Saturday, March 16, 2024

John Rock, CMC hike, Pisgah

Date Distance Time Elevation Gain Average Moving Time Year to Date Miles
3/16/2024 4.4 miles 3 hours 15 minutes 720' 1.8 mph 159.6 miles

Parking: 
  • Pisgah Center for Wildlife Education, Fish Hatchery Road.
Map:
  • Pisgah Map Co., Pisgah Ranger District
Directions:
  • Follow Cat Gap Loop Trail clockwise; right onto John Rock Trail to the top of John Rock, and return via the same route.

Today, I led a CMC hike for the first time in a little over a year. I was accompanied by Glen and 3 ladies. This was the first time these ladies have hiked to John Rock. This was advertised as a leisure hike, so we had a nice relaxing climb to the summit of John Rock. We had gorgeous weather - 70 degrees and sunny. At the summit, we were entertained by a raven looking for treats. By the time we finished our hike, the large parking lot at the fish hatchery was full! 





Looking Glass Rock





Thursday, March 14, 2024

Mountains to Sea Trail, Segment 2, Miles 54.1 - 57.0 - MP 415 to US 276 Trailhead

Date Distance Time Elevation Gain Average Moving Time Year to Date Miles
3/14/2024 5.7 miles 4 hours 16 minutes 1,401' 1.4 mph 155.2 miles

Parking: 
  • Wagon Road Gap Overlook, Blue Ridge Parkway
Map:
Directions:
  • Take spur trail to MST. Cross road and hike on MST to Blue Ridge Parkway MP 415. Return the same way.

Back on the MST today to work on another section. We did an out and back and weren't sure of the most efficient place to park to get on the MST. We chose the Wagon Road Gap Overlook parking lot. We thought we'd need to do a road walk to get to the MST, but there is actually a spur trail in the parking lot that takes you there. The spur trail is not on Gaia. By the way, there is no view at Wagon Road Gap Overlook.

We took the spur trail which reaches the MST at the next BRP crossing. We did see a car parked on the grass there. I'm not sure what the rules are for parking on the grass as opposed to an overlook. We continued on the MST, hiking up to Green Knob. We encountered 2 people at the summit, operating a ham radio. Just past the summit is a short herd path to a view, well worth visiting. Today was hazy! We saw smoke in the distance. I've seen that there are a bunch of controlled burns right now, so I assume we were seeing one. But I'm not sure if the haze is from the burns, or just because it was a really warm day. We had a view of Looking Glass Rock, but it was just a hazy blob. We continued down past Green Knob. We heard a loud fighter jet. We wondered what they were doing in this area. We crossed the parkway, and then hiked until the next parkway crossing at MP 415. 

We noticed after our last hike in this area, that there was no assigned trail maintainer for the area. So today, we continued to do some light trail maintenance. We didn't have tools, but we removed 4 trees from the trail, noted others, and removed large branches from the trail. Glen said next time we hike on the MST out here, he'll bring clippers at least.

Small parking area

Spur trail at the parking lot which leads to the MST



View near Green Knob. Looking Glass Rock on the right.

One of the blow downs we encountered.



Milepost 415, BRP


Tuesday, March 12, 2024

Mountains to Sea Trail, Segment 2, Miles 51.9 - 54.1 - Looking Glass Rock Overlook to BRP MP 415

Date Distance Time Elevation Gain Average Moving Time Year to Date Miles
3/12/2024 4.5 miles 3 hours 5 minutes 878' 1.6 mph 149.5 miles

Parking: 
  • Looking Glass Rock Overlook, Blue Ridge Parkway
Map:
Directions:
  • Take spur trail to MST. Turn right on the MST and hike to BRP crossing at MP 415. Return the same way.

Today we hiked a section of the MST we haven't done before. I was surprised that the BRP was completely open this way. On the drive to the hike, I kept thinking how lucky I am to live in such a beautiful place. There are so many great overlooks on the parkway on the way to the trailhead. We started the hike and encountered a fair number of blowdowns. I couldn't help myself. I started removing large branches from the trail. Then trees. We removed 6 trees in total (no tools, just pushing them off the trail). Overall, a good hike. There were great views where we popped out onto the parkway. In places the leaves were deep, so I slowed down. We saw very few people except in the parking lot. Many people popping onto the trail without a map, not knowing where they were going. I think they were trying to get to Skinny Dip Falls. When we were finishing our trip, I didn't make eye contact with a group standing at the spur trail/MST intersection. I knew they were wondering which way to go. I felt guilty. I made up for it by helping out the next 2 groups coming up the trail who didn't know where they were going. Sigh. 

Looking Glass Rock from the BRP


We call this the dragon tree

We couldn't move this blowdown, but we'll report it

Smaller blow down

Popping out on the parkway at Cherry Cove Overlook


Mile marker 415. Time for a quick snack. 
Theoretically you can park on the grass here.


Take care of a tree blocking the trail.



Monday, March 11, 2024

Haw Creek Overlook from Bull Mountain Road

Date Distance Time Elevation Gain Average Moving Time Year to Date Miles
3/11/2024 3.9 miles 2 hours 7 minutes 536' 2.2 mph 145 miles

Parking: 
  • Bull Mountain Road.
Map:
  • n/a
Directions:
  • Take spur trail to MST. Turn left on MST and hike to Haw Creek Overlook. Return the same way.

Had to stay in town, so short local hike.




Thursday, March 7, 2024

Rainbow Falls and Jones Gap Falls, Jones Gap State Park, SC

Date Distance Time Elevation Gain Average Moving Time Year to Date Miles
3/7/2024 6 miles 4 hours 19 minutes 1,367' 1.7 mph 141.1 miles

Parking: 
  • Jones Gap Road. $6 per person for parking. 
Map:
Directions:
  • Take the Jones Gap Trail to the intersection of the Rainbow Falls Trail. Turn right onto Rainbow Falls Trail and climb up to Rainbow Falls. Return back to the Jones Gap Trail. Turn right onto the Jones Gap Trail and hike to Jones Gap Falls. Turn around and take the Jones Gap Trail back to the parking lot.
Carolina Mountain Club Challenges:
  • 100 Waterfalls Challenge - Rainbow Falls (Greenville)

What a great hike! The park at least this time of year closes at 5pm. Reservations are required for parking on weekends. See the site for more details about hours and parking: Jones Gap Camping | South Carolina Parks Official Site The hike starts out on the level Jones Gap Trail (also the Palmetto Trail), which parallels a river. There are campsites along the trail (requiring registration). After turning onto the Jones Gap Trail, the trail soon becomes steep. Luckily, the trail has a lot of fancy rock work as well as log steps, so it isn't a slippery climb. I was impressed with the quality of the trail! We took our time climbing up, taking rest breaks as needed. The trail is popular, so we saw quite a few other hikers, even though it's a weekday. Rainbow Falls is really impressive! Beautiful, and we were lucky to have it to ourselves for a while. We still had time, so we returned to the Jones Gap Trail and headed over to Jones Gap Falls. There were a few flowers on this hike - mostly violets and bloodroot. My plantar fascia felt pretty good, but I did develop sharp cramping pain in front of my ankle - I don't know the cause, hopefully not arthritis. We highly recommend this hike. We'd both like to do and out and back on the Jones Gap Trail at some point - around an 11-mile hike. 



Visitor center





Some of the beautiful rock work.

Trailing Arbutus



The top of an unnamed waterfall




Bloodroot







Rainbow Falls (which also continues below this vantage point)











We took a break here to let Krumm wade in the water.