Ace Gap is located on Rich Mountain Road, a one way dirt road leading out of Cades Cove over Rich Mountain. Our route to this road, takes us about 3/4s of the way around Cades Cove loop with a short cut on Spinks Lane to Rich Mountain Rd. On Spinks Lane I had 3 vehicles tailgating me. As I turned onto Rich Mountain Rd, they followed in close pursuit. At the first wide spot in the road, I pulled over for them to pass. They did so, spinning gravel in the process. Little did they know there were 4 bears right beside our car. The gravel spin prompted the bears to move a short distance away. Mama and her 3 cubs which looked only a few days old, tried to make their escape but the young'uns kept jumping up on tree trucks. Mama would have to swat them down. Finally, she was able to corral them into thicker woods out of our sight. About a mile up the road, our 3 tailgating friends were set up with fancy camera gear taking photos of hazy Cades Cove below.
Once to the trailhead, we hike a short way and spot some Flame Azalea in full bloom.
Camera shot
Ace Gap is known for its Pink Lady Slippers. Although we saw about 10 in bloom, there were many more not in bloom. About 2 miles in was a huge hillside of just the vegetation of the plant.
There is a short manway, also, from the trailhead leading to a sinkhole. From White Oak Sinks to here, limestone is present, giving the soil a different acidity and different vegetation than nearby areas.
No comments:
Post a Comment