The Cherokee Hiker. May 2010 Volume 26, Issue 5. Cherokee Hiking Club, Inc Varnell Road Cleveland, TN

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1 The Cherokee Hiker May 2010 Volume 26, Issue 5 ~CHC Hike Calendar~ Cherokee Hiking Club, Inc Varnell Road Cleveland, TN May 8, 2010 Saturday. Whigg Meadow Hike & monthly meeting, 3 mi. roundtrip May 15, 2010 Saturday. Starr Mountain Hike, 5 mi roundtrip May 23, 2010 Sunday. Urban Loop Hike, 6 mi. MAY HIKES May 8, Saturday - Whigg Meadow. 3 miles roundtrip, rated easy. Hike leaders: Effaleda and Bob Lee. This is a joint hike of the Hiwassee and Cherokee Hiking Clubs. Note: this hike will be followed by lunch and the monthly meeting at Brenda & Rick Harris's home. Whigg Meadow is surely one of the most breathtaking spots on the Benton-MacKaye Trail. After climbing 500 feet on an abandoned road, which is now the Benton-MacKaye Trail, we emerge from the woods to an immense open field which provides almost 360 degree views in every direction. Wildflowers should be plentiful at the 4,500-5,000 ft. elevation in which we will be hiking. After a rest, we will return via the same trail and proceed to the Harris's for a cookout and meeting. Meet at the Comcast office in Athens ready to leave at 8 a.m., or at the Hardee s in Ocoee at 7:45 a.m (back of the restaurant in the overflow parking lot). (Note: Randy will be conducting the carpool from the Ocoee Hardee s and says that there is no need to call him; just show up and he will arrange the rides as needed). We will regroup at the Hardee s in Tellico Plains at 8:45. The trail head is on the Cherohala Skyway just past North Carolina mile marker 3 at Mud Gap. This hike is rated easy due the fact that it is 3 miles roundtrip, but it does have rocky footing and most of the elevation is gained in the first mile. Brenda and Rick Harris have invited us to their home for a meeting/grillout following the hike. The time for the lunch has been scheduled for 2:00 p.m., so if you do not plan participate in the Whigg Meadow hike, you can show up at the Harris s at that time. The Harris s will provide burgers, dogs, buns, fixins, and chips along with silverware, plates, and glasses. Guests are asked to bring something to share - dessert, salad, side dish or whatever. Brenda will meet us before the hike at the overlook just past mile post 6 on the Cherohala around 9 a.m. to pick up food that needs to be heated, kept warm or cold. Directions to the Harris's on the return: Turn off on Miller Church Road, between mile post 10 and 9 on the Cherohala Skyway. Go about 1/4 mile to a "T" intersection and turn left. Pass the church and proceed to the next right turn which is Shaw Mountain Road. Go about a mile up the hill to the mail boxes for 541 and 533 (Harris's) and turn right onto a gravel road. Follow that road straight ahead (do not take a left where the road splits) and you will see their driveway marked with 533. Contacts: 1

2 Hike leaders: Effaleda and Bob Lee, , cell Hostess: Brenda Harris (No cell service in their area) May 15, Saturday Starr Mountain Hike, 5 miles roundtrip, with some slight grades, rated easy to moderate. Hike leader: Clayton Pannell. Meet at the junction of Hwy 411 and Hwy 30 in the large parking lot across Hwy 30 from the Hiwassee Corner Market at 9:00 a.m. We will car pool to the top of Starr Mountain and park near the trail head. There will be approx. a ¼ mile walk up to the trail head. We will hike out the top of Starr Mountain to where the trail starts the decline and have lunch and then return to the parking area. Most of the hike will be near the top of Starr Mountain and we should see some wild flowers and view of Etowah and the Tennessee Valley. We can use a car shuttle if anyone wants to hike all of the Starr Mountain Trail or the Chestnut Mountain Trail for the decline. Bring lunch & plenty of water. Contact hike leader Clayton May 23, Sunday Urban Loop Hike, 6 miles, rated easy. Hike leader: James Anderson. This hike will take place in Cleveland, utilizing the Greenway and the Tinsley Park Trail. We will meet in the Kingsway Press parking lot on Keith Street at 2:00 pm. Anyone interested in going should call James at , prior to the hike. Other hikes in May: be sure to check the club website at for more May hikes that may be planned on short notice. *NOTE: As a courtesy, ALWAYS contact the hike leader in advance of the hike to facilitate planning. OTHER EVENTS OF INTEREST May 8, Saturday Monthly Club Meeting, 2:00 p.m., at Rick and Brenda Harris s house in Tellico Plains. This event will be combined with the Whigg Meadow hike, conducted in conjunction with the Hiwassee Hiking Club. The hike will take place earlier in the day (see the announcement of the hike, above). The Harris s will provide burgers, dogs, buns, fixins, and chips along with silverware, plates, and glasses. Guests are asked to bring something to share - dessert, salad, side dish or whatever. Directions to the Harris's is as follows: Turn off on Miller Church Road, between mile post 10 and 9 on the Cherohala Skyway. Go about 1/4 mile to a "T" intersection and turn left. Pass the church and proceed to the next right turn which is Shaw Mountain Road. Go about a mile up the hill to the mail boxes for 541 and 533 (Harris's) and turn right onto a gravel road. Follow that road straight ahead (do not take a left where the road splits) and you will see their driveway marked with 533. May 20-23, Thursday-Sunday - Southeastern Foot Trails Coalition Meeting in Monteagle, TN (this is a re-announcement). The SEFTC meeting is a multi-day fun-filled conference with daily hikes and informative sessions relating to hiking trails, trail maintenance and building better hiking clubs. There will be keynote speakers on Thursday night as well as at the end of the conference. Since the conference is being held on top of Monteagle Mountain at the Dubose Center, the hikes will be at such places as Fiery Gizzard. The SEFTC website is To register, click on the 2010 Conference link at the top left, then click on the Conference Registration link at the left. The registration form (in PDF format) will open up; on it you can see the conference schedule, the registration form itself & restaurants, shopping and other distractions in the area around the conference. Please plan on attending. 2

3 June 5, Saturday - The Benton Mackaye Trail Association celebrates National Trails Day at the Ocoee Whitewater Center (this is a re-announcement) The BMTA has reserved the conference center at the Ocoee Whitewater Center for National Trails Day on Saturday June 5th. This will be a combined event with the Mountain High Hikers ( the Cherokee Hiking Club, and the Tennessee Forest Service ( with the BMTA ( as hosts. We will meet at the Center at 9 am for hiking, with a potluck lunch to follow in the conference center. Rafting is available from the various rafting companies, or you can watch the river action or cool off in pools of water along the side of the river. Please bring a covered dish to share. Two, possibly three, hikes will be offered, starting at 9 am:. 1. Rock Creek Trail 5.5 miles, rated moderate. Hike leader: George Owen. This trail is in the nearby Little Frog Wilderness. We will come back out to Ocoee Powerhouse #3, with only a few minutes shuttle. 2. Copper Mine Trail miles, rated easy Hike leader: Pam Sullivan. This trail runs along the Ocoee River. 3. Rhododendron Trail (optional) 2.5 miles, easy. This hike runs along the Ocoee River hike, and will take place after lunch. If interested in this event and/or any of the hikes, please RSVP to Pam Sullivan at or hikingchair@bmta.org, as there is a group limit. Note: There is a $3 parking fee per car - we are to park in the lower lot. Warning: if Hwy. 64 is still closed, this event will be canceled, as the Whitewater Center will be closed too. June 30, Wednesday - Deadline for TN Appalachian Trail license plate (this is a re-announcement) The following letter was sent to Club member Rick Harris from Joe DeLoach of the Appalachian Trail Deep Regional Partnership Committee: I'm writing on behalf of the Appalachian Trail Conservancy to first of all thank you for posting an announcement about the Tennessee Appalachian Trail License Plate on your website, and secondly let you know about a special offer. The plate is now available for a limited time for only $15, a $20 savings over the standard $35 fee. (Renewals once the plate is established will be at the regular $35 annual rate.) A year's free membership in the Appalachian Trail Conservancy remains as part of the plate offer. We have until June 30, 2010 to sell the 1000 plates necessary for the plate to become officially adopted by the State of Tennessee. We'd greatly appreciate any and all help the Cherokee Hiking Club could give in making it a reality. We'd also greatly appreciate anything your members can do to spread the word amongst your club and in the community. I'm going to get some new applications with the $15 rate to the Cherokee National Forest headquarters in Cleveland, in case it's more convenient for people to have the hard copy in hand. If you have any questions, please let me know. Thanks for your help to date, and we hope you can continue with that through the homestretch!! Sincerely, Joe DeLoach Appalachian Trail Deep Regional Partnership Committee Chair 3

4 Tennessee Eastman Hiking & Canoeing Club AT Committee Chair Club members Rick and Brenda Harris have signed up for this plate, I (Rebecca Levings) have, and so have several others in the various hiking clubs in the area, as well as the Appalachian Trail Conservancy (ATC). They are getting close to the 1000 mark, and just need a little more applications to get them through the home stretch. This specialty plate will broaden awareness of the Trail within the state of Tennessee. Once 1,000 applications are received and the state begins producing tags, ATC s share of the renewal fees will serve as a permanent funding source for the organization's work to protect and maintain the 280 miles of the Appalachian Trail within the state. The Tennessee State Recreation Plan calls the A.T. Tennessee s First Recreation Trail, and the A.T. frequently receives accolades, such as #2 of Top 10 USA Outdoor Adventures (ABC s Good Morning, America and National Geographic) and Favorite Long Distance Trail (by the readers of Backpacker magazine). A grant from the Eastman Chemical Company Foundation is allowing the Appalachian Trail Conservancy to offer reduced prices for 500 people that apply for an Appalachian Trail license plate in Tennessee. As a result of the grant, the Appalachian Trail license plates are now available for $15 instead of the usual $35 annual fee. Renewals will be at the standard $35 annual fee. For more information and an application to take advantage of this offer, call ATC at (828) or go on line to I have also attached the application to this newsletter. Join the rest of the Cherokee Hikers on Facebook! Membership in the FB group is now at 48 members, so we keep growing. To connect, press the CTRL button on your keyboard, and then click the image below to navigate to the CHC Facebook page. Recent Hike & Event Reports Beech Bottom Trail Hike March 20, Saturday. (Ed note: this write-up was not included in the April newsletter). The weather cooperated beautifully with the 13 hearty souls who successfully tackled the Beech Bottom Trail Hike. We learned a bit about the history of the area and were able to find the daffodils in full bloom that once graced the homes that stood in the bottom area itself. Jack s River Falls were at an all time high. Their thunderous noise drowned out conversation, but their beauty couldn t have been described in words anyway. Most gathered afterwards for a time of feasting and fellowship at the Ocoee Dam Deli. 4

5 Panther Creek Hike, April 10, Saturday. In a last-minute change to the originally scheduled Wolf Ridge hike, the longer April 10 outing was moved to the Cohuttas. (This was to avoid the damaged FS 221 road.) On one of the prettiest days of the year, we had crystal-clear views of the emerging multi-hued forest canopy from Cowpen Mountain and the top of Panther Creek Falls. Water was seasonally high, the falls rushing, and river crossings cold but not too deep. At left is shown the Little Falls, which we encountered before the Big Falls. Below right is a view of Big Frog Mountain, as seen from the trail. Thanks to Diana Ristom & Randy Morris for the pictures for the hike. Unusual findings included a mutant 4-leaved trillium (quadrillium?) complete with a square flower (not 3/6-sided), and a friendly flying squirrel. For any who have not been across the Conasauga River at Panther Creek lately, recent floods have greatly rearranged the area. Sheila Bailey easily made the transition to longer hikes on this trip, her first over 14 miles. (Congratulations to another hiker who tries the longer distance, and enjoys it.) Randy Morris also went, along with leaders Bill and Diana Ristom. Total distance: 14.5 miles (loop from Rice Camp TH), Total climbing: 4450', Low/High points: 1709'/4104' (high near peak of Cowpen Mt Three Forks to Springer Mountain - April 17, Saturday. Seven hikers enjoyed a nice spring day in the mountains of north Georgia on the Benton-MacKaye (BMT) and Appalachian Trails (AT). After driving to Three Forks, we hiked the 4+ miles to Springer Mountain on the AT, passing several hikers (including about 6 to 8 thruhikers). We enjoyed the old growth hemlocks and white pines along the AT and the views from Springer Mountain at the official launch of the AT. A very helpful and knowledgeable ridge runner helped us identify the mountains west toward Ellijay and the serviceberry blossoms in bloom. He also told us about his survey results of thru-hikers for After a peaceful lunch on Springer we set off on the BMT back toward Three Forks. The 6+ mile trail was much different from the AT as we enjoyed the views toward the east and Dahlonega as well as hiked through an impressive stand of tall tulip poplars. We enjoyed a great early dinner at Serenity Garden Café in Blue Ridge on our return trip. Enjoying the trip with hike leader Randy Morris were club members James and Phyllis Anderson, Sheila Bailey, Don Bennett and Jennifer Schroll as well as guest Donna Ruiz. Shown above left is a beautiful springtime view taken from the BMT; at right is the group that took the hike. 5

6 John Muir Clean-Up Hike, April 24, Saturday. It was a gray and overcast morning when five hikers set forth to clean up the three mile Adopt a Trail section of the John Muir Trail along the Hiwassee River. One small bag of trash was collected and some light maintenance work was done. Many wildflowers were seen such as yellow trillium, fire-pinks, May apples, Solomon s seal (real & false) squirrel corn, dwarf irises and bluets. Several fishermen were trying their luck in the river. Hike leaders were Deborah Flower and Clayton Pannell. The hikers included David Flower, the Flower s dog Abby, Randy Morris and Carol Guhne. The picture of the group is shown at left. Nell s Cabin Hike, April 28, Wednesday. Thirteen members from the three local hiking clubs (Cherokee, Hiwassee and Sequoyah) hiked to Nell's Cabin on the edge of Fontana Lake on this beautiful crystal clear cool spring day. We ate lunch at the shoreline just in front of where the cabin used to stand, then returned by the same route. We saw many spots used for the movie Nell. We then stopped at McDonalds for coffee and pop, then drove through Robbinsville to check out the sites in the town used in the movie, then drove back over the mountains to the Harris's home. There we had pop and popcorn, and also guacamole dip made by Johanna Cooley. We watched the movie with an active commentary of "I remember seeing that" and "I was standing right there". We all had a wonderful time, finishing the movie about 6:30 PM. Attending were Rick & Brenda Harris and their golden retriever Jake, Jane Bohannon, Jim & Nellie Underwood, Liz Yates, Johanna Cooley, Esther Nunley, Kathy Seymour and her dog Rosie, Carol & Bill Kamm, Rick Foster, Gail Henley, Annual Joint Cherokee Hiking Club and Hiwassee Hiking Club Meeting Wesley United Memorial Methodist Church at Etowah Minutes April 8, 2010 The club extends thanks again to Clayton Pannell, Kay Smallwood and their church for sharing the fellowship hall. Clayton welcomed the group and an invocation was given by Randy Morris. Nineteen members and seven guests attended. We want to welcome Patricia Kyle, who joined during the meeting. The club donated $50.00 to the Food Pantry and some members also made individual donations. Members signed a card of encouragement to Gayle Jones. After a potluck meal the business meeting was called to order by President Randy Morris at 7:30 p.m. Minutes and the treasurer s report were omitted. 6

7 Old business; Rick Harris announced the SEFTC meeting scheduled for May at Monteagle TN. Rick also brought a copy of The Skyway News, which has articles on the hiking clubs and Brent Tucker s scout group. New business: Hiwassee Club President Steve Cartwright introduced scout leader Brent Tucker, who invited the clubs to participate in the Monroe Scout Outdoor Expo Saturday, May 29 at Tellico Plains from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. The club voted to have a booth and use the trifold and other small articles representing the clubs. Brenda Harris, Esther Nunley, and Steve Cartwright volunteered for staffing. There were no volunteers from the club for staffing a booth at the Its Good To Be Green CSCC. Randy requested the club to consider the possibility of purchasing predatory beetles and working with the Forest Service to release them on our adopted section of the John Muir Trail from Childer s Creek to Big Bend. It has been reported that the wooly adelgids are on most of the hemlocks there. Upcoming hikes: The following upcoming hikes were discussed: the Wildflower Hike with the Alabama Wildflower Society, the Three Forks to Springer Mountain hike, the Indian Boundary hike, the John Muir Cleanup, the Nell s Cabin hike followed by a showing of the movie Nell at the Harris s home, the Whig Meadow hike, and the Star Mountain hike. The Wolf Ridge to Big Frog hike was cancelled due to road conditions, but another hike will be planned on the same date (ed. note: this hike was rescheduled as the Panther Creek hike, which took place on April 10. See the write-up of this hike above.). Hikes Completed: Hike reports were omitted. Randy Morris introduced Russ Miller, paramedic and safety consultant, who teaches Wilderness First aid, Wilderness First Responder, Water Rescue, and other classes. Russ presented an informative discussion on wilderness survival and wilderness first aid. The meeting was adjourned at 8:35 p.m. Next meeting: The next meeting will be Saturday May 8 at Rick and Brenda Harris s home following the Whig Meadow hike. Bring a potluck item to go along with hot dogs and burgers provided by the Harris s. Respectfully submitted, Jane Bohannon, Secretary Cherokee Hiking Club, Inc Varnell Road Cleveland, TN