Bays Mountain

We had a very pleasant hike today!  We seem to be getting lucky with our selection of hike weekends.  It was a calm day with just enough warmth to be perfect for hiking.  The sky was deep blue, and we had great views through the naked trees.  We hiked the Azalea trail to the antennas and then out the ridge to the firetower, where we had lunch.  The trail, except for a few marshy areas, was easily navigable, which was quite nice, especially after having to watch our footing closely on recent hikes. We've gotten off to a great start this year!  Looking forward to many more hikes!

Chadwell Gap to Hensley's Settlement

Wow!  That was a tough hike.  We hiked over 8 miles and were on the trail over 7 hours.  The weather was warm and sunny until we got to the Ridge trail which crosses over into Kentucky on the north side of the mountain.  Up there, the wind fierce and the snow from Tuesday afternoon had not melted.  We hiked in about 6 inches of snow for the last mile, and observed tracks of raccoon, coyote, deer, and......bear.  A big bear it seemed had meandered around Hensley's settlement.  Thankfully we didn't encounter the bear; the tracks looked a couple of days old.  We ate lunch at Hensley's Settlement and didn't tarry long there.  I think all of us were anxious to get back for some southern trail exposure!

Kane Gap Hike

We began the new year with our own First Day hike.  It was a beautiful, sunny day and we logged 6 miles on a logging road. LOL!  Kane Gap is the route Daniel Boone and other early settlers took as they walked toward Cumberland Gap from East Tennessee.  We were joined by three geocacher guests from Wise County and we got lots of helpful information from them concerning some Wise Co. trails.  As we headed back down the logging road, we decided to divert the water from the road, which caused it to be quite muddy and soft.  We stopped three or four times and used a little teamwork to correct the course of the water to the ditch or across the road.  So today we were able to meet some new people, exercise out on the trail, catch up with each other, and perform some trail maintenance.  We ended the day with a little food and chit-chat at the local McD's.  What a fantastic way to start 2014!!

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!