I must say, that was the best hot chocolate I have had in a long time! The first view many people get after being greeted with a warm cup of chocolate is the view out the dining room deck. It is spectacular! You look down from over 6,000 feet into the valley where you can see the cities of Sevierville, Pigeon Forge, and at the base of the mountain, Gatlinburg, Tennessee. Right out in front of the deck down below is the cabins of the employees as well as a bear trap, weather station, and propane tanks lined up with a fence around them. Why would you mention this detail you might ask? Because they all have their own stories. First, the propane tanks: Since the 1920's, the cabins have all been heated by kerosene. The lamps at night use them as well. About 3-4 years ago, it was decided to switch all cabins over to propane gas. From talking to others that stayed in the past, this was very much welcome. The cabins have black walls and black pictures hanging on the walls from the soot from using kerosene heat and lamps. The lamps alone, put out a lot of soot. The tanks are switched out from time to time using a large helicopter that carries one off and sets another refilled one down. I would love to see this task done up here! The Bear trap: Well, not much explanation here, other than the fact that from time to time they have a bear problem up here. There were bear warnings out by the Park Service on this trip as a matter of fact. With Mount LeConte shelter with backpackers and food being brought up and cooked outdoors not far down the trail from the lodge, bears that are really hungry will stray in the area, mainly at night. If they become too bad, they set the bear trap up at the lodge. Interestingly enough, all of the cabins up here have strong wire like cage material over the windows. This is to keep some bear from wanting to crash the party I suppose. The lodge encourages everyone to not even leave food they brought up with them in the cabins. Not so much from the standpoint of bears, but mice. They are and have been a horrible problem until this action was taken. Now, residents are asked to bring ANY of the food they brought up and are asked to put in a metal can in the lounge area for the night. </div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwi-pimAGNHpsRI-oLBhYNJGZ6aEcQ_3Je5-zH4swRrdY3M_Khg2ziWFB-qer0_18EPR1gHtrsxBoepHLhhXMPN2tK3qeimk9xOAO4FQpW8XCfYppVaKRYc_d1Z6sh9cdyy-hTUssVO84/s1600/100_4668.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><br />
</a>Last the weather station: It is interesting to point out that in the hottest of ever recorded summers, Mount LeConte has never been above 80 degrees F. This is the place to be in the summer heat! The flip side of that is cold. Man do they see so bitter cold up here unprotected. Snow is quite frequent for the south up at this altitude. It basically has it's own weather system this high up in the mountains. It reminds me of Alaska. No weather forecast is 100 percent accurate. The mountains have their own patterns of weather that can be unpredictable. </div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">After some warm drink and rest, we head over into our cabin and get it ready before darkness and suppertime. The cabin we are in will sleep about 5-6 couples. Again, it was the first lodge there. Other cabins around sleep less than that. They are all extremely old. There is an old table with a kerosene lantern by our bed. It also has a bucket to fill warm water available from the kitchen and wash up in your cabin. Soap, empty hot chocolate/coffee mugs and matches are all on the table for use. Full bathing is not possible at the lodge, but small washings or "bird baths" as my mother used to call them are for everyone. That is the reason for the bucket. Looking at the age of this cabin does two things to people. They either fall in love immediately and are ready to stay, or for some, it looks to old and creepy to be happy. It was no problem for any of us. When you are this tired after walking 5.3 miles, anything looks good! Before we settle in, there is still plenty to do, so lets get going!</div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b><br />
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<b>PREPARING FOR OUTDOOR CHURCH SERVICE</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Well, they may have gotten your attention. It might as well be called that. The standard thing you do at Mount LeConte is to hike just under a mile on up to the real top of the mountain (LeConte Lodge is really not at the TOP of the mountain) to see the sunset. THAT is a "must do" if you have the slightest bit of strength left in you to do. On this day, about 40 people hiked up the continuing incline making it's way to the top. Couple with that, ice that was stepped on, glazed over, and you have some really bad conditions. Most all of the ones in our team went except two. They stayed back at the cabin in the warmth. The rest of us braved the elements and headed to the top. Reaching the top of Mount LeConte is absolutely stunning! No words ever written here can describe the breeze, the smell, the panoramic view, the sun of God's beauty shining down on all the mountains around and underneath you. Sitting down, we all wait with anticipation for the sun's moment to remember. As we glance around, Steve points out the small tower at the top of the mountain across from us. He or someone around us points out this is Clingman's Dome, the highest point. The trouble is, you feel like you are even with it, so you don't feel like it is taller than you. As everyone sits around, talks, laughs, and carry on and waiting for the moment, many cameras on tripods, binoculars, and video cameras are all posed for the moment. Finally, God's light show kicks in gear wide open as the sun starts setting, setting the stage for colors changing, patterns, sun dogs (sun hitting high cirrus ice clouds) and light rays being cast and shown. It is truly a spiritual experience. One that I will never forget. How could watching the sun go down be such a big deal you ask? Well, you have to be there and you will know exactly what I am talking about! It provokes a mental stimulus that is hard to beat. It is similar to those sunsets people describe on the ocean. As the sun disappears over the horizon, some claps and some "wows" are heard among the crowd. Unreal! </div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b><br />
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<b>LET'S EAT!</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">After a breathtaking sunset with little clouds and miles and miles of visibility, we make our way down, slowly! The ice has just further froze and so getting down the rocks coming down in elevation proved to be a lot more than some bargained for! At times, it was downright treacherous! We finally made it down the mountain back to the lodge, and about the time we did, we hear the familiar sound of a triangle announcing dinner time! Time to eat! When you think of how many years they have made this familiar sound at the lodge announcing dinner, it truly is amazing to be here. Supper yields some very hungry people! After making such a long hike, anything, and I mean just about anything is mouth watering. First up, they bring out a half of a peach, potato soup and cornbread. After everyone indulges and partakes that, they bring round two. It is roast beef, cream potatoes, green beans, gravy if you want it. Top the meal off with a large thick chocolate chip cookie that is sliced like a brownie. If you want seconds and thirds, they are more than happy to feed it to you. It was one amazing meal after a long 5 mile day. The sunset and the meal just topped it off! Now, time to walk over to the lounge area and sit in old time rocking chairs around the stove. That was awesome as well. We talked for about an hour, resting with the meals settling in our stomachs. This is times you don't forget about. It is a time where you don't want it to end. It did though. Some rather wild and loud card playing folks at the table behind us suddenly started drowning out the conversations, and so we moved over to the old living room of our cabin. We talked for about another hour and then all decided to head to bed. The original plan was for some of us to get up early enough to watch the sun come up the next morning on the other side of the mountain. As the evening moves on, that ideal is becoming harder and harder to full fill. With every muscle aching in our bodies, most everyone decides, "I think I will pass". With warm and toasty propane gas heaters in every room, the night saw little need of much blankets, except for my wife. She shook and shivered all night long from cold. I don't really know why. I stayed very comfortable. One of the long time friends of Brett, whose name is Pat who had been many times with his wife Jennie, commented that the normal is if you sleep on the top bunk, the heaters will run you out and you lay half naked on top of the bunk bed burning up. If you sleep on the bottom of the bunk beds (they are regular sized bunk beds), you will freeze all night. They explained it all! Just before we went to bed, the moon, almost at full was shining brightly down on us. It yielded a spectacular view of the mountains and the valley at night. The sun was so bright, we were fascinated to see that the solar panels that have "auto trackers" to follow the sun during the day, were following the moon that night because it was so bright! </div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b><br />
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<b>BILLIONS OF STARS</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">At about 5 in the morning, my wife and I had about all of the bladder being full that we could stand. It is one those times laying in bed when your body says "nope, I am NOT allowing you to go back to sleep until you address this bladder problem." We both decided to get up and make the short hike over to the rest rooms to settle this. When I went out, I let her go on and I stayed out for a little bit. Words here cannot come close to describing the nighttime sky. There were billions of stars out that could be seen since the moon had gone down. I cannot remember how long it has been since I saw this many stars out. With such a high altitude, you forget how clear the air is up here! I could have stayed out for hours, but after my wife returns to me from the rest room and I address my bladder problem, we head back for a couple of more hours of sleep. </div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b><br />
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<b>A BLESSING AND A CURSE</b></div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
Monday morning, November 7, 2011-Morning yields a blue sky, beautiful sunlight, and warmer temperatures. The low was only in the upper 30's. Pretty good considering this is November. I begin the cursed task of packing things up slowly, getting fresh water from the well, and then waiting for the breakfast bell sounding to come and eat. Several people were up just before 8 a.m. standing outside for the cue that breakfast was ready. The rest rooms were full, so you knew most everyone was up and ready to dive in for round two of a great meal. As we sit down to eat, I ran over and shoot some video with my iPhone. This moment has to be captured to share! Breakfast starts with pancakes. Later, grits (a southern thing), eggs and ham are brought out. It was amazing. I was told later that most of the supper was just canned goods, but hey, I will take it any day in my book. It was awesome! Breakfast was extremely good. The glass at another table taps with a loud noise like someone is making an announcement. The crowd quiets down and one of the employees at the lodge says "I would like to welcome everyone to Mount LeConte Lodge. We hope you enjoyed your stay with us and we hope you have a safe journey back down the mountain. We invite you back anytime you can come and stay with us. Be safe and remember to pack out all of the trash you brought up here. Thanks and have a great day". The noise and the eating resumes. Wow, what a unique and amazing breakfast, and to think that all of this has to be brought up here to the mountain! </div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b><br />
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<b>THE DESCENT BACK TO REALITY</b></div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
About 9:25 a.m., we all head out back down the mountain. There is something interesting this time going DOWN the mountain. Everyone is screaming in speed down the mountain. There are very few stops for rest this time. It's only gravity pushing you and the calves of your legs reminding you of muscles you have not used in a long time. Coming down, we scream in at 12:30 a.m. Some of the crew even makes it in at 12 noon. What a contrast! I stop some with my buddy Brett and we admire some of the scenery. We both snap pictures and discuss the trip. My wife is just ahead of me and stops some, but is mainly headed for that car and to get those boots off! Steve, Dewanna, and Don, must have zoomed down the mountain. They beat everyone. Pat and Jennie stay back with us as well and we all have conversations down the mountain that really top a trip off and make it wonderful as well. It's the fellowship and the nature that ties anything amazing like this together. As we get to the car, in a rather tired and ill tone, my wife says she needs to get the car open so she can get these boots off-NOW! She made it fine as did everyone else. 5.3 miles show up on my GPS since I reset it to zero at the cabin. We pause for a group picture (taken by a total stranger) at the trail head parking, shake hands, and vow we will be back to this amazing place. Brett doesn't bat an eye. Even with this being his 5th trip, he is ready to book next year, immediately!</div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b><br />
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<b>TWO "OLE GOATS"</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b><br />
</b></div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I must close with some humor for everyone. With my wife and I (both in our early 50's) on our drive back home, we sat in the car for about 5 hours on the drive home before we decide to get out and eat supper. As we get out, it is all we can do to move. I consider myself in shape at this stuff, but for some reason, 10 miles of trail hit me! We both poked across the restaurant parking lot at .4 miles per hour. Traffic in the drive though had to wait what seemed like minutes until we crossed in front of them and finally got out of the way at a tortoise pace. Man, I have not been this "stiff" ever! After 5 minutes of walking around, I returned somewhat to normal. My wife still recalls that and laughs at how we looked. We looked and felt like grandma and grandpa. </div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">If you ever have the opportunity to do this amazing journey, please take the time now to do something similar while you still have your health. If you cannot make this journey, then it is my wish that you enjoyed going along with us on this trip. I hope that the writings I have here have portrayed the images I witnessed with this incredible beauty. It's all out there folks. The beauty of nature and God's creations are all for the taking. All you have to do is push your body sometimes to get to these places and open your eyes. I guarantee you it will cleanse your mind and body from this crazy world we live and deal with on a daily basis. It puts the meaning of life back in check with your mind by clearing the "stuff" out we deal with daily. </div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">See you on the next adventure! Thanks for going with us!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHtvigF13MnOnakQg3c8kkSbcjplybeEQnh1mmE9JzZ2ype24xUrj_CEhyCBwxbeHZa03poHHDJsmaImpq1nDvFofnOgXaNdhSzNb66_lG4P2XqkXLOlf0kpd-zZ7EZB6_xqawjfvWnEo/s1600/100_4673.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHtvigF13MnOnakQg3c8kkSbcjplybeEQnh1mmE9JzZ2ype24xUrj_CEhyCBwxbeHZa03poHHDJsmaImpq1nDvFofnOgXaNdhSzNb66_lG4P2XqkXLOlf0kpd-zZ7EZB6_xqawjfvWnEo/s320/100_4673.JPG" width="320" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGJne4PVl_-EILdhYbYal1oPF5epnWC0xVXHnErvOyHVhTloyEUvhU0lJMFa6pmEAFLjZ5Wi7Ij3I7UxjTtpc3akJlb6pp-38awvz0a6yS3Kc_1HTaeHoVrlVmWfkVL0sOTJfA4ja2K74/s1600/100_4626.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGJne4PVl_-EILdhYbYal1oPF5epnWC0xVXHnErvOyHVhTloyEUvhU0lJMFa6pmEAFLjZ5Wi7Ij3I7UxjTtpc3akJlb6pp-38awvz0a6yS3Kc_1HTaeHoVrlVmWfkVL0sOTJfA4ja2K74/s320/100_4626.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
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text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9QUpFFtvlEs-GgKGFjAZdWW_6jb1uf4pQsQ3_shDqb9dqDDX8SxoZ47dAIChqhfn5xhG81aycKrhOklK9MAP25BEjCFK7bSTfCidjRSeE3EyZsbRni_BD52fQja8eeE9OUJy1TFmgVPI/s1600/100_4752.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9QUpFFtvlEs-GgKGFjAZdWW_6jb1uf4pQsQ3_shDqb9dqDDX8SxoZ47dAIChqhfn5xhG81aycKrhOklK9MAP25BEjCFK7bSTfCidjRSeE3EyZsbRni_BD52fQja8eeE9OUJy1TFmgVPI/s320/100_4752.JPG" width="320" /></a><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dzaSt_F6iij2mYpyckW5XRMdyDEUg2B0gDgnAM5czegiOKS0Y3z2zE0VuHSQM9xzdWBcxUg0hDvHoALirVq5w' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>VideoRexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16342756961482992738noreply@blogger.comSevierville, United States35.665664690028485 -83.41987647363282635.425409190028482 -83.689918973632828 35.905920190028489 -83.149833973632823tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1459368010805427886.post-29924733507212693992011-08-29T21:52:00.020-05:002016-03-05T20:52:26.248-06:00The Big Tree-Sipsey Wilderness Area-Bankhead National Forest-Preferred Hiking Route<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJCmaSpMv1U2Coxr47o45T2NgvHLr5rWSB_qT17hbSDirt0RQpgj5S2pOV1pmVYddpBneEA5qnb8IPuap0w2rtc_GvLG7Qc8i0vtMtp3dKaU_E2JXULPJhyN0aGtkWqoXIFtqGoYphNCc/s1600/Big+Tree+Route+Cropped.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646646733767526962" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJCmaSpMv1U2Coxr47o45T2NgvHLr5rWSB_qT17hbSDirt0RQpgj5S2pOV1pmVYddpBneEA5qnb8IPuap0w2rtc_GvLG7Qc8i0vtMtp3dKaU_E2JXULPJhyN0aGtkWqoXIFtqGoYphNCc/s400/Big+Tree+Route+Cropped.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; float: left; height: 352px; margin: 0 10px 10px 0; width: 400px;" /></a>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHYKc-2jzK2Zy9WVyZrJmQaslEUCJ2qQu6S4EKZDpSI9GzeQ51N-jdWtTgSqrEKTHVUIMAGE2YMqO_HunHtVXDWlmhFqQ0OY0uffa1FkwDBeit5i8owxbTgUTIpRC5U5Mo85BCxLU5trY/s1600/Thompson+Creek+Parking+Cropped.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646646632696752242" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHYKc-2jzK2Zy9WVyZrJmQaslEUCJ2qQu6S4EKZDpSI9GzeQ51N-jdWtTgSqrEKTHVUIMAGE2YMqO_HunHtVXDWlmhFqQ0OY0uffa1FkwDBeit5i8owxbTgUTIpRC5U5Mo85BCxLU5trY/s400/Thompson+Creek+Parking+Cropped.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; float: left; height: 400px; margin: 0 10px 10px 0; width: 393px;" /></a>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8w0W3MEskLZeZZRU1ZLNQZ93xpZe0nK1V4h5Kna-HsqHQhlZ13X49AkPJWKh1d4pkT-2as1wDkPkdtyXzvNDSJ4SXFZ_xKmfIsTyBHJ8_IrHePAOI_9372v0S0kZIZtVlFGMyEBqbcXs/s1600/Picture+016.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646477904651765954" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8w0W3MEskLZeZZRU1ZLNQZ93xpZe0nK1V4h5Kna-HsqHQhlZ13X49AkPJWKh1d4pkT-2as1wDkPkdtyXzvNDSJ4SXFZ_xKmfIsTyBHJ8_IrHePAOI_9372v0S0kZIZtVlFGMyEBqbcXs/s400/Picture+016.jpg" style="float: left; height: 300px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; text-align: justify; width: 400px;" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Main waterfall that is the backdrop of the Big Tree.</td></tr>
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Of all the E-mails and facebook requests I get concerning this Blog site, the majority seem to all ask the same question "What is the best route to get to the Big Tree?". I decided it was time to help some folks out with this blog. I cannot answer all the E-mails and facebook requests, but maybe I can answer most of them here with this short article. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuv5DbTMtmLZZhI_VrduunEmPgZxQeijegxYqVViJP35XP9j24sXHf8QPVrYPqvRTmdGTBUNANnRgyns0J_BVvwgqNPyHDQ6xFj_voRPPkb2LaMMuqh5lO6n-nmnycSeACwkQUwx2ky-A/s1600/GOPR4224.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuv5DbTMtmLZZhI_VrduunEmPgZxQeijegxYqVViJP35XP9j24sXHf8QPVrYPqvRTmdGTBUNANnRgyns0J_BVvwgqNPyHDQ6xFj_voRPPkb2LaMMuqh5lO6n-nmnycSeACwkQUwx2ky-A/s320/GOPR4224.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Second waterfall to the left of the Big Tree.</td></tr>
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First, of ALL the reports of people getting lost in the Sipsey Wilderness, most all of them center around people either going or coming from the Big Tree. The majority of people know and respect the woods, but even the most skilled woodsmen have been turned around getting to this giant icon for the south. Being respectful of mother nature and her elements are the key to taking off on this trip. A pair of sneakers and a bag of M&M's will probably get you there and back, but if anything goes wrong, you might just find yourself spending the night on the ground, or hovering by a fire wishing you had told someone where you were going while search parties are planted thoughout Bankhead looking for you. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeA2KXUDeV_zvhpsLQZ2ZD6M1OKqmjjoQgtvWul4p8ENK0ojL2hUj6_wACIyTNTYeryAp0-wtLH0NBVf8XIEufGZK9nHl9WNJ3RkL9wnBImgF8b1zBDS-5Xn6yLCeTH1AIGWB6_Jqsc10/s1600/Picture+013.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646477439779479762" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeA2KXUDeV_zvhpsLQZ2ZD6M1OKqmjjoQgtvWul4p8ENK0ojL2hUj6_wACIyTNTYeryAp0-wtLH0NBVf8XIEufGZK9nHl9WNJ3RkL9wnBImgF8b1zBDS-5Xn6yLCeTH1AIGWB6_Jqsc10/s400/Picture+013.jpg" style="float: left; height: 300px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; text-align: justify; width: 400px;" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A view of the top of the Big Tree. Notice the large trunk compared to others trees around. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7iPCQmyzjskwKjNjXw-X6XKcc5LCLNSUHnwi-EugEk1gsWJ6HlyPL6qRo7Dua41iIOf89kxMqwdJ8tHDD8ocvENvP61eYG-g1NFsSTKWZQYzcIOOfk34FNlLvTM3h2DPdbODn2uz34cA/s1600/Picture+010.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646476999166038562" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7iPCQmyzjskwKjNjXw-X6XKcc5LCLNSUHnwi-EugEk1gsWJ6HlyPL6qRo7Dua41iIOf89kxMqwdJ8tHDD8ocvENvP61eYG-g1NFsSTKWZQYzcIOOfk34FNlLvTM3h2DPdbODn2uz34cA/s400/Picture+010.jpg" style="float: left; height: 400px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; text-align: justify; width: 300px;" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Big Tree visitors pause and relax after a long hike to get there. </td></tr>
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If you decide to take a hike to the Big Tree whether to camp or to just take a day hike, PLAN AHEAD! Pick a FULL day to go do this. Don't hit the woods at 2:15 p.m. and expect to dash in and come out. Don't take small children that will tire out fast, otherwise, plan on sore shoulders and a very ill child by the end of the day. There is NO RELIABLE CELL PHONE coverage in the Sispey Wilderness Area. If you are an amateur radio operator, there is a repeater in the forest you can reach. It is the 146.960 Moulton repeater. There is also the 442.425 repeater but does not cover the wilderness area as good. Both are sponsored by the Bankhead Amateur Radio Club. They are open for all amateur radio operators to use. KNOW the area or get familiar with the area to some extent. I am a member of some clubs that hike and kayak, and I am totally amazed that some people have NO ideal of where they are, how to get out, or even where to start. They simply just "go with the crowd". Most of the time, that is fine. At one point in your life, it won't work, and YOU have to take care of yourself. On this trip, take lots of water, some food, a coat, jacket, and/or rain jacket, and a good pair of boots, not tennis shoes. Be prepared to get sweaty, dirty, and use every muscle in your body. This is a moderate to extreme hike for most people, so if you only hike in the city parks or on flat ground, you are in for a surprise! The reward however if you go and make it (and you will), will give you the honorable title of working for a goal and saying "I've been there!".</div>
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Nothing pleases me more than taking people to go see the Big Tree. Many groan, complain, and fuss the entire way at me and everyone else. Within one month after the trip, they are so glad they went, and will proclaim "it was worth every mile". I lost count at 14 times going there, so this place is old hat to me. Do I carry a GPS and map with me after this many times? YOU BETCHA, and I ALWAYS WILL!</div>
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There are about 4 ways to get to the Big Tree, but to cut down confusion, I am going to cover 3 of the most popular routes. The third, is my preferred and the shortest. The MAIN route that most folks take is by sticking to the trail. They either park at Cranal <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrP1qJ5Yebl9kgbBm3SLUYL3iniHEb04v54yDmPj1-AXLgJqCgRvbmPwwyHuXmDQs3e_Fu7YS3vEQznDbykxWdBdDXEdmbhlx4F-rLfaBW593sXaPAB9mSfbYVpbeu0DIDXpJlf1GjU6A/s1600/IMG_7083.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrP1qJ5Yebl9kgbBm3SLUYL3iniHEb04v54yDmPj1-AXLgJqCgRvbmPwwyHuXmDQs3e_Fu7YS3vEQznDbykxWdBdDXEdmbhlx4F-rLfaBW593sXaPAB9mSfbYVpbeu0DIDXpJlf1GjU6A/s640/IMG_7083.JPG" width="296" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A vertical panoramic view taken in March 2016. This puts the tree in perspective. </td></tr>
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Road and Take Trail 201 or 202 and make their way down to 204 and camp along the way. Locals call this the "city slicker route" with all due respect. This is the route that would seem the most "logical" to follow given you don't know the area and you follow the U.S. Forest trail system. This is the killer hike route and most folks that do this, do it to camp. A few wandering soles take this route for a day hike, and come back calling it "the day hike from hades". Another route is to park at Thompson Creek Trail head, and follow Forest Service Trail along Thompson Creek taking FS206 and hit 209, and it will take you to the Big Tree. This appears to be the most popular route. This carries you through the Kings Cove area and a popular landmark called Ship Rock. Many camp here because it is basically a hugh rock that looks like the bow of a ship. There is also the Eye of the Needle in this area. It is a hole in the rocks near Ship Rock that allow you to cut through the cliff area and shorten your long route around Ship Rock down by Thompson Creek. On this popular route, you will meet your friends, neighbors, your brother, your cousin, your cousin's mother, etc. I am just kidding, but you get it now. This is the major highway route that many take to the Big Tree and camp along the way. Another blog is written about this route, so read it if you are interested in this "major highway route" that most folks take. It is 5.5 miles one way and is relatively flat. If you like this route, then use it. If you w<br />
ant shortest time and least distance, then read on further!</div>
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For this blog, we will focus on my favorite route introduced to me back in 2002. It is off any "official" U. S. Forest Service Trail, and cuts time and distance in exactly half. It is a mere 2 miles in or a 1.5-2 hour walk in, and the once barely visible footpath, is a "pig trail" of high foot traffic that many are taking now. The first thing to do is get you a Sipsey Wilderness Map available at most any local store around the forest. Read this blog and then study the map. I have uploaded some pictures of my GPS tracks on here but they may not show up good enough for many. Look on your map and find <b>Thompson Creek Trailhead</b>. FS 206 and FS 208 start here. It is at the end of the Northwest Road. <b>Park your vehicle here and tell your friends at home this is where you are parking. </b>At this point, since you have taken the time to read my blog, I want to let you in on a little secret on the area that very few know about. If you are a history fan, take note. If you just want to move on to the route, then skip down to the next paragraph.When you park at Thompson Creek Trail head, take just a few minutes to warm up by visiting a very old cemetery that few know about. Leave your day pack and just take your camera and yourself. Now for some history. During the 1800's, this area was teaming with people living in the mountains. In fact, there was a house located up on the hill overlooking where you are parked on the road just before the bridge at Thompson Creek Trail Head. When you park your car, most people pull off on the right side of the road before the bridge at Thompson Creek Trail head. To the right of where you park on the road, up about 100 yards on the side of the hill overlooking the parking, is an old cemetery with 3 graves marked by white PVC pipe. There are no tombstones, only rocks marking the sunken in graves. This was the home of the Davenports that lived here during the late 1800's. The story goes that the father was killed by a falling tree, and a daughter committed suicide. It is unknown about the other grave. If you hike this steep hill up by your car to the flat spot, it is really a beautiful view of Thompson Creek in the winter time. You will notice where the home used to sit, and an old road bed that came up the hill from the Northwest road that you came in on to this spot, almost to the top of the hill. This entire area was known as "King Cove". When some wealthy people from Colbert County Alabama purchased large plots of land out there back during those times, the locals nick named the area "King Cove", for being wealthy, it must be owned by Kings. The motorway that later was carved through the forest was bearing the name King Cove Motorway for many years. That name still appears on maps to this day. <br />
Take your camera and snap a few pictures of this neat spot on the hill. If it could talk, it would certainly tell you some interesting stories. After you are finished looking around, make your way back down to your car, gather your pack and belongings, and lets hit the trail.<br />
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<b>To Begin Your Journey: </b><br />
<b>Take FS Trail 206</b> at the Thompson Creek Trail head. Follow on this trail with Thompson Creek on your right side. Soon you come to a stream crossing that feeds into Thompson Creek. This stream is in White Oak Hollow. Cross the stream, pick the trail back up for about 200 feet, and the trail continues on beside Thompson Creek and has a sign pointing to the right telling you that 206 is to the right. This is where you "part your ways" with the FS trails. You will notice a Y in the road at this point. You will bear to your left and start going up White Oak Hollow. You are leaving the U.S. Forest Service Trail 206, but no worries. Your hiker friends have beat this trail to a pulp so you can easily see the trail. Follow the trail going up into White Oak Hollow. It follows beside this tributary stream and to the right of it. Soon, you will see that the trail is starting to go up the hill and to the right side of White Oak Hollow. You will see that it starts going straight up and is heading to the southeast of White Oak Hollow. It is here on this incline, that your stamina will be tested! The incline gets steeper and steeper as you are proceeding up and out of White Oak Hollow to the southeast. You can stop along the way (and you will out of breath), and notice the pretty rock out croppings to your right. A stream you start joining and winding back and forth across leads you and directs in in the right direction as you are making your way out of White Oak Hollow. When you get to the top of the hill and look back down on White Oak, you will notice you are standing on an old logging road at the top of the canyon. It leads you to some awesome hideout camps, but sorry, not to be talked about in this blog! After you sit down and take a short break with water, you then head on southeast and cross the logging road. You are headed back down into another canyon. Follow closely the trail and stay on it. If you are not familiar with the area, it is from here on that people get their "doubts", but have no fear, a solid trail is in front of you if you pay attention. Lets head on....</div>
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The trail that goes down into the canyon used to be nice and straight. With hurricanes in the past pushing trees down, it has turned this part of the trip into a zig-zag cross country course. As of this writing (August of 2011) it is still in this shape. It is kind of aggravating having to zig-zag back and forth but will change with time as the downed trees start to rot away. When you descend down, you will go from open forest land and slowly start getting into my most favorite part of the Bankhead National Forest, the hemlocks! The trail will start to take you down into a steep part of the canyon, and this is where it can get dangerous, depending on your skill and hiking level. The is the only area where I preach a sermon to those with me to take your time and be careful. The trail takes you down into a small waterfall and very slippery part. You have to negotiate down into the stream bed area and then follow the rocks of the stream bed for about 100 feet. Take your time here! People have left behind ropes to help you get down, and they may or may not be there. When you walk on the rocks, be very careful. I know a lady that went with us on one hike and slipped and fell on her bottom here. She felt pains from it for a year. After you have successfully negotiated this area, you are home free now as far as difficulty levels. This area when you come back up will go much faster than coming down. It is harder to come down a slick slope and rocks than it is to climb up one. After you reach the bottom of the canyon, take the time to walk slowly and admire the tall and beautiful bluff walls of the canyon to your left. The stream you came down will be on your right. This area is a good place to just stop and absorb some of the hemlocks and cliffs. As you walk on down the trail, you will come to a stream you will have to cross. It feeds into the stream to your right and they merge together here. This is WEST Bee Branch and this is the area where many folks get turned around and shortly after become lost . Cross this stream and DO NOT TURN LEFT. Many people do this. You will want to cross the stream and continue on downstream with the stream remaining on your right. If you were to turn left and march up West Bee Branch, you are going the wrong way! They do it so much that there is a trail beat down going on the right side of West Bee Branch! Wrong way folks! Many people do this and get into really rough country with the dense foliage, turn around and get confused. Most simply give up and return back to the truck or car. Where they went wrong is turning left at the first stream (West Bee Branch) and they should be going on down further to turn left on East Bee Branch. Continuing on our hike, as you walk the heavily beaten trail with Bee Branch on your right, you will come down to a flat area on the other side of the creek. Before you get to this flat area though, you will notice lots of trees down through this area as well. A "microburst" from a storm sent many trees down beside the stream and across the trail. It too, zig-zags back and forth. There is going to be a small little 8 foot wide hole in the middle of the trail (about 4 foot deep) you will have to climb down in and back up along this trail. Again, take your time throgh this. As you come down to the flat area off to your right on the other side of Bee Branch, this is going to be the intersection of East Bee Branch and Bee Branch. The trail runs right into East Bee Branch and Bee Branch will be on your right. After you cross East Bee Branch, turn left NOW, and walk UP East Bee Branch. The trail is on the right side of East Bee Branch and makes it's way up the canyon, slowly gaining elevation up above East Bee Branch. The trail is about a half of a mile long and leads you right to the Big Tree. Looking back on where we have come from: The most important thing I can stress here is when you come down from the slick rocks and canyon with ropes I talked about, do not take the first stream you cross to the left, but cross it and go on down to the second stream and THEN turn left heading up into the canyon. Do this and you will not get lost as so many do. </div>
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While you are at the Big Tree, but sure and check out the two massive waterfalls that are nearby that add "icing to the cake" rewarding you for your long walk. Take the time to eat your lunch there, taking in the scenery and the sounds of the waterfalls. Notice the orange iron ore seeping out from the canyon walls, an element used in making steel by the old timers of long ago. Also notice a rather large "ball like" hole in the side of the canyon beneath the largest waterfall. Strange? If you are adventurous, work your way up the canyon to the top where you can look down at the Big Tree and the canyon. This is better to do in the wintertime where you can see further. </div>
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Plan your trip, take water, plan on leaving Thompson Creek Trailhead about 9-10 a.m. to start your journey, and plan on getting out about 4-5 p.m. This is for day hikers. If you are overnight backpacking, well, I could write 6 blogs on things to do and more places to go on that, so I will save that for another day. I hope you enjoy your trip should you decide to go. If it helps you any, I have taken some elderly men in their 70's on this hike. They were in good shape and they all made it fine. Just prepare yourself for sore muscles the next day. This shorter route is far more strenuous than the relatively flat 5.5 mile route, but will take half the time! I hope this blog has been helpful to you. If so, set a date on the calendar and get going! I prefer winter months to do this myself. There is far more to see with the leaves gone and no ticks, chiggers, snakes, and mosquitos. Everyone has their own special times they want to go so any time will do. I hope you get to see this "giant icon" that attracts everyone in the South. If you do, then you can say "I have been there!" the next time someone mentions "The Big Tree".</div>
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<b>On the maps above:</b> The first map shows Thompson Creek parking. You can see "tracks" or also called "snails trail" left by previous trips with my GPS. It basically marks wherever you walk. You can see on the top map the area where instead of crossing the first stream and turning right on FS Trail 206, you will turn to the left and proceed up White Oak Hollow for a short piece. The second map shows where when you descend down into the canyon, you will cross West Bee Branch, go on down to the next stream (East Bee Branch), and then head up to the Big Tree. Almost everyone else that does not take this short route will be joining you on the trail going up East Bee Branch. </div>
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<b>Politically Correct Statement:</b> The writer of this blog assumes no responsibility for the safety of persons reading this blog and taking this hike. It is the hikers responsibility to know the area and to assume their own responsibility for the correct clothing, gear, weather, emergency plans, and skills needed to perform this hike. This article is for informational purposes only. </div>
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<b>UPDATE-</b>8/30/2011-Since I have posted this and ran it on facebook, one of my good hiking friends who went there in June has informed me that due to recent storms, tornadoes, and high wind events, Thompson Creek Trail and Northwest Road have been closed. In addition, the wonderful route that I have described above has been "decimated" as well with trees down. Since this is not an official U.S. Forest Trail as I explained above, don't look for this route to be cleared, ever. I will try and post more information as I get it from hiking friends.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXYkVNdEMUqpZTqCTfoTkBTiacHUKljN46mHdleamzc1bEYqgSEYJW-xwRJLYAjKhN74GlLQL7xUrup3lOkAOBeZL-jC_jIaTcv51WSu0lBsXswPZ4uT-FvXO1MVAbQwWJX2JMTouCEzM/s1600/100_6047.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="356" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXYkVNdEMUqpZTqCTfoTkBTiacHUKljN46mHdleamzc1bEYqgSEYJW-xwRJLYAjKhN74GlLQL7xUrup3lOkAOBeZL-jC_jIaTcv51WSu0lBsXswPZ4uT-FvXO1MVAbQwWJX2JMTouCEzM/s640/100_6047.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is a little known waterfall and bluff shelter you hear on your right as you are descending down into the hemlocks and the worst part of the journey, the canyon stream crossing. . </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh9a-aaMoPxOwQbRFqg5CdXIqO5unhwdRrtvGVTXHInlYFPoh5u3ILEgIKgSjAXknVmpY4nYxBMAv15T7yUcd6ORI4YvXQOgueI5K25_FWDcrPaPR32sFwRxOYHBTwJ9Ip7AqaNd-Likc/s1600/GOPR4141.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh9a-aaMoPxOwQbRFqg5CdXIqO5unhwdRrtvGVTXHInlYFPoh5u3ILEgIKgSjAXknVmpY4nYxBMAv15T7yUcd6ORI4YvXQOgueI5K25_FWDcrPaPR32sFwRxOYHBTwJ9Ip7AqaNd-Likc/s640/GOPR4141.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">First Section going down-Muddy and steep. Take it slow. Easier coming back out of this. See text below.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidxJK3shF3tyu9LmSWcX5GuaTHIQrx5lV0CgAyYzsmGZocaEY6sXcPRPgScCFk3NtvnYb2cl7XtAkB4n-gc0qzdlnjEXI2l5mlr0vvcktyD3AY3wlHbYb9iRoZr3Q3Fq2C1-hWQxr06dA/s1600/GOPR4153.JPG" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidxJK3shF3tyu9LmSWcX5GuaTHIQrx5lV0CgAyYzsmGZocaEY6sXcPRPgScCFk3NtvnYb2cl7XtAkB4n-gc0qzdlnjEXI2l5mlr0vvcktyD3AY3wlHbYb9iRoZr3Q3Fq2C1-hWQxr06dA/s320/GOPR4153.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Second Section-Steep with rocks to step work down and cross a small stream. Beautiful canyon once you get through this.</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh14RMlAsDIxdMcA7oWgusUQNXmh8XpWd9rEq6_mdmWU4pdRqYoU62JHd5BijcsuobplThPF-8AshNflwh_1oRjm8ZaFM3TXpjg39vLGDPS202ASikMqk5COBghyphenhyphentM933Dvtw2bVCQpAOU/s1600/GOPR4172.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh14RMlAsDIxdMcA7oWgusUQNXmh8XpWd9rEq6_mdmWU4pdRqYoU62JHd5BijcsuobplThPF-8AshNflwh_1oRjm8ZaFM3TXpjg39vLGDPS202ASikMqk5COBghyphenhyphentM933Dvtw2bVCQpAOU/s640/GOPR4172.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
Here is your reward for coming down the steep bank. Take a minute and absorb the beauty. <br />
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<b>The above pictures show the most treacherous area of the entire short route journey to the Big Tree. </b>At your halfway point after you come out of White Oak Hollow and down into the other side, you have to go down this steep muddy bank and cross a stream. Be careful through here. Coming back from the Big Tree is not as bad since you are climbing up. Going down, it's easy to slip and fall. The path going to the big tree in this picture would be from right to left. The stream you cross is on the left side. <br />
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<b>UPDATE! 2/2/2013</b>-Thompson Creek Trail has been totally cleaned up by the U.S. Forest Service. A tornado that came through the area in 2011 knocked down trees around Ship Rock, leaving it exposed more and definitely shines as a shining monument approaching it on the trail. On the short cut route to the Big Tree which is what this blog is about, it is rough but passable. It is still your best route to go see the Big Tree if you want the fastest route. I personally walked the short route over half way on this day and it is indeed still open. There are lots of trees down from hurricanes that passed up from the Gulf Coast, and some trees down from the 2011 tornado. As you come down into the canyon shown here, trees leaning to your right on the ground were from the past hurricanes. Trees leaning from right to left (SW to NE) were from the F1 Tornado that come through Ship Rock and crossed over this way. As a result of all this mess, there are lots and lots of switchbacks, but their is a human traffic trail still wore out. You can get through all of this, you just might have to wind around downed trees. The wore out trail is easy to follow so this continues to be a faster way to get to the Big Tree. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI8IuYEVLLNtyOl_FUMCHreFT1iXDQNGKkzLU9bdBm2kpEL4QamKA5p37x92Ca0eXvImifp_URbT-dk6jKxfmlNn-Gp7n9vNJRtUWyQeuWKJLa0tKZfdNmSiJklBDs0GgSSnsACsi66Bk/s1600/100_6034.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="221" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI8IuYEVLLNtyOl_FUMCHreFT1iXDQNGKkzLU9bdBm2kpEL4QamKA5p37x92Ca0eXvImifp_URbT-dk6jKxfmlNn-Gp7n9vNJRtUWyQeuWKJLa0tKZfdNmSiJklBDs0GgSSnsACsi66Bk/s400/100_6034.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>2/2/2013</b>. This is what it looks like on the other side of White Oak Hollow and start coming down. I turned around and snapped this picture. The well worn foot path is there but with many switchbacks to go around the trees. A Hurricane went through here in the mid 2000's and a tornado came through in 2011. I saw this place 8 years ago, it was beautiful with a green grass forest floor. You simply walked down the hollow and followed the stream. </td></tr>
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<b>UPDATE-February 2016-</b>Several people have E-mailed me with some helpful tips after reading this blog and going the short route. First, we never said this was the easiest route! It is the shortest route meaning less miles, faster time to arrive there. If you want long straight trails for the most part that is about 2-3 times further in distance, than the long route is better for you using U.S. Forest Service trails. If you want the shortest route, shortest time in and out, then the short cut is the ticket. Also, a couple of my readers have topped White Oak hollow and missed the trail going back down into the <u>next </u>hollow <u>that takes you by West Beech Branch and the ropes I talked about people using to go down the steep bank.</u> Since there are about 4 different trails where people have made or 4 different paths to the top of White Oak Hollow during the last 100 feet before you top White Oak, make sure you go UP AND OVER into the next hollow once you reach the old logging road on top of White Oak and you will pick up the trail again. Some have walked too far to the right or too far to the left on top of White Oak Hollow on the old road and missed the trail. REMEMBER THAT WHEN YOU TOP WHITE OAK HOLLOW ON THE OLD LOGGING ROAD, YOU WILL WANT TO GO ON OVER AND <u>DOWN ON THE OTHER SIDE INTO THE NEXT HOLLOW.</u> DO NOT TAKE THE ROAD TO THE RIGHT OR LEFT ON TOP OF WHITE OAK <u>TOO FAR.</u> JUST CONCENTRATE ON GOING OVER INTO THE NEXT HOLLOW AND YOU WILL PICK UP THE WORE OUT TRAIL. Since several tails have been cut to the top of White Oak hollow during the last 100 feet before the top, it is confusing to people which way to go once they get to the top. Happy Hiking and be safe! Also remember that THIS WAY IS NOT AN OFFICIAL U.S. FOREST TRAIL SO IT HAS NO TRAIL NUMBER! The U.S. Forest Service does not endorse or even recognize this route to the Big Tree. </div>
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<br />Well, as promised. The days planned for some 5 months have come and gone, and only the memories remain. Hopefully, they will be preserved in this blog and shared with you to excite your senses to travel to this amazing place called Alaska. First, this will be a different blog then what you are used to reading from me in the past. I typically have always gone all out in camping or adventure, meaning, I go in the most primitive conditions and accept them. Most of you that read my blogs have gathered this. On this trip, I had to change that. I am carrying my family on this trip that does not except too kindly to primitive conditions as much as I do. Let me start by saying this. If you read this article, I hope you start now to go to Alaska. I encourage you to get a map down of Alaska and look at it as you read this blog. It will help you better appreciate this amazing area. <div>
<br /></div><div>I have been blessed to be able to go to Alaska 14 times since 1986. Since that time on every trip, I have earned "air miles" with each and every trip that I flew on a plane. Those air miles got "cashed in" recently to bring my family to this place that has melted a special place in my heart. Since my eyes first set on Alaska in 1986, I fell in love with the state. I have talked to others that have been or go, and they all say the same. It gets in your blood. You can't get rid of it. There is a part of it that goes back home with you every trip. That's the only way I can describe it. I consider and will consider it my second home until the day I die. It is the only place where I feel at home there. I have traveled to Germany and all over the United States, including Colorado, that is many ways a mini Alaska, and nowhere does anything compare!<div>
<br /></div><div>This blog will focus on places, things to do, and sites to see in Alaska, and not so much on kayaking, camping, or hiking as in previous blogs. It is still adventure, just in a different form. When I cashed in the free tickets to take the family to this place, I had no ideal what I would do and where I would take my daughter and wife. After discussions with my daughter, she said "why don't you just rent an RV and let's take off!" I thought, what a fantastic ideal! About every other vehicle on the road in the summertime up there is an RV, so why not! As you read this blog, we will focus on locations, where to go, what to see, and events that happened to us. I hope you will enjoy following along with us. Let's go!</div><div>
<br /></div><div>Thursday morning-July 7th: We drive into the airport, and embark on a 12-17 hour ordeal JUST to get to this amazing place. There is no easy way to get to Alaska, and 97% of most all flights go to Anchorage, and depending on what airline, you will fly from Minneapolis/St. Paul, Salt Lake, or Seattle, Washington. Those are the main hubs that feed Alaska. For us flying from northern Alabama, it is always a 12-17 hour ordeal. You either sit in airports or you sit on a place the entire time. It is very taxing on your body. Going is easier, because you are psyched and ready for the trip. Coming back, your brain is saying, "Get me off this friggin plane, I am sick of flying!". On this trip, our route was Detroit, Minneapolis/St. Paul, and then Anchorage. We arrive around 6:00 p.m. Alaska time that afternoon. If you go by our Alabama time, it's 9 p.m., so a 12 hour ordeal. This is a good trip with only 12 hours. Coming home will prove to be a different story as you will see. As we arrive, we gather up all 796 pounds of clothes the family has packed into a suitcase and my North Face duffel (just kidding on the weight). We carried towels, a few bowels and pots for the RV in my The North Face duffel bag. Of course Delta Airlines loves this. They already charge you $25.00 for each one bag checked in per person, and with another at $30.00, they were more than happy to accommodate us and allow us to bring clothes on the flight for an extra $101.00. This could be soap box time, but I will move on. </div><div>
<br /></div><div>Arriving at the airport in Anchorage, I call the hotel shuttle to come pick us up. It helps that I have been in this town many, many, times, and so I felt like the "guide" on this trip as well as the family member. We are greeted with a cool fall like breeze and a nice 61 degrees as we walk outside to wait on the shuttle. At 6pm in the afternoon, it looks like 3 pm back home. Most lower 48 folks don't know that because of the tilt of the earth for summer, this tilt gives Alaska at times, a full 24 hours of daylight! In June/July, it never gets dark! We will talk more about that later on. As we are picked up by a hotel shuttle, we head to Microtel just outside the airport. Why Microtel you ask and not Hampton Inn? Because the Hampton Inn and the Fairfield Marriott in the winter time are a modest $100.00 per night. In the summertime, that rate soars to $225.00 per night. Even the Microtel sticks you, but not nearly as bad-about $150.00 per night with taxes. We get to the hotel, order Sicily's pizza to be delivered to us, and crash for the night. But wait, we can't go to sleep, it's still light outside! This became a big issue as the trip goes on. I will explain as you go along with us. </div><div>
<br /></div><div>Friday-July 8th: Time to get up and get going! We go down to the lobby and enjoy that mouth watering fine cuisine that only Microtel can offer for breakfast.... a cold bagel, cereal, or some fruit. It really got me excited for the day after I ate this (I am kidding of course). At 9 a.m., I call a taxi to come and pick me up. The destination is over to the RV place. When I arrive there, a 7 minute $25.00 ride, I am greeted with a very nice looking 24 foot RV with my name on a sign hanging on the mirror on the front- "FREE 7/8/2011". Cool, reservations do pay off sometimes! After an outside inspection of the RV with the people and a training course on how to use everything in the RV, we are set to go! My daughter had suggested I watch the Robin Williams movie on vacationing in an RV to get some tips, but I decided to just get it from the RV rental place. All right, 24 foot RV in my steering wheel and headed down the streets of Anchorage, Alaska. Freedom in Alaska begins today! Having driven before many times in Anchorage, I easily head back over to the hotel to show off our ride. Anchorage is a bear to drive in. It reminds me of driving in any large city. Everyone has the same attitude while they are driving- "I am on my way going to this place and YOU are in my way". I pull into the Microtel where the family is waiting. First words from daughter.....Cool! We load our 3 large suitcases and duffel bag in the RV. Next stop, your friendly local Fred Meyer store for groceries and supplies. We decide to visit Fred Meyer instead of the local China Mart (Wal-mart) that camps out at every city in the U.S. We shop and gather supplies and spend some time in Anchorage. I take them to Moose's Tooth Pizza and have lunch. This is the most incredible pizza I have ever had. The locals swarm all over this place, and it is always packed out. Some of the best pizza you will ever eat. If you go to Anchorage, Alaska, go by Moose's Tooth Pizza. My wife and daughter agree!</div><div>
<br /></div><div>On this trip, I have planned a route both north and south of Anchorage, Alaska in the RV. First, we will travel north and go up near Palmer, to a small little "hole in the wall" RV park-Mountain View RV park outside of Palmer. The RV park requires traveling up the Glenn Highway (Highway 1), turn right onto the Old Glenn Highway and follow it several miles. As we pull into the lot, my family was somewhat shocked to see this site. I am used to it being up there so much but folks tend to forget that Alaska has not been "corporationized" as much. People from the lower 48 and come up expecting to see $10,000 signs out by the road, glitzy lights, and all the advertising we are used to in the lower 48 or in even in Anchorage. In the real world of Alaska, it has not been "corporationized" yet, and so many of the services are owned and operated by folks like you and me. People who have lived there all their life. A business might be part of their home, next to their home, or across the road from home. Such was the case here. The upstairs of the RV park office was their home. As I pull in and go into the office, there is nobody around. Dead quite. A sign over by the counter says "ring bell for service", and so I do. After some noise up above me upstairs, a young lady comes down the stairs into the office and says "Hello, can I help you?". She takes care of my site and says just pick one. I look and there are tons of sites left and few people here. I myself am beginning to wonder if I picked the right RV park. I mean this is peak tourist season. As we set up the RV for the first time, it's about 7 p.m. and not a sole in site. I see RV's around, but there are no sounds! The place is absolutely dead quite. Another interesting point my daughter pointed out, was that there were no bird sounds even. For whatever reason, this place is dead quite, I mean dead quite. The first night in the RV was uneventful, other than the fact this was wife and daughter's time to witness constant light. This time of year, with the earth's axis at a tilt to bring up our summer, it messes with the state of Alaska. Because of the axis tilt of the earth, in June through August, there are extremely long days of light. At certain times, there is no darkness, only a dusky dark, meaning the sky stays light, and there is a dusky dark in the neighborhoods. In dense foliage, it might be enough to call dark. My wife was intrigued by this the entire trip. Not having darkness does different things to different people. For some, they just roll the blinds down and go to bed. For others, there is this sort of mental drive that says "there is light outside, I need to be doing something, it's not time for bed!". </div><div>
<br /></div><div>The next morning, we packed up early after breakfast. Time to hit the road! Destination, A reindeer farm that my daughter had picked out. I didn't know it fully , but turns out she had been watching Sarah Palin's Alaska, a Discovery Channel special that aired some time back. In this special, they visited a reindeer farm. OK, let's try it out. I did not expect much nor am I a hugh fan of these type places, but hey, this is a family vacation. Pulling in, we were arriving a few minutes early before they opened at 10 a.m. As we got out, paid our entrance fee into this reindeer farm, which by all accounts look like a farm anywhere in the U.S. The house the owners live in is next door. If it were not for a sign, you would feel like you just drove up to someone's house and the farm next to their house! This is typical Alaska. The RV park you may remember, was nothing more than someones house with an RV park in the back yard! As we started talking to the owners, we learned to appreciate reindeer. Reindeer is a term for domesticated caribou. They owned a large number of them! They also had bison, elk, musk ox, and two moose that were raised from the early life. As we talked to the people running the place, it became more and more fascinating. Coming from the lower 48 states, you quickly learn things new. As these caribou or reindeer walk around, there is a noticeable "clicking" or "popping sound" similar to what it sounds like when someone pops their knuckles. Turns out, this is a special tendon that allows them to walk and spread their feet wider for walking over snow. It is a rare opportunity to stand up close with elk, moose, and other animals they have at the farm. The moose was the most captivating to our family. Having traveled many times to Alaska, these creatures amaze me in the fact that it can be minus 30 degrees outside, and they are casually walking along the tundra eating limbs off of scrub brush. You have to wonder, how in the heck does something this tall, this big, live out in extreme temperatures eating only sticks! After about 2 hours of relaxing time talking to these wonderful folks at the farm, we say goodbye and head out of the Palmer area and go north. </div><div>
<br /></div><div>Next Stop-Hatcher Pass and an old historic mine-Independence Mine, designated as a museum by the State of Alaska. My good friend Joe, who lives in Anchorage, suggested I go there. It is located up north of Palmer, Alaska. I highly recommend you put this place on your "to do" lists in life. The fact that we made it to this place was luck. We were supposed to link up with Joe's family and stay in a very remote cabin that his dad owns from Friday until Monday. Timing is everything, and as it turned out, Joe left his job and had started a new job. Starting a new job yields no extra days to take off, and so our chance to stay in the cabin was lost. We decided to make the best of these 4 days that we lost, and Hatcher Pass was on the list to do for Saturday. As we wind our way up the road above Palmer, Alaska, we can tell we are starting to get into the high country. Alaska can be summed up in one word-BIG! Words, pictures, and even vivid descriptions cannot yield to you the immensity of this place. Mountains that "look" like just down the road, might easily be 20-30 miles away! As we slowly gain elevation starting to ease up into the mountains, it is here that the family starts to really absorb true Alaska! Up until this point, it was boring details of groceries, gas, staying in an RV, and the hassles of getting it from point A to point B. As we come around a curve, we come upon a pull over and cars parked by a creek. I decide to pull over for a minute and let's absorb some of this beauty we have been seeing as we go up in elevation. I am glad we did. The view from the bridge we crossed in such a hurry, looking up the creek back towards the mountains, was absolutely stunning! Picture time, picture time. I snap off tons of pictures. The view I see is the view you see on this blog. The very first picture. You know what is coming next and you are right in your own thinking. Pictures do no do justice to the real thing. Seeing it's vibrant colors only the eye can stimulate you with, smelling the clear stream and fresh clean air, and feeling the cool 58 degree low humidity air are all missing! OK, we need to move on. You get the point. I wish you were here to see it! Moving on up the winding road and occasional switchbacks, we are starting to gain considerable altitude and the tree line is leaving us. Next is just scrub brush. Pulling off the road for a moment to absorb more of this, we see an incredible change of colors with various gradients going up the mountains from the vegetation. As the mountain goes on up, it turns to tundra, and then to just pure gray rock. The top of mountains this tall support little to no vegetation. The only thing that visits them is bears and mountain goats. A short time longer down the road and we arrive and an amazing place in Hatcher's Pass. it is called Independence Mine. A view of the entire mine museum and Hatcher Pass is shown on this blog. The story behind Independence Mine is simple. The gold rush spurred the site of this mine and a 24/7 operation in the 20's, 30's, and until the 40's. With the onset of World War II, the war board declared the site a recreational site and not an asset to the war, and so it was ordered to be shut down. Shut down it was and it never returned. In later years, the state of Alaska Parks took it over as a museum. It stands today, many of the rooms untouched from the 1950's. Really an amazing place. We quickly found out we could easily spend 2-3 days at this place. There is so much to see, so much to do, and so much beauty to absorb. It was tough leaving! With lunch in the RV on the way up to Hatcher Pass, it is late in the afternoon now, and we decide to head on out to stay in Wasilla Saturday night. </div></div><div>As we leave Hatcher Pass, Hatcher Pass leaves something with us. You cannot describe it, but we talked about it the entire trip while we were up there and after we returned home. Alaska does this to you. It leaves you with a craving for more. You want to come back and see it again, and again. It is hard to describe, and if you have never been there, you will think I am on dope. I can assure you I am not. It is just that Alaska grabs you like no other place. As we depart, we are saddened knowing we may not get to this special place for a while. Notice I said a while, because we will be back! Saturday afternoon finds us bypassing Palmer somewhat and heading on over to Wasilla. There is simply no time. </div><div>
<br /></div><div>Arriving in Wasilla, we decide to check this town out! I have been here once or twice since 2007, but I notice immediately that it has grown! The promotion of Sarah Palin and the media's constant exploitation of this lady has apparently doing well with the town. This is her home town. She was mayor here for a short time and continues to live here. It had grown since I saw it in 2007. We arrive at our destination-Big Bear RV Park. This allows us time to upload the pictures to facebook, sent E-mails, and a chance to take in all that beauty we saw today. As 10:30 p.m. approaches, it looks like 5 p.m. on the eastern side of the U.S. The sun is about at the 3 o'clock position. My daughter and I shut the curtains on the RV and crash. My wife, still captivated by this constant light, stays up a while longer, looking out the RV as if something "magical" is about to happen with all of this light outside. It is hard to get used to. The fact that you could work an 8 hour day this time of year, and still have another 12 hours of light to do other activities, such as yard work or anything outdoors. Everybody up here uses daylight to the max this time of year. We heard children up playing at 11:30 at night! So strange to witness. </div><div>
<br /></div><div>Sunday morning-July 1oth, 2011-We wake up in Big Bear RV Park in Wasilla, eat a small breakfast, and head out about mid-morning in the RV. We know how to use everything on this camper now, and it is working out great! This time, we are headed back south towards Anchorage. We had considered going on up north to Talkeetna on the Glenn Highway (Highway 3), gateway to Denali National Park as they all say. Talkeetna is unique in that you drives for miles and miles headed to Talkeetna with nothing but flat forest land on each side of you. By the time you get to Talkeetna, you are starting to see the mountains of Denali National Park. On a clear day, a spectacular view of Mount McKinley can be seen. This makes Talkeenta a good target to head far. The problem is, time and distance. My good friend Darrell in Fairbanks even ask me to go on to Denali and meet he and his wife for the weekend. With the distance and time involved, we humbly declined. It is just too far up to drive. I hate not seeing Darrell and showing my and daughter Denali, but there is only so much you can fit in time with Alaska. Alaska is BIG. </div><div>We take the Glenn Highway (Highway 1) Sunday morning headed south back to Anchorage. I forgot to mention this earlier, but a local friend in Alaska informs me that the mountain chain that you drive right next to going out to Knik Arm bay area, is the end of the Rocky Mountain chain! The Rocky Mountain chain that starts in the United States, proceeds up into Canada, then Alaska, and stops next to Knik Arm inlet. A useless, but interesting factoid! You read it here first! As we move down the road, I decide to try something. My wife and I turn on UStream and broadcast live to the world using my iPhone. What better place than the Glenn Highway, with its spectacular scenery. Our destination was Eagle River State Park about half-way between Anchorage and Palmer. With the remote cabin planned originally over the weekend, the family was making this up as we went along to fill in this time slot. I had been checking out parks, both federal and state, and this name came up. I noticed it had no hookups for an RV. That was fine though, since we had all we needed in the RV. We knew we really didn't even have to use the generator since it never got completely dark. Upon arrival, we were surprised at just how small it was. We were surprised and happy to find an open spot, so we took it! As we started to get settled with the RV, we decided to walk around the park. The was the best ideal we ever decided to do. We quickly found the ragging Eagle River running beside the campground. Water, raging with class 2, 3, and 4, rapids went right beside the camping area. The river and the scenery we fell in love with immediately. The only thing I forgot to mention was this. When we came into the campground, there were signs everywhere that read "HIGH Bear Alert Area! Bear are very active in this area and everyone please maintain all food storage practices! With that being said, that added a little a suspense to the stay! What type of bear we wondered? Brown Bear, Black Bear? As we soon found out, Black Bear only. We knew most of the time if we just had Black Bear, they can be bluffed or will not be as aggressive as a brown bear or grizzly. Walking up the creek and exploring on a trail, we found lots of flat rocky shores along the way. The interesting thing to point out here is that rivers are raging this time of year, partly because of glacier and snow melt runoff from the massive tall mountains. Also, because of such a strong current, the churning water is a dark to light gray color, and you cannot see anything in the water. The strong current keeps sediment stirred up similar to the way mud is stirred up during a flood in the lower 48. After about an hour or so there, my wife and I walk down to the Glenn Highway bridge where Eagle River flows underneath Highway 1 or the Glenn Highway. We sit down on a rock, listening to the roar of the river and the noise of traffic flowing above us. Within 10 minutes, a hugh bald Eagle flies down the creek, and parks on a tree right near us (see picture on this article). I ease out the camera and fire several pictures off. After 15 minutes, the Eagle flies on. I shot a couple of pictures. One is featured on this blog. The are is an amazing are to go to. It is a small campground, not a lot of people, and a great place to just "chill" and absorb the beauty. As the evening goes on, you want to just stay outside, since there is still so much light. At 9:30 p.m., we decide to head back to the camper. Another amazing place to see. Too much to see and too little time. </div><div>
<br /></div><div>The next morning on a Monday the 11th, we reluctantly head out of the campground and move on down south on Highway 1 back towards Anchorage. This is the least pleasant time of our trip, Anchorage. The RV Park there is about the only one in town, it is large, right smack in the middle of town, and kind of has a "trailer park" atmosphere that I am not fond of. What I mean by that is, your camper is less than 10 feet away from the next one! If your windows are down as most are with the cool nights, your neighbor hears everything you say. My family was not happy with this situation, but knew that is was necessary. We had to wash clothes, empty the RV toilet tank, fill the water tank up with fresh water, and get ready for our next phase of the trip, south bound to Seward. Before we did that though, we were going to have to spend another full day in Anchorage, partly because our cabin fell through with my good friend Joe. The original plan was to spend Friday the 8th until Monday the 11th in a remote cabin several hundred miles from Anchorage. I had already reserved a spot for Monday night in the RV park when we planned the cabin stay months earlier, so we decided to just make the best of Anchorage all day Monday, and then head south. Monday morning, we went to the Anchorage </div><div>Zoo at the request of my daughter. Zoos can be zoos to me (yawn) but Anchorage did have a fairly nice zoo. A couple of the highlights were the polar bears, the grizzly bears, gray wolves, doll sheep, moose, and a coyote. The coyote entertained us. Every single time a trumpeter swain would cut loose with a "bugle" sound, the coyote would immediately respond with a yelp or howl. We got an amusement out of that. I actually recorded the sounds of it on my iPhone. Late that afternoon, another $160.o0 worth of groceries and supplies at Fred Mayer and we were ready to head out Monday morning. The rest of Anchorage is mainly a large busy city, with intense traffic, crime, and because of the harsh winters, generally a dirty appearance. We did manage to go by Kincaid Park, an extremely large park I read about all the time in the Anchorage newspapers that I subscribe to. There are constantly moose hanging out in this amazing park. The park has extremely nice trails that serve as bike trails in the summer, cross country skiing in the winter, and numerous other trails for various activities. This day that we went hoping to see moose, only yielded tons of cars and traffic from some sort of regional soccer tournament. Big disappointment but at least we said we saw Kincaid park. </div><div>
<br /></div><div>Tuesday-July 12th. We eat breakfast at the Peanut Factory over on Old Seward Highway and set out for a place that I read about, that locals go to, but thousands of tourists that pass by it each year pass up. It is Potters Marsh. Potters Marsh is a refuge formed by the making of the Alaska Railroad track and the Seward Highway. It was sort of an accident that it came about. By the construction of these two things next to Cook Inlet, it made an incredible marsh that has attracted all types of wildlife. Within 10 minutes of arriving, we spotted an Eagle sitting in a tree, ducks and geese, as well as Sockeye salmon (reddish pink color) running in the stream through the marsh. The wind got up that day, became overcast with a light rain. We stayed about an hour there but vowed to come back. It is a neat place, and if you ever travel to Anchorage, make it a stop on your way south to Girdwood, Portage, or Seward. Next on the list, is Whittier, a small port town, but first, we have to take in a little site seeing along the way. The Seward Highway, is unquestionably the most scenic highway talked about in Alaska. This long stretch of road that follows Turnigan Arm of Cook Inlet, yields the ocean bay, massive mountains that stretch through the sky on some days, bold brilliant color variations on the mountainside this time of year, along with vehicles on the road that give the since of just how small you are in this world. As we travel on down the road, I pull off the road at Beluga Point, a popular pull off spot for tourists. Here you can take on the ocean bay breeze, hear the roar on the sides of the mountains of the hundreds of waterfalls coming off the mountains from snow and glacier water run off, as well as see the harsh rock outcroppings going out into the bay. My wife and daughter really enjoyed this place. We could have stayed a lot longer, but had to move on. We move on down the highway and pass the turnoff to Girdwood, a small town that hosts Aleska Ski Resort. You will hear more about this neat place later on in the trip. Coming on down the Seward Highway (still Highway 1), we turn left on Portage Glacier road, and head for the Begich Boggs Visitor Center at Portage Valley, Alaska. One neat thing to point out here. As you come down Highway 1, you will see buildings that appear to be sunk into the ground and very old. There is interesting history here. In 1964, this area suffered a massive earthquake. It tore what buildings were standing down, and the sea water flooded this town. It killed the trees in the low lands, and the remains of the buildings and the trees are still standing in many areas. Alaska, because of it's harsh winters, does not heal back very fast from disasters or damages sustained. So when you drive out into this area, you see dead trees still standing out of the 1960's and buildings somewhat preserved from that time period. Alaska does not have all the microorganisms to break stuff down as we do in the continental U.S., thus items are preserved better up there. </div><div>Stopping at the Portage Glacier Visitor Center or Begich Boggs Visitor Center (named after the mountain tops surrounding them), we go in and see exhibits on display and a interesting film on glaciers. The center, ran by the U.S. Forest Service, has some interesting history to talk about. Several years ago, the U.S. Forest Service built this multimillion dollar complex, and spared no expense. At that time, it was looking at the beautiful and massive Portage Glacier. The center was designed with a large window that is at the head of an auditorium. When curtains are pulled back and massive motion picture screen is raised up, it yielded a spectacular view of the glacier right in front of you. The normal routine right after it was built was to shuffle everyone in this large auditorium, show them a film on glaciers, pull the screen up and raise the curtains back and there was a massive Portage glacier in front of you to captivate you. Something bad happened over the years though. For whatever reason, global warming, climate changes, climate shifts, the glacier melted and moved back around the corner BEHIND the mountain OUT OF CLEAR VIEW. Now days, the view of the glacier is gone, and all you see is a glacier lake when the curtain is pulled back now! If you want to really see the glacier, you have to take a road over back closer to the glacier, and board a boat. We did later, and we will get to that later on. </div><div>Finishing up here, I take them to another path I have been several times, the Whittier Tunnel and the town of Whittier, Alaska. Whittier is another town of fascination to me. Look at Whittier on Google Earth now. It connects Passage Canal (The Gulf of Alaska) with Turnigan Arm (Cook Inlet) and you can see that this is a vital shipping or port town. In recent years, it is a popular stop for cruise ships. For years, people had to travel over Portage Pass, a relatively low area between two mountains that allowed passage over to Whittier. In World War II, it was decided a 2.5 mile railroad tunnel needed to be constructed through Maynard Mountain and a 1 mile tunnel before you get to that. To date, it is the longest railroad tunnel in North America. The neat part is that it is shared with Alaska Railroad, has only one lane, and so traffic is alternated in both directions at set times. </div><div>Pulling up to the tunnel, we pay the $12.00 round trip fee, move up and wait in line with about 4lanes of traffic. The lanes are numbered and they have traffic lights that tell you when that lane is clear to proceed. There is one major crawling text for everyone that reads "The next traffic through is 1:00 p.m." The tunnel is dark, wet, and long. My family was not too fond of this, but I wanted them to experience this. This will be my 3rd time to come down and go in this way. When you emerge from the tunnel, aside from the always stunning scenery around you of the mountains and glaciers, Whittier, is a big bubble pop. There is very little to the town, it is small, cramped, and dirty. It is a port town keep in mind, not so much a tourist town. They only have 200 full time residents! We spend about 2 hours here, and move on. My wife and daughter were not very impressed. I did not expect them to be. It is just one of those unique "been there and did that" places. I am sure there are lots of people that would like to visit "Dutch Harbor", a little "hole in the wall" port town made famous by the Discovery Channel's <i>Deadliest Catch </i>television program<i>.</i> It is mid-afternoon now, time to move back through the tunnel and head on down to Bear Creek just before Seward, another port town. </div><div>Around 7 p.m., we reach the address of Bear Creek RV Park. Now this one knocked my family to the floor. Being used to corporate lower 48 America, they expected a $15,000 sign out front, large billboards advertising the campground. WRONG! We just about literally pulled into the back yard of someone's house. The campground, as so many of campgrounds in Alaska, are ran by local Americans like you and I . It would be not much different then setting up an RV park in your back yard back at home in the lower 48. I pull in, and a kid, and I do mean kid (around 10-12 years old) checks me in. Even myself, having come to this area before, was taken back by this. The check in room doubled as a bar, an eating area, and a lounge area. The cash register he checked me in on doubled as the cash register for the bar. He picked up his radio microphone attached to his shirt and said "Joey, I need you to come around here and show some people where to park!" After about 2 minutes, another 10-12 year old boy came in and said "you are in lot 9. I will show you. Just follow me". So I followed him outside and he helped me back my RV into a slot. Now that was odd! Never have I had a 10-12 year old boy hand me back my credit card and I sign a receipt. Alaska is always full of surprises and this too, was added to the list. </div><div>
<br /></div><div>Wednesday morning, July 13th-Time to head to Seward for our next adventure. Having traveled here several times with business trips, I decided to book a whale tour for a half day. In 2007, my nephew Eric and I booked a trip with some outfitters to kayak and camp among glaciers in the Kenai Fjords National Park. That was a trip I will never forget. On this day, we hope to see all kinds of wildlife. Before we have to meet at the dock and check in, we decide to have some unusual fun. There is a web camera located on the dock that overlooks the Seward Harbor. I have done this before with friends and co-workers. We called home some 3,000 miles away and spoke with some family members. They went to this web site and we gave them a wave on camera. Hey, you gotta do some crazy things every now and then. It was fun using technology again. </div><div>
<br /></div><div>At 12:00 noon the boat departs out of Seward harbor. On this day, there was hardly a cloud in the sky! For Alaska, that is truly a unique day. There are very few days where you can see total blue sky. The Mountains in Alaska are so high and so big, they create their own climates at times. As a result, there is almost always clouds in the sky. It is rare to get several days with absolutely nothing. Departing out into Resurrection Bay is always an amazing deal. It's here that you see just how small you are, how small the Town of Seward, Alaska is, and just what an amazing and massive land Alaska truly is. It is hard to describe Alaska in print. It's hard to really grasp Alaska in pictures. Once you go to Alaska, a part of Alaska stays with you. This makes my 14th trip to this amazing place. I crave it while I am home in Alabama, I dream about the next trip coming, and I seize every second when I go. At work, whenever a possible trip comes up for Alaska, they know me. They know I am begging for this trip and they don't even have to ask me to go. Now, for the first time in my wonderful years of marriage, both my daughter and my wife now feel the same as I do. They don't want to go home!</div><div>
<br /></div><div>As we run along the shores of Resurrection Bay, we are absolutely captivated by the size of the mountains along the way. We see Sea Lions out, Doll Sheep are pointed out to us on the cliffs above, some 200 feet above us, looking down from a jagged rock outcrop. I only wish that this blog spot allowed more room for pictures. I have tons of them to share, but no way to do it in this form, so far now, you have to visualize a lot of this along with me. As we make our way on out to the main channel of the ocean, we are stunned to see what we actually paid to come and see, whales! We look out and observe about 5 humpback whales playing. There is one that is breaching or clearing the water up into the air at times. Every time one of the whales breaches out of the water, the boat sounds like a machine gun with the cameras snapping away. It is an amazing site. I have spent a week off the coast of Main in 2004 video taping whales for the Navy, but it is always a neat time when you get to observe these magnificent and large mammals. OK, now for the humor side of things. Before we departed on the ship, my entire family, including myself, had outfitted ourselves with arm bands to cut down on the chance of sea sickness. I had a mild queasy stomach after we started watching the whales. Since we were more out on the open ocean, the waves were beginning to pitch the boat pretty good. Concentrating on the whales for 30 minutes seemed to have taken its toll on the folks on board. My wife and daughter started becoming sea sick, very fast. So did others on the boat. The captain seemed to have gotten the hint and started wrapping up the visit with the Humpback whales and we start moving on back into the protected bay. It was too late for my crew. That wild beaming smile I saw when we were departing, changed to a serious, I have been shot in the stomach look. For the next 2 hours of the cruise, it was a somber wife and daughter. Others on the boat took the same shape. As we passed by the stunning and massive Bear glacier in resurrection bay, it was only a blur in their heads by now. I shot a rather funny picture of the two of them on the boat. Not the same crew about 3 hours earlier. I too, Mr. Adventure guy that I want to be, always becomes weak when it comes to the sea. I fought this for a week in 2004 in Maine, and my stomach was queasy now. Their solution on the boat!-Ginseng candy. Guess what? It works! I ate several pieces of this disgusting tasting candy, and soon, I was totally normal. Write that down and put it in your purse or wallet. Ginseng candy will solve your queasy stomach problems for motion sickness. After 5 hours of absolutely stunning beauty in Resurrection Bay, we return back to port. a wonderful cruise (well at least part of it was for my family) and a great way to wrap up another day in the Great Land. As we leave the port and head 6 miles back up the road to our RV Park (located in someones back yard), I wanted to take them up to Exit Glacier up above Seward. If you ever go to Seward, make sure you take the drive up there. It is a chance to get up close and personal with a massive glacier. My family was so stressed from the sea sickness, and the fact that it was about 20 miles out of the way before we got back to the RV Park, we decided not to go. </div><div>
<br /></div><div>Thursday-July 14th-Next on the schedule, head back up towards Portage. We wake up to another beautiful day with the snow capped mountains around us at Bear Creek. We head out going back up the Seward Highway from where we came a few days ago. We are headed to another famous tourist stop-The Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center. This center rehabilitates animals that have been hit by cars, abandoned by their mothers, etc. They have a number of types of animals ranging from brown bear, black bear, elk, caribou, buffalo, and musk ox. We enjoyed this place. It has fenced in areas that allow you to get up close to these amazing animals. If you have never been 15 feet away from a massive grizzly bear, this place is for you. It allows you to see, sometimes a little closer than you want to see, these massive animals. We spent about 2 hours at this place. As we are looking at the animals, we notice a few buildings or barn looking structures that have collapsed over the years in several places around this facility. We also notice a number of trees, both white and black spruce trees that are dead. Finally, we read a sign that says it all. These buildings are what is left of what was Portage, Alaska. The great earthquake of 1964 in Alaska leveled every building in this small town. As I mentioned earlier as we passed this area going on down to Seward, the ocean from the bay area-Turnnigan Pike flooded the area with sea water and killed all the trees. What was fascinating to me was that the structures were still in tack and the trees still around dead from 1964! I suppose with the winters and few fungus and "critters" to feed on these wooden structures and trees, they are slow to deteriorate. How many places in the states can you stand and look at a run down house or dead tree that became that state in 1964. Most trees would be long gone and deteriorated. Portage, as we learned, was a thriving town at one time. The earthquake pretty much decimated the town and took several lives with it. It is no longer what it used to be, at all. Another story worth telling while there was this. As we got out of the camper and starting to approach an observation building where you could view the moose at the conservation center, a sharp, pungent, and gasping type smell overcame me. It was the most intense smell of body odor I had smelled in a while. It would almost make you gag if you focused on the smell. Having travelled out of the country, my first thought was, OK, some foreigners are up ahead of us and the wind is just right. As we approached the building, I saw people coming out of the observation post and I said to myself, yep, those are the culprits! Geeze I wished they would get a bath! As we approached closer, a small 10x 12 pen was at the entrance. In this pin was a massive porcupine. As soon as we approached it, the smell just about knocked me to the ground. OOOOOK! It was not those people who forgot the right guard that morning. That intense body odor smell was that of a porcupine!!!! I get it know! After reading and talking to some care takers at the place, a porcupine is a member of the skunk family, and so yes, they too have that perfume smell similar to "Peppy La Pue" from the Loony Tunes cartoons. It's just that they prefer the intense human body odor smell. </div><div>
<br /></div><div>Leaving the Alaska Conservation Center, we head down the Portage Glacier Road for our campground for the night. It is Willa Walla, a U.S. Forest Service Campground. Elliott glacier up above this campground and adds to the already and ever present stunning beauty that you just bathe in every day in this place. As we pull into the campground, we see a camp host present at the entrance. This is pretty much a primitive type campground, but that's O.K. We have the RV loaded with fresh water, shower, etc. As we drive in and see the camp host, I ask him if he has any spots for the night. He says yes there are plenty, just go pick one. As we talk more, I see a grin come over his face. He says"Where are you from?" I said Alabama. He said grabs my wives arm and says "Montgomery Alabama for me. Its good to talk to a neighbor". In the course of our conversations, he says he is a retired UPS worker. He said he and his wife took a month and drove up to serve as a campground host. We both talked about and shared the beauty of this place. He too, has it in his blood. We talked about so many people "say" they are going to Alaska but never do it. We both agreed that indeed many of us have so much in our lives that there is no time. He said something I will never forget. "You know the ole saying-If you aim at nothing, you will hit it every time!". He is so right. If you never PLAN to do something, you will NEVER get it done. </div><div>
<br /></div><div>Once again as you have heard 10 thousand times of this reading, absolutely stunning views surround us. I mean you are in the middle of Portage Glacier Valley. Massive Mountains surround you. Elliott glacier, a valley type glacier looks down on the campground. The sun changes the light every so many minutes and changes the colors, the contrast, the texture, and on and on I could describe. YOU have BE THERE to appreciate anything I write down here. We find a great spot to park, and start exploring. "Hey, lets hike up to that glacier!" And so we take off down a trail. As we follow the trail, it goes more and more into dense foliage, I mean DENSE foliage! At times, the foliage gets so thick, you can only see a few feet in front of you. I had borrowed a can of Bear Pepper Spray from my buddy Joe who lives in Anchorage before making this second leg of the journey, and so I had it, tucked nicely and tightly away deep INSIDE my day pack I was carrying on my back. After a few minutes on our journey, I realized this was NOT the greatest ideal. OK, here we are: My wife is leading the way with no defense from bears or moose. My daughter is in the middle, and I am taking up the back in with my bear pepper spray, tucked tightly away so I cannot get to it quick. It is so thick we cannot see each other. As we walk and walk and walk, I suddenly realize something we southern folks forget about. That glacier "close by", might easily be another 3 hour walk just to get to. We have no food, no water, no GPS, no maps, and the trail is becoming more faint. In addition, moose pellets, or moose droppings, are everywhere! Fortunately, I don't see any bear scat or bear poop, but hey, you never know. A young lady at the Conservation Center told me that we should not have to worry about brown bears and that only black bears were the major factor at Willa Walla. As these thoughts are running in my head as we walk, it hits my wife as well without her saying a word. She too, realizes she is leading us with no defense from moose or bear, and the trail has gotten fairly weak by now. My daughter is starting to not like this situation and so she does what I taught her to do while hiking in Alaska. Talk LOUDLY as to alert any moose or bear that we are COMING! After about 20 minutes of walking in this dense mess, we all stop and compare notes. The resounding opinion was to head back! As we turn around and start heading back, I become captivated seeing so much moose poop everywhere. I am rolling the video camera and narrating this and my daughter is becoming by the second, more and more ill at me for coming on. My daughter is reminding me to COME ON!!!! It' funny how the "tone" in someones voice can depict exactly how they feel. My duaghter's tone of "COME ONNNNNN DAD!"means she is getting highly ticked, and highly much ready to get out of this place! After about 20 minutes, we arrive back out on the main trail. We laugh about it and move on. My daughter is not exactly happy of this situation. I reflect back on this. No harm is done. Just a simple trail, BUT, we are in Alaska. This is and can be the real deal. Not the movies or the TV shows. Preparation is the key to everything. This is not the Great Smokey Mountains National Park where 99.8% of everything you encounter, is more afraid of you than you are it. My good friends in Alaska, Joe, Darrell, Floyd, and Mike, have always stressed that prevention is the receipt to prevent disaster and surprises in Alaska. I should have had a gun or pepper spray attached and ready. Even Black Bear behavior in Alaska is different from the Smokeys. </div><div>
<br /></div><div>As we return to camp, my crew is exhausted, and so they crash in the camper for a nap. Me, I cannot do that kind of stuff. I sit outside the camper just absorbing all of this beauty. As I sat there on the picnic table with the wind blowing. Suddenly, the smell of Peppy La Pue's cousin started invading the area. Wow, I recognize that smell! A porcupine must be making his way through camp! Hey, I learned something "Alaska wise" today! Another thing worth mentioning here is that with Elliott glacier up above camp, there is a massive and constant "roar" of the waterfalls coming down the mountain from the melting snow. That roar, coupled with binoculars to look at the incredible and long waterfalls shooting down the mountains, cannot be properly described in print. You can look up at the waterfalls with or without binoculars, and see these ragging waterfalls and shooting streams gushing with water, hundreds of feet in length. A spiritual experience is all I can say. </div><div>
<br /></div><div>After some ground beef cooked on an open fire beside the RV around 8 p.m. (still lots of daylight), we decide to walk around some more. The trails in this campground are incredible, with elaborate boardwalks in marshy areas, and well kept trails with small rock beds. As we walk along, I decide to try a wild stunt. Walk out across the creek in the bone chilling glacier fed stream. My wife wants to document this for fun. I instruct her on how to use the camera, empty my pockets and head out. WHY am I doing this? Fun I guess. I have always prided myself on being tough with the cold. I have shot video in minus 50 degree weather in Alaska, went swimming and taken a bath in The Great Smokey Mountain National Park in the dead of winter, and so I thought I would "play" in the glacier fed streams of Alaska. Easy enough to just walk out into the stream. It was probably in the low 40's in temperature. What I did NOT know was that contrary to the deep south. Alaska does not have any of those smooth rocks and pebbles in streams. I was bare footed doing all of this. BIG mistake! It was like taking your shoes and socks off, and lightly walking across a thorn patch. It could also be compared to spreading thumb tacks across a wooden floor and lightly walking across them. MAN did this hurt! Never mind the cold water. Get me out of these thumb tacks! Needless to say, a short excursion. Alaska rocks are pretty much this way everywhere. They do have some colorful round granite rock-white with black specks, but the remaining rocks are jagged, rough, and sharp! After returning to camp and resting some more, we decide to take another walk down a different trail. Needless to say, since our exercise earlier in the day into dense foliage, I now carried the bear pepper spay can on my side where ever we go now. Our 10:00 p.m. to midnight excursion turned out to be one of the most memorable hikes I will always remember. Pictures from that hike are posted here on this blog. The clouds and sunset picture was taken about 11:30 p.m. that night. As the sun was low, there was still plenty of daylight to get around in the woods. It just made the place magical with the light. The glacier I described, the waterfalls, the mountains with different shades of foliage, took on different colors and shades as the sun set lower in the horizon. I could have stayed out all night! Soon around 11:30 p.m., my body told me it was time for bed. I polled my family and they were not ready to go to bed. There is daylight we are wasting! After a little bit of thought about this, I told my wife to take the bear pepper spray and her and the daughter could walk on more if they wanted to. They said they wanted to go down and see if any moose came out to graze in a marsh near the campground. I told them to just be careful and go on, but to STAY on the trails. They agreed and so I crashed for the night. Most folks would say yes, he is crazy for allowing his 24 year old daughter and wife to march off down the trails without him, but I had this feeling that it would fine. There were no bear warnings whatsoever at this campground, and besides, she did have a hugh can of bear pepper spray. Going to sleep that night was not a problem. That cool upper 50's temperature making it's way into the camper, the roar of the waterfalls up on the mountains, and a gentle breeze, made it a "knock me out" time of sleeping. I barely remember my crew returning from the moose walk. They said they got in around 1 a.m. but saw no moose. Another blissful day ends at my second home and paradise.</div><div>
<br /></div><div>Friday-July 15th- This we knew, was going to be sort of a bummer day. It was going to be a day to slowly head back to Anchorage and start preparing to turn the camper in on Saturday morning. I pull out hoping to say good bye to my new Alabama friend, the camp host. No sign of him. Everything locked up and vehicle gone. Oh well. Maybe I will see him another day up here. Before we turn in the keys so to speak on the beautiful place, we decide to go take the boat that carries you out to Portage Glacier. It is only about 4 miles down the road from the campground, so why not! As I mentioned earlier and above, Portage Glacier is one of many that is attached to the Harding Ice Field. The Harding Ice field goes for several hundred miles in the mountains. Glaciers are like information from another planet for folks in the lower 48. They are a science of their own. Glaciers move up to one foot a day taking and ripping anything in their path. Mountains are carved out and reshaped by glaciers. As we board the boat to take us out into Portage Glacier Lake, the real facts they tell you start to sink in, and they are very interesting. Portage Glacier Lake, because of its altitude and being glacier fed, is totally void of ANYTHING living, other than ice worms. The ice you see from the glacier can be as old as 75 years old. This lake is hugh! It is probably 3-4 miles across and 1-2 miles wide! There is nothing living here. Also, a Park Ranger onboard the vessel tells us this area receives 40 feet or more of snow each winter. They have to dig the boat out of the snow, shovel and dig out the buildings we boarded the boat at and the visitor center we talked about earlier in this blog. 40 feet of snow! Can you imagine the task of digging this place out every year preparing it for the tourist season. After this wonderful and breathtaking ride, it's time to head back in and take back the road in the RV. Well worth the trip, visiting a living glacier in front of you is very rewarding!</div><div>
<br /></div><div>As we leave Portage Glacier Valley, we head back up the Seward Highway. As we pass the Kenai Welcome center on the right, I look out and see crews from the Alaska railroad working. Looking closely, I see my buddy Joe! Pretty cool and what are the odds. Joe, you may recall, was my good friend that was going to put us up after we arrived in his dad's remote cabin on the lake near Anchorage. This all fell through when he took the job with the Alaska railroad. It was interesting to pull out in the middle of no where and see him working on the tracks! As we truck on down the road, I decide to make a tour of Girdwood. Girdwood is a Alaska Ski resort town about 40 minutes out of Anchorage. We take a tour of this small town. Not very much to speak of. It is "rough looking" as most towns are in Alaska, because of the harsh winters they have. By rough I mean they have dirty grit sand in all the parking lots, curbs, and everywhere. Due to the messy roads they have about 9 months out of the year with snow, it is just hard to really see a super clean parking lot or road as you would in the states. We drive on up to the Aleskya Ski Resort Lodge at the base of the mountain and notice a large tram going up to the top of the mountain. We had called about this earlier and decided this might be a good place to play on Saturday.The lodge looked super nice and super expensive. The ski Resort area did in no way match the town of Girdwood in terms of neatness. It was like apples and oranges. After we explored the town, we drove back out to the Seward Highway intersection and had pizza. I got to hand it to Alaska. They sure know how to make some good pizza, but boy do they eat pizza! These are everywhere! My wife and daughter did not care too much for what we had, but I enjoyed it. We all decided definitely we need to come back on Saturday to the resort, go up the mountain on the tram and check out the views. The weather has been super fantastic the last couple of days with tons of visibility.</div><div>
<br /></div><div>Arriving in Anchorage, it is all "mundane" details from here. Pull into the RV "trailer park" in downtown Anchorage, wash clothes, and start the tedious task of cleaning up the RV before turning it in Saturday morning. Friday night was spent uploading my pictures of the day to friends on facebook, washing clothes, and general RV cleanup. Laying down in bed that night, all 3 of us had the sinking feeling. The horrible thought that this play world we have bathed in for some 9 days was about to start winding down. What a horrible thought to have but a necessary evil in life. We decide we have got to get up early Saturday morning to get going. There was lots to do and short time to do it in. The plan was to go out to the airport in the a.m., pick up our rented SUV, turn the RV in over across town, and then head on back down to Girdwood and the Alyeska Ski Resort in our new rental SUV. </div><div>
<br /></div><div>6 a.m. hit hard and early, with so much daylight the night before pushing us to going to bed around 11:30 p.m. We bolt up out of our beds, well at least my wife and I do. My daughter takes a little longer. I remember those early years in my life. It took me forever to get out of bed. We head over for a large breakfast at the Peanut Shack, a popular spot in the evening for locals and tourists. Breakfast though, obviously is not there most favorite place in town because there was only 1 table with customers eating breakfast. There were only about 14 other tables left open. We order a massive Alaska breakfast, pay our $45.00 for breakfast for 3, and head out. </div><div>
<br /></div><div>After turning in the RV, getting a clean bill of health from them, we are off! We race back down the Seward Highway to get to Aleyski Ski Resort. Before I take you through the days activities at this neat place, lets talk about prices and Alaska. For all the good I have said about Alaska, there is one thing that is bad. That is the summer pricing. You have probably heard the stories about Alaska, Hawaii, and other tourist places in the United States. I can testify that yes, Alaska is VERY expensive IF you go in the summertime as 90% percent of all tourists do. How expensive? Well, let's take Anchorage. I have been there many times in the winter and in the summer. The Fairfield-Marriott, for example in Anchorage goes for $99.00 per night during the off season. Hey, this is great! You pay that in Nashville, Tennessee, or Portland, Maine. NOW, lets take that some place and try and stay there in mid-June. The rate is suddenly $225.00 per night. Wow! Is this tourist gouging or what? Needless to say, if you stay in a hotel for 2 weeks straight, do the math. That's a large chunk of change to eat, sleep, and be merry in a 16 by 12 room. Rental cars? You are looking at around $350.00-$400.00 for a weekend. I have paid that in the states for a weeks rental. So with all of that being said, consider the cost of food to be doubled as in the lower 48, the cost of lodging to be doubled in the summer months, and rental cars higher as well. At $179.00 per day rental on the RV, it seemed to average out better than hotels, especially since you have total freedom to go wherever you want to and not be restricted to "driving back to the hotel" after a full days activities. Our coming and going days we stayed at Microtel, a chain I rarely would ever stay in while in the lower 48. Their rooms are small, cramped and breakfast is weak, but hey, for $150.00 per night, I will take it. The one in Anchorage is pretty clean and well managed. They only thing we laughed about and I forgot to mention earlier, was that a 1 hour walk near the hotel the night we arrived, yielded a nice red tent set up in a wooded area right smack in the middle of a major highway and road interchange! It was just a few feet off the walking paved path, one of many they have in Anchorage. Two hours arriving with my family into this large city that Thursday evening and we see our first homeless shelter. According to locals, Anchorage has hundreds of homeless people. The city hosts the most homeless shelters in the nation. It has been and continues to be a major problem in Anchorage. </div><div>
<br /></div><div>Upon our arrival at Aleyski Ski Resort, we park and head for the tram. WHY are seemingly so excited to go up a tram to a Ski Resort in the middle of the summer? Good question. The answer is because of little clouds, there is absolutely stunning views of the valley and surrounding mountains. Locals in shops talked about it while we were running around. It looked like a great way to wrap up the trip. As we started up the tram, the young girl running it starting spitting out all the "useless factoids" to most folks. But for me, my audio recorder was running in my head on every word she said. As the tram went up the mountain, things got better, and better, and better with the view! Riding a tram in a place like this is like taking a helicopter up. It not only underlines the sense of size of the area, but shows you what a "spec" you were down the Seward Highway just 15 minutes earlier. Aleyski Ski Resort is the states main ski resort. Practically anyone that skies on slopes in Anchorage will make the drive down. At the top of the tram is a fairly large building that houses shops, a restaurant, a overlook, a gift shop, and several other facilities. When we are getting off the tram, a lady tells my wife, "There is a black bear just on the other side of the ridge". My wife passed that on to me as we exited the tram. End of story. We check out the building to see what is going on, and decide it's time to hike up the mountain. Since it is in the middle of summer there is no snow to ski on. What everyone seems to be doing is hiking and exploring the area. As we came up on the tram, the young lady pointed out that many people are hiking "The North Face" trail. She pointed down below us and we noticed a very pronounced trail that has hundreds of "switchbacks". It winds it's way up the mountain. As you see from the pictures attached, the mountains pretty much all have a slope going all the way to the top. We saw lots of people making the climb up, some even running as if training for a upcoming marathon. We start hiking up the mountain above the tram and resort headquarters at the top of the end of the tram. I am snapping pictures and shooting video of this amazing place with absolutely stunning views. One of those views is posted on this Blog. It is a view of my wife and daughter down below me and it looks out to Turnigan Arm and down at Girdwood. We decide to climb on up to the snow line and shoot some pictures in the snow. As I turn back and look down at some of the other people near the lodge, to my left and just on the other side of the ridge top, out pops a black bear. In a matter of seconds we have a bear out in full view up at the resort. With my news blood still in me from working at a TV station in the early 80's, I pull out my video camera and start shooting video. I see people starting to see him and some start freaking out! They run over and snatch up their young childern. Some pick up rocks and start tapping them together. Some stand still in disbelief! It looks like about a one year old Black Bear. Not quite enough to classify it as a "cub" but very young. After a few seconds of a standoff with the crowd, it became apparent that this club wanted to go through the cloud, over the hill and advance on down to the city of Girdwood to get into mischief. The interesting thing is that the "sound" that drove him into a mad dash run to get out of everyone's way was not their voices. It was a single middle aged lady who bent down and picked up rocks. She was hitting them agains each other. That sound sent the bear running over he hill and down right under where the sky resort is located. Wow! Bears do appear when you least expect it! I got it all on video to. That was cool and interesting to watch. </div><div>
<br /></div><div>As we head on up higher, we stop occasionally to sit down and take a breath of air, absorb the scenery, and take pictures. I suddenly catch myself taking one, two, three, 10, 11, and 12 pictures. Every direction I turn yields some of the most unique pictures. I pull out my iPhone, snap a picture, and immediately post it to facebook. That topped it off. Being able to share it live and real time practically back with my fb friends. I got a lot of joy out of sharing this trip as it evolved with my fb friends. I think that is a really neat thing to be able to do now days. After some time of walking, we decide that we should go all the way up to the snow line. we saw others doing it, so why not. As we get up to the snow line, my daughter tries to do the old tail slide down the mountain in the snow. It looked fun! I did not try it, but shot video of her doing it. My wife pointed out that she was not the least bit tired from all of the hiking! I told her thats because you don't have to breath 80% humidity like you do at home, thus you do not perspire as much. My wife and daughter were intrigued by that fact. We start back down the mountain and walk back into the main building where the tram arrives and departs. As we walk in, I look down and see a large pack on the floor. I look at the shop in front of this pack. It is a company that advertises paragliding lessons. I may have to check that out again in a minute! We go in and order lunch. Wow, I was shocked! Not only was it high priced, as it always is, but was good! We rest, relax taking on the views of the valley in the restaurant with it's large windows. We decide to get up and head outside to the observation decks. Out by the observation decks is a gift shop. All around this shop are decks to walk around in a 360 and take on the views. As we walk around to the far side looking down at Girdwood, we spot a full Paraglider spread ont eh ground on the top of the hill with an instructor. He is going over all the safety stuff with him. Both are standing up and the chute lays on the ground below them. We soon realize that the man in front is a "rookie", and the man standing behind him will be piloting the paraglider. We soon find out that for $195.00, this company will send you off the mountain, with an instructor riding behind you. You soar like a bird all over the valley and come down lightly on a field down below. My family starts encouraging me to do this. I start encouraging myself to do this. I am thinking yes! Let's do this. But then more of the reality sets in. Well, I am thinking, this will put us real late back to the hotel. We have to fly out 1 a.m. on Sunday morning. You had better pass it up this time I am thinking. My wife and daughter counter that with "do this! You may not get another chance in life to do this!" After about 20minutes of mulling this over in my head, I decide to go talk to them and see how long it would be and what it would take. They inform me about 45 minutes to over an hour wait time. OK, that did it. I guess we will just go. I knew at that time, as I know now, that decision will haunt me the rest of my life. I should have done this! It looked so peaceful. The instructor basically pilots it but hands the controls over to you from time to time. The Pilot also wore a reserve parachute. If you have the time and are curious about Paragliding, go to Wikipedia and read the definition between Paragliding, Parasailing, and hang gliding. It will open your eyes to a new and wonderful sport that is done apparently all over Alaska. We saw this same thing at Hatcher Pass, mentioned at the first of this blog. Folks have been known to catch "thermals" and stay up over an hour or so, just coasting like the eagle or buzzard does in those thermal wind currents in the air! After an awesome day on Aleyski, its time for the dreaded word, head home. </div><div>
<br /></div><div>Arriving in Anchorage that afternoon, we decide to do a full out feast at the Sourdough Mining Company. This is a very popular local place to eat some great food. I order Prawns, something I have not had in a long time. I snap a few pictures of the inside of this place. Old and rustic, it is the perfect place to end a wonderful trip. We return to the hotel where I have us a room booked, although we will not be spending the night here. Our flight, called the "red eye" flight out of Anchorage, leaves at 12:45 Sunday morning. As we chill out in the hotel, we sweat about the shirts and all the tourist "stuff" we bought. Why are we sweating about it? Because of the weight! Baggage cannot be over 50 pounds each, and coming up, we were close to that! Around 10 p.m., we head on over to the airport, a ten minute drive. We turn in the car, check in and watch the scales. My wife-44 pounds, my daughter-48 pounds, me-51 pounds! Dooaaaah! The lady smiles and says "don't sweat it", picks up the bag and plops it on the conveyor belt behind her. Man, I was happy for that! If she said no, then we all three would have had to embarrassingly open all 4 baggages and redistribute the weight. Not really a problem, but not a good thing with about 25 people in line standing behind you very ill! After that is out of the way, we are "thinning ourselves down" by only having our carry on baggage. As we go through security, it really hit me. All of this red tape and all of this hassle, because some crazy idiots from another country crashed some planes into our buildings. They are dead and we are suffering the consequences many years later. I know, I know. A necessary evil for the further protection of our citizens from harm. As we successfully get passed through this checkpoint, we head to the gate. Sitting around and waiting, we notice that nothing was happening and we were about 20 minutes from take off time. Finally, that dreaded message ( if you fly a lot) comes on..... "Ladies and gentleman, those of you departing Anchorage on XXX service to Salt Lake City..the pilot has made a walk through on the outside of the plane, and discovered a large section of oil on the pavement underneath one of the engines. We have called for a mechanic to check it out. Please stand by and we will keep you updated". Oh boy, here we go! I knew from that point, we were totally hosed on all connecting flights, and I was absolutely right. The flight was delayed and we did take off, but an hour behind schedule! That immediately put us on other flights and routed us to Atlanta. Was started out on the way up with a 12 hour ordeal to get to Alaska, ended up with a 17 hour ordeal getting home. To add insult to injury, if you count from the time we got out of bed Saturday morning in Anchorage until we laid down in bed in our home town, was 30 hours straight! I managed to grab about 4 hours sleep on the plane. My wife and my daughter cannot sleep on planes, and so their time to rest was only about 2 hours of sleep. It always takes me a day or two to adjust to the time change (Alaska is 3 hours behind Central time) and for my body to get back in sync on what time it is to sleep, to eat, to get up, and to function. My family did not know how to handle "total darkness" after the return. We had not seen full darkness nighttime in 9 days!</div><div>
<br /></div><div>So this wraps up one of those once in a lifetime type trips. Although I vow that this will not be THE trip. It will be one of many more if the Lord is willing. As I always have said since 1986 and will continue to say today: "I will be back!" This time, I was blessed to have my wife and my daughter both say: "WE will be back! Mission was successful. Successful in that I was able after 20 something years to convince my wife and daughter to travel with me to Alaska. Successful in that 20 years of collecting air miles on my business trips brought them here, and thus my prayers back in the 1980s came true. Both my wife and daughter were "floating" on a high from the trip, for almost a week and a half later. My daughter commented "It just all seems like a dream, a place too good to be true now. I wish I were back there". My wife made the same comments. So we all made a pack to come back to this amazing place. I have friends that I have come close to there, scenery that only God can create, and the only thing left is the stuff we dread dealing with: Making a living there? If the family could survive a winter there (My wife openly admits no, she cannot do it, but would love to spend every summer up there). The last issue is oh yeah, the money. It always seems to come back to the money. Wonder why that is? DAH!..But as my new found camp host stated so well...."If you aim at nothing, you will hit it every time". So with that said, the planning and saving money for the next journey to THE GREAT LAND (aka..God's Country!) is already underway. </div><div>
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<br /></div><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dwM_EQOdQqjqEmML2KcNgFhEJqDfaM0BT88VHAi6Cq3ZCKMSWM_j9ZsoaWLwC5i9hxq9A7EVycPi71wS41QLg' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe>VideoRexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16342756961482992738noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1459368010805427886.post-60762933288905270322011-04-01T21:07:00.010-05:002011-04-01T22:31:22.649-05:00More Adventures In The Planning-Alaska and The Smokey Mountains National Park<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikRx2Eg2mWS1EOYW2SzkcRF0GnA7ULzMMSPQ7SlqQv4k7PTl8YO5Bn2pXNL7L9o-dQBklZf0-yTdWjLJBCZe5to5Bh1VLXdLWVxD0ovTNdTiY5CjvKStnjkllp9B1jibH7ZvBI84mH1tw/s1600/Camp-Holgate+Arm%25232.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikRx2Eg2mWS1EOYW2SzkcRF0GnA7ULzMMSPQ7SlqQv4k7PTl8YO5Bn2pXNL7L9o-dQBklZf0-yTdWjLJBCZe5to5Bh1VLXdLWVxD0ovTNdTiY5CjvKStnjkllp9B1jibH7ZvBI84mH1tw/s400/Camp-Holgate+Arm%25232.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5590818311290219666" /></a><br /><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiU0GI-ob_6AAbsTgSHlH05eCC4VYY5Bjwdgxtl397RghFUvxBQXcYV8U-5iLnTlbXxjtXBPZl16taWOm2wN-Rn80JAYuqkrgGN95O_6r68LVJiretQlo0aGL3qiUXKUKxISf090WfKxuU/s400/Burns+Glacier-Bear+Valley.JPG" /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRXhP8t_dCwfRBjAfp4W2BMqlSOybiGhAzDE8TxG90f85DywF5At0Cu6DD3kYF638BC2PZLtTI7ZXxF6e6H6kQT9icdGqlBnGQ6rv8wAeal370hl6BQHpSb4SCtsUMUdO2ZXe6u5lONuI/s1600/Lunch-Day+2.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRXhP8t_dCwfRBjAfp4W2BMqlSOybiGhAzDE8TxG90f85DywF5At0Cu6DD3kYF638BC2PZLtTI7ZXxF6e6H6kQT9icdGqlBnGQ6rv8wAeal370hl6BQHpSb4SCtsUMUdO2ZXe6u5lONuI/s400/Lunch-Day+2.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5590817514622278962" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTUswFy59vGWS3ehWfOblEHXOJGNaqpfy9lGHfnGCNAN4yuL3J7xwbevfztvemP6Yb4CO4ja3dHY8Zgazr9iN3ZSLQb9UaYnqyoEkz0G9GCHdNRyK9h4WDZUMvr-AGqLnxT6C7ktNZBqM/s1600/Fontana+May+2008015.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTUswFy59vGWS3ehWfOblEHXOJGNaqpfy9lGHfnGCNAN4yuL3J7xwbevfztvemP6Yb4CO4ja3dHY8Zgazr9iN3ZSLQb9UaYnqyoEkz0G9GCHdNRyK9h4WDZUMvr-AGqLnxT6C7ktNZBqM/s400/Fontana+May+2008015.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5590813612768376962" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPgXN739w0saJvSFer3usCRPqFoy9K5JDPbLTa61Lo0pz-AiW145X5mpowVvcDXYOud_r5BDNrSf1KDoyh3DjrWy1cKg4COnfOhBpvJqv3K-p4-CzlXZKtxOBuZt7_un4xn39NWwsVf0w/s1600/100_4005.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPgXN739w0saJvSFer3usCRPqFoy9K5JDPbLTa61Lo0pz-AiW145X5mpowVvcDXYOud_r5BDNrSf1KDoyh3DjrWy1cKg4COnfOhBpvJqv3K-p4-CzlXZKtxOBuZt7_un4xn39NWwsVf0w/s200/100_4005.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5590812381863474386" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT8yC-YdGq8DhsQMybBlSM5K41a7fTAFxRVOyd1-oxYAOzZiMrnAsF63OrgmjrrIb0ciWtzRHr6eVm9GV3HZnYtp8lF6HT1nFVmsBAmaFqvR0fLF8wD7P5PM051tkcW19JWij7U-AEIVo/s1600/10Jan07_Aurora4.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 134px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT8yC-YdGq8DhsQMybBlSM5K41a7fTAFxRVOyd1-oxYAOzZiMrnAsF63OrgmjrrIb0ciWtzRHr6eVm9GV3HZnYtp8lF6HT1nFVmsBAmaFqvR0fLF8wD7P5PM051tkcW19JWij7U-AEIVo/s200/10Jan07_Aurora4.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5590812367609988434" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3fYSu-qCKw7DczsWGBhlrk36ki2_K70zDhd9VNtMUfUfLFIBw8Pun0xXYBLzg5AfrDsDP7QSvTZLi27t4IBYqyxpTEhp-ZgQolWat0Ecie9cjRn-LLen5zR1u4e4gvCWVD-kUtDwZPpI/s1600/10Aug05_BolioBull1.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 132px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3fYSu-qCKw7DczsWGBhlrk36ki2_K70zDhd9VNtMUfUfLFIBw8Pun0xXYBLzg5AfrDsDP7QSvTZLi27t4IBYqyxpTEhp-ZgQolWat0Ecie9cjRn-LLen5zR1u4e4gvCWVD-kUtDwZPpI/s200/10Aug05_BolioBull1.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5590812364552792914" /></a><br /><b>Winter 2010-2011 in Review and Adventures Ahead</b><div><b><br /></b><div>What an amazing winter with backpacking trips in the Bankhead National Forest with my camping buddies. The snakes, ticks, chiggers, and mosquitoes are all on their way out with the warmer weather, so it is time to put down the backpack in Alabama and head for higher ground and travel north! If the Lord is willing for me to do this, and I can stay employed in this dropping economy in the United States, I have two adventure trips ahead that I am exicted to share with you. In May of 2011, I hope you will ride along with me as we head back to the old familiar place on this blog-kayak camping on Fontana Lake in the Great Smokey Mountains National Park! This will make about my 12th year going to this amazing place. I hope to take members of the Huntsville Canoe Club along with me as well as some of my close backpacking friends that like to kayak and camp. I hope you will check back and join us on that trip around the first of May. <div><br /></div><div><b>Let's Head North This Summer-About 4,000 Miles!</b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div>Final plans are being layed out for a summer journey to my favorite place in the world! Airline tickets have just gotten booked, the gear is being layed out, and the mind is getting focused on returning to some of my favorite spots once again. In late July, you will be travelling in this blog to Anchorage, Alaska with me and the family. We plan to take you to Seward, Whittier, Homer, Wasilla, and a surprise stay at an extremely remote place on Lake Louise. A close friend of mine in Anchorage that I have come to know over the years has extended an invitation for my family (and you along with us in the blog) to come spend about 2-3 nights in a very remote cabin on Lake Louise. It is only accesible by boat, has all the wild elements of Alaska, and yes, the shotgun must be carried everywhere to protect you from any moose or grizzly bears that might want to take you on. This is something I have dreamed about all my life! Spending the night in a remote cabin, deep in the wilds of Alaska. Lord willing, I hope to have my family right beside me. As much as I have traveled all of the United States and overseas with work, I have not had an opportunity to take my family much at all with me. I decided before I get too far past 50 years old and I still have a job (as of this writing), I had better do it soon! This trip is going to be focused on wildlife. My family has requested this so look for hopefully pictures of grizzly bear, the salmon runs (peak during this time), and with a little luck, whales and dolphins on an excursion planned near Seward where my nephew Eric and I kayak camped in 2007. There will be more to add to this post on this subject, so stand by for updates! If they don't tax me death with hidden fees on airlines, RV rentals, gear rentals, shipping, and anything else "tax and fees" wise they can hide and add, I pray to share another adventure on this in late July with everyone following the blogs. </div><div><br /></div><div>Last, <b>THANK YOU ALL</b> for the kind words that many of you have shared with me on these blogs so far over the years. <b>Those comments keep me writing</b> and sharing adventures with you. I have a passion for adventure in life and I love to share it. Obviously, many of you following this have a passion and go on perhaps your own adventures as well. If you can, get outdoors and enjoy some adventure this summer! If you cannot because of various reasons, just sit tight and I hope to take you along with me and we can share the fun together!</div></div></div>VideoRexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16342756961482992738noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1459368010805427886.post-18805038023626330032011-02-02T13:32:00.017-06:002011-02-03T18:28:21.851-06:00Whiskey Still Haven in Winston County, Alabama with 8 Beautiful Waterfalls and Cascades<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3ABSeSeUBUQ30a6DtXc6FcPkL9cTdgeaL31hHMpbMH7ZTWagPiM9JtT10uhTTzuHBGr-V-reXE-nhcTHuLqxJ2iIMqK5F4_D6UpcFxJSjxME4DzIol6qgGsDhWLGRwHzj5RAu59Hv1lU/s1600/100_2897.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 179px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3ABSeSeUBUQ30a6DtXc6FcPkL9cTdgeaL31hHMpbMH7ZTWagPiM9JtT10uhTTzuHBGr-V-reXE-nhcTHuLqxJ2iIMqK5F4_D6UpcFxJSjxME4DzIol6qgGsDhWLGRwHzj5RAu59Hv1lU/s320/100_2897.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5569437892310662546" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivwDIDFCmyg58X7G2fH1FmAFoB0id-QVoIsoVGhJ4ZyrPg7xnxtEqsKgOju-QcJ6_8vsuTj7qy0Y4suXBdMIxgEQY5HVdopWiu9Y8YTCAx_xqrRBUTIYNxO0en9yT_18M5fnfgokeDzVQ/s1600/100_2937.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 179px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivwDIDFCmyg58X7G2fH1FmAFoB0id-QVoIsoVGhJ4ZyrPg7xnxtEqsKgOju-QcJ6_8vsuTj7qy0Y4suXBdMIxgEQY5HVdopWiu9Y8YTCAx_xqrRBUTIYNxO0en9yT_18M5fnfgokeDzVQ/s320/100_2937.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5569437882736227394" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRKGyVY98xc_uxxljy4-OzVboqfjNBC60UHYHjtDH7TgMd6mJI3wr-ydtLJtjq8KGaigVYyG1AjP6t8GFYRTTFdz_huJCckenGQ40n3bQpuQxy_QDVdkNlStoRVVLRON-6UQ1WcEi_EJM/s1600/100_2975.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 84px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRKGyVY98xc_uxxljy4-OzVboqfjNBC60UHYHjtDH7TgMd6mJI3wr-ydtLJtjq8KGaigVYyG1AjP6t8GFYRTTFdz_huJCckenGQ40n3bQpuQxy_QDVdkNlStoRVVLRON-6UQ1WcEi_EJM/s320/100_2975.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5569310112999712994" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZs_VtxOhqfIdoQXPZCjMVO6P-hioshiKVya7AOgkxZZQvcVXT3Jx6BL1yclwGqFYjiDhNBctaZcdE66otzndHuA8j4ijzlt6mDhWNvgLKkXhgDk_fkErMtpf7gNTQb0eo8PlC38LG4hU/s1600/100_2993.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 179px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZs_VtxOhqfIdoQXPZCjMVO6P-hioshiKVya7AOgkxZZQvcVXT3Jx6BL1yclwGqFYjiDhNBctaZcdE66otzndHuA8j4ijzlt6mDhWNvgLKkXhgDk_fkErMtpf7gNTQb0eo8PlC38LG4hU/s320/100_2993.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5569309380957570098" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZG__Xhxe-uxrLnLQKHxLQ-pN3vHHz7Bqo_9pHRrnk-Uz7IoyTqn0oM-BPO_w_M1MIG9txcSJ9mbeAfB1OUL-jHWA4PnutdiZijoYflIzk1XP05RxiQd8d9m7InIA3mTurhkQOJXmCf94/s1600/100_2994.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 179px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZG__Xhxe-uxrLnLQKHxLQ-pN3vHHz7Bqo_9pHRrnk-Uz7IoyTqn0oM-BPO_w_M1MIG9txcSJ9mbeAfB1OUL-jHWA4PnutdiZijoYflIzk1XP05RxiQd8d9m7InIA3mTurhkQOJXmCf94/s320/100_2994.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5569309368725115074" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8OncPb29_o9F4nYggRLjIyY8Pwu3D89uM0WU3AjkjUrDqcxGWNbYQCyjfVYzRZJz196iNpo6wsXxDppIt5giB1rH2e5rAxzBzdirohVv7VtFqEpF_zK6OrWjmc66epzlUKvCSXFpHiI4/s1600/100_3015.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 179px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8OncPb29_o9F4nYggRLjIyY8Pwu3D89uM0WU3AjkjUrDqcxGWNbYQCyjfVYzRZJz196iNpo6wsXxDppIt5giB1rH2e5rAxzBzdirohVv7VtFqEpF_zK6OrWjmc66epzlUKvCSXFpHiI4/s320/100_3015.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5569307693246738082" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQ58hR8n_Bgl9uO_yFM-SfhAZ4KsnnVOumD2HHKCOd_UDY5u81gz7jlaoAwFOzkJuF7jCb8dxSNh7IA9RaX0FumEaTk7911kBTh2gaopUtjJeZGMQD_MM5MXtlTZF1DEZnv3hBvmo3JjY/s1600/100_3024.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 179px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQ58hR8n_Bgl9uO_yFM-SfhAZ4KsnnVOumD2HHKCOd_UDY5u81gz7jlaoAwFOzkJuF7jCb8dxSNh7IA9RaX0FumEaTk7911kBTh2gaopUtjJeZGMQD_MM5MXtlTZF1DEZnv3hBvmo3JjY/s320/100_3024.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5569307687063275266" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibdTtjV4bkKlUyac3lVoamlUIRVxu-1rOMFdg6yQNiwDm6pXHpuONu69_ijJAw0naOY-g3v5Fh0kmEeFTBRPiY8gU5GU5z1hR4Yn9xf3GdSs0Ob6j6H0ajgUVROO-mRajm0k3grD178iw/s1600/100_3038.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 179px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibdTtjV4bkKlUyac3lVoamlUIRVxu-1rOMFdg6yQNiwDm6pXHpuONu69_ijJAw0naOY-g3v5Fh0kmEeFTBRPiY8gU5GU5z1hR4Yn9xf3GdSs0Ob6j6H0ajgUVROO-mRajm0k3grD178iw/s320/100_3038.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5569306528331252050" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2rvhxrorXhUsqViKzqcfV24Pbq2pn-KtTdi1VMbjh890JPaYrJrGum-67XB_ncUGZunz-pxU2j-gdigTNN5scfsmRw3tqzwaTMgB3OrLJKkqv5Uz1yKF6gKG-j_oX8M2cBA93zLlPS94/s1600/100_3043.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 179px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2rvhxrorXhUsqViKzqcfV24Pbq2pn-KtTdi1VMbjh890JPaYrJrGum-67XB_ncUGZunz-pxU2j-gdigTNN5scfsmRw3tqzwaTMgB3OrLJKkqv5Uz1yKF6gKG-j_oX8M2cBA93zLlPS94/s320/100_3043.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5569306524785597138" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQKbM5xBYCO_iTjbI1sJrgKBOJ-f-Sr-YPSV7fg1Aik6HhWQZGf5QY8ORVaQubh3se1eS07tBSC3EZoEOhvusfN0Zg4vAZeCtqH4PMcvspjuX2Cl0Q3HVam3b0SgL2zKHAhZrmouyIMas/s1600/100_3051.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 179px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQKbM5xBYCO_iTjbI1sJrgKBOJ-f-Sr-YPSV7fg1Aik6HhWQZGf5QY8ORVaQubh3se1eS07tBSC3EZoEOhvusfN0Zg4vAZeCtqH4PMcvspjuX2Cl0Q3HVam3b0SgL2zKHAhZrmouyIMas/s320/100_3051.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5569306518862033490" border="0" /></a><br />Seldom do you take off on an adventure trip, and 15 minutes into the trip, you are running with excitement like a 12 year old at Christmas. Normally, you have to travel to get somewhere to have the fun. Seldom does the fun hit you in the face while traveling to your destination! Such was the case one warm winter weekend in January of 2011. Yep, that's right, you guessed it...... ANOTHER weekend out there in that Bankhead National Forest or northern Alabama. With the economy in this country continuing at a crawl, jobs going away to overseas, most folks don't have overwhelming travel budgets. With my line of work, that used to be the normal to travel to adventurous areas of the country and allow me to share my travels with you on this blog. Since the economy has tanked, I haven't been more than 300 miles from my home in the last year....so we all will have to settle for some fun around my home area- Bankhead National Forest. <div><br /></div><div>Our next adventure trip starts out at the familiar site to this blog, McDonalds in Moulton on Alabama Highway 157. The date is Saturday, January 28, 2011. My new close friend and camping partner with us, Brett Page, drove up from Blount county to join Thomas Graham, another close camping buddy and friend. Thomas and I go back many years. We met each other in the Boy Scouts with his dad being the local scout master. Thomas lived down the road from me and so we played some together as well. It is from these roots that we both developed a passionate love for Bankhead. The older we got and traveled around, we realize just how unique this place is. I have been blessed to travel to Alaska 12 times, and traveled all over it. I have been to Washington State and Mount Rainer, Yosemite in California, and the list goes on. NOTHING even comes close to the unique environment the Bankhead offers. My camping friend Sam says that Kentucky has some areas like Bankhead, and that is the first person I have heard to say that. </div><div><br /></div><div>As the 3 of us embark on our journey, Thomas has it all mapped out of where we want to go. He does a fantastic job of studying Bankhead maps, plotting where bluff shelters, waterfalls, cascades, or even historical things may be. Thomas does something that only a handful of other people do such as those associated with the Wild South organization. Thomas goes and talks to old timers that know the Bankhead. He earns their trust and they know he won't exploit key areas in the Bankhead that the average public would steal or destroy in time. On this trip, he is loaded with ammo (knowledge) for exploring Capsey Creek, one of my favorite canyons to explore in the Bankhead. For those of you outside of this area, this state, or the U.S., Capsey creek is at the southern most end of Bankhead National Forest. It is located due south of the well known Brushy Lake Recreation Area on maps. Very few people explore this area of the forest, even hunters, because the terrain is very rough, steep (by Alabama mountain standards), and thick with undergrowth. It takes a lot of work and determination to explore this part of the country. But the rewards, whoa, well, unreal!</div><div><br /></div><div>We park our vehicles along a forest road and head out down the canyon that Thomas has planned out for us ahead of time. On this trip for the first 2-3 hours of our long journey, Thomas's aunt Pam, an adventurer and Bankhead lover as well has joined up with us. She is walking in a short distance with us and then returning out. No more than 10 minutes out of the truck, we come upon an old whiskey still site beside this stream we are following down into the canyon that intersects at Capsey. After you have seen so many abandoned whiskey stills, you notice that they all are built pretty much alike. They all have the round vat pattern dug out beside a stream. As we stop and talk, take pictures, record video, and make way-points on our hand held GPS units, we decide to move on. As we travel another 100 yards down, yet another whiskey still site is spotted. It is another sunken hole in the ground, which is all that remains but is is a tell tale sign. The parts are long gone, but the tell-tale sign is left for history to record. We do a repeat of documenting all of this and then move on down the canyon following this small stream that is little more than 3 feet wide. As we move on down, a big smile comes on my face. I see hemlocks starting to take the woods over. Hemlocks are my favorite tree in the Bankhead. Why you ask? Well, for one thing, they remain green year round. Second, they grow down in deep, wet canyons that have waterfalls, ferns, moss and everything beautiful associated with a forest. The site of them means beauty is just about guaranteed ahead. Such was the case in this trip as well. As we started seeing the hemlocks, the mud bottom stream suddenly went on to nothing but rock, carving and weaving a path on top of rocks and and making small cascades. I noticed the current in the stream was picking up as well, indicating we are starting the descent into the deep canyon of Capsey. We stop along the rocky cascades, snap a few photos, and then move on down, walking slowly with our backpacks loaded down. As we start descending into the rocky terrain under hemlocks, we are quickly rewarded. WOW! What an awesome waterfall with a blue pool underneath it. Moving on down, we see the remains of a rather large whiskey still that has been blown up by the revenuers some time back. Descending on down, we see two natural bridges of rock! This was most impressive. They suspend like arches up and over, making two natural bridges. The whiskey still is pretty much in tact and made of aluminum. The site under the natural bridges are a different story. Someone has come in and dug the entire area up underneath the shelter looking for Indian artifacts. In fact, it looked pretty sad. There were wooden sifter nets left up underneath the natural bridge (for sifting dirt through to find pottery and Indian arrowheads, 3-4 foot holes and trenches dug, with plastic buckets laying around everywhere. Someone was having themselves a field day in the Bankhead. Of course you should know or guessed by now, that this practice is very illegal to do on public forest land. Evidently, someone had no fear of getting caught. As we are " oohing and ahhing" the waterfall, whiskey still, and natural bridges by them, we hear a whistle from someone. We look around to see where it is coming from. We notice that Thomas's Aunt Pam is nowhere to be found. We soon realize it is her whistling for us to come up out of the spring and natural bridge area some 200 feet up. When we arrive, we smile as she is smiling and see cans laying everywhere on the ground. These cans are rusty and were once a green color 5 gallon oil type cans. To 95% of the folks that would pass through and see this, they would blow it off as trash. Upon closer inspection, we quickly find that these rusty ole "cans", are the leftovers of a major whiskey still "bust" by revenuers. It is totally amazing to me. As the majority of the public that has passed through here, they have not disturbed some rusty ole cans laying in the forest. What they don't realize is that they are preserving the past! These cans are laying pretty much JUST like they did when the entire whiskey making operation was busted up. Upon further inspection, Brett is smart enough (I had no clue of this) to know that most all metal cans have a manufacturers date on the bottom of them. Most all of the cans have 1961 or 1963 on the bottom. Logic and pure guesswork would say this whiskey still was busted up in the mid 1960's. Further inspections of the cans shows axe holes. Ah ha!, yes, these cans were a part of the bust from down below. Thomas says that most of the revenuers would do one of two things, or both. They would throw one stick of dynamite in the still and/or chop the side walls and cans using an axe. Axe holes were all in these old cans. If I were a betting man, I would bet much money that most of the cans have not been moved from the bust on that day in the 1960's. From talking to old timers, including an elderly man that served time in prison in his younger years for making whiskey, most stills are gauged by output in terms of the term "sacker". A "5 sacker" still would be determined that because they used approximately 5 sacks of sugar to produce the vat full of whiskey. Typical large stills went from 10-20 sacker stills. This one we encountered today was probably a 10 sacker still was his guess from listening to the old timers. </div><div><br /></div><div>After spending some time documenting all of this on video and stills, way-pointing all the information on our hand held GPS units to download to a map later, we pack up and move on. By this time, Pam has decided she needs to head back. She bids us farewell, and we move on down deeper into the canyon. About another 1/2 mile, we come upon one awesome waterfall! Located just down from the waterfall is an extremely flat place to set up a tent. We all decide that THIS is the place to camp, no doubt. The waterfall to put us to sleep like babies, a flat place for my tent and lots of trees for Thomas and Brent to tie up there hammocks. We pitch camp and setup our "base camp" as we call it. We sit down, relax and eat some lunch, and then head out on a long journey. It's only 12:30 p.m., but we have lots of ground to cover! We carry flashlights, maps, and some food to tie us over if we get in past dark. I always carry my survival kit, flashlight, emergency water filter, and ham radio with me on these excursions. You never know what can happen. The only thing we lacked in camp was getting in firewood. </div><div><br /></div><div>As we move on down the canyon, we see a another canyon feeding into this tributary. It looks impressive with tall bluff walls, and so we turn east and start walking up it. At the end of it, our mouths drop to the ground with such beauty. Right at the end of this canyon, of which the stream goes on back up in the forest a long way but the canyon starts here, is one of the deepest blue holes I have ever seen! What is a blue hole you might ask? Well, in the Bankhead, the water is so clear that with blue skies and deep water, the pools of water at the base of these waterfalls take on a turquoise or bluish color. With the blue skies and clear weather we had that day, they all seemed to take on a blue glow. This waterfall had a long 100 foot rock chute where water came down and emptied into the deep pool below. Whenever we come up on these un-named waterfalls and blue holes, we try and name them ourselves. Thomas decided "Slip-N-Slide" was most appropriate for this waterfall for a name, so off it goes into our GPS units.</div><div><br /></div><div>Moving on back down the main tributary into Capsey, we found a large flat area to camp beside the creek and notice another waterfall called "Broken Waterfalls". It is about 3 levels or tiers of water falling down, until it reaches the last one, a 15 foot high drop. This was really pretty, but after seeing so much better waterfalls, we simply marked it on GPS, snapped a few pictures, and moved on. We encounter numerous old whiskey still sites that are not mentioned here, but many of them are just sunken holes in the ground, hence the title of this article, 8 whiskey stills. Just a few hundred yards past this waterfall, we find another flat beautiful area to camp at. This one has some streams nearby with iron ore seeping out of them. Some were so bad that the stream was a solid orange color. We mark it on our GPS units as "iron ore camp". </div><div><br /></div><div>About 3/4 to 1 mile on down the canyon, we come up on something I have never seen in all the years of walking Bankhead. Just shortly before the intersection of Capsey Creek, I am just about speechless when we walk up on this area. It is one of the largest blue holes I have ever seen in the Bankhead. It is out in the middle of nowhere, totally off the beaten path, and has two absolutely stunning cascades of crystal clear water emptying into them. A picture of it is on this blog. I cannot get enough of this place. I take picture after picture, video after video, and the guys actually walk off and leave me trying to absorb this place. It is so clear, colorful and peaceful, that you want to drop the clothes and dive in for a swim. What an amazing and beautiful place to go swimming. Suddenly, you slap your face and realize, it's 60 degrees, you will freeze to death if you were stupid enough to jump in. Also, in the summertime, you would have to contend with ticks, chiggers, mosquitoes, and a host of snakes that would claim the place. Still, we all 3 agreed this place would well be worth the time to come in around June and take a dip in the pool. If we do come, I am bringing swim trunks of course, my snorkel and my mask to explore further. Speaking of this, my good friend and outdoors-man Charlie told me of some awesome fun in the Smokies that he and his buddies would do. The average John Q public looked on them like "dorks", but they would dawn jeans and tee-shirts, put a mask and snorkel on, and just float down some of the streams in the Smokies. I did this with two friends after hearing this from Charlie. We went up to the Jacks River in northern Georgia in the Cohutta Wilderness one summer, camped and all we did was snorkel the stream in front of our tent. Folks, this is a blast!!! When you come within 3 feet of trout, bass, and a host of other fish that don't seem the slightest bit afraid of you, then you come back with some awesome memories. This is an "untapped" sport in my opinion. It is a view of nature that we have rarely even thought about. Charlie was right. THIS IS another way to have fun in the outdoors. </div><div><br /></div><div>At the mouth of the Capsey creek, it would seem like our journey had come to an end. We pose for a picture together (camera set up on a timer perched on a hiking staff), and head back up. Before we do, Thomas comes walking up grinning . He is holding the front end hood ornament from a very old Ford truck. It looks like maybe out of the 1940's. I told him there is a full body truck laying on it's side in the creek upstream and it may have come from it. We take a few pictures, and Thomas puts it back down for someone else to find 3-5 years from now, once again preserving history in the Bankhead. </div><div><br /></div><div>Going back upstream from where we came, we take a side stream to the left that we had not been up while coming down. We finally dead end into a rather boring looking 1o foot high waterfall. Thomas says "Let's cut across the ridge and go back over to our main stream rather than taking the stream. Looking up at the woods, it doesn't look like that is a very exciting route to take back, but seeing how it is getting dark, we decide we do need to head out this way. By Thomas making that suggestion, it turned out to be one of the most exciting ideals he has ever come up with. As we move along climbing up the ridge, pushing ourselves along up the long slow steep incline to get back over on the other side, Brett calls out "what's that?". As we look, we see what appears to be airplane wreckage. We start moving on up the hill and a faster pace now. We are throwing out suggestions to each other as we walk up. Our imaginations run wild as we pick up the pace. We start seeing barrels and cans. OK you think to yourself, this is not a plane wreck on the side of the hill, maybe it is just a garbage dump from long ago. When we get close enough, we all three erupt into laughter! It's another large whiskey still busted up by the revenuers!! With this one being so far off the beaten path, you can tell that almost nobody has touched this one! There are cans spread out everywhere. 5 gallon cans, barrels, and all of them have the classic axe holes in them. The vat, made of aluminum and almost identical to the ones we saw earlier in the day, show that the same fellow ran a series of these stills. What a find! We were like little kids, snapping pictures, video, collecting way-points to log this one, and fascinated at how off the beaten path it is. Once again, one look yields a small spring coming up from the ground just 10 feet away from it, the source of all whiskey stills from a time long gone by. We decided that this whole area we explored was once an exciting place to be, or a very dangerous one!!! It depends on which side of the law you are on!</div><div><br /></div><div>Near dusk, we make it back to camp, round up some firewood and enjoy some more wonderful fellowship around the campfire. As we contemplate the day's activities, we realize that never has so much been found, in such a short distance, in all the years we have explored the Bankhead. What a day! Little did we know, but the next day would knock us to our feet again with treasures!</div><div><br /></div><div style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-size:130%;">Sunday-February 29, 2011</span></div><div><br /></div><div>We break camp early because we found out we had more time to explore on this trip. Our wives were away and would not be home until Monday, giving us "boys" a little more time to explore rather than run home fast to the family. I only wanted to get back in time for church that night, but other than that, I was open to a full day of God's creation. Brett and Thomas agreed, and so we decided to explore the south side of Capsey. We looked on a topo map, studied the terrain, and decided a good route to go in on the south side of Capsey. On our way out Sunday morning to the vehicles with our packs on, Thomas's aunt Pam left us a present she found in the mud. It was a gear from an old grist mill! Wow, what a find! We marvel at it, take pictures of it, and place it up on a limb away from the stream for hopefully others to admire history here and enjoy another 50 years. I only hope someone will not steal it for keeps at there house. It belongs here in the museum of the Bankhead that belongs to the people. After marching our way out, which seemed like it did not take long since I had all 40 pounds of my food I brought in (just kidding of course). We moved around on the south side of Capsey, slowly creeping along in our vehicle while Thomas studied his GPS. Finally, Thomas says "right here. Park right here." We get out, load and gather some day packs, food, water, cameras, gps units, etc, and head out. Just 10 minutes down the canyon, we come upon a beech tree carved to death with all kinds of markings. At the top of it about 5 feet high, it had the letters in bold KKK. Underneath it, it had the names of about 3 or 4 guys. There were two rebel flags carved on the tree and the dates of 1976 or in the 70's, I cannot remember without looking at pictures. Very faintly on the tree was something that I still wonder about. You could barely make it out but it said "November 15, 1860. Is it real? Who knows? Maybe this date is the date the KKK was formed by Nathan Bedford Forrest and others, I need to research and see. Or, could it be that this really is a real date carved back during that time. We will never know for sure. We marvel, take pictures, and move on down the canyon. We hike all the way down, over 1 mile to Capsey, and see nothing. We are tired and a little frustrated now. We sit down, grab some lunch on Capsey. I shoot some pictures. Capsey is ALWAYS beautiful, and so I snap pictures left and right. After lunch, we decide to take a different route back. Instead of backtracking, Thomas and Brett wanted to go back up the steep hill and go over one ridge into the next canyon. It didn't matter to me, because I was a little tired, was not really looking forward to the 45 degree incline all the way to the top, but I too did not want to backtrack. As we arrive at a plateau up on this ridge, but not totally to the top, Brett notices some rock outcroppings and some small bluff holes. He says to Thomas, "I wonder if there is anything up there?" Thomas, who cannot turn down investigating one single bluff shelter that he loves hiking to, says, "let's go see". About this time, out in the middle of nowhere, my iPhone starts ringing! Geeze, we are not supposed to have cell phone coverage out here! I look at the caller, my wife, better answer that one! We chat about our trip and when I hang up, I here Brett and Thomas hollering to "come on over here". As I move up to the bluff shelter up higher, they yell "Do you have your flashlight!!!" I yelled back "NO!"....I hear a reply in unison.......ahhhhhh. When I arrive, it's a 3 room type shelter up in the rocks. Awesome!!!!!! Not deep enough to call "a cave", but what an awesome shelter! We snap a thousand pictures, walk in it using the light off my iPhone and explore the insides of it. Brett calls out to come "check this out!" We exit out, look up on a beech tree parked right beside one of the three entrances. It has the dates 1935, 1938, and some initials of some people on it. Wow! What a cool find. Imagine what they were doing back then when they carved this over 60 years ago! We gasp, laugh, shoot pictures, admire, and wonder the story on this place. What all went on here many years ago? The most interesting thing....This place is in the most least suspecting area you could imagine! It is not even really close to any tall bluffs! </div><div><br /></div><div>Walking out to the road, riding high on our find, Thomas notices something right off the road. It is a deep long vat made of of concrete walls with steps going down into it. He says "hey, a government dipping vat!" I had not the foggiest ideal of what he was talking about, and neither did Brett. Thomas explained that in the early days, the government built concrete vats and filled them with chemicals. They then invented the public to bring their livestock and run them through the vats to kill off insects, etc. on the cattle. I laughed and said, "they probably had them filled with DDT" (a very toxic cancer causing chemical- banned years ago). Brett and Thomas laughed and said I was probably right. We shoot pictures, take way-points, and head out, this time, for home. </div><div><br /></div><div>As we walk out on the main road to get to our vehicles, celebrating our trip and planning the next one, rain starts to sprinkle on our windshield just as we are leaving. Man ole man ole man, what an awesome trip. They just never stop with excitement in the Bankhead. </div><div><br /></div><div>Much more trips to come so stay tuned. For more detailed and personal pictures of the trip, for a limited time you can go here and view them on my facebook. Thanks for going along with us on the trip. I hope you enjoyed it! Rex</div><div><br /></div><div>VIDEO OF "BLUE CASCADES" WE DISCOVERED IS BELOW.</div><div><br /></div><div>A LINK TO MORE PICTURES IS FOUND HERE:</div><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51);font-family:'lucida grande',tahoma,verdana,arial,sans-serif;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2076327&id=1139567480&l=49928e4514</span></b></span></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div> </div><br /><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dyrgUF52DFdoU4ALGp4JmsoVxWO8Gd772SrwxxhcWUzTJoN8DcXzNdeuWze5jiOqsWCJD4rmjIAGawwDSpaAQ' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe>VideoRexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16342756961482992738noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1459368010805427886.post-5073661669931196922011-01-17T09:38:00.021-06:002011-01-18T15:50:13.655-06:00Indian Tomb Hollow-Bankhead NF-A Treasurer Trove of History<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiVzhNWrUaV54kB1ByJgxI31B-kzrD_u9fpfmNakzes4UDKJl82qai2oxI1z3GQfWLrlhDa79ma0B4HAsvKakE_qdpHCOvgJPZ4-v4eZk39S2768rXDGj4NJfiiiYkjQlleyPz52qXtH4/s1600/Indian+Tomb+Hollow+1-2011+006%255B1%255D.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiVzhNWrUaV54kB1ByJgxI31B-kzrD_u9fpfmNakzes4UDKJl82qai2oxI1z3GQfWLrlhDa79ma0B4HAsvKakE_qdpHCOvgJPZ4-v4eZk39S2768rXDGj4NJfiiiYkjQlleyPz52qXtH4/s320/Indian+Tomb+Hollow+1-2011+006%255B1%255D.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5563646492748801010" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUACSznW304bb7nBxcQ48EZS-s_swsMSjjnqwk6gYKRImrrpoksqQxJuiuDoDWaRdENLb_k7O4jQnI9JRr-gt0M_MGCiohSfiCYtYXmnKwMc_WfmHHyhCIKSO8GJ7c5UL5UnG4IohBlf0/s1600/100_2711.JPG"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 179px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUACSznW304bb7nBxcQ48EZS-s_swsMSjjnqwk6gYKRImrrpoksqQxJuiuDoDWaRdENLb_k7O4jQnI9JRr-gt0M_MGCiohSfiCYtYXmnKwMc_WfmHHyhCIKSO8GJ7c5UL5UnG4IohBlf0/s320/100_2711.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5563316760692233570" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5p5ypaxD9xUjzyjUWA2Ucc8xv-qGzSiLoeGJdYC2buuja5S-eu-8ZKPQX5Pqfc7kDisE6Xsa2oGR62ZCt_dNuYWHhavFiFDqgEOak3hvS94nWudcm6Qnv5U7RoiRSpGLWfVY2eN7yq9Q/s1600/100_2686.JPG"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 179px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5p5ypaxD9xUjzyjUWA2Ucc8xv-qGzSiLoeGJdYC2buuja5S-eu-8ZKPQX5Pqfc7kDisE6Xsa2oGR62ZCt_dNuYWHhavFiFDqgEOak3hvS94nWudcm6Qnv5U7RoiRSpGLWfVY2eN7yq9Q/s320/100_2686.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5563316434834661346" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaJZrLFc7VaJmsSpz9B0smguh5G-EjYWcuwPzJsvZMgYPddxYiyUSQjWp9kJMHWZjB3l7OJNSCK8J9l7Ro3A1qNdFOE4a1bGjlmHpjMHMQopj3nZ32TwU2xs3PMv8Bnu7iHIveqgEBHCQ/s1600/100_2688.JPG"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 179px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaJZrLFc7VaJmsSpz9B0smguh5G-EjYWcuwPzJsvZMgYPddxYiyUSQjWp9kJMHWZjB3l7OJNSCK8J9l7Ro3A1qNdFOE4a1bGjlmHpjMHMQopj3nZ32TwU2xs3PMv8Bnu7iHIveqgEBHCQ/s320/100_2688.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5563316430658854882" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbhAjZVpFf0_JviZZ1bbXIZIGZxKW_EkIi8Zui6aDa_HOJ4MYh7uwxBqdU7bGJepCY6NSeO0s1Z6p3cmdq6fCOoMGuGuvhqLw3NtaeciVdx4IQauVh8om6TX3XekYdzOEIKKb85uqHomg/s1600/100_2672.JPG"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 179px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbhAjZVpFf0_JviZZ1bbXIZIGZxKW_EkIi8Zui6aDa_HOJ4MYh7uwxBqdU7bGJepCY6NSeO0s1Z6p3cmdq6fCOoMGuGuvhqLw3NtaeciVdx4IQauVh8om6TX3XekYdzOEIKKb85uqHomg/s320/100_2672.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5563316423293406402" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5-j_Xm_Hzqz09w9PEV4LIar92IhfH89WngCKw9MPE6OGMPDtMfVhh74OaRSLxTWEI4HNZ3mnrTx8QJxcl0Nxgi_zXMGhYAsGyG4Akfrm030iIKYm0HKR_L4gOTjl6dqywMRkOhDMUHRI/s1600/100_2663.JPG"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 179px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5-j_Xm_Hzqz09w9PEV4LIar92IhfH89WngCKw9MPE6OGMPDtMfVhh74OaRSLxTWEI4HNZ3mnrTx8QJxcl0Nxgi_zXMGhYAsGyG4Akfrm030iIKYm0HKR_L4gOTjl6dqywMRkOhDMUHRI/s320/100_2663.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5563316411796073554" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIL0aFn-WwOGg5F3e5xzcHLlnzSZyO9HtbuKKheVyGTgMX0TAoxb3GgAgu5xVUaH9zqWnBeRwdKqAzDw7koXbY00zC6zQghwSXhxHUSdkb0SEDbRyAH5VCIOOH_un4zYiPoSdLQnLDTpo/s1600/100_2670.JPG"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 179px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIL0aFn-WwOGg5F3e5xzcHLlnzSZyO9HtbuKKheVyGTgMX0TAoxb3GgAgu5xVUaH9zqWnBeRwdKqAzDw7koXbY00zC6zQghwSXhxHUSdkb0SEDbRyAH5VCIOOH_un4zYiPoSdLQnLDTpo/s320/100_2670.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5563316410089310450" border="0" /></a><br />Welcome back to another trip of adventure. Backpacking season is at the halfway point and we are in full swing. Planning any trip sometimes can be as hard as pulling a tooth. After 4 failed previous attempts, we had to once again, cancel the Cohutta Wilderness (northern Georgia) trip. After a 5-8 inch snowfall blanketed north Alabama and North Georgia January 9th and 10th, ALL roads leading to the Cohutta Wilderness Area were closed. Fearing that many would not be open by the Martin Luther King Holiday weekend, we were once again, forced to cancel. With our "team" of 7-9 guys planning to go, several of us were determined to go somewhere MLKJ weekend. A poll of the guys seemed to draw a logical conclusion. We could probably access roads in Bankhead National Forest better than anywhere else. Mount Cheaha was discussed, but like the Cohuttas, elevation gave no promising results of being able to access the mountains with the very slow thaw of snow. With people backing out not able to go, came different folks that were able to go. Brett brought both of his sons. By Saturday morning, we wound up with 6 guys headed out. Destination this time: one that all the locals know all too well about-Indian Tomb Hollow, at the edge of Bankhead on the north side. I had been to this site years ago documenting with video, the massive clear cutting of the area by the National Forest Service. This massive clear cutting of the area prompted native American Indians as well local residents to pour out in outrage to the U.S. Forest Service. The massive historical value of the area is overwhelming if you visit this place. Not only was it the site of an Indian war between two different Indian tribes with the graves of over 40 Indians, it has a lasting legacy of history as well of many family settlers in this hollow, mainly the Gillespie families. A large plantation house up on the top of Indian Tomb Hollow, still called High House Hill even today on maps, was a 16 room house with 9 exterior doors. This plantation was the Alexanders who had slaves that helped them take care of the their property. This trip left me with an even greater appreciation of the historical importance of this area. As you read on, you will see. <div><br /></div><div>Saturday morning, we leave our typical high cholesterol breakfast of McDonalds in Moulton and head out. This time, we have Thomas Graham, Steve Jones, Brett Page, a camping friend that we love to go with from Blount county, as well as his two sons, Jason and Zack. A couple of others had to cancel at the last minute because of personal details to take care of at home. As we head out and approach the forest, we are surprised to see massive amounts of snow still on the ground. This is not normal for Alabama! A 8-9 inch snowfall that has stuck around some 6 days later! Thomas had warned us several times in E-mails that we need to really coat our boots down well from the snow and wet. We quickly understood why. Gators, rarely worn by any Alabama Hiker (except the two geeks-Thomas and Rex) were a must on this trip. Thomas and I usually always wear gators even without snow, just to keep sticks, mud leaves, etc., from falling into your boots. Steve never wears them, but decided to carry them on this trip. With 4-8 inches of snow still on the ground, they were a true blessing! Not to leave anyone behind reading this, gators are protective material you put around your boots and legs. They vary in height from just above the ankles to all the way up to your knees. In snow, they keep all snow at bay and out of your boots and keep your pants from getting soaked from the wet snow. On this trip, they were awesome!</div><div><br /></div><div>As we travel up the road that now has a gate blocking it from traffic, we quickly find out that walking with a pack, in very wet snow can be very hazardous and treacherous! I have been in dry powdery snow in Alaska and Colorado many times, but wet Alabama snow is almost like walking on ice! The road we are walking up, is quite sad in a way. For many, many years, even after the Forest Service purchased all of this property, it was a local hangout, for good and bad purposes. During my lifetime of the 60's,70's, and 80's, families and teenagers were always there on weekends. It was almost like Sipsey Recreation area is today. It was just the place to go and get away. One of the things that I gained out of this trip, is just HOW MUCH this area was visited! We lost count and got tired of counting/marking with our GPS, the number of tree carvings of peoples names. More on that later. Moving up the road leading to Indian Tomb Hollow from County Road 86 (dirt road) from where we parked the vehicles, we encounter something I am a little ashamed to write about since I live in this county. As we are laughing, walking, and carrying on our journey, we hear rifle shots up ahead. O.K., I suppose someone is hunting. As we march on further down the trail, we hear a very pronounced, taooow, taooow, taoow, taooow, taooow, of a rifle. Being "guys" that we are, we started trying to decide if it was a 22 long rifle, 22 short, 38 caliber....(type of gun) etc.</div><div>As we come on up the trail, we see two very young early teens with 22 rifles, staring at us coming up the trail approaching them. 98.8% of the time, every encounter with anyone out in a remote area is a welcome and enjoyable experience, even if the conversation is only a smile, a nod, or a "how are you folks today" type conversation. This one left all 6 of us getting a little nervous. Certainly when you approach the teenagers, they looked a little nervous that we are coming at them. As we approach them, I notice something that really grips me. I spent most all of my life growing up around guns and hunting with my father. My father always taught me when other people come up, you point your weapon up in the air and rest it on your shoulder. This is just safety and respect, telling the strangers you come up to that you are being safe with the weapon. As we approached the teens, I was very unnerved to see their weapons pointing down at our knees! As we got closer, we spoke to them, one of the teens smiled, and it was hard to stop from chuckling. It could have been a scene from the classic movie <i>Deliverance</i>. As one of the the teens smiled wearing camo coveralls, he had no front teeth! Geeeze...That being said, I will only ever mention this but one time, but starting this year, for the first in my life, I got registered to carry a pistol with me at all times in the woods. Between feral hogs on the increase, and the ever increasing crazy people out there, I decided to do this. Two years ago it was made legal to do in an National Forest in Alabama. So we were not totally helpless out there, but that doesn't help you much when you are approaching someone with a rifle pointed down at you. As we came close to them, they told us they were "turned around" and wanted to know the way to the car. That is odd? There is only ONE road in, and they are on it! Out of safety concerns for all of us, I moved on down behind them while the other guys spoke with them. They smiled, talked a little bit about seeing some peanut jars that someone had put out baiting deer (highly illegal to do in the Bankhead). After a simple conversation with them, we moved on. I was ready to move on anyway as the other guys. Something just did not add up right on them. As we walked along the trail past them, we saw where they had walked and occasionally stuck the gun barrel in the snow. Boy my dad would have chewed me out for such non-sense. Not only is it not safe, but plug the barrel of your gun with dirt, and you will ruin the weapon! Some discussion went on about these two boys and wondering the safety of our vehicles from being broke in to as we depart further away from the vehicles. Soon, the topic was dropped and we moved on down the trail. After a short time, we came upon the "peanut butter jars" they spoke of. Since I don't hunt anymore, I was not aware of this new practice of baiting game. They basically buy a jar of peanut butter, cut the bottom out from underneath it. Take the cap off and nail it to a tree. After you screw the jar on to the lid nailed to the tree, your "bait" is ready to go for deer and a host of other critters. They will eventually lick the entire jar clean as can be. Interesting but again, highly illegal to do in a National Forest. This is called "baiting game". </div><div>Moving up and getting off the trail, we come to our first landmark. The famous Indian Marker Tree. These types of trees fascinate me! From my understanding, the Indians started a tree from it's early growth by splitting it in half and tying the tree down with rope of some type (Steve Jones passed this on to us at the site-I had no ideal how they did this). Somehow, if this is done during it's early growth, it will later grow in a split pattern such as a L shape or a goal post pattern. Most all of the L shaped ones point almost exactly north! I have verified this with a compass more than once. Totally amazing to me! There are numerous trees in the Bankhead that are tagged with this and are cataloged on a national website.....http://www.mountainstewards.org if you are interested. This famous Indian Marker Tree is well know throughout the south from books published by Butch Walker and Lamar Marshall-<i>Warrior Mountains Folklore</i> and <i>Indian Trails of the Warrior Mountains</i>. A footnote quickly here on this subject. More interesting information on Indian Marker Trees can be found here if interested. My good friend Tony in Florida sent this to me after seeing my video on facebook. If Indian Marker trees interest you and the background behind them, go to this link </div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51);font-family:'lucida grande',tahoma,verdana,arial,sans-serif;font-size:11px;"><a href="http://ilsteward.nres.uiuc.edu/issues/2006/Summer/mysteries_2.htm" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" style="cursor: pointer; color: rgb(59, 89, 152); text-decoration: underline;"><span><b>http://ilsteward.nres.uiuc</b></span><b><wbr></b><span class="word_break" style="display: block; float: left; margin-left: -10px; padding: 0px;"></span><span><b>.edu/issues/2006/Summer/my</b></span><b><wbr></b><span class="word_break" style="display: block; float: left; margin-left: -10px; padding: 0px;"></span><b>steries_2.htm</b></a></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51);font-family:'lucida grande',tahoma,verdana,arial,sans-serif;font-size:11px;"><b><a href="http://ilsteward.nres.uiuc.edu/issues/2006/Summer/mysteries_2.htm" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" style="cursor: pointer; color: rgb(59, 89, 152); text-decoration: underline;"></a><br /></b><a href="http://newsgroups.derkeiler.com/Archive/Alt/alt.gathering.rainbow/2006-08/msg00100.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" style="cursor: pointer; color: rgb(59, 89, 152); text-decoration: none;"><span><b>http://newsgroups.derkeile</b></span><b><wbr></b><span class="word_break" style="display: block; float: left; margin-left: -10px; padding: 0px;"></span><b>r.com/Archive/</b><span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline;"><span><b>Alt/alt.gathering.rainbow/</b></span><b><wbr></b><span class="word_break" style="display: block; float: left; margin-left: -10px; padding: 0px;"></span><b>2006-08/msg00100.html</b></span></a></span></div><div><br /></div><div>After snapping a group picture here, we move on up to the famous Indian burial site and Gillespie cemetery. Here is a grave marker of one of Thomas Grahams relatives.....James Gillespie, a veteran of the war of 1812 and born before the United States was a country! The Indian markers and those of long past residents of this hollow, are all just stones sticking up out of the ground. With 4-6 inches of snow still on the ground, there was not much we were able to investigate, so we move on. Since all of this hollow was Thomas Graham's kinfolk, he is loaded us with all the history of the hollow. He points out a spring just up the road on the right from the cemetery where the Gillespie home once was. On up from there is the Whiskey Still Shelter that we did not make it to. Yes, there is a reason it was called Whiskey Still Shelter. We travel up Gillespie Creek and start plunging through the snow looking for a camping spot. Thomas had planned for us to camp in a bluff shelter to escape the melting snow, so we marched and marched and marched. As we moved ever so slowly along navigating with packs among us ranging from 25 pounds to 62 pounds (dummy me on that one), we found this was wearing us down MUCH faster than we thought. Walking through this depth of snow in wet snow, is like walking a sandy beach with heavy shoes. It can wear you out fast. One of the most captivating elements of this trip, is to see countless beech trees going up the creek with names carved all over them. It's funny you know.....When you see a tree carving saying 1998 or 2001, you get mad at someone defacing a tree. When you see the same thing done that says 1947, it captivates you. Along this creek and exploring all the canyons for two days, here is a small sample of some of the carvings...</div><div><br /></div><div>-Cleo, Jake, Linnie Parker- No date</div><div>-????? (name of someone) March ?? (unreadable), 1932</div><div>-B. Yeager- No date</div><div>-??? ???? 1887</div><div>-1949</div><div>-1963</div><div>-1977</div><div>-Roy McVay</div><div>-Tom McVay</div><div>-Esther 1922</div><div>-Pinhook Alabama</div><div>-Picture of a house with smoke coming out of the chimney (we assume High House Plantation House)</div><div>-Jeff B 1973</div><div>-T.D. 1953</div><div>-JWB 1973</div><div>-AMB </div><div>-TW Bankr</div><div>-??? ???? 1932</div><div>-DS 1965</div><div>-CN 1959</div><div><br /></div><div>Of all of those mentioned above, only a handful are known as "famous" carvings in the unique place. It is the Small Snake Tree, and the Big Rattlesnake Tree (On cover of this article). They are believed to have been done by Indians. The Big Rattlesnake Tree was debated among us for some 10 minutes as to if it is real or a natural formed figure of a snake. It also has a bird and a beavers tail above it. After about 10 minutes of debating if it could really have been done by Indians, we moved on. I personally think it was. What is interesting to note here is that the "bird" above the snake figure, and the beavers tail, is about 20 feet above the ground. The snake figure alone is some 10 feet long. One might easily question the big rattlesnake as being natural and just looking like a snake, but the bird figure (on cover of this article) being some 15 high up on the tree, does make one wonder that indeed this might have been done by Indians. Bear in mind that carvings on beech trees can stay on there for 100 years, if deep enough and wide enough. Also, a good friend pointed out that carving on a tree DOES NOT make the carving move up higher on the tree as it grows. It stays at the same level it was carved. The tree grows up and the carving stays the same height. Knowing this, makes one more aware that yes, this could have easily been carved by Indians.....or....someone in the late 1030's had a wooden ladder and lots of time....lol.....who knows?</div><div><br /></div><div>With such a labor intensive efforts getting around in and through the slick snow with backpacks, it took us way longer than we intended to, finding a nice dry place to camp. We finally wound up in the back part of the Indian Tomb Hollow. We found a fantastic large and tall bluff shelter to set up tents under. Brett had his two sons set up beside me in one tent. It was actually just right. Two tents was about all the room we had. The modern day "hammock guys" with their high dollar expedition hammocks set up on around the bend of the bluff shelter down in the woods. I have talked about in previous forums about these modern day high tech hammocks. Due to such a wide and diverse audience reading these forums, I will spare everyone talking about them. They are very nice, lightweight, and extremely comfortable to camp in. With so many tents at the house, I have not made this "black hole" plunge yet, as most all hobbies can become. </div><div><br /></div><div>Nice dry wood was found all up under these bluffs that extend around the canyon, so within about 30 minutes, we had a ton of good quality dry wood to burn and keep us warm for the night. Most people do not realize that is one of the sweetest things about Bankhead. With so many bluff shelters, you can find a nice dry place to camp out of the elements, and you feel like you are "cheating" while camping sometimes. One can see how easily it was for Indians to live out in the Bankhead or similar areas with so many bluffs to protect them. They can block wind and rain so well, that you wonder why you even need a tent or hammock. Just sleep up in these shelters! As for me, I like my walls of privacy and "mental" wall barrier to keep folks and critters out. After getting set up and getting firewood in, with water filtered for everyone, we set out to explore more. By the way, several of you have asked me "how we get our water" while camping. It is so simple now days, you feel guilty. There are a number of companies making water filters. They come in the form of pump water filters or gravity water filters. I usually bring my "group" gravity type water filter and the whole bunch uses it for their drinking and cooking water. You simple fill up a bag that has a filter in it. As gravity pushes on the water, it is forced to come down through the filter and into your container. Getting a drink could not be any easier now, thanks to modern day marvels. </div><div><br /></div><div>After setting up camp, we decide to move on up Indian Tomb Hollow towards the back east side of the Hollow (for those of you interested on following us on a map). We move back to the very back of the canyon, and are instantly rewarded with one large and tall beautiful waterfall. It is about 40 feet tall with icicles that extend down around 20 feet. We snap pictures left and right. As we move around to the south, we come across two waterfalls that are beautiful as well. All of the waterfalls in Indian Tomb Hollow are small in height and water flow, compared to others in the Bankhead, but they are beautiful in their own right. What Thomas and I quickly learn, is that each of these waterfalls and bluff lines, are packed FULL of old tree carvings, with dates all over the spectrum. Up until the 1980's, one could easily pull your car up into the hollow, park near the Indian Marker Tree, walk up any of the canyons with a picnic lunch, and enjoy the scenery. Such must have been the case hear for many, many, years after the U.S. Forest Service purchased it. There is so much irony in this place that I don't have time to tell you about. One of the many ironies was this. For so many years, this was a popular well know public place to come and show the family. Back in the late 1980's, lumber greed and greed among the managers of the Bankhead National Forest, they came in and "clear cut" the mess out of this historical place, with seemingly NO regard for it's historical significance to the public and the nation. Locals became outraged! Native American Indians from all over the south rose up, banded together, and made a very pronounced and "media touted" stance against the U.S. Forest Service. This was bad Karma for the forest service. Shortly after this, the controversial Forest Service ranger "retired", and a new since of "sensitivity" arose out of this incident. This was the "tip of the iceberg" compared to the raping of the land being done all over the forest, but this one incident that put the U.S. Forest Service in "hot boiling water" with much of the local public. As is so typical of any government agency operation and just one of the jokes sometimes of our government. The U. S. Forest Service apologized for clear cutting this hollow without proper archeological studies, barred the gate where none of the average "John Q public" could access this site (with the seemingly need to "protect it" now) anymore without extensive walking. </div><div>The irony of this is that the U.S. Forest Service forever blocked many of the public from accessing (which they had done for years and years) a part of what they (the U.S. Forest Service) had destroyed! LOL. Oh well, enough of politics. Moving on....</div><div><br /></div><div>We move on around the canyon and check out more bluff shelters. It's getting dark now, so over half the crew splits up and goes on back to camp, while Thomas and myself continue on exploring. Just before we all split up, we discovered twin waterfalls that were beautiful with icicles. Just about dusk, Thomas called me over and said, "hey look. YEAGER is on this tree". As we further inspected, it was the name of a guy whom we both knew very well in high school. He was close to our age, and died of cancer a few years ago. Wow! It hits you. His name does live on, for another 50 years or so in this beech tree!</div><div><br /></div><div>The campfire that night was totally awesome! Here we all sat up under a very dry bluff shelter, the moon out full, lighting the snowfall up like it was daylight. Man, I wish I could share a picture with you of that. It was so peaceful. To top it off, on time as they most always do, the howl of coyotes down in the hollow just added another cap to a wonderful evening. </div><div><br /></div><div>Now, time for some humor folks! I can't believe I am writing this to share with the world, but hey, if we can't laugh at ourselves, who can we laugh at? About 9:30 p.m., I told the guys I had a "nature call" to make, and departed for the woods. As I was searching for a place to relieve myself, out of laziness, I decided to park on the side of a hill. I dug a deposit hole with my feet, squatted down to the ground and relieved myself. As I was enjoying the peaceful and absolutely cloudless night with all the stars, the moon, and the snow making it ten times brighter, I leaned over to get my toilet tissue in a freezer bag (to keep it dry). I leaned over pretty far while remaining in the squat position and my fingers bumped the freezer bag with my toilet tissue in it. I suddenly in disbelief, see this bag take off like a sled down the hill, racing at what seemed like 50 miles per hour, like a pinball machine, bouncing off of sticks and trees as it made it's way to the bottom of the hill!!!!!!DANG! Just my luck!! </div><div>Man! What do I do NOW! As I sat there in the squatting position in disbelief, I sat thinking about my options. Wet cold snow?, no way! Wet leaves under the snow?, NO WAY. Well mess, I guess there is no option but to hobble down the hill with my britches down. Like an 80 year old man, I hobbled down the side of the hill with my britches down, slowly inching little by little on the snow slick hillside. A panic suddenly came over me....if I slip, how is this going to work out? Face first? After what seemed like 30 minutes, I hobble down the hill to my precious paper holding my pants up and as low as I can. Let me tell you folks, there are some sharp briars out there in Bankhead! Never in my life, has Charmin paper been so important to me. Man, I don't wish this on anyone! Done deal, lets go back to camp and not breath a word about this to the "guys". They will haunt you for years over this story.</div><div><br /></div><div>That night yielded a peaceful quiet one with the gentle sounds of water dripping from the bluffs above. The next morning, a beautiful sunrise greeted us with still signs of snow around. It got down to 27 degrees. Not bad cold for camping weather. A breakfast with this sunrise view is hard to beat, and double hard to forget!</div><div><br /></div><div>Sunday morning, we headed out. We were supposed to stay until Monday, but with such treacherous conditions and a 90% chance of rain Monday morning, we decided to pull out early. As we do, we come across one of the neatest elevated bluff shelters I have ever seen in the Bankhead. The guys ahead of me discovered this room type bluff shelter, elevated up some 50 feet and even with a beautiful waterfall. It overlooks the hollow. What an incredible view, protected and out of the elements for the most part. I hope to have it posted to this blog. If not, you should be able to see it on my facebook links below if not now, very soon. An incredible place. </div><div><br /></div><div>About 12:30 p.m., with full packs on and heavy weights making it flat dangerous to wall up steep hills, we decide to head to the truck. We arrive at the vehicles (windshields in tack), unload our gear, shake hands and all depart from another amazing trip in life. We all decide to continue this journey in another 2 weeks. We discuss about coming back to Indian Tomb Hollow, because we missed seeing so many more of the sites. The famous 1992 State Champion Cucumber Tree, the Whiskey Bluff Shelter, and a host of other neat things to explore still await us here for the next time. As Brett and his sons, Zack and Jason head back home south, Thomas, Steve and I head for a steak meal before going home to our families. A good meal with good camping friends is hard to beat, next to your family. Until the next time....we return to the routine of work and making a living. Stand by with your gear, we are headed out again soon! </div><div><br /></div><div>Thanks for going along with us. Until our next adventure!</div><div><br /></div><div>For more pictures from this trip....visit the link below:</div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51);font-family:'lucida grande',tahoma,verdana,arial,sans-serif;font-size:11px;">http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2074902&id=1139567480&l=14156705ce</span></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dwRnV5_ljaSTjqyL4tqlXy1UJx3F5dajYEWlOSIvHNbCvZWSHV2193bvaskWSXCchdrbcYLm0xdCv7zSVIAvA' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe>VideoRexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16342756961482992738noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1459368010805427886.post-46903791364834325682010-12-27T20:41:00.025-06:002012-06-14T16:50:37.358-05:00Sometimes The Best Kept Secrets Remain a Secret<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMryozRzgKALHnZt-ZU3PtVSQ-qF7H-ytiNs9L5hzpGpTrLqIIGWTaUTJa7tQhAeHNZDmuYVynqefD_zjbw0WlWGO2PGAK5I8M5WN6PpzLiNx7NGrqVYhx9rxYM-cZ2NFhsxk5QThy7OQ/s1600/100_2399.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5555573857075080738" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMryozRzgKALHnZt-ZU3PtVSQ-qF7H-ytiNs9L5hzpGpTrLqIIGWTaUTJa7tQhAeHNZDmuYVynqefD_zjbw0WlWGO2PGAK5I8M5WN6PpzLiNx7NGrqVYhx9rxYM-cZ2NFhsxk5QThy7OQ/s320/100_2399.JPG" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; float: left; height: 179px; margin: 0 10px 10px 0; width: 320px;" /></a><br />
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If you travel or live around North Alabama, you will hear many times about the natural bridges of Winston county, Alabama. Most people have no ideal of anything else around this area that has a natural bridge. By natural bridge, I mean a large rock that branches out and forms a bridge. There are at least two or more to gaze at in Winston county, Alabama. They are all over tourist brochures and talked about all the time as destinations for tourists. Sometimes though, the best kept secrets of an area, remain just that, a secret. My buddy Thomas called me one night and said "Let's go check out a natural bridge with Indian rock carvings over in Franklin county. A camping friend of mine shared a GPS waypoint of the area." I told him to consider it a plan! He came over to the house one night, we programmed the GPS position he had been given in to my topographic software on my computer. We pinpointed and mapped out the roads to get to this place we had heard about. <br />
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With the holidays in full swing, and both of us off from work, we tore out on December 27th. We headed out the old two lane highway once called "Highway 24". It parallels a new four lane Highway now that is the official Alabama Highway 24. We proceeded west towards Russellville, Alabama. At county road 81 at Newburg, we turned left and headed south. Fresh snow from the weekend still dotted the country landscape, creating an awesome scene as the crystal clear blue skies and sun blanketed the area. About 3-4 inches of snow fell on the area on Christmas day. An event that has not been duplicated with this much snow since 1963! Heading south on county road 81, we come up to the intersection of county road 81 and county road 38, just north of Oak Grove. At this intersection is one of the strangest things I have seen in years. Right in the middle of the road of county road 38, where it intersects into 81, is a fifteen foot high monument. It is decorated in flowers and is surrounded by 2 foot high walls. Upon stopping and closer inspection, we find it is a World War II monument, built around 1949, and dedicated to a sailor who died while the vessel he was on sunk off the coast of Cuba. How bizarre for such a monument out in the middle of no where! All I can guess is that the family must have lived around this area. It might have been a private road at the time and so the family paid for this elaborate monument to be built to honor there son! Several pictures are attached of this monument and more can be found on my facebook. The link is provided at the end of this article. As we proceed on, we turn onto Highway 81 and continue down to Highway 243. There, we park the truck and head out. Using our GPS units with the waypoint loaded into it, we walk up to the area where this natural bridge is supposed to be. When we come up to it, our jaws hit the ground! Unreal! What a site! An extremely large, perfectly arched rock is before us! Below, a massive shelter! As we snap pictures approaching this, we can see right away that as far as the locals go, it is WELL known. There are signs of fires, the dirt wore down all around the shelter, and graffiti everywhere! Some in the form of spray paint, some in the form of carvings on the rocks, and others from just about any form you can think of to write with. </div>
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Upon closer inspection of this amazing place, we realize just how massive it really is. We also find what we were told about. Near the north end of this shelter, we find a massive rock with tons and tons of graffiti. Upon close inspection of some of these, you realize that not ALL of this is graffiti. It is the intricate carvings done by Indians deep into the rocks! How do you know this Rex? Well, for one thing, there about 8 carvings of circles (pictures attached to this blog) that would take hours to carve into the rock. Why would someone take this kind of time to do this? Well, it can be debated that this is "pure de old" graffiti and has nothing to do with Indians. That may well be the case, but what supports this theory is that nearby under the shelter, are two very large Indian Mortar Rocks, or deep holes carved into the rocks that are the classic signs of Indians living here. Also, Thomas, my camping/hiking buddy noticed that a few of the carvings in the rock are very similar to the ones that are in rocks at the Indian Shelter in Bankhead National Forest. A plus pattern, and some other carvings are the same ones found and known to be Indian rock carvings in Bankhead National Forest. Upon further inspection, we find what appears to be an Indian Marker Tree, or a tree very similar to the ones seen in Bankhead. The place has some "intense fascination" to anyone that visits this area. Now, we have no ideal if this is National Forest Property, Tennessee Valley Authority government property, or private property. We took a chance on this and just went! What truly amazes me though on this two findings is this. I have lived in this part of north Alabama for 50 years, and Thomas and I had no ideal of the natural bridge secret pearl. I had no ideal of the World War II monument as well! </div>
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Winston county can pride itself on natural bridges for tourists, but Franklin county holds the "gem pearl" when it comes to natural bridges and Indian artifacts. This strange World War II monument still standing just added to and topped the day off!</div>
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After all that we found, what could finish out the day? We chose to head to Bankhead National Forest and explore Payne Creek. An incredible canyon of hemlocks, bluffs, old beech trees, and beauty I once again, had no ideal about! We only had a couple of hours to explore Payne creek before getting out before dark (this was a day trip only), but we will be back! </div>
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Below is a link to view more pictures of the monument and shelter, and be sure and check out the video at the bottom of this post that gives you a tour of the natural bridge. I hope you enjoy it! Until next time in the outdoors! You will be there!</div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial;">To view pictures of the World War II monument and the natural bridge, click here or copy and paste this address in your web browser:</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande',tahoma,verdana,arial,sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2072365&id=1139567480&l=80fa77c9f3</span></span></b></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande',tahoma,verdana,arial,sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black; font-family: arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande',tahoma,verdana,arial,sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black; font-size: medium;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial;">To view a video tour of the natural bridge shelter, click here or copy and paste this address in your web browser:</span></b></span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande',tahoma,verdana,arial,sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></b></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande',tahoma,verdana,arial,sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=1560133520147</span></span></b></span><br />
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<b>Update-June 2012</b><br />
One of my camping buddies just recently visited this site. He was absolutely devastated by what he<br />
saw. The massive F5 tornado that came through Northwest Alabama in 2011 went right through this<br />
area. It decimated the area from trees. To compound the tragedy, since it is private property, a road has<br />
been cut right through the middle of the bridge! Many of the Indian artifacts are all gone now, covered up<br />
dirt. I am glad I got a chance to take pictures of this amazing place before it was destroyed. I am glad<br />
I had an opportunity to share it with you on the blog.<br />
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</div>VideoRexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16342756961482992738noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1459368010805427886.post-84021589385957502142010-12-22T12:56:00.015-06:002013-12-20T08:35:46.268-06:00A Trail of History and Exciting Moonshine Times Gone By<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIyS5s0NROBg6RTiem7i6wQNb1Srt7pDfAZOqMy_xSyoEjMyE3tPyrbMdPq_eHSYRtNFylkuioujri-xBPT2yKYWWnoYsCmMmW85nbHd79WdCoFFP2-va9gSu_DMP10d5Meu5rqYc_sS4/s1600/100_2232.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5553605848861763378" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIyS5s0NROBg6RTiem7i6wQNb1Srt7pDfAZOqMy_xSyoEjMyE3tPyrbMdPq_eHSYRtNFylkuioujri-xBPT2yKYWWnoYsCmMmW85nbHd79WdCoFFP2-va9gSu_DMP10d5Meu5rqYc_sS4/s320/100_2232.JPG" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; float: left; height: 179px; margin: 0 10px 10px 0; width: 320px;" /></a><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgX3ZFTZCeWqcy0XspPngIr2OIrhxbIMv58PZaUGNeLiQpucA8MHEtrJErjClceEsAa1X08v9_bZxlGvaIa-a90qyJ6faao4sKpvFzSTY0JSoLDPyAPWrke354P0qOXy6mT2NdFUD5WZpY/s1600/Hagood+Creek+12-2010+075.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5553596106724149954" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgX3ZFTZCeWqcy0XspPngIr2OIrhxbIMv58PZaUGNeLiQpucA8MHEtrJErjClceEsAa1X08v9_bZxlGvaIa-a90qyJ6faao4sKpvFzSTY0JSoLDPyAPWrke354P0qOXy6mT2NdFUD5WZpY/s320/Hagood+Creek+12-2010+075.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; float: left; height: 240px; margin: 0 10px 10px 0; width: 320px;" /></a><br />
Well, I had high hopes of telling you about our fun and excitement in the Cohutta Wilderness this time, but unfortunately life is not always going the way you had hoped for. With scheduled deer hunts and everyones schedules, the trip did not happen. We hope to make it up there in mid-January if all goes well. <br />
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With that being said, it's time to go back to my backyard playground for another wonderful trip in the Bankhead. As I have told many of you in the past, this blog is intended for any adventures I go on, even though most of these have all been camping trips. Winter is my favorite time of the year for camping and hiking, since most of the bad critters such as ticks, snakes, and mosquitoes are all gone this time of the year. In the wintertime, you can walk, go, and do just about anything you want to do, without fear of snakes or other hazards. You can go where you want to and when you want to............O.K., enough rambling, let's get going on another trip!</div>
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After an exciting trip finding a lost horse in the Bankhead, it is hard to top it. We managed to pull off another great trip though by exploring more of the hidden history in the Bankhead. Most people don't realize that the "treasurers" in any forest are off the beaten path. They are away from the trails that take folks from point A to point B. Thomas and Steve, two of my long time friends and camping buddies, link up with another mutual friend, Brett, or "Skippy" as he is called by us, for an unforgettable weekend of history walking in the Bankhead. </div>
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Saturday morning, the 18th of December, we start our day by the usual meet at McDonalds for breakfast. After a great breakfast and fellowship talking, we head out for the Bankhead. This time the destination is for a well known creek. What creek you might ask Rex? Well, sometimes, it is safer to keep your sources to yourself. There are so many neat and precious artifacts that we came across, that if I told you the creek, then someone would get the ideal to go and fetch the artifacts out of the area, along with some precious copper that is one of the hottest commodities to steal and sell now days. I hope you understand and respect that, so just enjoy the adventure with us. These unique items are all on display quietly out in the Bankhead to see and enjoy. Our trip leader on this trip is Thomas. Thomas has mapped out some sites on his map from previous trips, and we all have hopes of new surprises!</div>
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As we mount our backpacks at the truck, we start off down the canyon. I am the brunt of everyones laugh on each trip. My friends pack very light, and they are always trying to pack lighter. Me, I just cannot do it. I love my "trinkets" and electronic toys too much to leave behind, thus my pack always seems to hit the 50-60 pound mark. The other guys run from 25-40 pounds on every trip. As we head off down the into the canyon that is the beginning of a major creek, we are rewarded right away. We come upon an interesting tree carving. It had "HD Cunningham" carved around the outside diameter of the tree, with an interesting mans face with a hat on it. Date?, who knows?. It could be 10 years old or 70 years old. The face is pretty interesting though. We snap some pictures, take some video, and we head on down into the canyon. It's fun on some of these trips to start at the very beginning of what later becomes a major creek. When you start at the beginning, it is little more than a stream or underground stream that occasionally comes up out of the ground for a while, and then disappears back under ground. Quillen Creek is something like this as well. It appears for a short time as a gentle two foot wide stream and then disappears underground for a while. As we make our way on down the stream, Thomas points out out our first stop. He calls it "Buggy Bluff Shelter". There is a reason for that name. Quietly nestled underneath the bluff is the remnants of a horse carriage. Nobody knows how old this is. His father-in-law who is up in his 80's, says he remembers when two full wagon wheels and a full carriage seat were up under the bluff shelter. Now, some 60 years later, all that remains are the springs, the axle, and some other hub parts of the wheel. Thomas's father-in-law had always heard there used to be a blacksmith shop out in the forest up under a bluff shelter. This may well have been that place. We snap pictures and video of this unique place, quietly hid out in the middle of the wilderness area. We marvel at the relics, talk about the possible past of where they came from, and head on out. As they are all leaving, something tells me to glance down and take one last look. As I do, a large piece of pottery glows in the sunlight beside the waterfall under the bluff. I just about fall and bust my tail to get over the rocks and get to it. Steve comes over and helps me pinpoint my find to get to it. I call the guys back, and we marvel at a large chunk of pottery found less than 20 feet from the horse carriage remains. We take pictures, and we do what we always do....put the piece of history on the pile of other relics and leave them for others to look at, and for time to reveal to someone else. </div>
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As we march on down in the canyon, we realize that we need to start setting up camp pretty soon. This will allow us precious time to explore a host of other items Thomas has laid out for us. After about a mile or two of walking, we decide to set up camp. The time now is 11 a.m. The three guys start setting up their modern day expedition hammocks to stay in, while I set up my old standard tent. After about an hour of setup and lunch, we load up our daypacks and leave camp to explore much more surprises ahead. </div>
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Along the way, all 4 of us take time to check out just about every Birch tree we run in to. This pays off immensely, as we soon discover more and more old tree carvings. We document each unique one we come across by taking a "waypoint" of the tree with our GPS units, and by taking pictures and video. The carvings start to add up, such as WR.PEAPO-1892, SA. Hooker-1916, WPR-1893 carved on rock near a waterfall, and so on. We find one tree after another like this. One waterfall that Thomas carried us to, has an entire family and several generations of the family line carved into a rock. Apparently the entire family went up out to this site and carved the outline of their feet into the rock. Some of the carvings are pretty fresh, as in 2004, so apparently a family wanted to continue the tradition of some of the early members of the family did some 80-90 years ago, by carving the outline of their footprint into the rock. </div>
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After a snack to eat and some rest at this 70 foot waterfall, we head back down to catch the remains of an old Whiskey Still. The interesting part about this still is that it is totally covered up under a bluff shelter. You can see the outline of stones from the pit, and a very unique and now quiet expense piece of metal is left behind. A very large chunk of "green" material is rolled up and bent up in the old fire pit. It is a sizable chunk of copper! Copper turns green from tarnish, and so it does not take you long to realize this is a sizable chunk of copper! For some modern day scrap metal folks, it would be a treasure. But for this day, it was a piece of history preserved in time in the Bankhead. We snap pictures and video, take some waypoints, and move on. Thomas carries us no more than a football fields length down the canyon, and we come upon yet another old whiskey still. This one is a site to behold! The large vat that they made the moonshine in is still somewhat in tact. Pictures and a movie of it are attached to this article. The still has an old barrel and some of the old containers still in tact of where they hauled the moonshine. This fascinated me since the old containers were the classic containers you saw in movies of people "moonshining". They were the metal type with small mouths on the jugs. Can you imagine this area when it was all running "hot" making the moonshine. Probably not a safe place to come up on, as it was probably protected by folks with guns. An underground cave spring that fed this old still was about 50 feet away. Thomas, Skippy, and I looked inside the cave spring. It looked like it goes about 30 feet back up into the mountain and was about 7 feet tall. We could not go inside the cave because of current laws in the National Forest that forbid anyone from going into caves because of a protected bat that lives in them. So we just marveled at what might be up in this old cave. There might even be some remnants of the old still hidden up inside it. Who knows! Once again, we take waypoints of the find on our GPS, shoot pictures and video, and move on. The sun is going down and winding up another day of adventure in the Bankhead. </div>
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We head back to camp, gather firewood, eat supper, and listen to owls call out in the canyon back and forth to each other. The air is dead still and no wind, and the moon was almost as bright as the sun when your eyes adjusted to the darkness. As was typical on most any moonlit night in the Bankhead, the familiar call of the coyotes could be heard, curling the hairs on your back with their calls, and breaking the silence of the woods. With calm winds and no stream to sing us to sleep, the night was very quiet. Too quiet for me, so I reached into my pack and pull out the ole iPhone and go to sleep with the modern sounds of music. What a peaceful night of sleep. The low temperature of 26 degrees kept us all snug in our sleeping bags most of the night. Notice I said "most" of the night. It never fails with me camping. I usually sleep very soundly until about 4 a.m. in the morning. My body always says "Nope, I ain't going back to sleep until you get out of this warm sleeping bag and relieve yourself of water". I lay there every single time, fighting it, dreading it! I mean- who wants to crawl out of your wonderful warm sleeping bag in your undees in 20 degree weather to rid yourself of water? This is insane! It kills me every time to do this, and every time I do, I crawl back in the bag- shivering from head to toe until the sleeping bag warmth catches back up. Once it does though, it is off to blissful sleep again. Such as the case this time. A glow of sun in the tent and a watch saying 7:30 a.m. tells me it is time to crawl out and get going. We eat breakfast around a warm fire, I sip some wonderful french vanilla coffee, and then start packing up everything to head out. Good friends who love the outdoors make any trip special, and such was the case with Brett, Thomas, and Steve. It's trips like this you will talk about for many years. It's always amazing to me on these trips. Two very simple days of fellowship together in the woods, yields tons of memories of it that you talk about for years to come! Such as it is with adventure in the outdoors! It's God's country and his making. No wonder it is special! Keep your outdoor gear together. We are headed out again real soon. The season is just getting started! Thanks for going along with us!</div>
<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dyeqNXQSoChcpMw46OqTD48HnL41_L28ApjpfCK-xr0YiOmH2R1JwUlnSsFKe2yxqlDfkC4uvJBh6QVuPFAnQ' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe>VideoRexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16342756961482992738noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1459368010805427886.post-53229130493503791202010-11-28T16:07:00.034-06:002012-05-16T09:55:52.518-05:00Adventure and a Story of Thanksgiving in the Most Remote Area of the Sispey Wilderness-Bankhead NF<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpXWFTiOa4jUjBQZujvBKzsZ0egbNxRW9RrdJjzvgnO8dlCal4caplEogD5qX4EEBFK1oRKo0BImFdnd8uXretlVgwN_kbAaCjSSlS0cbuU45NIDixfr2eh3pr64y56nTIZY0-k4JXF9o/s1600/web.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5545079937100514130" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpXWFTiOa4jUjBQZujvBKzsZ0egbNxRW9RrdJjzvgnO8dlCal4caplEogD5qX4EEBFK1oRKo0BImFdnd8uXretlVgwN_kbAaCjSSlS0cbuU45NIDixfr2eh3pr64y56nTIZY0-k4JXF9o/s320/web.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; float: left; height: 240px; margin: 0 10px 10px 0; width: 320px;" /></a><br />
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This is one of the easiest stories to write and share with you because it comes straight from the heart. It is a story with a happy ending we all read about in books and movies, but this time, it WAS the real deal. It is a story of adventure and an incredible journey of people uniting in the most remote area of the Sipsey Wilderness in Bankhead National Forest. Not often in our lives of craziness, are we reminded truly of blessings that life can bring you. It is ironic to me that these lessons happen on a Thanksgiving weekend! What started out as a "normal" adventure into the Bankhead, erupted into one of those stories you watch and read about elsewhere. It left me something to tell about the rest of my living years on earth. With such a powerful story to tell ahead, I will be brief in my explanation of the scenery we encountered on this trip. <br />
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This story starts on Black Friday, November 26th, 2010. Thomas Graham and Steve Jones, two of my backpacking buddies and true friends, met with me at McDonalds in Moulton around 8 a.m. to start our journey. The weather was cloudy and it had rained all night. We headed out to Bankhead National Forest in North Alabama around 9 a.m. Our target camping site was along Clifty Creek or Braziel Creek. Our goal was to find a number of tree carvings and explore the seemingly unlimited bluff shelters that Bankhead hides. Thomas knew of an Indian carved on a tree that he had marked on his map (copied from another source), and we knew there was a large rattlesnake carved on tree in the area as well. Those are all the tools of information we needed to hit one of the most remote areas of the Sipsey Wilderness Area. For the benefit of those reading this around the world and not familiar with this area. The Sispey Wilderness is an area carved out of the Bankhead National Forest of North Alabama that is set aside for absolutely no interruption to it's ecosystem. It contains over 95,000 acres of land. No logging, use of roads, or any activity is allowed in this area of the forest. It is an area where very little (except foot and limited horse traffic) occurs.</div>
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We park at Borden Creek bridge and head out. The weather is cold, windy, and very wet from the previous night's rains. The forecast called for no more rain with clearing and cold tonight. On our way down, we pass the famous "bird tree". I have pictures of it here on previous blogs. It is a very unique a quite intricate carving of a bird right beside the trail. We explored an entire area along a bluff line that geologists would be excited to see. The entire bluff line is filled with "holes" from petrified wood logs that were pressed into the rock many years ago. This was an amazing find in that you could actually see tree bark in many of these holes where the wood had become petrified. We take pictures and marvel at these finds, and then head out to our campsite and planned destination, Clifty or Braziel Creek to camp. Thomas, Steve, and myself decide we want to go up Clifty Creek a short piece and camp. We thought from there, we could explore either creek. Late afternoon yielded us setting up camp, gathering firewood, filtering water, and getting ready for a cold night. The plan on Saturday was to set out and go Braziel Creek. After a long evening (it gets dark around 5 p.m.) with supper, sitting around the fire telling stories and listening to a very cold north wind bringing in cooler temperatures and clear skies, we decide to call it a night at 10 p.m. Sleeping was going to be very easy. With the RIGHT gear, these trips are easy. Good gear means a warm night, a tent you can really depend on if it rains, and an experience you will tell the rest of your life. Since we camped beside a running stream, natures "sleep engine" was beside us. I had two choices as I lay down in my down sleeping bag. Listen to the modern world with my iPod, or listen to mother nature and the stream flowing beside me. Tonight, I chose the iPod and crashed. There was a couple of things different from me with Steve and Thomas that is worth noting. Thomas and Steve have moved on to the newest craze and change in backpacking. They sleep in very sophisticated hammocks above the ground that just came about around 5 years ago. They have down quilt linings that hold heat underneath them. They are the best nights sleep anyone could ever ask for since you can sleep in total comfort. You can even sleep straight. Steve and Thomas have been camping this way for about 2 years now. Me, I have invested way too much money in the traditional "tents" that setup on the ground. I am ashamed to state how many tents I have collected over the years, so I will just leave it at that. Both types of sleeping have their advantages and disadvantages. </div>
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<b>THE DAY THAT CHANGED EVERYTHING "NORMAL"</b></div>
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Saturday morning at 7 a.m., yielded a cold 24 degrees. After a warm fire and a hot breakfast, we head out to explore Braziel Creek. we go back down Clifty to Braziel creek. We move about 1/2 mile upstream of Braziel Creek, following the bluff lines that yield endless protected shelters to explore. As we move along, we come upon a site that we encounter a lot. A crumpled piece of tin from a roof, laying on the ground out in the middle of nowhere. This has been a classic sign of a tornado that has carried debris for miles and dropped it here in the middle of nowhere. As I am taking video and pictures of this, I hear Steve holler at me to "come up here". Thomas is already up ahead of Steve and I. As I approach Steve going up a long steep hill holding my still camera set on video mode, I see something that totally blows me away. Standing on the top of the hill, a full sized white horse is perched at the top, looking down on us. Steve and Thomas point out the saddle tangling below it and almost touching the ground. As we approach the horse, it becomes very nervous and prances around in a 50 foot circle, coming back to one spot. We notice blood under the front left leg. We notice several other important things also. The ground is absolutely tore up from it staying in this same area. There are pieces and parts of the saddle everywhere! This horse has been struggling with this saddle for days. The blanket is soak and wet with the saddle and this saddle will clearly be the death of the horse if it stayed on for many more days. Thomas, walks up to the horse and it slowly comes up to him after he entices it with grapes from his lunch. The gash up under the left left is very deep, from the saddle falling down and riding upside down. There is no telling how many miles this horse has been struggling with, nor how many days this horse has been tortured by this saddle riding upside down. This is extremely rough territory to navigate with so much brush, and so this brush had to be pulling and snagging on the horse every painful mile it moved. That may be why the horse decided to find a spot and stay there. The bridle and assembly is broken up and in pieces on the ground. The mouth of the horse was bloody slightly from apparently struggles with this part of the bridle harness hanging on as well for at least a while. Thomas pulled out a handful of grapes he had in his pack and begin to gain even more ground getting closer to the horse. After several attempts, Thomas finally got the saddle off the horse. He was free from the torture of this saddle hanging down! We felt really good at this point. We had relieved this object that apparently caused days of pain and visible deep cuts into her from the saddle being turned upside down and almost dragging the ground. Several thoughts raced through our minds during this time after the happiness of the saddle is off. Is there a person nearby hurt that was riding this horse? Are they possibly dead? Has anyone been reported missing? We decided to spread out and inspect the area. After no other signs of anyone around, we decided we needed to get the horse reported to authorities. But how do you report something like this in the middle of the wilderness in a forest that has NO cell phone coverage? I usually always carry my amateur radio with me, but I left it at the camp, which was a half a mile away. Steve pulled out his cell phone. As luck would have it (or someone above looking out for us), we somehow got weak cell phone coverage (2 bars). Steve stood perfectly still and called his wife DeWanna and we relayed the GPS position of the horse. She was going to take the coordinates and call the Sheriff's department and report the horse. After relaying most of the most important facts, Steve hung up the phone. We then decided to gather up all the saddle parts that the horse had ripped off in his painful ordeal with the saddle hanging below. We 3 decided we had done all we could do for now, and decided to go on exploring the bluffs and canyons further. We left the horse, still standing in his little area that he apparently had been for some time. We explored more bluffs, found lots more interesting petrified wood in rocks. We documented them with video and pictures. With this story going, you don't care to hear much about "rocks" and "petrified wood", so we will leave the details of those things and move on. </div>
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<b>Amateur Radio to the Rescue</b></div>
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Returning back to the horse about 1:30 p.m. (we discovered her around 11 a.m.), Thomas decides on one last attempt to bring this horse back to camp with us. This begged the question to all three of us. O.K., lets say he DOES decide to go to camp with us. What then? What if he charges off in the process into the wilderness and here we go again! The horse (we now know as Joe) slowly started easing off the hill with Thomas. Thomas had managed to make a fairly nice little rope out of some vines and got it around her neck. He paced slowly down the hill with us. Thomas in front, Steve behind them, and me with my video camera capturing this thinking, what are we going to do with a "big pet" at camp? As we get almost to the bottom of the hill, the horse stops, starts to "rethink" this situation, turns around, and starts slowly, and then suddenly into a dead run back up to the top of the hill where we got him. I hate to say it, but there was a sense of relief in me. At least we know he will stay put in place. Sure enough, he did. He returned promptly to the top of the hill, turned around and looked down defiantly down at us as if "no, I am not going anywhere!" We then left and headed back to camp. Around dusky dark, we heard a pack of coyotes down the canyon where the horse was camped above. A lump came in my throat with thoughts. To myself- "You don't think a pack of coyotes could take down a horse, could they....................no surely not......he would have the upper hand with kicks on them". It was a sad feeling to hear them and think of the horrible "is it possible they could kill him" go through your head. </div>
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Around 7 p.m., while sitting around the campfire, the amateur portable hand held radio that I carry everywhere with me, came alive with my buddy Sonny Blankenship's voice. The Bankhead Amateur Radio Club has a radio repeater in Bankhead National Forest. When you are in the forest, if is about the ONLY means of communication with the outside world. The repeater, located in the forest, allows amateur radio operators to communicate to other "hams" within 60 miles of it's location. It even has a "phone patch" to allow a person in the forest (or anywhere in the 60 mile radius) to make phone calls. A privilege that no one with a cell phone is allowed to do, since there is no service for cell phones in Bankhead. Only licensed amateur radio operators can use this repeater. The phone patch has not been working lately, and so I was forced to "wait" on someone to come on the repeater. Once Sonny came on, I ran over and grabbed the radio.He normally tries to "monitor" the radio from his house whenever we are out in the woods. I explained to him what had happened that day. I told him there were many "details" that needed to be relayed such as the saddle was left up under a bluff shelter, the horse appears to stay in one place, etc. Sonny copied all the information Steve, Thomas, and I could think of, including where we were camped if they needed any help. A radio contact earlier in the afternoon with my good amateur radio friend Wes McKay, driving on his way to Florence and making phone contact with Steve's wife, relayed that the owners were notified of the missing horse and were coming out after it. So we at least knew that help was on it's way for this poor horse stuck in the wilderness.</div>
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Sonny got on the phone with a uncle to the owners of the horse and he spoke with them on the phone, picked up the ham radio and would ask questions. We would answer them on the radio and he would relay that back via phone. Most all of the information needed as to the best place in, where we were camped if they needed our help, the status of the horse's health, equipment needed to get the horse out, and several logistics questions were worked out. Amateur radio, truly a blessing in time of need! Like a hunter without a gun, or a fisherman without his rod and reel, I never leave home for the outdoors without my amateur radio. In the Bankhead, it can mean the difference in life or death in certain situations. </div>
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That night before going to bed at 10 p.m., we tossed ideals around on the fate of this mission to get the horse out. We hoped the owners cared enough to bring out the best. We even wondered if the owners would even care enough to get the horse out. Wow, we were about to experience a shock on that thought! We talked about that a horse, like a human, being used to the comforts of a barn would surely be "petrified" at night all by themselves, especially with the sounds of coyotes in packs at night. Just before we went to bed, we glanced up at the absolutely crystal clear skies above. There were millions of stars to see with no city lights. Just about the time we all looked up commenting on the sky, a massive meteorite streaked across the sky right in front of our eyes. An unbelievable long tail and a long descent across the sky. Wow! It doesn't get any better than this! </div>
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The next morning yielded a cold 25 degrees. We got up, started a fire, cooked breakfast and slowly started the day. We had absolutely no ideal what was about to happen that day. As far as we were concerned, unless someone ask us to, our horse story had ended with all we could do. We had told Sonny the night before that if they needed our help, tell them where we will be staying. As we packed up and was just about to head out, a team of horses and folks appeared in camp. They asked if we were the ones that reported the horse. We said yes. After some exchanges between all of us, we were dawning our packs and headed out with them to show them where the horse <b>is </b>or <b>was</b>! Just before we left out, one of the guys in the party wanted to see some pictures that I offered to show. The second he saw the horse, he yelled out to the party-"It's him, It's him!!....Lets go!!! I knew then that we had some people that loved and really cared that this story had a happy ending. </div>
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When we arrived to the hill, there he was!!! Praise be! He was holding down his "perch" over the valley. As the party began to show up around the horse that they successfully put a bridle on, a young women came charging up the hill that I had not seen so far in this large party assembled to find the horse. I asked "is that your horse?" A very emotional answer came back as she charged on "yes it is!" With her husband holding the horse, she charged up and starting crying and hugging the horse. I was told by a party member that this was the husband and wife and the owners of the horse, called Joe. I have never seen such an emotional look in the man's eyes. He said very little except to thank us many times, but facial expressions said it all. I could tell an immense relief in his face. The wife, stayed in tears rubbing and hugging the horse. Man, words written here cannot in no way express joys of happiness felt among everyone. It is the "highest of highs" I have been in years. My video instinct in me (since that is what I do for a living), rolled video of the event, with an occasional snap of a still picture every now and then. <b>What an incredible high, with total strangers in many regards, united in the middle of Sipsey Wilderness, miles from anything, to celebrate the life saving of this incredible horse.</b> There is no doubt in my mind. The same rule that applies to humans lost, applied to this horse. If you can, staying put in one place will help you get rescued faster than by wondering everywhere. The fact that this horse chose to stay put, literally saved it's life!</div>
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<b>And Now the Facts </b></div>
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This wonderful couple that lost this wonderful horse. When you hear the facts, it stabs you even more in the heart. OVER 3 weeks ago they were riding in the Bankhead with others with their horses. This horse was a prize winning horse the wife nurtured and cared for. It was her horse. Her husband was riding it this day over 3 weeks ago in the Bankhead with others. They said that the horse got one foot in a hole, and began slowly to fall over. In order to protect himself and the horse, the husband jumped off the horse, and slapped it to get it up and going and to keep it from falling on backwards into this hole. After he slapped the horse, it tore out wide open and disappeared. For three grueling weeks, the husband and wife tormented over the loss of this horse. They put up posters everywhere, turned the information to the sheriff's department if anyone called (very smart move since that was our key linking up with them), drove the roads at night in the Bankhead, and told everyone they could think of. To add to the emotional roller coaster this poor couple went through. A report from a guy that he found "parts" of a horse in an area of the forest, lowered any hope of this horse being alive. They even went down to meet the man that claimed he found body parts in the Bankhead, only to sit for 2 and half hours and he never showed up. Our report to the Sheriff's department put a ray of hope. Amateur radio reports to them that night proved to the owners, Pam and Dewayne, <b>that miracles DO HAPPEN. </b></div>
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As we all met at the trailhead about to depart, Pam hugged us all three and Dewayne thanked us many times over. They had asked us earlier where we were going to eat lunch that day. We told them the local Western Sirloin Steak House in Moulton. They said that our lunch was on them today. We laughed and never thought much about it. Later, as Steve, Thomas and I were enjoying steaks for lunch at the restaurant, Dewayne (the owner of the horse) came around the corner and asked where our waitress was, lunch was on him. We thanked him, he linked up with the waitress, and then left the restaurant. Wow, wow, wow......What an amazing day for everyone. After linking up with the couple on facebook and with another member of the party, Kari, whom I have known for a long time growing up in Lawrence county, it just topped the evening. Friends on facebook, sharing an incredible story we will all be telling for a long time. We plan to share pictures and movies of this miraculous event. An event I enjoyed sharing every minute of with you. Hang on, we are just getting started into camping season. Next stop, the Lord willing, will be the Cohutta Wilderness in northern Georgia. We will see you again in the woods!</div>
<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dw8NlfobDpaPFw7uPhutToJ5w0ODPPXwfeXqWBJBtoQhd1SY3HaaVzyGUbHYl1CbTSddMBsi3KMnuefVQuphw' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe>VideoRexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16342756961482992738noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1459368010805427886.post-7469174433664150632010-11-17T10:54:00.017-06:002010-11-17T14:52:17.538-06:00Bankhead NF-Ship Rock, A Civil War Era Saltpeter Cave/Furnace & The Big Tree<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoel04brVLCt27ZRMWBhURIrixG8-G6scj8FRcS7hvYeRbMcU1GocPUv6uqS9KrFv0af2AHIK-1M-rY0A2S57ExOTntlRg6tMVknCbPXfIh_SCHIe9OwsSne6NjG3y4SQQ_-m3b8ELhUs/s1600/100_1878.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 179px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoel04brVLCt27ZRMWBhURIrixG8-G6scj8FRcS7hvYeRbMcU1GocPUv6uqS9KrFv0af2AHIK-1M-rY0A2S57ExOTntlRg6tMVknCbPXfIh_SCHIe9OwsSne6NjG3y4SQQ_-m3b8ELhUs/s320/100_1878.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5540585158323758594" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVIvaXPxNp5WeRziesrRUXrrfGB76zpEkddZBCRnXCoVPAPUNCjBzqeGkOD_z11NursmFNqgFh0ejkkvwYzqT0anquqqU0WOys_VZ8KMlLyUN97i1PfVPJhLRtXCnfYnVP5fALkChIClg/s1600/100_1855.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 179px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVIvaXPxNp5WeRziesrRUXrrfGB76zpEkddZBCRnXCoVPAPUNCjBzqeGkOD_z11NursmFNqgFh0ejkkvwYzqT0anquqqU0WOys_VZ8KMlLyUN97i1PfVPJhLRtXCnfYnVP5fALkChIClg/s320/100_1855.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5540584806538334498" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoQ7A3_VVfHrOmh64tBXQGKI1_L6Huy-mpt1GBhfDMVkNmCtDk_eVWWJpofUZZvApnk150V46WAD9xTVkz5o9Woo33ZITdJZ0ahubInNzbcjNr-yOqd2xHn7y1TrJG5Mavb6mEa4blVQQ/s1600/100_1848.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 110px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoQ7A3_VVfHrOmh64tBXQGKI1_L6Huy-mpt1GBhfDMVkNmCtDk_eVWWJpofUZZvApnk150V46WAD9xTVkz5o9Woo33ZITdJZ0ahubInNzbcjNr-yOqd2xHn7y1TrJG5Mavb6mEa4blVQQ/s320/100_1848.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5540584472005220162" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisY5osJBfU8tWJbVoOW0GCcsf7OmojxiMhSc_NE32Kdsk0EMmdtc_v7p5eu8m2AfC1PND-9xjyPC5SVUdGMbpwphrzmFxMEIpXujR5ZsEEyir0rPZQwssd3riuhrc1jAxcemXpF7XMeYM/s1600/100_1903.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 179px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisY5osJBfU8tWJbVoOW0GCcsf7OmojxiMhSc_NE32Kdsk0EMmdtc_v7p5eu8m2AfC1PND-9xjyPC5SVUdGMbpwphrzmFxMEIpXujR5ZsEEyir0rPZQwssd3riuhrc1jAxcemXpF7XMeYM/s320/100_1903.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5540584199807092082" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRe81IMD2W_VepzYV8tEYzoGkwsaHFKdCfbr1hMXknGaQ46z7d-Ml6E5qyxeIivM-Yt19t_hjm3v4uubdqmDuaM45qTnf3vEriciDKn57PohsEgiT75hOV8kW8iFEifIL9yQfZEcau7Cc/s1600/100_1899.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 179px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRe81IMD2W_VepzYV8tEYzoGkwsaHFKdCfbr1hMXknGaQ46z7d-Ml6E5qyxeIivM-Yt19t_hjm3v4uubdqmDuaM45qTnf3vEriciDKn57PohsEgiT75hOV8kW8iFEifIL9yQfZEcau7Cc/s320/100_1899.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5540570095162262130" /></a><br />Well, It has been a long hot summer. Time to kick in gear and go camping! I made a few short kayak trips during the summer, but just did not have the time to include them on the blog here. I apologize for that. Both of them were a lot of fun. We start the 2010-2011 camping season off right this time. We head to Bankhead National Forest's icon in North Alabama. The so called "Big Tree". Thomas, one of my long time camping buddies, told me that Sam (another good camping friend) had two guys that wanted to drive down 9 hours from North Carolina and see "The Big Tree". The Big Tree, for those of you wondering, is Alabama's largest White Poplar tree (a.k.a. tulip). It has a circumference of 25 feet and stands about 150 feet tall. It is where EVERYONE that comes from out of town seems to go. Most veteran Bankhead NF campers, avoid this area. We seek out the little known areas most of the time, but with guests coming, we thought this would be a good time to revisit this landmark. Thomas, my good camping friend, knows and loves Bankhead. He suggested a route that I had not done before. He suggested we take the standard "long route" that everyone takes to visit the Big Tree. It is a route that follows U.S. Forest Trails 206 and 209 along Thompson Creek and Sipsey River. <div>Our plans were to follow this long route (5.5 miles) and visit "Ship Rock", along with numerous Indian Mortar Rocks and a Civil War Era Saltpeter Cave along the way. That is the beauty of living close to this area and hanging around with Thomas. He and many of us know of the hidden treasures that the Bankhead holds, that most people have no clue about. This comes from years of hiking, studying, and talking to others about the treasures of Bankhead. So, the plan was to hike the long route to the Big Tree, camp over night close to the Big Tree, and then come out Sunday morning using the unofficial trail "short route" coming out (about 2 miles and an hour and a half of walking) so the North Carolina guys could get on their way back with their long 9 hour drive ahead back home in the Winston-Salem area. </div><div><br /></div><div>Saturday morning, November 6th-Six of us headed out on a long days journey before setting up camp that afternoon. We park at the Thompson Creek Trailhead and then move along Forest Service Trail 206. The parking lot was FULL of cars, telling us that everyone, their brother, their sister, their cousin, and every Boy Scout troop within 60 miles of the Bankhead was there. I am being sarcastic, but you get my point. A crowded forest we thought. About 2.5 miles ahead, just before Ship Rock, we detour off the trail to a special spot, marked by GPS waypoints by Thomas. It is a little known and a very large Indian Mortar Rock with flint chips laying around everywhere underneath a small bluff shelter. If you are reading this, you might be wondering what in the world an Indian Mortar Rock is? Going only from what I have been told, an Indian Mortar Rock is a hole in a rock that has been carved out after years and years of grinding corn, or other food down for meal. They used the holes for grinding really just about anything down. The deeper the hole in the rock, the more it was used. These rocks that Thomas showed us were very large, deep holes, along with one rock that had many small holes. They were also protected from overhead by a small bluff shelter. </div><div>After taking pictures of this amazing and well kept secret, we head back down the trail for another well known landmark in the Bankhead, "Ship Rock". Ship Rock is on all of the U.S. Forest trail maps, and so it attracts hundreds and hundreds of people each year to come and camp by it. What is it? Well, it is a massive rock that is almost perfectly in the shape of the bow (front) of a ship. In the wintertime, with the leaves off the trees, it is pretty impressive! It juts out and stands proud. Many people camp at the base of this rock. After showing our visitors the rock, Thomas then led everyone through the back part of Ship Rock, through the famous "Eye of The Needle" that shows up on all the U.S. Forest Maps. The "Eye of the Needle" is a pretty neat passage. Back towards the end of the Ship Rock, is a unique hole in the rock. If you climb through this hole in the rock, you come out on the other side of a large bluff rock. By doing so, it cuts about 1/4 a mile hike out of the way. You would normally follow Thompson Creek all the way down to the intersection of FS 206/209 trails at Sipsey, but by going through the "Eye of The Needle", you have shaved off some time and distance to keep from having to go the long way around these large rocks and bluffs . The movie attached to this Blog shows some of us coming out of the Eye of the Needle. </div><div><br /></div><div>After we complete our adventure coming through the Eye of The Needle, Thomas points out numerous Indian Mortar Rocks all around the back side of Ship Rock. As many times as I have been to Ship Rock, I never had the slightest clue it hid Indian Mortar Rocks up against it. There is also a very strange looking rock over on the back side of Ship Rock. It looks like pancakes stacked up, or some have even referred to it as favoring a man's outer parts. We won't go there. At any rate, it is a strange looking rock. Moving on down the trail, Thomas as our guide, checks his GPS (handheld global positioning system) waypoints (points marked and recorded in the GPS from previous trips) for another treasure in the Bankhead very few people, even locals know about. It is the remnants of a civil war era salt peter furnace and nearby cave. It took about another mile or two of walking, but we arrived at the site. Little known to most folks, is a treasure of history preserved in the Bankhead. During and near the civil war, saltpeter was mined heavily for it's use in the making of gun powder. According to Sam, one of my friends along with us, saltpeter is derived from "cooking" a certain type rock in furnaces or open "pits". The substance called saltpeter would fall to the bottom after this process, I presume with water being used. After it dried out, it could then be easily be collected. At this site (picture on blog), you can see the remnants of the furnace, and shortly by this spot is an old cave where they mined to get the saltpeter. I did not climb down to look inside the cave as the other guys did, but I saw some pictures that they took of the inside. Awesome! We all wished we had brought up flashlights from our packs (we left them by the trail) and headlamps to look further! We shot many pictures of the area, explored more, and then headed back to the trail where our backpacks were waiting. </div><div><br /></div><div>After all the sights we had seen so far, it is hard to top that. By about 3:30-4:00 p.m., we reached our campsite destination, the mouth of East Bee Branch canyon, entrance to "The Big Tree". This adventure so far has carried us 5 miles of walking to reach the campsite for the night. The Big Tree is just 1/2 mile of walking from here, but we are saving that for the next day. I love this campsite. This makes about my 5th time to stay here. It is very flat, right next to the creek, and just a "hop and a skip" as they say, down from the Big Tree. </div><div><br /></div><div>This camping spot also has an unusual memory I will remember for a lifetime. The first time we camped here, Bud, one of my friends spent all night laying outside of his tent, throwing up from so much intense pain. His moans of pains pierced the woods and my heart. You can imagine what went through my head, and my buddy Sonny's head as to "what to do" in the middle of a wilderness area. He insisted he just stay put, and for us <b>not </b>to call for help. The next morning, he was able to carry himself, pack and everything out at an extremely slow pace. The fact that he was carrying himself out was alone a miracle, considering we thought he had the pain and suffering of a man about to die. I would have never forgiven myself if he had. He found out two days later that his body was trying to pass a kidney stone. Bud never ever got to see the Big Tree on that trip nor has he even to this day got to see it. He got within 1/2 mile of the tree at this camp, but pain and suffering that night halted any chance of getting up the next morning and heading for the Big Tree. It became a "pray that I get out of here alive day". I will never forget that night, laying in my tent, listing to Bud's intense groans of pain, terrifying me every minute if this man was going to live or die in the Bankhead in the middle of nowhere. I did some serious talks with the Lord that night in my prayers. </div><div><br /></div><div>Meanwhile on this trip, Saturday night at camp yielded dead calm winds, yielding a "dead quite" sound in the woods that night. We laughed, talked, and did one of the most enjoyable parts of camping....the fireside chats. That's where you tell stories, learn all the embarrassing stories on each other while growing up, and tell tales that you would never speak of in any other environment. Want to get to know someone? Go camping with them and sit around the fire. Before long, you will be laughing your self to death with their stories. Everyone has some funny and unique stories that happen in their lives. The campfire is the perfect place to share them! At around 10 p.m., we rap up the last stories and retire to our tents and hammocks. As we all start to drift off to sleep, a lone coyote up on the top of the bluff nearby, howls out loud and shakes the ground with that erie sound that nobody forgets. It's the sound that brings chills up your spine, but makes the forest such a special place to visit. </div><div><br /></div><div>Morning yielded crystal clear blue skies and a quick breakfast among everyone. We had a lot of things to do that day, in order to show the North Carolina guys The Big Tree, get out in time so that they will not have a horrific drive home and get in at a very late hour. We tore down camp, stuck our packs over in a pile, and headed up East Bee Branch for the grand attraction. A 1/2 mile walk on a chilly 27 degree morning carried us up the canyon to the Big Tree. Not a cloud in the sky, autumn color leaves preparing to drop, and that beautiful blue sky, made it a morning that one never forgets. The "out of town" guys were impressed, even though it won't even come in second place to the monster trees in Joyce Kilmer Forest over in western North Carolina. They knew that, but realized that this was our "pride and joy" in Alabama. A tree that has survived several hundred years and withstood the test of time and man's greed for lumber. Of just about all the trees stripped and pulled out of the Bankhead, this one has managed to survive. On this trip, one of probably 10 or 15 Steve and I have taken to this spot, we noticed something different. Absolutely NO WATER flowing over the falls. The Big Tree has two, very special, very tall, waterfalls that add to the beauty. With this summers hottest on record temps, and the lack of rainfall, there was nothing to see coming off the 90-100 foot bluffs surrounding The Big Tree. I shot some pictures to record this, since I have never ever been to this area when NO water was coming off of the falls. After showing the visitors around the area, we all packed up and headed back to our campsite. From there, we loaded up the packs and headed out. This time, we took the "unofficial" 2 mile short trip out. THIS is the way to the Big Tree. Unfortunately, most everyone that comes in out of town follows the traditional U.S. Forest Service trails. The easiest way to see The Big Tree is to park at Thompson Creek Trailhead as everyone does. Follow the trail down to the first branch you come to and cross. After you cross the branch, shortly the Forest Service Trail 206 bears on around to the right and follows Thompson Creek. Instead of bearing to the right, you turn to the left, and follow a worn out trail that most people that know the area take. They might as well designate it as a trail because it is already that from so much traffic. It goes up White Oak Hollow and then you go up and over White Oak. The incline going up the east side of White Oak hollow on the trail will definitely take the breath out of you while coming in to see The Big Tree, but reward you with a nice descent coming back from the Big Tree. Total miles going in-around 2 miles. Total miles going the long way-5.5 miles. So take your pick, a 4 mile hike to see the Big Tree, or a 11 mile hike. </div><div><br /></div><div>After making our 2 mile journey from the Big Tree coming the short route, we close out another great adventure trip! A total of 9 miles walked in two days, more friendships made with our guys from North Carolina, and another reminder that more camping is full steam ahead with the leaves departing the trees. The chilly nights and crystal clear skies to behold at night in the outdoors! Let's get ready, get packed, and wait for the next weekend to go again! You will be there too so stand by and get ready!</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dyHSyHm3v3IagPm5UQJN9yVhOp3_o7ISaPvxYUDt92T-nFXWHHzIp-n5Tvs1YLaSAFNsPNyuIrsI0Idqp3Flg' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe>VideoRexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16342756961482992738noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1459368010805427886.post-85075904929403786192010-03-09T10:40:00.028-06:002010-03-11T15:29:06.414-06:00Discovering History Through Rocks, Trees and Trash-Bankhead National Forest<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg49yjRZyd4rf8ew39ac_qO_PbVIv3-iFUiX89mEHMyppSsO7-785qQIs02NcnZE2CmwgsCOCmMo5gZ3F2IF0ZN6B4_9T-OiSCSPo_SmbyIYzq1bV7RojdR3LPRwXCmyWATlx5p5AyTQXk/s1600-h/100_0982.JPG"><img style="float:left; 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margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 179px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTqtYDs_BEPAC6djV0A3KsaPStKXIGxqbnP-2Ti2b3wePjzwgrvnA-Dho5UnGk-rQDo5l3Y9AjZM-dNwKf95K9bhpBokU9un8n_ixWZn10QjvDVB6CtDKVcV5FKt-v3gfIk8kcaFDH084/s320/100_1056.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5446687502644568210" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3pZYk2yGkblhiM6Pp1tKB6d6hkHM4OOHf0fXYjxHIybsAohjRr6wBQvEkXWXEjjJk6mvOxoxQrRYV3WEuQwY9kc8QwyMNvR7JjhEGWtEP6NZvqfTAA-mAnKPsdgycU45fcSVX4bWxcSs/s1600-h/100_0967.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 179px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3pZYk2yGkblhiM6Pp1tKB6d6hkHM4OOHf0fXYjxHIybsAohjRr6wBQvEkXWXEjjJk6mvOxoxQrRYV3WEuQwY9kc8QwyMNvR7JjhEGWtEP6NZvqfTAA-mAnKPsdgycU45fcSVX4bWxcSs/s320/100_0967.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5446687015304946162" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjie-lKf0oimiO1-_a4xNQ-n3itYn7lCPpOzQsWRKaXV_snY1uzmLNM_WYOlR1GxaDJj_9-GyYH1I1CxyacyGGO1K-PLEHLj1abtyg9BdVoi0YEJQi3tdY-kA3hy1GyyBhRfHvx9X7Inz0/s1600-h/100_1019.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 179px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjie-lKf0oimiO1-_a4xNQ-n3itYn7lCPpOzQsWRKaXV_snY1uzmLNM_WYOlR1GxaDJj_9-GyYH1I1CxyacyGGO1K-PLEHLj1abtyg9BdVoi0YEJQi3tdY-kA3hy1GyyBhRfHvx9X7Inz0/s320/100_1019.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5446686645107991234" /></a><br />Several people following this blog have asked me "why Bankhead National Forest all the time?" The answer is simple. It is a 20-30 minute drive from my house and to the Sipsey Wilderness Area. We had planned for one or two trips to The Cohutta Wilderness (northern Georgia) or The Great Smokey Mountains National Park, or even a couple of places in North Carolina, but they just did not work out. When the trips like that fall through, we resort to old faithful, The Bankhead. <div><br /></div><div>One of the most enjoyable things to do in the outdoors with our modern GPS technology, is to just simply study a map and pick the most remote area, or the most scenic looking, or the one with the most surprises, and just head out! We rarely follow any "hiking trails" as most folks do. We just cut our own trail. It is THIS way that we come upon surprises and finds that most people would rarely ever see. Such as the case on this last trip. After a "Creepy Night" that you read about last time, this trip was very, very quiet in terms of wildlife. My buddy Thomas has spearheaded the last two trips and led us down some interesting areas. He knows Bankhead well, it's history as well as it's terrain. On this trip, he told us "let's go explore Lick Branch". I thought, Lick Branch? I didn't even know there was a Lick Branch in the Bankhead. Thomas never has failed us on any adventure trip and so Steve, one of my other camping buddies and I were game to wherever. </div><div><br /></div><div>The majority of the people that do not go into the backcountry forget something. These remote areas were at one time in history, very busy places with PEOPLE. They forget that yes, you still can find remnants of Indians that lived here. I remember my 17 years of working on an Army installation. There were remote areas that people were not allowed to go in to except at various times. These areas were a "gold mine" back in time. Even today, there is an old home place on Redstone Arsenal that is left basically the way it was in the mid 1940's. What this means is....there is still a Model T truck parked and abandoned, buttercup flowers still grow in April-May in a square pattern showing where the old house once stood. Glass jars from the era are still on the ground around the basement fruit pantry. A big dip in the ground indicates on old road bed that went by the house that obviously had lots of horse and buggy and car traffic. Across from this road is an old iron gate fence that houses a cemetery, and so on it goes. There are many places in the Bankhead similar to this. They may not still have a Model T truck parked, but there are still "signs" that point to a different world in time from just a grove of trees that you see. You have to know what to look for when you find an area like this. For example, if you are 3 miles from the nearest road in the Sipsey Wilderness, and you see trees covered up with carvings next to a spring, you can bet your house this was a heavy travelled and popular spot in years past. If the area could talk, you would be surprised at what it would tell. Family outings with their horse and buggy, whiskey stills, adultery commented, lumber mills, grist mills, drinking, you name it. </div><div>Thomas has helped me be more "in tune" with this fact when going into the wilderness. It has made me realize that at one time, this area might have been a thriving place where people were there every day. Just in the last 3 of some 13 years of backpacking, coming up on signs of Indians living there has given the place much more respect. I am always amazed at us humans. We tend to treat our planet like we are the ONLY humans that have ever done anything or gone anywhere in any one location. If we humble ourselves and look around, we will find that we are REPEATS of thousands of people that have gone the same exact path. </div><div>Well, enough philosophy, let's hit the woods!</div><div><br /></div><div>We took the path and headed down our 2.5 mile hike to set up base camp. The goal was to camp at the intersection of Lick Branch and Thompson Creek at the northern edge of the Sipsey Wilderness Area to set up base camp. We even thought about going on up Lick Branch to set up camp. If you have read my blogs before, you know that we always generally go in and set up base camp, and then explore. That way, you don't have a 40-55 pound backpack with you all day long exploring. After about a 1/2 mile of hiking down an old road bed from the parking spot, our first stop was Baker Cole Cemetary. It is so old, about the only thing that tells you it is a cemetery is the emblem waypoint on my GPS unit, and two PVC pipes put in the form of a cross with the name painted on the PVC pipes. There were numerous tombstones or "rocks" with carvings on them. They are so old, you could not make out much of anything on them. Thomas carries chalk with him and we chalked them to help us be able to read them better. It worked well. One of them "came to life" so to speak after you run the chalk over it. What is on it is pretty strange. I have attached a picture to this blog and you can see it. I have no ideal on the this strangeness of how it is marked. Maybe someone that sees this will shed some light. The tombstone pictured was about the only one that we could make out some kind of writing.</div><div>After a few pictures, we moved on. A hike on down through the woods yielded another strange item. There, laying on the ground, some one mile off the road in the woods, a 10 foot piece of vinyl siding. It does not take a detective to figure this one out, especially if you have a lived in the south. It is a 10 foot section of vinyl siding ripped off a home many miles away and lifted high into the air and dropped in it's place by a tornado. I have seen this before with part of a tin roof laying in the leaves in the middle of no where. You are miles away from the nearest home and laying in the middle of the Sipsey Wilderness, a piece of tin off a roof. Strange. If only it could tell you a story? How for and how high did it come from? So, we move on. After about a mile into the woods, we stop at Thompson Creek where we discovered a large amount of tree carvings at the intersection of Mattox Creek and Thompson Creek. We spent about 40 minutes looking at and reading the carvings. More history to uncover! It appears that several generations of a family have carved their name in the trees. The carving dates and initials range from 1938-1976. We notice right away that many of the older carving dates have the 9 backwards. I would be curious to know why? Is it ignorance or poor education, or does it mean anything by this?</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Extremely Detailed Pornographic Carving On A Tree</b><b>-</b> In our looking around at these clumps of trees with carvings, we discovered one that cannot be described in this blog. It had a lot of time spent on it by carving the male and female in too much detail. Pretty sick to some people but I was surprised at how much time they had taken to carve something in such detail. I refused to take a picture of it at first, and only after the second day coming out did I decide to snap a photo of it. It looked like it had been done back in the 70's or 80's by the carving's looks.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Feral Pigs, Pigs, Pigs</b>-One note here in the blog while I am thinking of it. Throughout our entire trip, the forest was absolutely saturated with signs of wild hogs. There were trails beat down so bad, it looked like humans were traveling them every day. Feral pigs are not native to the Bankhead, and the National Forest Service wants to get rid of them as soon as possible. We saw pig mud hole after mud hole everywhere we went the entire trip. I will not dwell on this point any more because I have talked about them on almost every blog, but they are a massive problem for the Forest Service. The irony is that the weekend we were out there was a scheduled hunt for Feral hogs. We went with "hunter orange" decked all over us and our backpacks, only to find not one single hunter out there in the drive into our location to park. Apparently hunters are not interested to help get rid of this problem. There will have to be some serious trapping of these animals that are not native to the area. They destroy everything, everywhere they go in the woods. The photo on this blog shows what they do to some of the trees by rubbing up against them, sharping their tusks on them, and wallowing in the ground around them, making large mud holes that scare the land. Another picture on this blog shows feral pig hair found on their trails. The situation is getting pretty sad. I won't mention them anymore in this blog, but I could not go without mentioning the severe damage we saw.</div><div><br /></div><div>By 1 p.m., we finally arrived to set up camp at the intersection of Link Branch and Thompson. 2.5 miles was the total hike from our parked truck. We ate lunch, set up camp, rested a little more, and then Steve, Thomas, and I set out hiking up Link Branch, our final destination to explore. After no more than a 10 minute walk we discovered a neat looking bluff shelter and waterfall. Standing around and admiring the beauty, I heard Thomas say "Hey, here is an Indian Mortar Rock!". Much to our surprise was a beautiful hole carved out in the rock. For those of you wondering what a Mortar Rock is. The Indians ground corn and many other items up using a mortar rock. The deeper the hole is shows how much it was used, so I am told. This one was very deep (see picture attached with this article). We put a GPS waypoint on this find, took some pictures, and headed out. Moving on up the canyon, we saw little else of interest. About 1 mile up is Link Branch Falls. It was not very high and not very captivating to look at. With only about an hour before dark, we headed back to camp.</div><div><br /></div><div>Nightfall yielded two things. One of the fastest temperature drops I can remember and an absolutely spectacular night of stars. At 4 p.m., the temperature was around 47 degrees. By 7:15 p.m., it was 28 degrees. This was an incredible drop in temperature in a very short time. The low that night was 24 degrees. Me being a weather "geek" as well, I carry a digital minimum and maximum thermometer. Around 10 p.m. that night, with the use of my iPhone and an application in it to help identify stars, we stood and admired God's beauty in the heavens. The north star was easy to pick out, since the Big Dipper (Ursa Major) was prominent in the sky. If you are not familiar how to identify the north star, it's easy. Just draw a line up from the two stars that make up the far end bowl of the Big Dipper. Follow that imaginary line straight up and the brightest star in it's path will be the North Star. </div><div><br /></div><div>After a very quiet and pleasing night (only a couple of "hoots" from a hoot owl in the distance) with no animal noises like last time, we all got a great nights sleep. Unlike most people, I enjoy cold weather. One of the toughest things for me to do while camping in the cold is this. Getting out of your sleeping bag in the middle of the night to re-leave yourself from excess liquid. It is so hard to climb out of that warm sleeping bag. My body always says, "NO, I am NOT going back to sleep until you take care of this situation, and so I eventually go. </div><div><br /></div><div>The next morning, we headed down Thompson Creek exploring. Within 25 minutes, we had come upon a bluff shelter that had been camped in many times over the years by an old cooler and trash left around. There were beech trees with numerous carvings of names over the years. One interesting item was a 1970's, 1980's ere steel cooler (see picture with this blog). Since it is protected up under the bluff, it only gets moisture from in the air to add to fuel the rust on it. It is not exposed directly out in the rain. All of this went on before this area was declared a Wilderness Area. So what you see out there, will be pretty much "frozen in time" until it has rusted, deteriorated and is gone. We hiked about 2 miles that morning and discovered a few other bluff shelters. Some of them had some interesting moss and ferns that you do not see anywhere, but for the most part, a pretty weak view of things compared to what we have seen before in the Bankhead. Around 11:00 a.m., we broke camp down and headed out. On the way out, we learned just how quickly a trip can turn into a nightmare. As we were crossing a stream of less than 7 inches deep, a "slick as ice" rock with moss on it, caused Steve to go flying up in the air and land almost sideways in the creek with his backpack on. After some very strong and loud moans of pain leaning over on the bank of the stream, he assured us that nothing was broken. Another lesson of how "fun" out in the middle of "no where" can turn into a long day when your body cannot transport itself out! That is one thing that the 3 of us try and do most of the time when we go together, and that is to be careful and not fall. A person who cannot transport him or herself out with there gear, can absolutely ruin everyone's trip. After some great steak at a popular restaurant out in the country, we headed back to modern civilization. Another great trip outdoors with two good friends. No "animal excitement" or breathtaking waterfalls as in past trips, but a step back in time looking at carvings and Indian traces. I have already started planning the next trip, so stand by and we will head out again soon!</div><div><br /></div><div>Click below to watch a video clip of one of the bluff shelters we discovered.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dwHNT1Tcv5rSNFOcKwMZYvkxB0R6ebJS1i3nXWVeG86SMkvIUFjoLpMt4ikmN-TQBELrhdqUWrgkvDL53YkrQ' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe>VideoRexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16342756961482992738noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1459368010805427886.post-25722695263670650172010-02-16T08:56:00.013-06:002010-02-17T21:47:10.615-06:00A Remote Area, Some History, and One Creepy Night I Will Never Forget<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMWrAOFKlTdgXH4Q8j9M6ekgyZRfcRAvrJI5AGtaLgeTQ74okXlt7tuJwpO_Cgs6GWTu8dW1mi2MATj9f871fNMi_GaBeP0Drmbj4AygJxfCsL03cCtytBdKcF2RVrd4m1imXD2UST9A8/s1600-h/Davis+Creek+Canyon-9.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 179px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMWrAOFKlTdgXH4Q8j9M6ekgyZRfcRAvrJI5AGtaLgeTQ74okXlt7tuJwpO_Cgs6GWTu8dW1mi2MATj9f871fNMi_GaBeP0Drmbj4AygJxfCsL03cCtytBdKcF2RVrd4m1imXD2UST9A8/s320/Davis+Creek+Canyon-9.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5438893291134246322" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixZ5ly8O8AfuBCCTth1nxk2euRkrvoJHBERImDoAJtV2Jl6ML5_mfZ_XfWeOaGcbl7YIymXlW0AWHF0ZmdBcSx0m3xrdq5hMBI1qmYoNZkSnF0MkdQnKQDvB1Etd8PXKmNCGnRfjYK9c4/s1600-h/Truck+Wreck-Gum+Pond+Hisorical+Marker-2+Exact+Spot+from+GPS.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 179px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixZ5ly8O8AfuBCCTth1nxk2euRkrvoJHBERImDoAJtV2Jl6ML5_mfZ_XfWeOaGcbl7YIymXlW0AWHF0ZmdBcSx0m3xrdq5hMBI1qmYoNZkSnF0MkdQnKQDvB1Etd8PXKmNCGnRfjYK9c4/s320/Truck+Wreck-Gum+Pond+Hisorical+Marker-2+Exact+Spot+from+GPS.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5438892900343307954" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgm_Shr88UuAQt86GwnkLEDHWIyDwA_hq16sCLmARtwh_Tz1XfPNK5AX4xQyG7OOZ3AqhE9VKPXlv5Y9OzCsVejMlBokjKr_IZJf8oWWz6m9Qpr_afelOKWjWjGZr1DBW7s3kvRmHSZNjc/s1600-h/Truck+Wreck-Gum+Pond+Hisorical+Marker-12.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 179px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgm_Shr88UuAQt86GwnkLEDHWIyDwA_hq16sCLmARtwh_Tz1XfPNK5AX4xQyG7OOZ3AqhE9VKPXlv5Y9OzCsVejMlBokjKr_IZJf8oWWz6m9Qpr_afelOKWjWjGZr1DBW7s3kvRmHSZNjc/s320/Truck+Wreck-Gum+Pond+Hisorical+Marker-12.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5438892530362803330" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB6dKtq0HcD9jqO_rLCgWgzXRpHnH8tMBKw20JQlmJp7BzXX1ZEQy7m5clBHlQInlMf_34Kd0UkD4g3STcrlk91CHfyG2zdpx1mlRDSe_g0yCMGBLkGkE2E2Aa8-jz3-xDVFAB_94wUJ4/s1600-h/Hog+Rub+on+Tree.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 179px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB6dKtq0HcD9jqO_rLCgWgzXRpHnH8tMBKw20JQlmJp7BzXX1ZEQy7m5clBHlQInlMf_34Kd0UkD4g3STcrlk91CHfyG2zdpx1mlRDSe_g0yCMGBLkGkE2E2Aa8-jz3-xDVFAB_94wUJ4/s320/Hog+Rub+on+Tree.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5438892160713634194" /></a><br />Sometimes the "unknowns" in life is what can create more fear, panic, or just simply the "creeps" in any of us than any other bumps in life. Of all the years I have camped in the outdoors among wildlife such as deer, black bear, brown bear, bobcats, foxes, raccoons, etc, none have provoked more "bone chilling", "blood curling" sounds than that of a coyote. As you read further, you will understand and hear just what I am talking about. First, let's start with the beginning of the trip. Thomas, one of my camping buddies and I decided to check out a place on the map called Davis Creek Canyon in the Bankhead National Forest of North Alabama. I have passed by it all my life and never been into this what seems like a massive sinkhole of a canyon for the terrain of north Alabama. Little did I realize what this place holds! Our plan was simple. Thomas had plotted the trip out on a map and I was game to wherever he wanted to go. He had decided for us to go in about a mile down into the canyon, set up base camp, and explore the rest of the day. We parked off of Cranal road, and begin the descent into the canyon. I noticed on my watch altimeter that we were at about 950 feet in elevation. As we started down into the canyon, we saw immediately this was going to be a very "rough" going adventure. All of the area had been clear cut of trees some 10-15 years ago, and so there was very thick and dense foliage to go into. It seemed like we only covered a quarter of a mile in one hour at times. It was tough, thick, and steep going into the canyon. The drop was so severe that we had to really look at the map good to find a way down into the canyon. When we finally reached bottom, my altimeter on my watch showed 650 feet. For North Alabama standards, that is a pretty good drop in elevation, although I realize compared to other areas including Alabama, this in nothing. It IS something when you are carrying 60 pounds of gear in a backpack, I can tell you that. As Thomas and I got to the bottom, we noticed a couple of things. First, there was absolutely NO sign of any human passing through this area in some time. The only tracks we saw were some very large feral hog tracks, and very fresh at that. When hogs roll around in the mud so happy, they want to get the mud off. They will scrap up against a tree and sometimes they wear the bark off. The size of the hog can be determined as well since the mud line on the tree bark will tell you their height. A picture attached to this blog tells that story. Some pretty good sized hogs!<div><br /></div><div>We saw right away that this area is way to low of an area to set up any base camp, and so we hiked on up the canyon. After some 3 hours, we happened to notice on our GPS units, it said "Gum Pond Historical" on the map database in them. Hmmm. That sounds like we need to check that out, whatever it is! When we got closer to the waypoint that our GPS units already had on the map databases in them, we put our packs down by the creek and took off up the canyon. We did a "go to" on our GPS units to lead us to what was marked as "Gum Pond Historical". As we used our GPS units to help us "home in" on the point, we discovered something really cool! A late 1930's, early 1940's truck wrecked on the site of once was a narrow road down into the canyon. The truck was partially in the ground, with pieces and parts scattered about. We took pictures of it and I have them posted here. We could only "deduce" that a log truck must have gotten away and went down the steep hill, smashing into the rocks, or some guys had too much moonshine one night and totaled the truck out. It also had some signs like maybe a bulldozer later on tried to squash this truck up. We don't know the real story, but it was so cool to come up on such an old artifact. As we proceeded on up the steep hill to the top of the bluffs, I finally came to within 4 feet of the waypoint on our GPS map that said "Gum Pond Historical" waypoint. Nothing here but dense mountain laurel, and a beautiful view of the canyon. The history of this point has me curious and I plan to check into it further. It was obvious from the truck wreck, the old road bed, and other clues, that this was once a thriving place, perhaps before the U.S. Forest Service bought all the property up many years ago. <div><br /></div><div>After lunch and a break, we set out for a place to camp for the night. We decided to go up one of the canyon walls or inlets close to our take out point going home on Sunday-February 14th. We found a pretty nice and fairly flat place to set up camp. It had a tall 50 foot waterfall not far from us, a small stream that ran right by the campsite, and plenty of downed trees for firewood. As dusk fell, this is when the "creepy part" of this simple little adventure trip begins. Our campsite was about 1/4 of a mile up from the main Davis Creek canyon. We were in a small little inlet that was a part of the main canyon. There was nothing but steep 40-60 walls in a U shape all around us, with two waterfalls emptying into our canyon. We were camped in the middle of this U shaped inlet. We had discussed early on HOW we where going to get out of this canyon, but we were both too tired to think about it on Saturday. We decided we would get up early Sunday morning and scope out the place first with no backpacks, before we hauled our gear going in circles trying to find a way out. Sitting around our campfire at dusk and eating supper, we heard this yelling sound coming from down in the main canyon. It went over and over. There was no break. Thomas said "I wonder if that is Sam?". Sam was a friend who said he may or may not be able to join us. As we continued listening, it was apparent that this yelling was not a person, but apparently a coyote. It sounded like it was down at the junction of the main canyon and this inlet were were camped in. The canyon is so deep that sound projects very well. This yelling or actually howling by the coyote went on for about 15 minutes. I have heard many coyotes in my time, but none last this long or sound like this. Usually you will hear the "yelp" sound in with the howl that is so classic of coyotes. As the evening progressed on, he begin to start howling again, repeatedly howling over and over. There was no moon so we had a very sharp pitch black night. Only the light from our fire showed evidence of where we were. Thomas said "Can't you record that coyote with your Iphone?". I told him yes, and so I ran over to the tent and grabbed my Iphone, brought the application for recording up, and we sat there on standby while we continued and finished our supper around the campfire talking. The small stream was right behind us, and it was making a soothing sound, but when this guy fired up with his howls, it would easily overpower the sound of the stream. After some time sitting and talking, the coyote cut loose again. I turned the recorder on and what we heard then is what you hear on the movie attached. THIS TIME, the coyote heads up the canyon towards us! NOT KNOWING things can send some chills up your spine. First, is he in the canyon or on top of the canyon rim? Is he rabid? Is he hungry? Is he calling for a mate or fellow companion? Is it REALLY a coyote or is it a wolf (as far as I know, we have no wolves officially in Bankhead NF)? Is he "ticked off" at us being there? Does he do this every night? Is he calling for the "troops" to check us out further for food? Thomas nor I never really feared for us having any real problems or us being in true life threatning danger, but the "UNKNOWNS" can really drive a fellow into some creepy thoughts! That blood curling sound can really work on your mind. It's also interesting here to point out some things. You get all types of reactions from people after hearing what we experienced. My wife laughed and said she would have loved to have been there and experienced that creepy sound. Others said I am absolutely crazy for being out there with that creature tormenting us like that. Everyone has a different reaction and thoughts on an experience like this. Anyway, getting back to the recording. The coyote proceeded up the canyon howling. After it PASSED by us howling, we then both deduced that the coyote was walking the rim of the canyon and not IN the canyon. I must tell you that as chilling of a sound that it makes, it gets OLD REAL FAST. I think the "not knowing" is what wears on you. Thomas laughed and said that I would be surprised probably of how small of a coyote this was and it was probably pretty skinny. His view is that perhaps this was a "loner" type coyote, kicked out of the pack. I hope he was right, because with a sound like that, I had envisioned a nice healthy 3 foot high wolf that was having his sights set on us, at least that is what my mind was leading me to believe by the bone chilling sounds it made. </div><div><br /></div><div>After some 20 minutes of this tormenting, it stopped. I needed to contact my family anyway by ham radio and let them know we were both fine out here in the backcountry. Where we go in the Bankhead, no cell phones work, and so your only communication with the outside world is through ham radio. I think my talking on the radio finally ran him off, because we never heard him again. About 10 p.m., hoot owls cut loose not far from us. They too can send out a creepy sound, and so this just added to the already bizarre night. At 10:30 p.m. we both retired for the night to our beds. Thomas in his hammock some 50 feet away, and me in my tent. I was so tired from the 4 mile hike that day that I crashed immediately into a deep sleep. Around 11:30, I awoke to the familiar sounds we hear a lot of lately in North Alabama, even in the rural areas and not just the forest-It was the sound of a full pack of coyotes yelping and on the chase of something down in the main Davis Creek Canyon. I lay there a few minutes listening to them, and then rolled over and went back to sleep. Around midnight, I awoke to the strangest sound I will NEVER forget. I heard up on the top of the canyon, a repeated over and over-"grunting sound" that sounded just like a constant grunting sound a black bear would do. I was nestled in my zero degree mummy sleeping bag with the bag zipped up all around me. The only thing showing was my face. In order for this sound to wake me up with this insulated bag all around my head, it had to be pretty loud! In hearing this, a wave of panic set up in me with "what the crap is that?" I immediately begin to wrestle trying to find the zipper and get out of this mummy sack sleeping bag that locks you in. I had a large knife beside my sleeping bag and I fully intended to get to it as fast as possible. As I finally ripped free of the sleeping bag, I heard two last grunts out of this 10-15 second constant chilling sound. I grabbed the knife, got ready to get out of the tent and that was it. Nothing else heard. The only sound from then on was the stream flowing, and the snore of Thomas in deep sleep, out for the night in his hammock. He didn't hear a thing obviously. I lay back down in my sleeping back, churning over in my head, what the crap could that have been? We supposedly don't have any black bear in Bankhead National Forest. I don't know of anything that big that could make that kind of grunt. Then it dawned on me. Could it have been a very large feral hog? Possibly. I then begin to tell myself that as I tossed and tumbled all night trying to go back to sleep. The crack of daylight seems to always relax anyone nervous of the dark, and such was the case here. I wanted to go back to sleep and sleep until 10 a.m., but sleet and snow were forecast to move into the area later on in the morning, and so at 7 a.m., I begin to pack my things. I awoke Thomas by my noise and so he joined in as well. We ate breakfast, explored the canyon more and found a very, very, steep place to get out of the canyon pretty close by to camp. At 9:00 a.m., we begin the slow journey of hauling our backpacks and ourselves up a 45 degree incline in thick foliage. There was a trail that went around the perimeter of the canyon we were camped in. There was dung from deer and feral hogs on that trail. Thomas and I decided that this was the trail the coyote was taking to as he tormented us during the night. We made it back to the truck and completed a 6 mile journey that started early Saturday morning, the day before. It was an adventure we will talk about for a long time, but in some ways, the creepiness of it made me glad to get the heck out of there! I will always wonder.....a stray small and puny coyote, or some healthy wolf. No one will ever know. From the chilling, blood curling sound it left in me, the panic in my mind would say it was a 7-10 foot high wolf. <b>Listen to the coyote sound below </b><b>by clicking on the play button and adjust the volume up on your computer</b>. As you listen to the coyote sound below, bear in mind that the microphone on my Iphone is not as sensitive as the ears, and so the sound you hear was actually about 2-3 times louder than the recording! I still hear that "bone chilling sound" in the back of my mind. </div></div><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dylF0NzghAoy9U_WkM9f7ReIAOh2xEhf6T9vopNgErtUd-sF7NcjpcLli_z6nQzO1tJIZPYTwAlbin5jVdLFQ' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe>VideoRexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16342756961482992738noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1459368010805427886.post-55155534504971645982010-01-19T15:23:00.017-06:002012-05-16T09:57:00.852-05:00Exploring Little River Canyon National Preserve in NE Alabama<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsOb5hlv-Ht_AqHFd-Q9epKcNnOvbexmE_YC4IzRHEblt4_uGKL-9L1ZyoQVOSWsG2l64eR0GpB0Kp3Gt7gKsSSiFzF2ELDicx7-jxdJKqHXS0f4b5fkDmyFBfmdN0gr4I-2pQN7WwW-Y/s1600-h/Crow+Point-Little+River+Canyon+Preserve-3.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5428575670446719010" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsOb5hlv-Ht_AqHFd-Q9epKcNnOvbexmE_YC4IzRHEblt4_uGKL-9L1ZyoQVOSWsG2l64eR0GpB0Kp3Gt7gKsSSiFzF2ELDicx7-jxdJKqHXS0f4b5fkDmyFBfmdN0gr4I-2pQN7WwW-Y/s320/Crow+Point-Little+River+Canyon+Preserve-3.JPG" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; float: left; height: 179px; margin: 0 10px 10px 0; width: 320px;" /></a><br />
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No matter if we like it or not, or we will acknowledge it or not, weather decides what we do in our lives. Such is the case with our 3 month long planned trip to northern Georgia's Cohutta Wilderness over the Martin Luther King holiday in 2010. Another setback is the crew of about 6 guys, starting dropping like flies as the date got closer. Heavy rains forecast days in advance had me frustrated, especially since I had packed for this trip one week in advance, food and everything! As the long weekend came closer, it became evident that we needed to change plans. Rob, one of my camping buddies and expert guide for the Cohutta Wilderness called me a few days before and said that we need to modify our plans. He said river levels would be so high that we would not get much out of the trip. Since camping and hiking in the Cohutta Wilderness requires so many stream crossings, it became evident that this trip was not meant to be. We tossed around options and finally decided on a new place to explore.......Buck's Pocket Canyon over in Northeast Alabama. If time permitted, we would move on to Little River Canyon National Preserve. <br />
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After watching weather radar and listening to forecasts, we decided to drop a day off the planned trip and meet up on Sunday at noon. It just seemed like the best thing to do unless we wanted to spend part of our long weekend hovered under a tarp wishing we had dry firewood. Once we met up at Buck's Pocket, the rain continued to come down. We were impressed with the canyon, but with rain, fog, clouds, and overall "mess" we just could not get the views we wanted. We also decided that Little River Canyon was the place that we really wanted to go to, since anyone that had ever been there raved at how beautiful it was. So that was the ticket.......head for Little River Canyon. The only problem we found in this plan was that The National Park Service allows <b>NO camping within Little River Canyon</b>. What a bummer! We still had to check out this wonderful beauty, so the next best deal was to go on over to Desoto State Park, camp in their primitive camping area and then launch a full blown attack on hiking Little River Canyon Monday morning. We arrived late Sunday afternoon to Desoto State Park's Primitive campground. It is a neat little area that allows you to lock yourself in to the campground. This adds new worlds to security and safety in a public camping area. This is great, and allows for no "riff-raff" to ease in to your campground and steal some goodies and leave quickly. They have to have a physical key to get into the campground. We quickly found out WE were the ONLY ones in the entire campground, therefore leaving us free to pick any site we wanted. To protect us from the now brutal winds that were coming out of the west, we picked a group area behind some pine thickets. You have to remember that this campground is up around 1,300 feet, and so were stuck in clouds, fog, and a mess! I thought I had lost my wallet as well. This tends to add excitement to the afternoon. After making myself absolutely sick with worry, I finally found it laying in the tent. I think the next thing to being naked in the middle of downtown with no clothes on and your friends passing by and seeing you, is to be without your wallet. If my heart were running a marathon, It just ran 10K in 1o minutes. </div>
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Night time turned out to be a pretty depressing site for most folks, even for hard core campers. If my buddy Rob had not brought firewood from his home in Chattanooga, we would have been totally miserable. Camping at 1300 feet in a cloud bank (fog) can wear on you. Everything is damp, everything is cold, and nothing but a hot meal could deal a blow to this mess! Ah yes, a hot meal! That did the trick along with a warm campfire. Some warm French Vanilla coffee does wonders as well. How many moments in the wild are warmed from worries with a fire. That fire was worth a million bucks! We sat around talking. Campfires are some of my favorite times, no matter what the condition or the temperature. Sharing stories with camping buddies is hard to beat. </div>
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After a good nights sleep listening to all the sounds down in the valley all night long from trains, dog barks, to "back up beep" indicators on commercial vehicles, we were ready to go to Little River Canyon by 10 a.m. A hearty oatmeal breakfast and hot coffee will start the day off good. The sun peaked through the clouds around 10 a.m., yielding a crisp, clean, clear blue sky to greet us all day long. After a short 20 minute drive and our arrival, I was set back right away with such beauty of Little River Canyon Falls as I crossed the bridge on Highway 35 and turned in. Most everyone's first stop is Little River Canyon Falls just off of the highway. This is your first clue that many more wonderful sites are coming your way. The Little River Canyon National Preserve, has only been under the National Park Service since the 1990's. Little River Canyon, is little known to locals of what a treasure it really is. The Little River Canyon is one of the nation's longest rivers that travels on the top of a mountain, then plunges off the Cumberland Plateau at the head of Little River Canyon. The Canyon starts at 1,900 feet up in elevation and drops to around 650 feet. That is a pretty amazing and a fast drop in some 20 miles of the canyon! You can imagine how the current rages with this steep of a drop. The water remains a beautiful green looking color, even after a lot of rain we experienced the day before. </div>
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<b>Little River Canyon Preserve offers something for everyone.</b> If you don't even care to get out of your car, you can drive the outside rim of the canyon and enjoy some scenery like you have never seen before. If you get out of your car at each overlook, you will be treated to stunning views of the canyon. If you do this, take binoculars! If you care to do as Rob and I did and go down in to the canyon, you will leave with views that you will never forget the rest of your life. The best place to go down into the canyon as we did, is at Eberhart Point. This is a very old site that was once the site of a sky chair lift that for a fee, would take you down into the canyon. It was privately owned. Remains of the old site are still down there and can be seen in the pictures I have taken of the trip. There are still concrete pillars and old concrete picnic tables left over from these bygone days. It must have been a neat spot in it's time. I don't know, but one would only surmise by the name that Mr. Eberhart ran the sky lift and picnic area in it's time. GETTING down to this neat place is where the stamina comes in. From the high point of Eberhart Point where you park your car, to the bottom of the canyon is about a 400 foot drop in elevation. The old winding road going down to the bottom of the once sky lift location winds down at approximately a 45-50 degree slope. There are park benches every 300 feet. There is a reason for this! It is a under a quarter of a mile to the bottom of the canyon, but it will feel like 2 miles to the top when you decide to walk out! The river bottom greets you with old building and ground remains from the old chair lift. The walls of an old stone building, which looks like pre-1940's is there as well as picnic tables that look like out of the 1940-1950s. There is a non official trail that leads along the river going south into the canyon. THIS is the trail you want to take. When you look around, you are suddenly stunned and a little confused. THIS scenery does not look like Alabama! This looks like the cliffs in Northern New Mexico, or the hills of Northern Virginia. This place does not even resemble the normal terrain of Georgia, Alabama, or Tennessee. It is like a mini Grand Canyon in some ways. Taking this trail I mentioned going downstream will take you along the roaring sounds of the raging river, as well as yield breathtaking views along the way. If you have the time, go up to the north of the canyon from the picnic ground as well upstream. You will eventually come to Brooks Branch which runs in to Little River. When you get to this point, look up and see the mighty tall Crow Point towering way above you. If you look closely, you will see a small point or two of people at the top looking down at you! That's exactly what they look like, small points! This view is shown on the blog, showing the intersection of Brooks Branch on the left, coming into Little River and Crow's Point towering in the middle. About an hour or two walking downstream from where we descended into the canyon, we came upon a tree with either a snake carved in it, or a map of the flow of Little River. It appeared to be very old carved into a birch tree. Is it Indian? Is it fairly recent?....Who knows. Toward the close of the day, Rob and I came up out of the canyon, climbing slow and steady up that LONG incline trail towards the truck. When we arrived, we found that the kayakers whose boats were on top of their vehicles parked up with us, had apparently taken the kayaks and descended down in the canyon to do some true whitewater kayaking. I don't whitewater kayak, only long boat kayaking on the river or on lakes. From some of the current that I saw, it would appear that the odds of death boating in some places would be around 70%. I would have loved to have watched them kayak this raging river. Rob and I closed the day out by going by and stopping at High Grace Falls, believed to be the tallest waterfall in Alabama. As we were leaving, Rob and I realized that this Canyon goes some 20 miles. We had only been about 10 miles down it. We barely even scratched the surface! Maybe another day. I certainly hope so. My only complaint is that the Park Service allows absolutely NO camping whatsoever. I don't really understand that but we go with the rules. Rob and I talked about the wonderful possibilities if you could camp in the canyon. A base camp set up on the stream, and nothing but beauty to explore for days. Maybe one day the Park Service will open this up for camping. But in the meantime, this place has something for everyone. From the casual person who wants to see nature and never get out of their car, to the person who wants to stop at each scenic overlook and take in the beauty, to the hard core hiker who wants a challenge and to be rewarded with some of the most scenic beauty in Alabama. Put Little River Canyon on the calendar if you are passing by that way. I can guarantee you that you will not regret it! </div>
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For more pictures and video shot down in the canyon during the trip, go to <b>http://gallery.me.com/ambervas</b></div>
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Click on the Photo album titled "Buck's Pocket-Little River Canyon". It has short movie clips contained in it as well. </div>
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<br /></div>VideoRexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16342756961482992738noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1459368010805427886.post-27217186759226278532009-12-26T22:08:00.022-06:002011-11-18T12:25:42.436-06:00The Indian "Bird Man Tree" Carving and Suprise Waterfall in Bankhead National Forest<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6dkTVe_oyyC1BSDaAGRhxPTkCd6jPb4A84O9K3lQa9DKylwsx6efEYg63ptlDjYKZgFgkjYsPWdaZHL_be6vtuGuzcWaZu-MgP_PzeHbG3qVl_j0ygH3F8197Y4_dbRKOl4oIY2hxWvs/s1600-h/100_0297.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5419778367166976194" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6dkTVe_oyyC1BSDaAGRhxPTkCd6jPb4A84O9K3lQa9DKylwsx6efEYg63ptlDjYKZgFgkjYsPWdaZHL_be6vtuGuzcWaZu-MgP_PzeHbG3qVl_j0ygH3F8197Y4_dbRKOl4oIY2hxWvs/s320/100_0297.JPG" style="cursor: pointer; float: left; height: 320px; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; width: 179px;" /></a><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhqa-KEdPo4ndqPTK9HanXTyu5q8Wo6n6OjermtMgBE5wyYvzalcZqmQAiPL0_BVlUPY2LLdoyMUqxgVkdF0Ifb15L26jc5Ykb9xJ3xmXBMZezv8XKyzbVq3nXMb4hR-zgtZzhx0c124k/s1600-h/100_0275.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5419777417062665170" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhqa-KEdPo4ndqPTK9HanXTyu5q8Wo6n6OjermtMgBE5wyYvzalcZqmQAiPL0_BVlUPY2LLdoyMUqxgVkdF0Ifb15L26jc5Ykb9xJ3xmXBMZezv8XKyzbVq3nXMb4hR-zgtZzhx0c124k/s320/100_0275.JPG" style="cursor: pointer; float: left; height: 320px; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; width: 179px;" /></a><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgieytWcjBlNlqFfi_7aK-rsLKtAmsu4TIzRLWBDMgFKCvDGgzPzC06JeMaWy5Ly4sQP5Nv0ElbwgKLOidViTJgE_Q0qWh2AIidtD89DXCLGCcBQ1SCOvNvGgh7F0Wk_5pcDVULi52fk1o/s1600-h/100_0310.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5419774445742152514" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgieytWcjBlNlqFfi_7aK-rsLKtAmsu4TIzRLWBDMgFKCvDGgzPzC06JeMaWy5Ly4sQP5Nv0ElbwgKLOidViTJgE_Q0qWh2AIidtD89DXCLGCcBQ1SCOvNvGgh7F0Wk_5pcDVULi52fk1o/s320/100_0310.JPG" style="cursor: pointer; float: left; height: 179px; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; width: 320px;" /></a><br />
When my friend Thomas suggested we take a day hike to the "Bird Man Tree", I really had no ideal what he was talking about. I was certainly ready to go anywhere in Bankhead National Forest so I told him sure, let's go! As is always the case with Bankhead NF, it is full of surprises.<br />
We left Wren and set out for Leola Road (Lawrence County Road 90) off of Highway 33. We proceeded down Lawrence county road 90 (or also called Forest Service Road 249). We then turned onto county road 89 or also a continuation of U. S. Forest Service road 249. We pulled into the first turn off after getting onto 89. Leaving the truck, we proceeded down the old U.S. Forest Service road 249A. It has been closed to traffic for about 10-15 years. The "blow down" as we often call it or fallen trees was terrible after about 1/2 of mile in. Pretty soon, we came to a very thick grove of pine trees planted by the Forest Service. It was so thick, you could not walk or penetrate the pines, so we went off to the left of the road into a canyon. As we proceeded down about 1/8 of a mile, Thomas grinned when he discovered some writings on a tree. Thomas checks all the Birch trees he can get to. As stated in some previous blogs, Birch trees can hold carvings for several hundred years if carved deeply into them. The carving Thomas found on the tree got both of us excited! It had <span style="font-weight: bold;">1927</span> carved into the tree as well as <span style="font-weight: bold;">1938</span>. The tree was beside what looked to be an old road that went nearby the tree. That explained the carvings. I am sure that tree could really tell some stories if it could talk. The old road bed looked like it had been used heavily at one time.<br />
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After leaving the <span style="font-weight: bold;">1927/1938</span> tree, we noticed that hemlocks were growing more and more populated as you looked down the canyon. We both knew we were on to something. Neither he or I had been to this part of the canyon before, and from the looks of the growing number of hemlocks, the scenery was going to do nothing but get better. Anytime you see hemlocks or often called "evergreens" by some, it tells you that the canyon has plenty of water flowing, and that the evergreens of moss, hemlocks, ferns and other plants are "dead ahead". The canyons in the Bankhead are so unique and beautiful compared to anywhere else in the country. The normal forest in December is pretty brown, dull, and boring in scenery. The canyons have all the green plants sheltered in them and offer almost a completely different climate. The temperature is cooler, everything is green and appears like it would in summertime. As we proceeded on down the canyon, we noticed it getting deeper and deeper. Soon we found where two streams fed into each other and formed a larger branch. Some 150 feet ahead, a massive 70 foot waterfall spewed the contents of those streams on down deeper into a deep canyon. We had hit a gold mine! A massive waterfall we knew absolutely nothing about! There is no name on the map for this priceless view, so since we were headed to the Bird Man Tree on down the canyon, we simply named it "Bird Man Falls".<br />
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The canyon was so deep that we discovered that we could not get down into it without walking an additional 1/2 mile up above through some very, very thick foliage! The terrain was exceptionally rough and to our right up us moving down the canyon was a massive pine thicket that there was no way to penetrate, so we had a very narrow passage of thick foliage to get through on top of the canyon. Upon arriving down into the bottom of the canyon, we headed back towards the waterfall. Along the way were two <span style="font-weight: bold;">very different surprises!</span> First, <span style="font-weight: bold;">a possible Indian Marker Tree and a "half moon" carved into a tree up near a bluff</span>. There is a special meaning to that half moon you will find out later on as you read. The canyon was FULL of massive Poplar trees in large sizes. I could not believe how large they were. I snapped several pictures of them and collected a few "waypoints" on my GPS unit. A couple of "odd" facts on the possible Indian Marker Tree and the half moon carved on the tree. First, the possible marker tree was pointing almost due south. It also lined up with the carving of the half moon on a tree some 75 yards in a straight line. Way to "chance" for me. I feel like it was some kind of Indian sign or markers pointing to something.<br />
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After taking pictures of the trees, we proceeded on up to the waterfall we came upon earlier but could not get access to. BOY was it worth it! The waterfall dropped some 70 feet into a beautiful pool of water below it. It then roared on down the canyon at a pretty fast pace. Thomas and I took our time here, to absorb all the scenery, shoot pictures, and record "waypoints" on our GPS units. This stream eventually empties into Brushy Creek, just downstream from the famous Indain Bird Tree carving. We spent a good 30-45 minutes in the canyon admiring the waterfall. Thomas said he knew nothing of it and that probably very few people knew of as well. We saw really no indication anyone had been here in a long time. It is so remote and such rugged country, I doubt that it has been visited in a while.<br />
After about another 30-45 minutes walking downstream from the falls, we finally discovered our "jackpot". There, down by Brushy Creek as Thomas remembered was still the famous "Indian Bird Man" tree. This carving is very odd. It is like nothing I have ever seen before. It kind of looks like a stick man with a hat and a bird figure face. Thomas Graham, one of my hiking buddies with me on this trip, says the carving was reported by his mother some 10-15 years ago. After further investigation by some experts, it was found that this carving has been found in different parts of the south. It has been carved into rocks and seen with other Indian markings in other states. According to Thomas, nobody seems to have any ideal as to what it means. The moon figure we found up the canyon was the same shape as the one included on the Bird Man figure carved in the tree. Very interesting! As far as we know, nobody knows about the half moon carving we found on the tree back up in the canyon above. The possible Indian Marker Tree and the half moon were marked with our GPS units and we documented them with video and pictures. You must remember that the Indians had no "language or alphabet for many, many years. They went by signs and symbols. An IMAX film crew out of Atlanta walked in about a year ago and filmed this tree. The are compiling a documentary on Indian carvings across the United States and spent some time in Bankhead National Forest filming Indian carvings and markings. Nobody seems to know when the documentary will be released.<br />
After taking all the pictures and video we could take of the tree, we ate lunch at the tree, and then headed on back home. It turned out to be a full day's work to get to this tree, but WELL worth it considering the waterfall that surprised us. I encourage anyone who is in the area to try and see some kind of Indian carvings in the forest. They are very special and really put a perspective on truly how rich in history an area really is. By the way, Thomas took a yellow colored piece of chaulk in with us and outlined the carving in the tree to see it better. After the first rain, the carving will return to it's normal state and not be so pronounced.<br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">A VERY exciting day and a lot of knowledge gained.</span> Another day to be thankful for the great outdoors and the adventures it brings.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi84AD5bU3HdWfPIlTGUZS29yKlgCoHwHuqV_PKVyU62CJeAxhlMLHrQovD20rlMo83iTdI1ecrtdRXceOLg4FTeR_6fMEJfoTCJZN9-mQLwCFsp0HoLxPTeDOSb-22A2tNj8R2YUiRUs0/s1600/Birdman+Tree+Last+time+013.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi84AD5bU3HdWfPIlTGUZS29yKlgCoHwHuqV_PKVyU62CJeAxhlMLHrQovD20rlMo83iTdI1ecrtdRXceOLg4FTeR_6fMEJfoTCJZN9-mQLwCFsp0HoLxPTeDOSb-22A2tNj8R2YUiRUs0/s320/Birdman+Tree+Last+time+013.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkyWV3yzWz733jXNQzkHg9Qia1GEDpvzI5_RFWFT80Km6OpmTIhlw8Nh9MsLf3w_bzGrlkERuH0X5QFRbPVQ-8C4wfI_z-KARoUX_abwtA7ETC83g7Z0yNKBDryDoGpCEWhjU4bW3b5hg/s1600/Birdman+Tree+1992.BMP" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="183" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkyWV3yzWz733jXNQzkHg9Qia1GEDpvzI5_RFWFT80Km6OpmTIhlw8Nh9MsLf3w_bzGrlkERuH0X5QFRbPVQ-8C4wfI_z-KARoUX_abwtA7ETC83g7Z0yNKBDryDoGpCEWhjU4bW3b5hg/s320/Birdman+Tree+1992.BMP" width="320" /></a></div>UPDATE 11-18-2011: Not very long after this article was written, a storm came through the area and a tree fell on the famous Bird Man Tree. It would take paragraphs to explain what all transpired, but basically through the efforts of volunteers, the National Forest Service allowed the tree to be cut down and preserved in a museum. It is now in Lawrence County at the Indian Oakville Mound Museum. A process of trying to preserve it went underway and I understand it is now in safe keeping for everyone to view now. Attached above are some pictures of the tree that fell on it and prompted it being cut down, as well as early photos when McKinney Graham first discovered the tree and showed it to locals in 1992.VideoRexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16342756961482992738noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1459368010805427886.post-11157953266089777912009-12-21T11:24:00.019-06:002012-05-16T09:57:36.270-05:008 Stunning Waterfalls in ONE Bankhead National Forest Day<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEtp6uJj1eTqZj-jrGBFqbtfpT3rukTLgTFeqXtlSy6viLwhPnE6cukgctbbQ7LHmQrpOi5Yv4JU8rKK9ex9qH0jDoLSIXHizV_3aQuE6HspvWJgmkwuktRRihuY6FA5lz61pJhUW5noY/s1600-h/Eagle+Creek+Trip.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5419428979899460770" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEtp6uJj1eTqZj-jrGBFqbtfpT3rukTLgTFeqXtlSy6viLwhPnE6cukgctbbQ7LHmQrpOi5Yv4JU8rKK9ex9qH0jDoLSIXHizV_3aQuE6HspvWJgmkwuktRRihuY6FA5lz61pJhUW5noY/s320/Eagle+Creek+Trip.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; float: left; height: 241px; margin: 0 10px 10px 0; width: 320px;" /></a><br />
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We have all heard the term "Timing is Everything". This turned out to be truly the case on what started out as a very simple overnight trip in Bankhead National Forest. Almost every trip we go on in the woods, we seek a goal of seeing this or doing all of that. We plan our routes, the camps, the highlights all out. The goal on this trip...Visit and see as many waterfalls as possible. We started out with a total of 6 guys for the trip. 3 of them were day hikers and 3 of them were staying overnight. Rainfall in downpours on Friday knocked our 3 day trip into a two day trip. BUT, the multitude of water and overcast clouds helped us in many ways. It allowed for beautiful pictures since it was overcast, the immense amounts of water yielded gushing waterfalls and added to the beauty, but the extra water meant more problems navigating beside the streams.<br />
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If you are not exactly familiar with the area and don't really care for the details and locations, please bare with me as I explain locations to you while caring you with us on this adventure.<br />
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We parked our cars off Cranal Road just past the Wolfpen Hunting camp. Taking the canyon into the Sipsey Wilderness, we wound around past carvings on trees, one of which had dated 1918 on it. The base camp destination was on Eagle Creek , just above Eagle Creek Falls. This was supposedly an old camp for loggers back in the 1940's. Barbed wire is left at the site still and so the "story" goes, the mules used in the logging were kept here. This was going to be our base camp before we ventured on to other falls.<br />
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After arriving on Eagle Creek to set up base camp, 3 of us began setting up camp while the day hikers talked and visited around the area. After a weeks worth of torrential rains, the creeks were "roaring" with water and sound. The ground was soaked from a heavy rain the day before, and so finding good firewood was going to be tough. Thomas, a good friend camping with me is always one step ahead in this area. He had talked two of the hikers into bringing two store bought fire logs with us to the camp. As we found our later, these two logs were going to be a life saver. More on that later.<br />
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After about an hour for the setup of camp, we all tore out downstream of Eagle Creek anxious to see some more scenery. First stop was the main Eagle Creek Falls. These falls are always a beauty. They used to be even more beautiful then they are now. Several years ago, some trees were downed from a storm surrounding the falls. This killed the dark canopy that once ruled over the falls and protected the moss and ferns from the straight sun. As a result, the sun has parched a lot of the remaining hemlocks, moss, and ferns that used to cover all around the falls, and converted it to a rather boring looking falls for scenery in my opinion. There is little to no moss growing now but still, with the stair step drops it yields for falls, it is still very pretty. We worked our way on down Eagle Creek. Just up ahead, two more nameless waterfalls that I had seen before, but with all the rain we had the week before, these small waterfalls were spewing wide open with water. One of these waterfalls is on the left going down, and then the second one is on the right. They were small but very beautiful. Working our way down the creek proved to be quiet a labor. I have been used to just walking the stream bed in years past down this path, but with the water levels so high now, we found ourselves challenged in every way to work our way down Eagle Creek. Many times, our path would take us up a 45 degree incline and then back down, sometimes crossing the creek back and forth. After about a quarter to a half a mile hike, we came to the intersection of Eagle and Little Ugly Creek. Here, we turned left and headed up Little Ugly Creek. This my friend is one of my favorite stretches out in Bankhead National Forest. No where else can you be right in the heart of the Sipsey Wilderness Area, see so many waterfalls within reach, and see little to no one! You basically have the whole place to yourself. As we hiked our way up the canyon, you begin to notice that you are all in "hemlock country". The tall hemlocks provide a blanket of tropical atmosphere in the canyons of Bankhead. Even in the dead of winter, you can walk down into a hemlock canyon and see green all around you. It is like another world. That is what makes the Bankhead so unique. I have been blessed to travel to Arizona, California, Oregon, Maine, Alaska and many other locations, and NOWHERE will you find such diverse plant growth with bluffs, hemlock trees, and canyons. In fact, you will be lucky to find one single bluff shelter in the Great Smokie Mountains or the Cohutta Wilderness in northern Georgia. There are hundreds and hundreds of bluff shelters in Bankhead. This again, makes Bankhead a very unique place.<br />
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As we get closer to Deer Skull Falls, the sound becomes louder and louder. Within 15 minutes of walking, we have arrived. Truly a breathtaking site and worth every muscle of work to get to it. Deer Skull Falls, is actually two waterfalls that come together beside each other. The term Deer Skull was coined to them but actually they are Deer Skull "A" and Deer Skull "B". Deer Skull "A" is on the main branch of Little Ugly Creek, and is not very high, but is unique because of it's glowing orange color "iron ore" that bleeds out through the rock. To the right is Deer Skull "B" waterfall. It is breathtaking when there has been lots of rain. It towers up about 80 feet and drops by steps, 6-8 of them as it makes it way down. Take some time sitting and watching both of these waterfalls. Your mind will relax like you have not felt in a long time. After pulling all of this in, shooting 17,000 pictures (just kidding) of the falls, we sat down and ate lunch. As you sit there and admire the beauty, you suddenly feel very cold. That's because in December with the high temps only in the low 50's, the cool mist blowing off the falls can send a chill down to your bones real fast, especially if you are sitting on a cold rock! Such as the case with me. I had to stand up, move around and finish out the lunch. The chill was soaking in fast.<br />
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By now, the time was 1:15 p.m. With short days, we knew we had to get going fast if we were going to see a host of other waterfalls. As we departed, the day hikers decided they would not have time to complete the planned journey and get out to the truck before dark, so they proceeded back up Eagle Creek to go home. That left myself, my nephew, and my good camping buddy Thomas to finish out the journey. As we headed down Little Ugly Creek going past where we had come in earlier, we noticed an absolutely stunning giant tall waterfall on the other side of the creek from where we were on Little Ugly Creek. We took pictures, shot video of it, pulled out the map and realized this was Hemlock Creek Falls. We decided we MUST investigate it on the way back. We could not find a quick place to cross the creek and get to it, so we marched on. Next up on the planned stop was Fernglade Falls. It was on the right side of Little Ugly Creek. We had found a place to cross over the creek this time so getting to it was easy. It was a little bit of a let down. It had a massive Poplar Tree up near it, but was not the tall "falling off of a bluff" type waterfall like I had hoped for. It was more of a 100 foot tall, stair step type falls, with much of it going under rocks and underground slightly. It's roar was incredible, so you knew that it was big. It just was hiding a lot of it's contents in the rocks and underground as it plunged down the 100 feet drop. After a short time here and a few picture snaps, waypoints taken on our GPS units, we were on to the next and last stop......Wolfpen Creek Falls. As we made our way around the top of the canyon up by Fernglade Falls, we found where Feral Hogs had made a massive mud hole underneath one of the bluff shelters up by the falls. Feral Hogs are absolutely ruining the forest. If left unchecked, they will destroy much of the forest. I have seen them take a beautiful hemlock area and root the ground up like a tiller pulled by a tractor, rub all the bark off any trees nearby, and severely scar many of the others by sharping their tusks on the trees. Feral Hogs are basically barn raised pigs that have gotten loose and are managing on their own. Since they grow and multiply like rabbits, they are taking over the forests in the Southeast. I cannot stress enough how much they are destroying the forest.<br />
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As we moved on down what is now Sipsey River, since Little Ugly Creek empties into Sipsey, we came across some very strange carvings on a tree. It looked like someone was trying to be cute, it was Indian Carvings, or just some writing that had faded away badly, we don't know. It sure caught our eye though. We snapped a few pictures and then headed on. Wolfpen Creek Falls requires a pretty good little 1/4 of a mile hike to get to it up the canyon. We walked and walked and I thought we would never find this waterfall. Pressure was mounting on us, knowing that it gets dark very soon, and we were 2 miles from camp through some very rough country. Finally, at 3:00 p.m., we made it to Wolfpen Falls. Well worth the trip because there was also a very impressive side falls up near the main Wolfpen Falls. It had about a 50 foot drop. We snapped tons of pictures, moved on around the canyon and Thomas found an interesting deal. He located an opening up under a bluff that apparently was the opening to a small cave. Thomas, being a bluff and cave lover, asked to borrow my flashlight and proceeded right into the hole! He said it had a small dry room about 10 feet long and 5 feet wide. It was very dry up in it. There was a slight moldy smell though that came out from the hole. I don't think I would want to spend the night in there, but it would make a great tornado shelter. I can only imagine how many rattlesnakes make their way in there during the summer. After admiring the shelter, we realized we needed to get our tails out of there and head back to camp if we were planning on making it back before dark. We left out about 3:15 p.m. headed back at a rather fast pace of walking. We had lights, maps, ham radio, and GPS units to get back to camp with, so we were not worried about getting lost. It was the added danger of negotiating bluffs, slick mud rocks, and the falling danger with so little light that started to get us a little worried. We picked up our pace considerably coming back with a little bit of anxiety. As the evening light got lower and lower, we made it back to Hemlock Falls, the falls I mentioned to you earlier. This is a 60-90 foot waterfall that plunges water straight off the top of the bluff. Man this waterfall will catch your breath....It was so impressive.....We said "we must come back to this one". After snapping several pictures of the falls in VERY low light, we tore out at an even faster pace trying to get back to camp above Eagle Creek Falls. By now, it was 4:30 p.m. and the light was getting very, very, low. As we arrived into camp, it was at the point where a flashlight was needed to see anything. We definitely pushed our limit on that one, but hey!...We got in 8 waterfalls in one day! How many people can say that! After reflecting back of our hard work for the day, it made me even more proud that we pushed ourselves to get all of them in that we wanted to see. I must tell you that with the anxiety of getting back before dark, coupled with the treacherous terrain, my legs were the sorest I have every felt in a long time. I pulled every muscle I had available in my legs that day. Supper never tasted better that night around the fire. There was no problem getting these 3 guys to fall asleep fast that night. We all went to sleep with the roaring sounds of Eagle Creek, roaring from all the water flowing. The only discomfort was the fire. With everything wet around us, people camping here from time to time, we were "flat out of luck" on any decent firewood. Thomas and his store bought fire logs were the lifesaver. We huddled around these tightly until 10 p.m. and then hit the beds.<br />
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The next morning was pretty simple compared to the previous day. Get up, eat some oatmeal for breakfast, tear down camp, pack up, and head out home. Another day older, but much wiser in appreciation for God's country and a "flushed out mind" ready for Monday's challenges of life.VideoRexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16342756961482992738noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1459368010805427886.post-49203133822219604072009-11-30T08:24:00.013-06:002012-05-16T09:58:21.292-05:00Whiskey Stills-Indian Mortar Rock and a History Trip in Bankhead NF<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrc6CjBnVF2D43ISn27wx5C1p5dFpknhp1VyT1PM3ItqEtzROCatFmcmUbS9ZdxnCWQbdh8SGgHzDol0B5GBEzRo9Th3UrgGi6sPNV7R6PDjddNKD1y1vhxPg4LRS5XfvGyvrGu_jhQg8/s1600/100_4371.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5409938864534762642" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrc6CjBnVF2D43ISn27wx5C1p5dFpknhp1VyT1PM3ItqEtzROCatFmcmUbS9ZdxnCWQbdh8SGgHzDol0B5GBEzRo9Th3UrgGi6sPNV7R6PDjddNKD1y1vhxPg4LRS5XfvGyvrGu_jhQg8/s320/100_4371.JPG" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; float: left; height: 240px; margin: 0 10px 10px 0; width: 320px;" /></a><br />
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Backpacking and camping on any trip yields different things at different times and sometimes some surprising unique experiences. Like many of the things in life, sometimes what you think might be very boring can turn out to be one of the more fun times you never expected. Over the Thanksgiving Holidays of 2009, my camping buddies and myself decided to try something different. Bankhead National Forest, located in North Alabama had a scheduled deer hunt on one half of the forest lands over the Thanksgiving holidays. The scheduled hunt covered all of the Sipsey Wilderness area that weekend which is our prime playground for adventure! For safety reasons, we decided to stick to the side of the forest with no scheduled deer hunt. Thomas, my good friend and camping buddy, loves bluff shelters and the history of the local area. We kind of put the load on him this time to be our guide and come up with a trip. Thomas picked a route that would be different from our normal routine. Most of the time, we pick an area very few have been nor would begin to think about because it is so remote. This time, Thomas picked the least obvious. He picked an area right behind the central forest tower and work center for the Bankhead district of the U.S. Forest Service. For most people that know us personally as adventurers, this route would be the least one we would pick.<br />
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<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;">Day 1</span></b><br />
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Before the trip started, Thomas wanted to show us a very old cemetery located in the National Forest. He took us to a cemetery named Tapsville. It was a very old community that I am sure at one time was alive with activity. The cemetery only had a few graves that could be made out with modern cemetery markers. Most of the graves were marked with stones. Just 100 yards down the hill, Thomas pointed out where the ground was cut out and held an old whiskey still at some point in time. That was neat going back in time and seeing this old cemetery. After that, we piled in the truck and headed out to start our journey.<br />
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We parked at a hunters camp full of deer hunters for the big weekend hunt. We pull up, get out, and start getting the backpacks ready. Immediately, the hunters suspect a "different" kind of folks that have pulled up in their area. We didn't pull out the guns, we pulled out the backpacks! It is funny but you get this weird feeling that they are thinking, yeah, some more "city folks" coming out here and clogging up the woods. The hunters that were there in camp gave us some "looks" as we loaded up and hit the woods. The part they don't know is that I hunted just as hard as them for 9 years and gave it up. I found more pleasure in walking the woods I love more than sitting on my tail with it asleep and watching one part of the woods. Everybody has their thing.<br />
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The plan was to hike in along a canyon that we had talked about exploring, set up base camp and explore for the next 3 days. The outdoors yields different things to different people. I love the hemlock canyons, the waterfalls, and the evergreens in the dead of winter in areas. I love camping around that type scenery. My buddy Thomas loves bluff shelters and historical artifacts. I too enjoy the history part and exploring bluff shelters. All of us on the trip did. Upon our arrival in the area, we were all kind of thinking that this might not have been such a good ideal. The area seemed kind of generic and bland with your typical winter time woods. After walking in about a mile, we set up base camp. Late in the afternoon as the sun starting setting low, a hoot owl erupted about 50 yards away and shook the woods. We all chucked, commented, and we never heard him again on the trip, but man it will wake you up that close. The moon came up that night with crystal clear skies..... I love those moonlight nights over the forest. Even though you don't see that many stars, being able to see in the woods and hear the sometimes distant calls of coyotes can really bring chills as well as comfort while out in the woods. Our exploring that day had only yielded a couple of interesting bluffs and an Indian mortar rock. I thought to myself that just seeing another Indian mortar rock would make it worth the trip.<br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;"><b>Day 2-Surprises</b></span><br />
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We all slept late. Momma didn't "bang the pots" to wake us up nor did the alarm clock "blare out" that you need to "go to work today". It was simply just the pleasant sounds of birds chirping. I think so many of us forget that the body needs that kind of relaxation from time to time. It does wonders for me and flushes so much of the stress in my life away. The weather was perfect this day. The temp had gotten down to a cool 29 degrees. The forecast called for an absolutely beautiful day ahead with no clouds and a warm low 60's for temps. After some breakfast, we decided to pack up enough supplies and head out all day exploring and not return to base camp until the late afternoon. After walking no more than an hour, we discovered this beautiful "green area" ahead down at the base of a hill. As we approached, I thought we had discovered a really neat swamp area that was totally green. As we got closer, one of the guys said "oh crap!" We quickly noticed that the beautiful green swamp we spotted was NOT a unique swamp area but a massive game plot with green grass! <b>We had walked right into private property! </b>As we all stood their trying to decide if we were truly were on private property, I starting pulling out the map. We all knew there was some private property located in the middle of the forest close to us, but we did not think we had walked down that far. As I started unfolding the map, we all heard a loud whistle coming from the area over by the game plot. It was a definitely a whistle that said ONE of three things.....It said "hey, I am over here hunting- you jerks" or "hey- over to one of his hunting partners on the game plot with him that signaled that some jerk guys were trespassing on our land and headed this way". Either way, it spelled "<b>get out of dodge</b>" for us! We quickly departed and on the way out, noticed a big yellow sign that we had overlooked earlier. It said "Property Boundary-U.S. National Forest Service". O.K., so we are all slow readers, or we just didn't see it!.....That was our excuse and we were sticking to it. The true reality is that with current state laws, they could have shot at us and been perfectly legal. Getting out quickly was a smart thing to do. My heart sunk when it seemed that half of our exploring territory for this trip had been simply cut off. We stopped, talked about our options for the rest of this trip. Do we go out and go to another area to camp? Not enough daylight. Do we just simply deal with what we have left around us to explore? Yep, that seemed to be the most logical plan. We move on.<br />
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After 10 minutes of walking, we come upon a small little bluff shelter. Upon inspection in the shelter, some very strange lines and grid patterns that are discovered in rocks up under this shelter. To this day, I don't know what they are. It may be iron ore? Someone can correct me on this later after you see the pictures. After snapping pictures of this oddity, we move on up the canyon. We searched the bluff lines walking up high in the canyons. This is fun to do. You never know what you may find.<br />
We discovered some more bluff shelters with small waterfalls running off of them. There are hundreds of these in the Bankhead National Forest. This is one of the things that makes it so unique from other areas of the country. They all hold hidden secrets of one thing or another. As we moved on up the canyon, we spotted the coolest thing. An old whiskey still. The metal remnants were pretty much intact. We grabbed a few pictures and then move on. All of these whiskey stills we find are the same in one respect. They are all next to a small stream and they are all positioned close to a road. Obvious but none the less interesting.<br />
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The next place we discovered surprised all of us I think the most. We move up a very boring looking area going up the canyon and noticed some writings on Beech trees as we moved up. Beech trees if you are not aware, are one of the few trees that when carved on, can last for up to 100 years. Many people used to mark property boundary lines using these types of trees. Some very old dates that we have found on trees in the Bankhead are just that. Property line markers. They might say "Smith-1912". On this day, the first tree we came to had 1958 carved on it. The second Beech tree had someone's initials, and 1973. As we walked up another 50 yards, we were set back and puzzled at what we discovered. This Beech tree was lined from top to bottom about 7 feet high. The carvings were so old you could not make out much of the writings. They were mostly peoples initials and dates with one that you could make out "Loves". Upon further inspection and discussion, we discovered a natural spring coming out of the ground right by this tree running into a stream. We decided that this must have been some VERY popular spring site and that people stopped here to draw water from the spring, and then carved on the tree. The stories this tree could tell if it could talk! This would have more than likely happened before and shortly after the government bought up the land to become a national forest. I stood there imagining the years when this was a popular spot. It felt odd and amazing being there, knowing that this site has been long forgotten and slowly fades into the history pages of the area. Life moves on. It is kind of sad in some ways because you realize that YOU are only one of millions people moving through time on this earth. Nothing is permanent in your life.<br />
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After a "sneak peek" walking up behind the National Forest Service work center at all of their "stuff" piled out back, we headed back down into the canyon to camp. A warm fire and much fireside chats yielded another moonlight night to sleep by, and this time the temperature only got down to 42.<br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;"><b>Day 3-More Surprises</b></span><br />
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We tore down base camp and hit the trail early on this last day to get out of the area. We had plans to go see some more bluff shelters located in a different area that Thomas wanted to show us. In order to do this, we needed to hike out as soon as possible. We arrived at the truck around 9:00 a.m. After a short drive down the road, we left our packs locked in the cab of the truck and hiked down to 3 absolutely stunning bluff shelters. One was extremely large. TWO of the smaller bluff shelters nearby yielded some beautiful Indian Mortar Rocks. We all agreed that THIS is where we should have set up base camp. Perhaps another time and another trip.<br />
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Seeing these mortar rocks really stirs some emotions in me. You realize YES!, the Indians DID live out here. You don't have to just take some middle school or high school teachers words for it. You SEE where they lived and you witness the remains of that. Seeing all of the old whiskey stills has been interesting as well. Growing up in this area, I had always heard there were some stills out there at one time. Just HOW MANY is what floored me. It seems like every other canyon in the Bankhead near a road has the remnants of an old whiskey still. It must have been a really wild place back in the 20's, 30's, 40's, and 50's... The Civil War era probably had it's own stories out here as well, there is no doubt.<br />
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Another wonderful time in God's country. Ready for the next adventure....VideoRexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16342756961482992738noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1459368010805427886.post-50157213714261369162009-11-07T22:00:00.000-06:002009-11-07T23:03:20.267-06:00Camping Season 2009-2010 is Here!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIxX-64Y0yYgq_ybl4cg3NOAI4FC1EaZMdeU0gZbqxgcFAWhQcpvJV8sKPoZ_vx_lZjtautEdY_hmNBbgCCOzkW3yGn8D-8zQQKl9CRIkEQnPzLU5YmDcU4eulRu-CLeueRORuJfCKS_Y/s1600-h/Campsite+90+5-19-20070022.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIxX-64Y0yYgq_ybl4cg3NOAI4FC1EaZMdeU0gZbqxgcFAWhQcpvJV8sKPoZ_vx_lZjtautEdY_hmNBbgCCOzkW3yGn8D-8zQQKl9CRIkEQnPzLU5YmDcU4eulRu-CLeueRORuJfCKS_Y/s320/Campsite+90+5-19-20070022.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5401593583158027346" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhP32-lHgqXMIQHM5JifHjAY0pVunwcOtbB4gZEDN_bMBezjn_Mluh-0NN3V_cC7CGeQcCYwpe43lqCq4HepWpXM3qhdr-cVUNK43Z-o6rbhqU-nPtRp4j2n7vb9Jf8srV1fvizjW-se1s/s1600-h/Steve+Rob+and+Rex.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhP32-lHgqXMIQHM5JifHjAY0pVunwcOtbB4gZEDN_bMBezjn_Mluh-0NN3V_cC7CGeQcCYwpe43lqCq4HepWpXM3qhdr-cVUNK43Z-o6rbhqU-nPtRp4j2n7vb9Jf8srV1fvizjW-se1s/s320/Steve+Rob+and+Rex.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5401590325737067586" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmSXHoUJtL5S94qma8YmUJmdru64EvqBXkgeEC9lafbDlp2NECYYzga6QB9m1j-ilD1fwBetYllZ1_jljM-vuHG7cnzpdQh2VxVXkvGPbfsvDRKw48oTVivCkvsuH9QPdSjpr6caRWWBA/s1600-h/100_3446.JPG"></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'lucida grande';">Well, The summer is over and it is time to hit the woods and the water! </span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'lucida grande';">Look for hopefully many blogs to come this season which for us starts in November and ends around April. We are starting off in the Bankhead and have a big trip planned in the Cohutta Wilderness of Northern Georgia in December. First, I have many things to be thankful for and I have a new perspective on life that I would like to share with you if you don't mind. Everyone has a low point in their life and I certainly hit mine this past September. In mid-September of 2009, I was on a video production shoot with two co-workers in Vicksburg, Mississippi for a one week shoot and return home. On Wednesday night, I had to be admitted to the hospital with a "gall stone" attack. In great pain, the next morning they went in and broke up the stones with the intention of sending me back to Huntsville to have my gall bladder taken out after resting 2-3 days in the hospital. On Saturday, I had a massive attack and they had to do emergency surgery. I spent the next 9 days in the hospital with 2 of those in ICU. It has taken 6 weeks for my 11 inch long scar to heal and I am clear to start lifting over 5 pounds now. This little "deal" knocked me out of a work trip to Alaska as well. I was scheduled to fly out in two weeks after the shoot in Vicksburg. This absolutely crushed my spirit because those of you that know me, know how much I love Alaska. The guys went on without me but promised me trips back next year. </span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'lucida grande', serif;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'lucida grande';">I don't know how well I will hold up with my backpacking and kayaking buddies on these upcoming hikes and kayak/camping trips, but I pray I can keep on going the same speed as they do. I am fine now with my health and I just need to get my strength back up. You never appreciate anything until it is hits you in the face and threatens you that you can loose it. I certainly value good health now and do not take it for granted. I hope to share many adventures ahead with all of you in the coming months. </span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'lucida grande', serif;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'lucida grande';"><b>Enough of me, you tune into the blog to hear about adventures and not about me, and adventures is what I hope to bring you soon through my writings and pictures!</b> I also will be posting many pictures of the trips on facebook if you are a part of that. If not, I hope to share some pictures on the blog site as well!<br /><br />Well, got to get the backpack out and start getting the camping stuff together. Look for the first trip and first blog around Thanksgiving. Until then, I will be walking and packing getting ready for the hikes and paddles. I want to walk the park here in my hometown on weekends carrying my backpack to get in shape. My wife says I will look like a "dork" and says she may walk BEHIND me instead of with me if I choose to do this.....LOL!...Adventure seeking we will go and we be sharing trips with you later! Thanks for being a part and sharing adventures with me!</span></div>VideoRexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16342756961482992738noreply@blogger.com