Nearby Community Trips
(Photos to follow soon.) It was a great day for hiking the Appalachian Trail. Temperature in the 50s. Clear sky. No insects. This hike was around 7 miles round-trip. The GPS track is the return half. I was using a new GPS and didn't realize it was on pause at the beginning of the hike, so I've uploaded the return half instead. I started on Forest Road 86 and hiked south about three and a...
Vaught Branch paradise
Vaught Branch is a tributary to the Middle Fork of the Holston River.
It comes down off Glade Mountain, tumbling like a gymnast over mossy
boulders. The AT follows it gleefully for more than a mile. In the
first volume of my distant future trilogy, The Ice King, I describe such streams in terms of their playful living spirits:"Their path took them through a stretch of primeval...
About 10.5 miles round-trip. Mostly fairly level and easy. The first part was never far from roads and traffic. The latter part was real forest. Otherwise, pastures, which make for scenic views.The trail goes past Lindamood School, founded in 1894. It's open 24 hours per day for hikers to use. Next door is the Settlers Museum (http://www.settlersmuseum.com).At Route 11, there are two service station/convenience marts along with a restaurant.I only encountered two...
