Laurel River Lake (again)

Holly Bay Campground, Laurel River Lake, Daniel Boone NF
7/29 - 7/31/17 (2 nights)
2017 bag nights: 21

We went back to Laurel River Lake for what is turning into an annual camping trip with friends from Danville. It was a beautiful weekend and there were only a couple walking tent sites left. We were lucky to get a double site with easy access to the water. For the future, the walk-in sites on the G Loop are a decent way down hill. It was a bit of a haul setting up camp, but we made it.

After getting set up, I inflated the kayak and squeezed all three kids in for a short paddle.

When we got back to camp, our friends had arrived and it was time for a swim.

Woke up to a beautiful day.

The kids had fun throwing rocks ...

...and then we played in the water. The oldest kids had fun paddling around in the cove.

The last day I took the oldest three for a short paddle and swim.

Both nights is was clear enough for astrophotography, but the first night I walked down to the shore, there was group of people with a lantern or something, so I headed back to the tent and went to bed. Thankfully, the second night no one was around so I got to play with my camera a little bit. It turns out there is a ton of light pollution to the northeast (I assume it is London). But I still got to practice.

As an experiment, I tried a whole bunch of slightly zoomed in photos. This is a stack of 35 8 second photos at 48mm. Not sure why, but there is a bit of blurring on the edges, the center still looks ok. Next time, I'll have to aim at a specific part of the sky and see what happens.

 
And then a couple milky way photos over the trees.

For the future, I think I will avoid Holly Bay on the weekends, it is way to crowded feeling when it is full. But, all in all, a great couple of nights with friends.

Packrafting Big South Fork

7/12 - 7/13/17 (1 night)
2017 bag nights: 19
Station Camp River Access
Big South Fork NRRA (TN/KY)
Animals: 1 deer, 1 turkey, 1 turtle, 1 salamander, 2 snakes, butterflies, lots of bugs

I have been looking at the Big South Fork map for a couple years. There is a stretch of river between Big Island and Devils Jump/Blue Heron that is only accessible by boat. On top of that, a lot of the trails that parallel the river for other sections don't actually have views of the river with all of the trees getting in the way. I have also been reading trip reports of packrafting out west that sound like a lot of fun.

With the idea of packrafting the Big South Fork in mind, I got a Klymit LWD off Massdrop last fall. I'm not a whitewater paddler and I did not want to freeze, so I have been waiting for the temperature to warm a bit and for a reasonable water level. The stars finally aligned, the kids were in camp, the water level had fallen after a bunch of rain and because it was the beginning of July, it definitely was not cold.

I planned on putting in at Station Camp and paddling approximately 10 miles, camping somewhere near where the KY trail parallels the river and then hiking back to Station Camp by way of the KY Trail and No Business Creek. This would also allow me to see a part of the area that I had not seen before.

I put in a exactly 12pm on 7/12. There was a definite current, but it was not a problem getting going without getting too wet. The Leatherwood Ford discharge was right about 400 while the Bear Creek height reading was about 3.5'.

Bear Creek water height guage

Leatherwood Ford Discharge Gauge

It was a beautiful day, but very hot. When I got out of the car, the thermometer was 85. The forecast was for a high in the low 90s with a heat index approaching 100. There was a slight chance of thunderstorms late in the day. I looked at the clouds and hoped they would block some of the sun.

All loaded up and ready for the maiden voyage.

There are a lot of flat water sections with a very slight current, nice for floating, but I had to work to make forward progress. The ~3 mile stretch from Station Camp to Big Island is mostly flat, I had to paddle most of the way. I'm not sure I would repeat this part again. 

I liked this rock, it looked like a big toadstool.

There are a lot of swift riffles that maybe would be considered Class I, they were easy to handle, but a couple time I was wishing for higher water as I scraped the bottom and bumped rocks.

Around 4, the clouds got a little thicker and I began to hear thunder in the distance. It actually sprinkled a little bit which was nice since the heat and sun was beginning to wear on me.

According to American Whitewater, there are two Class II rapids, one at 7 miles and one at 8 miles. They both had waves in the 2-3 foot range and some narrow passages that required maneuvering. I felt like I had to work a bit to keep from capsizing or getting pinned against a rock. Both times I took on enough water that I pulled over at the first opportunity to dump out all the water. Both times were a lot of fun.

About the 9 mile mark, I began looking for a campsite. There had been a great one in the fall around mile 10, but I could not remember how far above water it was, so I decided I would stop at the first good site. Unfortunately, this site was on the side opposite the KY Trail, so I would have to cross the river in the morning, but it had a nice view and was not too trashed.

I watched the light change, cooked dinner and really wished I had a beer. I also spent a lot of time swatting biting flies, they got me a couple times and I got them a couple times.

I had visions of enjoying the stars, but I was wiped out and in the hammock by 9:30 and asleep by 10.

I woke up, choked down a bit of oatmeal that I immediately regretted making since it was already hot. I ended up carrying out what felt like a pound (certainly less) of uneaten oatmeal.

This is looking across the river at my campsite before setting off on the hiking portion of the trip.

This is the "normal" view of the river from most of the trails, i.e. not much to see.

Parts of the KY Trail are nice

and parts are very overgrown. It is pretty obvious this part of the trail doesn't see many people.

Sandstone and water and time do neat things.

A lot of the trails in the area follow what appear to be old railroads or roads, nice hiking.

A little bit of wildlife.

Troublesome Creek

The "bridge" over the creek, the water was low so it was easy to rock hop across.

More wildlife.

The "bridge" over Difficulty Creek.

Somewhere about this point, I realized that I was making really good time. I had been considering camping along No Business Creek and checking out the Muir Overlook but I was soaked with sweat, slightly dehydrated and had visions of swatting bugs for five hours. I decided that I would see what happened over the next couple of hours, if I could be at my car by 5:00, then I could be home before my kids went to bed. Not long after this, I began to hear lots of thunder in the distance which made my decision pretty easy.

Lots of rock walls in the area.

More wildlife.

About this point, it began to rain so the camera got put away. After this I saw 2 snakes and 1 deer. The trail turned into muddy slop where the illegal ATVs had been playing and I was completely soaked with sweat and rain. I was ready for a beer and dry clothes. I got to Station Camp Crossing about 3:00 and saw the first people of the day, a couple of horse riders had just forded the river ahead of me. I used half of my paddle to help cross the river, it came up to my crotch at the deepest point, but the current was not too bad so the crossing was pretty straightforward.

Dry clothes and a beer were awesome and then a drive up out of the valley by way of a seven mile gravel road. Sometime in the last 24 hours, the Park Service dumped a lot of dirt and regraded parts of the road. This combined with the rain made it a little slick, the anti-skid light kept coming on and I had visions of ending up in a ditch or just not being able to make it up a steep part of the road. In the end, I made it to the paved road and then a burger in Oneida and an easy drive home.

This ended up being a great trip that was very different from my usual backpacking trips and I got to see a part of the park from a different perspective. I paddled about 9ish miles in 5 hours with a couple breaks and I hiked about 12 miles. The next time, I think I will hike down to the river from the west to Big Island and start paddling there. That way, I would not have a ford to do at the end of the trip and would not have to worry about the river rising too much.

Even though this was a great trip, I think I am done with backpacking in the summer heat. I either need to be up in the mountains or in Canada next summer.

Smokies Kayaking

Cable Cove Boat Ramp
3/9 - 3/12/17
2017 bag nights: 6
Animals: wild turkeys, assorted birds
Campsites: 87 and 2 nights at 85 (Proctor)

Pulling away from the boat ramp, beautiful day, but windy, thankfully not as windy as Laurel River Lake a couple weeks earlier.

The water level is about 50 feet down from the tree line, so there are a lot of steep rocky "beaches".

This photo gives a good perspective of how far down the water line is. Of course, all the camping gear has to be carried up the hillside.

I had a couple hours before sunset, so I walked along the shoreline. Because the waterline is so low, the island is actually connected by a landbridge to the mainland.

Stumbled across an old brick (and lots of less interesting trash).

 Campsite for the night with easy access to the landbridge for the sunset and stars.

Moonrise (all most full)

Nice sunset

Venus and Mars

Lots of stars, but lots of airplanes, so no really good photos

That night a thunderstorm blew through, thankfully not as bad a the one at Laurel River Lake. I woke up to a very windy and overcast morning.

Lots of wind today, thankfully at my back, would have been impossible/dangerous if I had to paddle into the wind. Without paddling, I was being pushed at ~4 MPH. It was fun cruising along with so little effort. But I had the George Castanza line in my head "The sea was angry that day"

I stopped at Cable Cove to check out the Cable Cemetery. It made a good lunch spot and I was able to play with some long exposures and the clouds.

The trail to the cemetery parallels the creek for a little bit

And then follows what I suspect was a road 100 years ago.

Old home site at the end of the road

I was hoping for more wildflowers, but I was probably a couple weeks too early

Are Daffodils "wild flowers" if they were planted 100 years ago?

View of Cable Cove

A couple gravestones at the Cable Cemetary

Every time I visit a smokies cemetery, I am always struck by how many children died at such young ages. I can't imagine being this family.

I then paddled on towards Hazel Creek and the site of Proctor. The lake was down too low for me to walk up the trail at Hazel Creek, so I had to backtrack and hike up the Ollie Cove Trail. It was a good day for a hike, but I had about a mile to carry all my gear. A little heavy since I had packed for a paddling trip vs. a hiking trip.

The campsite is large with a number of firerings, I found one that had no garbage and a lot of wood that someone had spent a lot of time processing. Someone really wanted me to have a fire that night.

Since it was only about 3, I went exploring for a bit. The Calhoun House was built in the 1920s. I passed through this area 3 times now, and every time I have to take a picture of the house.

There were lots of daffodils in the area. Kind of neat to think that they have been growing there for 100 years.

Some true wildflowers (I think wild geraniums)

I then continued down to the end of Hazel Creek.

Remnants of an old bridge. Based on the water line, I think this might have been the old railroad bridge from the logging days. In the background is what looks like a bridge/road bed, that might have once crossed the trestles, but spring floods have washed it away.

I thought this rock was interesting with the very obvious seam of quartz in the middle.

There is lots of remaining junk that is old enough to be archaeological, like this old steel beam

Sign at the bridge across Hazel Creek.

I had a quiet night with my campfire and then woke up to an overcast day.

My goal today was Bone Valley about 7 miles north into the middle of the park. The last time I was in the area I had tried to check it out, but the creeks were too high.

The Hazel Creek Trail follows the old railroad bed, so it is very easy hiking. Just north of Proctor is the remains of the old log mill.

One of the 5 creek crossings on the way to Bone Valley, the water was very cold and at a couple of the crossings was up to mid-thigh. I just pulled my pants up high and waded through.

The Hall Cabin at the end of the trail (according to the sign, it was built around 1880).

I had imagined that I would hang out on the porch, enjoy lunch and relax. But, my feet were soaked, the temperature was about 40 and there was a forecast of rain starting around 4. So I explored a bit, ate a quick lunch and watched snow flurries.

I made a quick visit to the cemetery. I like the daffodils better than the plastic flowers.

There are some ruins of an old lodge right next to the cabin, but all that is left is the chimney and foundation.

It really started to snow as I was in the middle of the 3rd creek crossing, only 2 more to go. By the time I got back to the Hazel Creek Trail, the snow was really coming down and was sticking to the ground.

Snow on a spiderweb.

It stopped snowing after about 1/2 hour, but did not warm up. In the end, better to be snowed on vs. rained on given the temps.

Old axle in a tree.

I ran into a dad and 2 adult sons fly-fishing, they were staying overnight. Saw them briefly the next morning. I had enough firewood left for another fire and the rain/snow held off until about 7:30. I woke in the morning to this

I quickly ate breakfast and went to find some snow pictures. The snow was already melting off the tree tops.

I walked back down to the end of Hazel Creek. The cracked mud and snow was really cool.

And then it was time to pack up and get back on the water.

It was a gorgeous day with very little wind. But the previous couple of paddling days and found muscles that don't usually get used. Clearly I need to use my rowing machine more if I am going to enjoy paddling.

A great way to end the trip.

In the end, I hiked about 20 miles and paddled about 15 miles. A great couple of days.