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Harvey Broome Group Winter Outings

Thses pictures are from recent Winter season outings.

Feb 27, 2009

Photos: 29

Harvey Broome Group Fall Outings

Pictures from recent summer outings.

Feb 27, 2009

Photos: 78

Harvey Broome Group Spring Outings

These pictures are from various spring season outings frome March thru May.

Feb 27, 2009

Photos: 64

Harvey Broome Group Summer Outings

Pictures from summer outings.

Feb 27, 2009

Photos: 80

HBG Outings/ 2009-10 Overview

These slides provide a quick overview of the Harvey Broome Group outings program for the period March 2009 through February of 2010.

Feb 27, 2009

Photos: 19

Back-Yard Birds Dec 2008

Trying to learn how to use this camera to photograph birds has been and continues to be a challenge. Just to get started via trial and error, I "bribe" the birds in my yard with feeders on the deck out back. These pictures represent the best I have gotten so far, out of many times as many pictures taken. The first 5 photos were taken while I was in a "hide" on the deck, from within 6 feet or so of the birds. All but a couple of the remaining pictures are taken from inside my house, through a (clean) window, at a distance of about 12 feet. I am using a Canon 40D digital SLR with the 70-300 mm IS lens. All these pictures are without a tripod.

Dec 29, 2008

Photos: 20

Avent Cabin 121808

Ray and I scouted a trip for next year -- he showed me the "Avent Cabin" off the Jake's Creek Trail. Since this didn't take very long, we decided to try an off trail area near Metcalf Bottoms that Ray had partially explored earlier. It is a area along the Indian Camp Branch, which was populated pior to the formation of the park. We found a couple of old homesites along Indian Camp Branch, and a couple of others along the road from the junction of the Round Top Trail on Wear Cove to Metcalf Bottoms.

Dec 18, 2008

Photos: 18

Cades Cove 121708

This was a Wednesday Group hike of the Smoky Mountains Hiking Club, with Cades Cove as the destination. We started at the John Oliver cabin and took off through the woods to places our leader (Steve) had deemed interesting. And they were, though we were inconvenienced a bit by occasional light rainfall. We returned to our vehicles just in time to avoid a serious downpour, which we watched from a restaurant in Townsend.

Dec 17, 2008

Photos: 14

Mt. Cammerer 121308 640 AM

I knew this would be the last nice day for a week, so I decided to hike up to Mt. Cammerer. A good choice! Just enough snow to give a real winter feel without being a problem for hiking. The day started out in the 20s, then warmed to the 40s, with sunshine all the way.

Dec 13, 2008

Photos: 16

Injun Creek 120608

A group of six hikers, undaunted by the cold weather and overcast skies, made a loop hike up Rhododendron Creek and down Injun Creek. This Harvey Broome Group (Sierra Club) hike took the small group over about six miles of the old Greenbrier community that was dispalced by the creation of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Gene McCarter, descended from the McCarter family that lived on Injun Creek at the time the park was created, was one of the hikers. This was a real treat for the group, and we appreciate his willingness to share some of the fascinating stories of the old community with us.

Dec 7, 2008

Photos: 24

Old Sugarlands 120308

The SMHC Wednesdday Group, led by Steve, toured several historically interesting sites in the neighborhood of the Old Sugarlands trail. We had beautiful December Weather, with sunshine and 50 degree temps. Though we did not see any bears, there was ample bear scat testifying to their presence in the area. We covered about 7 miles, pretty good for the amount of sightseeing we did.

Dec 3, 2008

Photos: 25

Porters Creek 112208

Took my new camera out today -- didn't want an overly long or strenuous hike, rather wanted to take pictures, so I hiked up the Porters Creek Trail to backcountry campsite 31, and back. Saw the old SMHC cabin for the first time!

Nov 22, 2008

Photos: 20

Gourmet Backpack 110808

This Harvey Broome Group annual ritual took place in the same venue as last year, but alas, with a slightly smaller group. But the quality did not deteriorate one iota! In fact, I daresay that the standards were set a bit higher by the last couple of years performance, and we met them! Eight hikers made the trip: Bob and B.J., Terri and Gary, Marti, Pat, Zoie, and Ron. The wonderful prizes and first place winners are detailed in the captions. Those of you who did not make it should be very sorry -- you missed a culinary experience that is unrivaled in the annals of backpacking!

Nov 9, 2008

Photos: 50

Fodderstack Trail 110508

This was a Smoky Mountain Hiking Club/Sierra Club outing to the Citico Creek Wilderness. We left a shuttle vehicle at the "Warden's Station" on the Cherokee Forest Service Road #35, then drove out Double Camp Creek Road to the northern end of the Fodderstack Trail (FS #95) at Farr Gap. We hiked this ridgetop trail from Farr Gap (elev. 2800 ft) to the the terminus of the Pine Ridge Trail (FS #99), then descended to the Warden's Station, for a total of 8.5 miles. The high point of the hike was at the junction with the Pine Ridge Trail (elev. 4000 ft), where we had lunch.

Nov 6, 2008

Photos: 21

Andrews Bald 110108

This Sierra Club hike by the Harvey Broome group couldn't have been scheduled for a better day. Clear skies with fantatic visibility and pleasant autumn temperatures made this a great fall foliage trip into the GSMNP. 10 hikers basked in the sunshine along the 2 mile walk down to Andrews Bald, followed by a short side trip to the old boiler near the Forney Creek trail. The total length of hike was 5 miles.

Nov 1, 2008

Photos: 19

Smoky Mtn Segment of CT 102908

Five SMHC hikers made this Wednesday hike to the Smoky Mountain segment of the Cumberland Trail (CT). We hiked up and back on about 4.5 miles of this 13-mile trail from the Norma Road trailhead to near the top of Anderson Mountain. Some in the group had previously hiked part of this trail segment starting on the Caryville side. We had great weather, a bit cool at times due to the breeze, and enjoyed good fall colors.

Oct 30, 2008

Photos: 17

Hidden Passage 102508

This morning outing was part of the TN Chapt of the Sierra Club's quarterly chapter meeting held at Pickett State Park. 10 hikers + Comet enjoyed a nice six mile trek on the southern half of the Hidden Passage Trail. It started out cloudy, but ended up with partly sunny skies and around 60 degrees, a very nice backdrop for the fall foliage.

Oct 25, 2008

Photos: 20

Cataloochee 102308

My wife and I, along with friends Nancy and Gary, drove over to Cataloochee Valley in the GSMNP to see if we could get a glimpse of some elk. Did we ever! It seemed that they were there just to please the tourists. We had great fall weather, no rain but a little varying overcast. All in all a very pleasant day. There was one disaster -- I left my "long" telephoto lens at home, so all my shots are taken with a "short" telephoto or wide angle lens, except for two shots where I "borrowed" a long telephoto lens from another photographer. So all my elk pictures are seriously cropped so you can see the elk.

Oct 24, 2008

Photos: 36

Bobs Bald 101108

This Sierra Club (Harvey Broome Group) hike took 14 hikers to Bobs Bald in the Citico/Joyce Kilmer/Slickrock Wilderness. We had wonderful fall weather and a leisurely hike for the six mile round trip walk from Beech Gap on the Cherahala Skyway. We found a bountiful crop of buckeyes at Cold Springs Gap, and noted a very healthy acorn crop on the trail ascending to Bobs Bald. Our intrepid leader was Priscilla.

Oct 12, 2008

Photos: 24

Abrams Falls 100808

This was our first HBG mid-week hike, on a day with a forecast of 100% rain chance. Our destination was Abrams Falls from the Abrams Creek Ranger Station, a distance of about 11 miles. Our special guests were Roger and Susie, visiting from Bozeman, MT. Unfortunately, the rain forecast was correct, and it rained most of the day, although the heavier rain started just about the time we reached the falls. Well, can't win them all. But we completed the hike and some of us even enjoyed it.

Oct 8, 2008

Photos: 12

Soddy Creek Section, CT 100608

David, Will and I went down to visit a rock-mining site on the Soddy Creek Section of the Cumberland Trail (CT). The mining activity, essentially a strip mine, intersects the CT near the confluence of Deep Creek and Soddy Creek. The mining has had a devastating impact on the mined area, and makes quite a negative impression on hikers through the area. The mining is along a "bench" created by heavy machinery, and as the pictures show, there is little evidence of any reclamation. Mining activity is visible not just at the point of intersection, but from the section of trail downstream and above the mining. All pictures are taken on property that belongs to the state of Tennessee, near Soddy Daisy (see http://www.cumberlandtrail.org/soddy.html). It is simply incredible that Tennessee law still permits this to happen.

Oct 7, 2008

Photos: 40

Laurel-Snow Pocket Wilderness 92408

Eight SMHC hikers met at the Gravel Pit in Kingston and then met 15 Chattanooga hikers at the trailhead. As prearranged, the Chattanooga group lead our group to Snake Head Overlook above Laurel Falls (we should call it Laurel Drip as the drought was very apparent.) None of our hikers and a number of theirs had never been to this overlook so this was a special trek. We climbed lots of rocks, slid down a few, crawled through some and squished ourselves through a few narrow crevices. (this hike description is by Carol Anderson)

Sep 25, 2008

Photos: 39

Balsam Mountain 92008

There were 7 hikers on this Sierra Club backpack led by Steve Harvey. We drove the Balsam Mt. road in the GSMNP, and parked at the Palmer Creek trailhead and walked down the road 6/10's of a mile to the Balsam Mountain trailhead. We hiked about 4.3 up the Balsam Mt. trail to Laurel Gap shelter at 5,600 feet in elevation, where we spent the night. But since we got to camp early, we did a short hike out to the end of the Balsam Mountain trail before dinner. Sunday we hiked out the Mt. Sterling Ridge Trail to the Pretty Hollow Trail, down it to the Palmer Creek Trail and back to our cars - for a total of 11.5 miles the second day. We had perfect weather.

Sep 22, 2008

Photos: 38

Largo Preserve 91608

Another trip to Largo and another visit to the Largo Park Nature Preserve. This is a very fine small park with a short nature trail and a small lake. I always manage to find some birds. Spotted a couple that I have not seen before.

Sep 16, 2008

Photos: 19

Praying Mantis 9308

Thee were taken on the Abrams Creek hike. We were captivated by the scene of a praying mantis dining on a bee that it had cptured in a Joe-Pye weed.

Sep 4, 2008

Photos: 12

Abrams Creek 9308

A group of 9 hikers from the Smoky Mountains Hiking Club did an 11 mile loop hike from the Abrams Creek Ranger Station via the Cooper Road, Hatcher Mountain, and Little Bottom trails. Though temperatures were warm by about 11 AM, in keeping with the late summer season, the weather was otherwise great. We encountered quite a few wild flowers along the Hatcher Mountain segment, and had a relaxing lunch at Abrams Creek, near the backcountry campsite. During lunch, we found a preying mantis in a tall Joe-Pye-weed lunching on a bee, and spent about ten or 15 minutes watching the spectacle. We finished the hike about 3:30 and headed back to our cars in Alcoa.

Sep 4, 2008

Photos: 35

Middle Prong 82708

Undaunted by weather (some forecasts were for 80% probability of rain), this SMHC Wednesday Group outing proceeded as planned. Nine hikers set out at 9:00 am up the Middle Prong trail out of the Tremont area of GSMNP. We hiked the Middle Prong trail to Lynn Camp Prong, then up that trail to the backcountry campsite, where three of the hikers stopped for a break before heading back the way we had come, making about a 10 mile round trip. The remaining six hikers continued up the Lynn Camp Prong trail to its junction with the Miry Ridge trail, where we had a leisurely lunch stop. After lunch we continued down the Miry Ridge trail to its junction with Panther Creek trail, which we took back to the Middle Prong trail to complete our loup, for a total of about 14.8 miles. We managed to escape any significant rain until we reached our cars.

Aug 28, 2008

Photos: 24

Clinch River 82108

We took my niece, visiting us from Oregon, for a float down the Clinch River from Miller Island to Highway 61. We were joined by friends Gary and Nancy and Doug and Mary. We had great weather and both generators at Norris dam were pumping, so there was lots of water. We saw a number of great blue herons, a black-crowned night heron, Kingfishers, and a few ducks. Actually, though it was beautiful and involved a minimum of effort, I prefer going down river when there is no generation at Norris dam. There is much, much more wildlife to see at low water levels. Took these pictures with a 2.1 MP point-and-shoot.

Aug 21, 2008

Photos: 13

Rankin Bottoms 81708

Last trip to Rankin for the year, I guess. There's not much point in going when the water level is this low. I spent a couple of hours just walking around the "bottoms" that I had paddled over 6 or seven weeks ago. After walking about on the bottoms, I launched my canoe at the boat ramp by the railroad bridge, and paddled up to the mouth of the Nolichucky and into the Nolichucky as far as I could, which wasn't far.

Aug 17, 2008

Photos: 14

HBG Picnic 81208

Another year -- another picnic.

Aug 13, 2008

Photos: 14

North Harper Creek

This Sierra Club backpack counted 5 participants, Will (leader), Cathleen, Conrad, Warren, and Ron. We visited a beautiful area, North Harper Creek, near Linville, NC. We had good weather, with only a little thunder and a few drops of rain in the late afternoon, after we had set up camp. We hiked from FS58 down the Persimmon Ridge Trail, then up North Harper Creek Trail back to FS58. The trail was in good shape, though steep for a couple of short segments. This was a short distance for a weekend backpack, but we took advantage of the extra time to really enjoy being near the creek. There were several notable waterfalls, and we camped at the base of the most scenic one, North Harper Creek Falls. As you will see from the photos, we had a great view of the falls and ate dinner right at the bottom of the falls. As it turns out, we hiked most of the 6.1 miles on Saturday, so had a short hike out on Sunday morning, finishing up by about 11 AM.

Aug 4, 2008

Photos: 37

Clinch River 72608

Almost everyone backed out of this float trip due to a forecast of rainy weather, but two of us did the 7-mile trip anyway. It turned out to be a great day to be on the river -- cool with a fair amount of fog, and no rain. Probably less that average wildlife, but still a fair amount. We put on the river about 10 am at the Peach Orchard access area, and took off about 2:30 pm at the Highway 61 access. We purposefully left early so we could paddle the river at a low water level, although I think the water from power generation at Norris dam began reaching us about 20 minutes before we completed the trip. We made the entire 7 miles without having to get out of our boats due to shoal water.

Jul 26, 2008

Photos: 27

Largo Central Park 71608

Another visit to a little refuge in the city of Largo, FL. Managed to get out one morning to relax and see what turned up.

Jul 18, 2008

Photos: 24

LeConte via Trillium Gap Trl 70208

The Wednesday group of the SMHC chose Mt. Le Conte via the Trillium Gap trail for this week's hike. It is about 13 miles up-and-back with a 3200 foot elevation gain. We had a wonderfully cool summer day, with the temp on Mt. Le Conte at 67 degrees when we arrived.

Jul 3, 2008

Photos: 26

Back to Rankin 62608

I went back to Rankin Bottoms (see 6/21/08 and 6/5/08) to look for photo opportunities and a potential location for a future blind. Didn't get many photo opps, and noted that at this time of year, the vegetation is so tall and dense that finding a good location for a blind would be very difficult. I'll keep trying.

Jun 27, 2008

Photos: 14

Rankin Outing 62108

This Sierra Club trip to Rankin Bottoms on Douglas Lake was "under a cloud" with a forecast of 40% chance of rain, but we got lucky and had a beautiful morning. The birdlife was not as plentiful as on the outing two weeks prior (see album dated 6/5/08), but it was still quite good. The high point of the day for me was spotting a bald eagle flying overhead -- but I was not able to get a picture of it. Maybe next time!

Jun 22, 2008

Photos: 11

Gregory Bald 61808

On this unusually beautiful June day, the "wednesday group" of the SMHC hiked the Gregory Bald trail from Sam's Gap on Parson's Branch road to Gregory Bald. The flame azeleas were in their glory, and the visibility from the bald was excellent.

Jun 19, 2008

Photos: 28

Meigs Mountain 61408

7 hikers (Robin, Conrad, Warren, David, Sharon, Glen, and Ron) set out on a bleak June day (60% rain probablility) for a short hike to campsite 20 on the Meigs Mountain Trail in the GSMNP. It started raining lightly before we reached camp, but a pause in the rain allowed us to set up tents and a couple of tarps. Not long after we got the tarps set up, it started raining hard, and we waited it out for an hour or so until it stopped. We were able to take advantage of the situation to discuss use of a GPS and other backpacking topics. A light rain continued on and off throughout the night, but things cleared up nicely on Sunday morning, so we had a pleasant hike (5.3 miles) out via the Curry Mountain trail.

Jun 16, 2008

Photos: 31

Rankin Bottoms 6508

Ray, Mike and I put in near the "tipple" (not really a tipple according to Ray) about 8:20 AM and paddled until about 12:20. We covered about 6.5 miles, and saw lots of great egrets, great blue herons, Canada geese, ospreys, cormorants, ducks, at least one little blue heron, and a few species we could not identify. As you can see from the lack of sharpness in the photos, taking pictures of wildlife from a moving boat, even when you stop paddling, is not as easy as the pros make it look. Well, it's live and learn for me -- to get good shots, I'll need to get out the boat and set up a tripod on terra firma! As the afternoon temp was predicted to be in the mid 90s, we were ready to be off the water by the time we got back to our launch point about 12:20.

Jun 6, 2008

Photos: 22

Fork RidgeDeep Creek 52808

8 members of the "Wednesday group" of the Smoky Mountain Hiking Club plus two young guests descended the Fork Ridge Trail in the GSMNP to its junction with the Deep Creek trail, then proceeded up the latter trail to our shuttle vehicle at US 441, for a distance of about 9 miles. We had overcast skies and a bit of rain, which fortunately came in spurts and was never heavy. However, photo opportunties were curtailed somewhat.

May 29, 2008

Photos: 24

Clinch Float 052208

I managed to talk a few friends (Mike, Gary, and Nancy) into a day-long float down the Clinch River, starting at the Peach Orchard boat ramp, about 4 miles below Norris Dam, and ending at the Highway 61 ramp near Clinton, a distance of about 7 miles. We had beautiful weather, cool, but requiring ample use of sunscreen. We were in the water by a little after 9:30 AM, and finished up about 4 PM. There was no generation at Norris dam during the day, so we took advantage of the more or less "natural" flow to enjoy wildlife viewing and a bit of fishing.

May 23, 2008

Photos: 41

Norris River Bluff Trail 052108

OK, so I could have gone on the 16 miler with the SMHC, but I just didn't feel like spending four hoursin a car. So I did a short drive (30 minutes each way) and short hike on the Norris River Bluff Trail. Lengthened the hike a bit by going off trail near the end. Didn't have many wildflowers, but I practiced on close-ups anyway with what was there.

May 22, 2008

Photos: 8

Frozen Head Wildflowers 51008

This Sierra Club hike took us to Frozen Head State Park to see what wildflowers we could find and identify. We had planned for a 4 mile walk in the woods, but the group opted to lengthen the hike a bit so we could complete the Panther Branch loop, so we ended up hiking about 5.5 miles altogether, counting our side trip out to Emory Gap Falls.

May 11, 2008

Photos: 56

Utah Canyons, Part 1 42508

Though only my 5th such trip, several members of this group have been hiking in canyon country yearly since 1980. This time we backpacked for 8 days. The first destination was the upper Paria just below Cannonville, UT, and the second was the upper part of Hackberry Canyon. We explored several tributary canyons as well, and had a rather grueling 12 mile cross-mesa day getting from the Paria to Hackberry. But the nine of us had a great time overall, and look forward to more adventures in the future.

May 10, 2008

Photos: 48

Utah Canyons, Part 2 42908

On the third day we hiked down Sheep Creek to the Paria, and south in the Paria to our "Crack Spring" campsite, so named for the wonderful spring that provided our water for the next day. After a day at Crack Spring, we hiked further down canyon to a tributary, Deer Creek Canyon, for a layover and another dayhike, this time up Deer Creek Canyon. The fifth day was the dreaded hike across the mesa separating Paria from Hackberry. As the day wore on, we began to refer to it as the day of the "death march" (just kidding, of course). But the scenery was great, and we all made it to Hackberry just in time to set up tents before darkness befell us.

May 9, 2008

Photos: 48

Utah Canyons, Part 3 5208

Our 6th day was a layover day in which we planned dayhiking up Stone Donkey Canyon. Following that, on day 7 we hiked about 7 miles up Hackberry to dry camp for our last nite at the junction of Hackberry and Round Valley Draw. Some of us also explored a ways up the draw after setting up camp. Day 8 was a short hike to our shuttle vehicle at the head of Hackberry canyon. And so ends another canyon adventure.

May 8, 2008

Photos: 46

Norris Observaton Point 41008

With our neighbors Mike and Brenda, Ginger and I did a short trail in the City of Norris watershed. We started in "downtown" Norris and followed a trail to Observation Point, which overlooks Norris Dam. Though only a short 1.1 miles each way, we did see lots of wildflowers and had a relaxing lunch at the overlook.

Apr 10, 2008

Photos: 26

Cades Cove 4908

OK, I know it's a "touristy" thing, but I went over to Cades Cove this morning to see if I could get any pictures of wildlife. Only got some turkeys and deer. But it was a pleasant morning, and I was home shortly after noon.

Apr 9, 2008

Photos: 9

Norris River Bluff 032908

For the second year in a row, the weather did not cooperate with us on this wildflower walk. Though we didn't get rained on, we did find a rather gloomy and cold day awaiting us. Nevertheless, this crowd of 14 hikers braved the weather to look at what mother nature had in store. We were rewarded with a reasonable, though by no means spectacular, display of wildflowers. More importantly, we made new acquaintances and got a bit of exercise.

Mar 29, 2008

Photos: 16

Deep Creek & Indian Creek

Four Harvey Broome Group hikers set out from three different trails to meet at campsite 57 (Bryson Camp) on this VERY rainy March day. Duane started from the Thomas Divide Trailhead, Linda, Steve, and Ron started from the Deep Creek area, with Linda and Steve coming up via Indian Creek, and Ron via Deep Creek. In spite of being rained on for about 10 hours with hardly a break, we managed to stay reasonably dry and enjoyed ourselves. Sunday morning came with clearing skies and sunshine, and better opportunities to take a few pictures.

Mar 17, 2008

Photos: 21

Little Frog Wilderness 3908

This Harvey Broome Group Day Hike took us to the Little Frog Wilderness, adjacent to the Ocoee River near Ductown, TN and the infamous Copper Basin. Will, Kim and I were the only hikers this cold March day, which was nevertheless a beautiful cloudless day. For the morning hours, an inch or so of snow remained in the shaded areas, although much of it melted as the day progressed. After hiking, we drove up to Ducktown and over to the Kimsey Mountain Highway (not a highway by any stretch) to see the once discussed location of "corridor K," a proposed trans-mountain 4-lane highway. See Will's web site for some related pictures (http://picasaweb.google.com/theskeltonview/LittleFrogMountainWildernessDayhikeMarch92008). The idea of buidling a highway anywhere near this rugged mountain area is preposterous.

Mar 10, 2008

Photos: 23

Cat Stairs 3508

This SMHC outing, with 15 hikers, covered about 8.2 miles in a loop that climbed the "Cat Stairs" at the west end of Greenbrier Pinnacle. The weather was cold and cloudy until we climbed above the clouds, about 1 pm. The rest of the day was spent in sunshine and 50 degree weather. The climb up Greenbrier Pinnacle was challenging, but in fact, I had to conclude that the existence of any "Cat Stairs" is a pure myth, as we found only some jumbled rocks and dirt on a very steep incline!

Mar 5, 2008

Photos: 34

Teds Branch 3108

Ray and I explored for homesites on Ted's Branch in the Greenbrier area of the GSMNP. We went up Teds Branch and down Little Rhododendron Creek. Had great weather, which was quickly melting the residual snow from the prior week.

Mar 2, 2008

Photos: 11

Okefenokee 22108

Four of us started for the Okefenokee on Wednesday afternoon, with an overnight stop in Macon, GA. Thursday morning we completed the drive (a bit over 500 miles total) to the East Entrance to the Okee. This was my 5th trip to the Okefenokee NWR, and it was another good trip, though we had some doubts for a while with respect to the ever-changing weather.

Feb 25, 2008

Photos: 54

Thunderhead & Lynn Camp Prongs 21408

Ray and I accompanied Bob on what turned out to be a short hike on the "quiet walkway" that starts at the Lynn Camp Prong trailhead and follows Thunderhead Prong upstream. But given the high water and cold weather, we chose not to cross Thunderhead Prong at about the 0.7 mile mark, which would have involved wading, but rather altered our plans, with Bob doing a walk on the entry road to get a better set of GPS points for mapping the road, and Ray and I going up the Lynn Camp Prong trail to its junction with the Panther Creek trail, about 2.3 miles each way. Although chilly (in the 20's when we started) it was sunny, and the dusting of snow stayed with us for most of the walk before finally melting away under the sunlight.

Feb 17, 2008

Photos: 11

Old Settlers' Trail 21308

This Wednesday group hike took us to the Old Settlers' Trail in the GSMNP. We had 9 hikers, but because we decided to use a "key swap" instead fo running a shuttle, we ended up with a group of 5 and another group of 4. We could hardly have asked for a better day. Though it was cloudy, we had light snowfall most of the day, with temperatures that allowed the snow to stick to everything above ground.

Feb 13, 2008

Photos: 20

Houston Area 2508

Ginger and I are spending 9 days in Houston for my niece's wedding and for visiting with Ginger's sisters' families. I managed to get out for a couple of short walks to the Houston Arboretum, Katy Prairie Wildlife Conservancy, and Brazos Bend State Park, in that order in the slides. Had pretty good weather, though it was overcast for the latter two outings. I have attempted to identify the various birds/water fowl I observed, but in several cases had to guess.

Feb 7, 2008

Photos: 29

Frozen Head Backpack 011908

Eight hardy hikers from the Harvey Broome Group braved near-zero temperatures for the traditional Winter Backpack. This time our destination was Frozen Head State Park. Although we originally intended to camp at Tubb Spring, our plans changed when we arrived at the visitor center and found that that site was already occupied by 10 or so campers. So we opted instead for the Mart Field site on the Chimney Top Trail. The hike in on Saturday was about 4 miles, out on Sunday, about 5.

Jan 20, 2008

Photos: 28

Cow Flats, Again 11608

Went with Ray and Barbara to "Cow Flats," in the Greenbrier section of GSMNP, to see if we could find a 4th house on a branch of the hollow that we had not explored on our last visit. We found it, and were amazed that anyone would think to live in such a hard-to-get-to place.

Jan 17, 2008

Photos: 9

Hiwassee Refuge 011508

Ginger and I and friends Nancy and Gary drove down to the Hiwassee Refuge to see the Sandhill Cranes. It was a cold day, sunny and pleasant enough out of the wind, but alas, most of cranes had departed for points south. We did see a few, along with Canada geese and cormorants and ducks, so all was not lost. We also drove to the nearby 2700 acre Yuchi Refuge (not known as a Sandhill stopoff), just to see if it had any promise for hiking. There are some access roads, but we didn't see any actual hiking trails. We did see lots of deer there. By the way, if you are in the vicinity, it's worthwhile to visit the small museum (no charge) at the Courthouse in Dayton, home to the famous "Scopes Trial" in 1925.

Jan 16, 2008

Photos: 16

Blanket Mountain 1808

I felt like doing a Smokies Hike this day, so went with a friend to Blanket Mountain, via Jake's Creek trail, then descended offtrail along the crest of Meigs Mountain and into the Blanket Creek watershed and out to the Meigs Mountain Trail a bit west of Campsite 20. Camera was put away once we went offtrail, so I don't have any pix of that part of the hike -- but it was "interesting." We got back to the car just as it was getting dark.

Jan 10, 2008

Photos: 7

HBG Retreat 1508

The Harvey Broome Group of the Tennessee Chapter of the Sierra Club has its annual retreat every January. This is primarily for the members of the executive commitee to elect officers for the coming year and to set the main issues agenda for the year. It' always a mixture of fun and tedium, but a necessary activity.

Jan 9, 2008

Photos: 8

Meigs Creek 122907

I decided to take advantage of the weather forecast and do a day hike. Picked the Curry Mountain -- Meigs Mountain -- Meigs Creek loop. Wasn't a bad choice, but a higher elevation hike would have been better, since I could have gotten above the cloud cover earlier. Anyway, I made the best of it. One suggestion -- do not hike the Laurel Creek Road from the Sinks back to Metcalf Bottoms, because there is virtually no shoulder and lots of traffic! (Beg a ride at the parking lot if you have too.)

Dec 29, 2007

Photos: 14

Largo Preserve 121607

While visiting family in Largo Florida, I try to visit a small wildlife refuge when I get the chance. This time I got photos of a Great Egret and an Anhinga.

Dec 27, 2007

Photos: 14

Frozen Head 120807

I picked this fine day for a day hike in Frozen Head State Park. I needed to scout the Tub Spring campsite for an upcoming Harvey Broome Group backpack. I reached Tub Spring via the Bird Mountain and Lookout Trails, returning on the North Old Mac Trail. Unfortunately, it rained for most of the 11 miles, though the rain was very light for the first half of the hike. Naturally, it was too misty to have any views, so I didn't bother to go the remaining short distance to the site of the old fire tower. I'll save it for a nicer day.

Dec 9, 2007

Photos: 10

Cow Flats 120507

I was invited to join a small group searching for unmarked gravesites in the Great Smoky Mountain Nat'l Park. We headed for a couple of specific locations in the Greenbrier section, one called "Cow Flats" (we weren't sure how the area got that name -- it's not on the map), and one on Wooly Tops Branch, which is a tributary of False Gap Prong. It was my first time in this particular area of the park, though some of the others had been there before. We went to several known homesites, but found only one possible gravesite location.

Dec 6, 2007

Photos: 25

Noisy Creek 112807

This SMHC adventure accessed the Old Settlers Trail via Noisy Creek in the GSMNP. After reaching the intersection on the Old Settlers Trail we proceeded west to Greenbrier Cove, for a total of about 9 miles. We passed a number of rock walls, old chimneys, and even a collapsing log structure that remained from the days prior to the creation of GSMNP.

Nov 29, 2007

Photos: 23

Hidden Passage 111707

The Hidden Passage Trail (HPT) in Pickett State Park has oodles of attractions. Arches, waterfalls, and rockhouses add to the interest of this easy backpack into Pickett State Park. Though not far as the crow flies, the constantly twisting and turning trail makes this hike longer than you would think from looking at the map. We started at the new trailhead parking area, followed the HPT for about 4.4 miles and camped near Double Falls. We got there early enough to spend about two hours exploring the falls and up and downstream on Thompson Creek, which was a dry stream bed for about .2 miles in the vicinity of the campsite. At low flow levels, the creek disappears into a rock crevice a little way above the campsite, and reappears about .2 miles downsteam. We found both places (see the slides). Sunday morning we proceeded back up to the HPT, followed it to its junction with the Rock Creek Trail, then went out the Rock Creek and through an old railroad tunnel to the trailhead on TN 154.

Nov 19, 2007

Photos: 34

Rock Creek Gorge 111107

This Harvey Broome Group outing, led by Will Skelton, took us to a new section of the Cumberland Trail known as the "Rock Creek" section, near the Sale Creek community of East Tennessee (near Chatanooga). We hiked from the Retro Hughes Road trailhead to the Lower Leggett Road Trailhead, about 7.5 miles. We had a beautiful fall day, with autumn colors just a little past their peak, but still quite nice. The creek was low and easily crossed without wet feet.

Nov 12, 2007

Photos: 22

Injun Creek 103107

After seeing a picture of the old steam engine on "Injun Creek", I decided it would make a good solo outing during the beautifl fall weather we've been enjoying. I went up Rhododendron Creek and down Injun Creek. Had excellent fall colors.

Nov 1, 2007

Photos: 13

Twin Arches 102707

The Harvey Broome Group hosted the Tennessee Chapter of the Sierra Club for its fall Chapter meeting at Pickett State Park, near Jamestown Tennessee and the Big South Fork National River and Recreation area. One of our hikes was a short trek to the Twin arches and Charit Creek Lodge. Even though we had an overcast day, the temperatures were pleasant and the views great.

Oct 28, 2007

Photos: 26

Snowbird Creek 102007

This Sierra Club backpack turned out to be a bit more challenging than we anticipated, but was nevertheless a great trip. We started in the lower end of Snowbird Creek watershed, and hiked up the length of the Creek from that point, ending at Big Junction on the Cherahala Skyway. The upper end of this trail is not maintained, hence the additional challenge, as we ran into a stretch of thorny blackberry bushes that we had to get through. Oh yes, we also ran into a yellow jacket nest and Ron got stung about 8 times!

Oct 22, 2007

Photos: 14

HBG Gourmet Backpack 100607

This was the annual gourmet backpack of the Harvey broome group of the Sierra Club. The destination was about 3 miles up the North Fork of Citico Creek. As usual, we had a number of culinary delights, many of which are pictured herein. Coupled with the outstandingly beautiful North Fork (even at very low water levels), this was another very memorable trip.

Oct 20, 2007

Photos: 26

Green Heron 93007

Went to Rankin Bottoms on Sept 30, but of course, with the drought, only the old river bottom itself had any water. Had to content myself with driving around a bit, since (hopefully) I would never have another chance to take my car to spots that were now accessable due to the low water. I did put my canoe in at the boat launch area by Rankin Bridge, and paddled to the other side of the river, where I spotted this friendly green heron. It allowed me to get some nice close-ups over a period of about 45 minutes.

Oct 19, 2007

Photos: 13

Maroon Bells (Colorado) 082407 (Part 1)

Nine hikers set out for the Maroon Bells wilderness of Colorado. We planned an 8-day backpack starting at Maroon Lake and ending at the Maroon-Snowmass trailhead. Due to illness, 4 of the hikers had to vary from the original plan, but still spent 6 nights in the wilderness, and we were all together for 5 of the 8 days. We encountered more rain than expected, but still had a great trip, reaching elevations in excess of 12,000 feet on 5 of the 8 days.

Oct 15, 2007

Photos: 36

Maroon Bells (Colorado) 082407 (Part 2)

This is the second half of our Maroon Bells adventure, starting with our descent from Trailrider Pass to Snowmass Lake, where we camped before moving on to another camp at Bear Creek. The four members of our original group who got delayed by sickness had already camped one night at Bear Creek, having come in to meet us from the Maroon-Snowmass trailhead near Snowmass Village. We stayed at Bear Creek two nights, and spent the "layover day" hiking up to Pierre Lakes. On day 8, we hiked our to the Maroon-Snowmass trailhead and started our return to Denver via Leadville.

Oct 14, 2007

Photos: 55

HBG Picnic 81407

The annual Harvey Broome group picnic, this year at Victor Ash Park.

Oct 1, 2007

Photos: 7

Dolly Sods 72807

Dolly Sods is a 32,000-acre wilderness in northeastern West Virginia, with a substantial amount of private land to the north that is open to the public. It is known for sphagnum bogs, spectacularly scenic open meadows, heath barrens and scattered spruce forest that are characteristic of areas much further north. The HBG has visited the area several times over the years (most recently in 2004). Five hikers made this late July backpack to Dolly Sods, in spite of predicted 60% rain chance for the weekend. We hiked for three days (two nights), and did encounter some rain, but overall we had decent weather and a great trip. This was a Harvey Broome Group trip.

Sep 15, 2007

Photos: 40

Gregory Bald 70807

I did a solo backpack to Gregory Bald in GSMNP. Ran into about 4 hours of rain on Saturday afternoon, but it cleared out by about 6:00 pm and the rest of the trip was great.

Sep 1, 2007

Photos: 12

Russel and Spence Fields 62707

A SMHC (Wednesday grop) hike to Russell and Spence Fields.

Jul 1, 2007

Photos: 10

Frozen Head St Park May 2007

Jul 1, 2007

Photos: 16

Newton Bald 62307

A June backpack to Newton Bald in the GSMNP is one way to stay cool, and we did. This was a Harvey Broome Group (Sierra Club) backpack.

Jun 17, 2007

Photos: 15

Schoolhouse/Turkeypen Gap June 2007

Jun 15, 2007

Photos: 13

Honey Creek Loop Hike 6907

The 5 mile Honey Creek Loop hike is the best dayhike you'll ever take! A great combination of water, trees, cliffs, rockhouses, etc. awaits the hiker. This was a Harvey Broome Group Sierra Club hike.

Jun 1, 2007

Photos: 24

Utah Canyons April 2007

May 1, 2007

Photos: 35

Chestnut Top April 2007

Apr 20, 2007

Photos: 25

Norris River Bluff April 2007

Apr 18, 2007

Photos: 11

Stone Mountain, VA March 2007

Apr 3, 2007

Photos: 13

Okefenokee NWR 022007

My friends Ray and Gary and I did a 3-day, 2-night trip into the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge from Feb 20 to Feb 22, 2007. Ray has done these Okefenokee trips for many years. This was my fourth trip, and Gary's first overnight venture into Okefenokee. This place is absolutely beautiful! We make the trip in winter to avoid insects and snakes, and the alligators are generally seen less in colder weather. For this trip, we started at the Suwannee Canal Recreation Area, paddled to the Round Top camping platform in the "Chase Prairie" for the first night, and on to Floyd's Island for the second night. On the third day we paddled back to Suwanee Canal Recreation Area.

Mar 1, 2007

Photos: 36

Grassy Ridge 12707

Winter Backpack to a 6,000 foot elevation in the Roan Highlands. The weather was very cooperative, with a mild day for the hike in, then getting colder at night (maybe 18 degrees F.), with a light snowfall overnight and low-hanging clouds in the morning, which lifted off as we began the hike back.