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Saturday, March 3, 2007
Big & Muddy. Saturday
found me on the road for the 2 hour drive to the Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area
located on the Tennessee and Kentucky state border near the cities of Oneida and Jamestown, TN. The area gets its name
from its principal river: Big South Fork of the Cumberland river. I found it to be more like the Mississippi:
Muddy and wide.
Yep, I should have called first because the BSF river was over its banks and running very fast due to runoff
from all of the rains that area received last week.
| Leatherwood Ford at normal water levels... |
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| Click image to view larger |
| and Leatherwood Ford on Saturday, 3/3/2007 |
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| The bridge is under there, somewhere (I think) |
| Big Rocks at Big South Fork |
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| click to see larger image... |
It didn't matter.
I was there to check on the blooming progress of wildflowers along
the two trails that border the river from Leatherwood Ford downstream to Angel Falls. This area has always been one
of the first to show color in early spring and also one of the showiest stretches of trails for wildflowers. This
year it seems I'd arrived too early. Searching for flowers, I hiked 2 miles down Angel Falls trail (then back) plus
about 1/2 mile down the Angel Falls Overlook trail (on the opposite side of the river). Nothing was in flower.
I didn't even see foliage for wildflowers. Darn. At least I enjoyed watching the seriously swollen river zipping
along and the two things BSF seems to have in abundance: Big rocks and high cliffs.
Saturday the river was so swollen that the whitewater was only marginally
Class III. But it was sure enough moving fast--so fast that no one was out there in any kind of boat on this day.
I did enjoy the view from this side of the river--usually I'm on the overlook trail high above the river gorge and on the
opposite side looking down on Angel Falls.
Angel Falls isn't a waterfall at all. Instead, it is a section
of very wicked Class IV whitewater rapids made worse by dynamiting of the riverbed in this area. Apparently the plan
was to improve the navigability of the waterway. Instead, they made it much worse.
Something different...4 hikes, one photo gallery...
I've hiked the Angel Falls trails several times
so rather than limit your view to just Saturday's "wash out" I'm posting a variety of pictures from my other hikes.
The photos will give you an idea of the diversity of flowers you can expect here later in March (and early April) plus you'll
get to see how things look from the Angel Falls Overlook on a "normal" day for this beautiful, wild river.
Photos are all in the same gallery but have been grouped a bit differently:
If you were thinking to visit BSF for the wildflowers then I say give
it at least another two weeks (mid March)--maybe longer (late March). And the big rocks? They'll be waiting for
you.
Here is a link to the National Park Service website for Big South Fork. This area is also good for mountain bike riding.
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