Latest hike: Thursday, April 16, 2009.......
Bear Creek Loop: Located in Kentucky just a few miles north of the TN/KY
border, Bear Creek Loop is similar to the Station Camp Crossing area (see below) in that it is a trail which drops into the
river gorge and runs along the eastern banks of the river for nearly half of the total loop trail distance.
Wildflowers were plentiful and the trail has that "wild" feel--certainly it is no paved Laurel Falls tourist trap. Visitors
here may find themselves as the only ones around for the full day. If you like that kind of thing then you'll like many
of the trails to be found in the Big South Fork.
Abandoned Water Gage Stations
This hike began for us in a parking lot about 500' elevation above the river gorge. Hiking
down the 20% grade to the river, we were reminded that coming back would require a serious uphill climb. Reaching the
river, we were intrigued by the elaborate group of stone towers/columns which were once used by the Army Corp of Engineers
to monitor water flows of the river. Judging by the height of those towers, the water must get seriously high here during
some times of the year. As best we could tell, these structures are no longer in use. Check out the photos.
Luna Moth plus a Trillium Mutation?
I've uploaded several photos we snapped along this trail. We were fortunate in spotting
yet another lovely Luna Moth on this hike. Also, we found a trillium with only two leaves (instead of the usual three)--perhaps
it is only an anomaly resulting from an injury to the bud for this season. It will be interesting to visit this area
again in subsequent years to see if this particular plant recurs with only two leaves.
Click here (or on the image above) to open in a new window our photo gallery for this hike.
P.S. Be sure to post your comments in the comment section at the bottom of
my home page (this is the home page).
Below are stories and photo links from some other Big South Fork locations we've
recently visited.....
Station Camp Crossing: The Station Camp Creek valley on the opposite side of
the river from where we parked was once a well-populated valley filled with subsistence farms. Area residents forded the Big
South Fork River at this point on their way to Oneida, Tennessee. By the early 1950s no families remained in the valley.
During our April 13 outing, we found hundreds
of blooming Virginia Bluebells as well as almost 40 species of other wildflowers. Our out 'n' back trek started 8 miles
downstream of the Leatherwood Ford and the trail meandered in the downstream direction along the South Fork of the Cumberland
River. Click here (or on the image above) to view our small photo gallery for the Station Camp Creek Crossing hike in a new
window.
Leaving Station Fork, we drove to Leatherwood Ford and the Angel Falls Overlook trail.....
The Angel Falls Overlook Trail (2 miles one way distance and rated easy) is quite
possibly the best wildflower trail and is certainly the most accessible for all ages. From the delicate Virginia Bluebells
in spring to the brilliant red Jack-in-the-Pulpit berries of fall, this trail has something new to see almost every week.
On our April 13 walk, we added to our species count for wildflowers and ended the hike having seen almost
60 different species of blooming wildflowers. It was a pleasant Sunday afternoon with cooperative weather and we encountered
lots of folks and families enjoying the warm weather along this riverside trail. Click here (or on the image above) to view our small photo gallery for the Angel Falls Overlook trail in a new window.
The Big South Fork area is administered by the National Park Service. Link to their website for more information.
For more information about Big South Fork, visit my webpage about that area where you'll also find useful links for hike planning and my suggested reference materials.
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