First Day Hike

Lee County Hiking Club is going to join the First Day Hike initiative by hiking to Kane Gap on New Year's Day.  Each state park in Virginia and other state parks across the U.S. are sponsoring First Day Hikes to promote fitness, family outdoor activities, and an appreciation of nature.  Lee County Hiking Club is planning to be at the Daniel Boone Trailhead near Duffield around 10:30 AM on Wednesday, January 1st.  I can't think of a better way to start the New Year!

Sand Cave and White Rocks

Wow!  We made the long anticipated hike to Sand Cave and it went so well we tacked on the trek over and up to White Rocks!  We all managed the hike well with several brief stops on the way up for a quick breather.  Fortunately, the leaves and rocks weren't extremely slick, although we still very carefully navigated the descent into the Sand Cave.  The Sand Cave itself was magnificent with no words or pictures able to portray its beauty.  After having lunch in the cave, we proceeded on the back trail towards White Rocks and headed up a very tight and steep path to the top.  We enjoyed the view for a short time as a rain cloud hovered over us.  We endured a few minutes of rain and wind as we headed back along the ridge, but once we began the descent, we were protected from the elements.  Everything went great, and we were pleasantly surprised that the fall color in this area was still brilliant!  We could hardly hike for taking pictures and exclaiming the beauty before us.  The only casualty of the day was one of Bob's two hard boiled eggs.  One scooted away and rolled down the floor of the sand cave, and collected a nice light brown sand coating.

Knobby Rock of Blanton Forest

Today we headed out to hike to Knobby Rock of Blanton Forest near Harlan, Kentucky.  Blanton Forest is a preserved old growth forest.  There are several very large hemlocks along the trail.  We had ten hikers today, several on their first hike with us.  We headed out Watts Creek trail a bit after 10:00, then took a left and headed up the Knobby Rock trail.  It wasn't long before the trail became quite a bit steeper, but fortunately it was only 7 tenths of a mile before we arrived at Knobby Rock.  The younger hikers arrived first and explored the rock as the rest arrived, each wowed by the peculiar looking knobs and massive size of the rock.  After relaxing on the rock, taking pictures, and eating lunch, we navigated down the rock and picked up the loop for the 1.1 mile back down to Watts Creek trail.   After getting back down to Camp Blanton, we were met with the aroma of a cookout.  It smelled divine, but we decided we couldn't invite ourselves.  Sadly, we had to get into our vehicles and leave the wonderful smells, gorgeous weather, and lovely scenery.

Till next time....Keep on hiking!

Guest River Gorge Hike

Five of us headed out this morning for Guest River Gorge near Coeburn.  This hiking trail is an old railroad bed and is now part of the rails to trails network.  It follows the Guest River as it flows toward Dungannon and merges into the Clinch River.  It is a total of 5.8 miles one way, but is easy walking with plenty of benches for resting.  Since we weren't navigating streams, ledges, or dodging roots, we just had a great time chatting, taking photos, and enjoying the perfect September day.  We were hoping to spot an eagle, but no luck today.  If you missed this one, you may want to go back in a few weeks because I think it will be absolutely breathtaking in mid-October!

Guest River Gorge Hike Moved to Saturday the 28th

I've been looking at the forecast all day and looks like we need to move this one to next Saturday.  Forecast is calling for 70-90% chance of rain....tropical moisture with some heavy downpours.  Hopefully next Saturday will be nice and we can enjoy some spots of fall color.  See you next Saturday!

The Devil's Bathtub Hike

We headed out today for Devil's Bathtub located in the Jefferson National forest in Scott County.  We were fortunate enough to have a guide from Natural Tunnel to lead what was our largest hiking group so far.  We've been looking forward to this hike for quite some time.  Everything we had heard was true.  There are about 12 stream crossings, some knee deep, on the trail.  And the devil's bathtub is something like you've never seen.  It is a bathtub-shaped pit carved out in the layers of rock and filled with crystal clear bluish water.  It's about twice as long as a bathtub, but not much wider, and is about 10 feet deep. The bottom can be clearly seen, which gave me the confidence to get a bit wetter than I already was.  Yes, there were about four of us that sampled the bath water.  The whole area was quite beautiful with the water rushing over the crevices in the shale creek bed and creating several pools of water.  As usual, we enjoyed taking photos and took our time examining all the natural beauty of the area.  It was a great way to spend the Labor Day holiday!

The bathtub

Navigating one of several stream crossings

Daniel Boone Greenway Arboretum

Another beautiful day for hiking!  I didn't get to participate this time, but the report from the gang is a good time was had by all.  The hike began at Cumberland Gap, Daniel Boone parking area.  The trail goes through Cumberland Gap, into a tunnel under the road, and out to LMU campus.  The trek was an out and back that ended with a cheeseburger in Cumberland Gap....a very satisfying hike! 

Pinnacle Loop Hike

Whew!  This hike was a bit more than I had bargained for!  The news article said 6.5 miles, but Bob pointed out before we began that it had to be nearly 8 miles, and it was.  Apparently there are a few inconsistencies in mileage estimates on signs and maps.  Nonetheless, three of us ventured out despite the possibility of rain and the extra mileage.  We began our hike on Object Lesson Road trail, then took Harlan road trail, Sugar Run trail, and finally Ridge trail to the Pinnacle.  We enjoyed the cooler than normal July weather, and encountered only an extremely short-lived shower.  As always, we took our time, enjoyed the sights and sounds of nature, and discussed how people generations ago managed to travel for miles and miles in this terrain with such limited resources.  After what seemed like a very long time, we arrived at the Pinnacle, and hiked back down to the parking lot.  I said we were like Marines today, "the few, the proud".  We were few and we were certainly proud to have completed our longest hike to date!

Little Stony Falls National Recreational Trail

What a simply breathtaking hike!  A wet spring and summer has made for a lush, green forest and gushing falls!  Unfortunately, the wet weather made for slick, damp terrain too.  Although we didn't hike the entire trail due to its deteriorating condition, we saw three falls, huge rocks and cliffs, and lots of rhododendron in bloom.  We even got to sit and have our lunch on a big rock in the creek bed, and feed the trout our leftovers.  Good times!  

Rhododendron

Upper Stony Falls

The gang except for Brenda, the photographer

Brenda atop one of the many huge rocks

Next Hike

Don't forget to check the scheduled hikes page or the Facebook page for hike information.  We will hike Little Stony National Rec Trail this Saturday the 29th.

Bays Mountain-Lake Road, Fire Tower Trail

There are many trails to hike at Bays Mountain.  We met at Dot and drove over, paid at the gate and got a trail map.  After looking it over we decided on a combo trail that would include Lakeside trail, Lake Road trail, Fire Tower trail, and River Mountain Road for about a 4 and 1/2 mile hike.  The Fire Tower Trail was the most challenging, with a bit over a half mile climb, but we all made it to the top, although some of us were breathless!  

Several benches at the fire tower offered a view and a rest.

A familiar site as you enter Kingsport, the fire tower offers a different perspective.

  

Beavers have been here!

This deer was looking for a handout and got one from the next table!

Overlooking Kingsport from the Fire Tower.

Lake Keokee Loop - Hike #3

June 1, 2013

After a cool, wet spring, we finally had a bit of warm weather for this hike. We covered the 3.7 miles in about 3 hours.  The going was a bit slow in places.  The hike wasn't difficult in terms of elevation gain, but the path was narrow at times and crossed several gullies that were bridged with logs.  We spotted several wildflowers, flowering shrubs, and other interesting plants or fungi that made their homes in the wooded habitat.  There was a nice breeze on the lake, we had no encounters with potentially dangerous critters, and I managed to stay on my feet for this hike, so I count it a success!  Stay tuned; we are planning more hikes!

Flame Azalea

Now those are some large ferns!

View from Earthen Dam

Speckled Wood Lily

2nd Hike- Tri-State Peak Trail

The skies were overcast and the fog was hugging the ridges as we headed out this morning, but we were not deterred.  We met at the trailhead near Cumberland Gap at 9:00 and headed out with our soon to be needed raingear.  The trail wasn't too busy this Saturday so we had the trail mostly to ourselves.  We enjoyed the hike up, taking time to look at a few wildflowers, mushrooms, and the water cascade.  As we explored at the top, the rain arrived and we had to walk back down in a light, but steady rain.  Still, all agreed that they enjoyed the hike despite the rain! 

Wet but Smiling

Crossing the footbridge.  There is a waterfall below, but getting a good shot of it would have required negotiating a steep, muddy path to the base of the falls.

 

Sign Designating Cumberland Gap

The pink buds on this mountain laurel were just about to open.

Gazebo at the Tri-State Marker

Teresa Is in 3 States!