Christmas Day in Cades Cove

Every year we try to go hiking on Christmas Day and this year's hike was in Cades Cove along Cooper Road Trail.

It was a nice day in the Cove, temps in the low 40's with cloudy morning skies that cleared in the afternoon. A little drizzle did not dampen our spirits but recent rains had water levels up and we did have minor difficulty crossing Arbutus Branch along the way.



Stopped by the pond to check out the water level.... not a lot, but for winter pretty good I guess.



I always enjoy visiting the little cemeteries in the open fields. Feels so good out under the sun when it's chilly.




There was a lot of traffic in the Cove on Christmas. Despite the fact that bear madness is done for the season we were still caught up in multiple deer-jams, especially on the notoriously clogged far end of the loop. Inevitable. Not sure what goes thru people's heads once they get on that side..... maybe they are desperate to see a bear before they leave the Cove (because you always hear "Cades Cove is THE place to see bears!!") and they are scanning the forest as they roll along at 0.2 miles per hour.


All in all, it was a very nice Christmas in Cades Cove!

Freaky Friday

It has been an exceptionally long time since I blogged, not because I forgot about the blog or didn't have any ideas or adventures to share..... I just took a break. Sometimes it is good to step away from a thing for a while.
Today my blogifying resumes with a post I call "Freaky Friday" because I'm sharing a couple things that are, shall we say, odd.

While hiking yesterday on Old Settlers Trail in the National Park, we encountered 2 very interesting things:



An emerging plant (appears to be mayapple) pushes its way up through the soil and directly into the opening of an empty, sun bleached snail shell, lifting it off the ground. Amazing!







I have seen a lot of hand carved grave markers around the park, many are so old you can't read them anymore.
This is one is somewhat legible but the drawing is still perfect - a hand with index finger pointing up to Heaven. Fantastic!

Baskins Creek Falls hike

On May 18th we hiked out to Baskins Falls, via the east side of Roaring Fork Motor Trail. We've hiked from both sides and have concluded the east trail access is indeed the shorter, less steep route. Each way is just under 1.5 miles.... and from both ways you hike down to go in, up to get out.

At the beginning of the trail is a very picturesque cemetery.



I wonder if this section would make an awesome toboggan run in winter? We stopped just short of this area when hiking in the snow a few months ago while the road was closed.








Giant millipede in defensive coil.






A lot of mountain laurel budding and blooming along the sandy ridge portion of the trail.



After descending, there is a rock-hop crossing of Baskins Creek then another a brief ascent-then-descent to the trail junction. The unnamed footpath heading off back of the sign is the way to the falls. There's another cemetery a bit further along the trail toward Trillium Gap way.


The falls (which are part of Falls Branch and not actually on Baskins Creek) spill over a large rock ledge. The 'best' view is on the other side, of course, which means a bit more rock hopping or log scrambling.




Recent rains made for higher water. Today there was another couple leaving as we arrived, they simply waded across and soaked their shoes. I hopped over most of the way fine, then plunged one shoe in. It dried out surprisingly quick, though. Of all the hiking we've done, that was the first foot soaking I've taken. Not too shabby.
2 pm at the falls. Not the best time of day for photo lighting, better to arrive early in the morning or later in the afternoon. Still.... simply beautiful.

Here is a link to a trail map and elevation profile, though it describes the hike from the west access and it rates the trail as "easy"...... while it may be for experienced hikers, the average tourist/daytripper will more likely find it to be "moderate". We hiked in from the right side as shown on the map below.
Also, here's a brief YouTube video I took at the falls.

Unique things at Injun Creek

We've hiked along the unmarked Injun Creek Trail in the Big Greenbrier area of the Smokies several times. It is always an enjoyable walk and once again I marvel at how different a place can look in each season here. Last time we did this trail was in September, fully green and lush and we saw two bears. Now, just before spring, it is quite naked and dead looking.
There are some very interesting sights along the creek. An unexpected one this time was a large pair of men's tighty-whitey drawers hanging from a tree. Ew. Okay, moving quickly along.
One of the 'permanent' sights along the way is an enormous rock pile. It, along with a few smaller piles nearby, must have been the result of land clearing for farming purposes. It measures over 8 feet tall, and you'll note in the video that it actually is a stack of smaller rocks on top of one large rock.
Not only did the person/people who stacked it do a tough job, they did that job with skill and style and more than a little artistry, if you ask me :-)

Further along the trail is a small side-trip to McCarter Cemetery, a tiny, mossy spot on a little ridgetop. Beautiful and peaceful.







After passing backcountry campsite 32, uphill a bit until you reach the wreck of an old steam engine in the creek. How difficult to visualize a logging locomotive running these twisting, narrow routes.... not so shocking that one could get out of control and topple off the tracks!