April Roadtrip, Days 20/21...Walls of Jerico

 Day 20

April 20, 2023

     In hindsight, I wish I had blown town a lot earlier than I did.  Or better yet, booked a room further south.  There was one thing on tap for the day and that would have made all he difference.  In the end, no real complaints though.  The day still turned out to be an adventure.

    Nice drive out though...

    There are numerous places to find people's favorite trails by state.  The vast majority list The Walls of Jerico Trail as their favorite in Alabama.  The trailhead is just over the Alabama state line with Tennessee.  Blink and you'll miss the trailhead sign.  I did.

      The trail runs through the Bear Hollow Mountain Wildlife Management Area.  There's a good sized parking lot and I had it to myself.  It was also empty when I came off the trail.  So, apparently, I had the place to myself.  

     My guidebook suggested a 9.6 mile hike that would have included a loop, then the out and back to the end.  It sounded great.  One of the things I started doing years ago was taking pictures of the trail, every juncture and the descriptions from the guidebooks.  It's helped me out of plenty of jams.  That's when I noticed something deep in the description of the loop portion.  When I read, "Bear left to ford Hurricane Creek.  In times of normal flow this won't be over your knees."   

      So much for the loop.  The kiosk in the parking lot also had a map of the Mill Creek Loop, including something called the Mill Creek Blowhole.  That seemed like an intriguing alternative.   In hindsight, that was an understatement.  

      Heading into the woods...  

      Note the steep drop off to the right.

        At the 2.1 mile point, The Mill Creek Trails heads off to the east.  I continued as I was going.

    The guidebook suggested numerous waterfalls along the way.  I passed a few washes, but they were all dry.

     Something you don't see very often, a hollowed out rock, with a plant growing inside.

     I'll be the first to admit I'm horrible at judging distance while hiking.  I started wondering if I had missed something when I passed signs for the preserve's boundary.  I hike for another half hour.  There was supposed to be a creek, and waterfall and cave.  I wasn't even hearing running water.  So, I turned back.  

    From some investigations after the fact, I think I needed to go another mile or so.  I'd definitely try this again.  But, I'd do strictly out and back with no extra loops and time constraints.  Next time.

    Back at the trail juncture, the Mill Creek Loop looked in good shape and there were plenty of red blazes on the trees.  It certainly seemed promising.  

    Eventually, I came across the side trail down to the Mill Creek Blowhole.  The sign warned it was steep, thin and slippery in spots.  It also warned not to get too close to the blowhole as the rocks were slick.  Understandable.

     Working slowly, I made it down to the bottom.

        At the bottom, Mill Creek.

      As for the Blowhole, it's actually a spring that flows out of a cave.

        I did climb down and inch my way forward.  I went as far as their was safe, dry footing.  This was as far as I could go.  

     

       Back up to the main loop trail...

     Back up top, I had a choice.  I could go back the way I came, or complete the loop.  It looked good either way.    In the end, I chose poorly and decided to complete the loop.

        I hadn't gone that far when the trail started looking less and less obvious.  

      There were a few times when I stood by one red blaze and really had to look to find the next.  At one point, I did a large circle around the blaze and just couldn't see anything.

      I knew vaguely where I was on the trail map.  I knew the short loop trail, parking lot and road were to the East.  So, old school met modern technology.  A compass app pointed me in the right direction.  Ten minutes later, another red blaze.  Yes, I know there are apps where you can upload a trail and it will follow you via your phone's GPS.  That's the back up to the back up. 

      I took this as a good sign...

    An even better one.

          Along that .35 mile trail I did pass this overgrown overlook...

    

    A truly welcome sight through the trees.

       It was pushing 3P when I made it back to the car.  After a quick tick check in the empty parking lot, it was off towards Huntsville for the night.

      Seen along the drive...

      My home for the night was the Sleep Inn in Huntsville.  Typical for the chain, and a really friendly staff.  

     After a truly welcome shower, I felt I had definitely earned dinner and a beer.  Huntsville, Alabama has a slew of breweries.  But, which to choose.  I came to Innerspace Brewing, it was the only choice.

      Over the bar was one TV running an episode of the original Star Trek.  Another TV was running the '70s Canadian TV series, "The Starlost."  I had never heard of it, either.  Sipping a sample of their Heart of Gold IPA sparked a fun conversation with the bartender on just how we discovered the works of Douglas Adams.  Yeah, I had picked the right place.

     Sunset from the motel parking lot...

     

Day 21

April 21, 2023

     From Huntsville to home it's a four hour drive, five with the time change back to Eastern Time.  I could think of no better start of the day than this... 

      The drive home was uneventful and of course the interstate ground to a crawl for the last few miles.  But, I wasn't stressing about it.

Dave

4/23

PS: The next BIG roadtrip is set for June.  I'm headed for Michigan.  Why Michigan? Simple, I've only been once and that was a weekend in Detroit for a concert.  Seems like enough of a reason.   

     I'll be in Toledo for the last two nights in May.  I'm also thinking about a stop into Indiana Sand Dunes National Park on the way out.  In a week or two I'll send out a mass email and hopefully I can coordinate schedules to stop and see family and friends along the way.  

      

     

April Roadtrip, Day 19...Chasing Waterfalls

Day 19

April 19, 2023

     With only three stops for the day, there was no rush to get out of Murfreesboro.  The Short Spring Natural Area is a free park in Tullahoma, TN.  It's quite popular and the guidebook suggests getting there early since parking is limited.  They were right.  There's enough space for maybe fifteen cars.  No Parking signs line the road, but plenty park there when the lot fills up.  There were only two cars when I pulled up.

     Once a month, groups of volunteers come to pick up trash and clear downed trees.  It really is a well cared for park.  If you do the entire double loop perimeter trail, it's about three and a half miles.

     And it's always good to see excellent signage and plenty of trail markings.

       There are three waterfalls on these loops and I made my way toward Busby Falls.

Finally to the overlook of Busby Falls...

     Next is the overlook for Machine Falls.  Some days you get lucky.  Others you get the sun shining in the worst possible spot.

        This is Adams Falls. I didn't see any easy way to get down below, so I walked on.

    

By the time I had made it back to the lot, it was full. There were at least six cars parked illegally, and more down the road.

On the drive in, I saw a sign for Rutledge Falls and a small parking area. I was passing it again on the way out and stopped. The falls are on private land. The owners welcome visitors as long as you're respectful.

   It's a short walk down a flight of stone stairs to the falls.

My next stop was the Old Stone Fort State Archaeological Park. There's a mile and a half loop trail through the park with three waterfalls. While that would be worthy of a visit on its own, the history of the place made it all the more appealing.

Between 80 and 550AD, Native Americans chose this wide open field for some unknown purpose. Very little has been found inside the confines of the field itself. But, the people who lived here felt it important to build a wall around its border. The first stage was a ring of stones, then a second adjacent ring. Earth and gravel filled the space between. Over time, they built the ring higher, in some places as high as six feet. On the north-east corner, the only entrance is also flanked by two walls.

For unknown reasons, the builders then abandoned the site.

     This is from the loop trail.  The mound to the left is the wall surrounding the site.  

     Immediately behind the visitor center is an overlook for Bluehole Falls.




A trail leads down to a slightly better angle.



If you follow the trail around the perimeter, it brings you to Little Step Falls.




Continue around the river on the other side and you'll find the Big Falls.






Alongside the falls are the remnants of the Old Stone Fort Paper Company.













I left the park and headed to my last stop of the day. This took me to the town of Sewanee, Tennessee. There are a set of trails leading to multiple waterfalls and overlooks. If I had realized this earlier, I could have spent a day exploring.




It was mid afternoon and I was thinking a late lunch. Shenanigans just felt like a good choice. The name alone seemed inviting. Their menu is based around pizza, sandwiches and salads. Perfect.












On the south side of town, at the end of the aptly named Natural Bridge Road. There's a small parking lot at the end. Follow the stairs down and you'll fine the Sewanee Arch. The span runs 148 feet. And yes, you can still walk across.









The view from the arch...




My home for the night was a half hour drive away in the town of Lynchburg, made famous by the Jack Daniels Distillery. I'm not a whiskey fan, so I had no interest in tours or tastings. I just found the Country Inn and called it a day.




Just how big is Jack Daniels to the tourism industry here? These were build into the check in desk at the motel...