Mar 21 Daffodil Flats

Linville Gorge has so many great places but who would have thought a field of daffodils in the middle of the wilderness would have been one of them. Daffodil Flats is a hard place to get to. There are several routes including in and out on Pinch In Trail, up river from the MST, from private property along the river and my route; Pinnacle to Leadmine to Linville River Trail. The route looked great on a map but you know how that can be misleading. I wasn't even sure there was a Leadmine Trail despite the map. At the Pinnacle Trail parking area, two backpackers assured me there was a trail but it would stun me at its steepness.

Down I went. Or up I went. Pinnacle Trail starts uphill before its plunge down. There was a trail junction right where the backpackers said. I turned left and headed on a nice trail but some flagging caught me eye. It marked a path of sorts. About 100 feet down there was a sign indicating a mile to the river. This was obviously the Leadmine Trail. It was an easy route to follow but footing was slick and I walked slowly. A bit later another sign indicated .8 on the all weather route and .4 "DROP TO RIVER". The drop looked real gnarly. I opted for the all weather route. Much later a 3rd sign indicated there was a .1 shortcut to river. It sure was a long .1 mile and it was rather steep but what trail in LG isn't? 

Once at the river, it was easy to find a trail heading up river. It took about 30 minutes to reach Daffodil Flats.

It sure was a beautiful sight. Later that night, I accessed my buddy, Rickmo's photos from last Saturday. It appears there is a second field of daffodils I did not see. I had a good laugh over that.

The return trip was pleasant, retracing my steps. Footing seemed better going uphill on Leadmine. Still care needs to be taken on that trail.

Sign with proper punctuation, but the trail being referred to is known as the MST. 

Mar 20 Baxter Creek & Swallow Fork Trails

This was the hike I was looking for. After two days hiking on the rutted, muddy trails of Cataloochie, I found this loop to be perfect. The day was gorgeous as well. Everything came together for this walk in the woods. The first 6 miles were a steep ascent but today I barely noticed. Nearing the top of Mt Sterling, the trail morphed into a surreal forest of boulders, thick moss and solitude. I've not experienced this beauty and contentment for a while.  

Atop Mt Sterling is a lookout tower with what appears to be a radio repeating station. Power lines ascend the mountain from a road below. The power line right of way is incredibly steep and not trimmed. It would be a miserable climb.  

I dropped my pack at the base of the tower and climbed to the cabin. The wind whistled and 360 view was spectacular. While in the cabin atop, I heard someone else ascending. I absolutely scared the &%$# out of him. Nice guy though. As was everyone else I met today. 

Dropping down a bit from Mt Sterling, I came to a trail junction with Mount Sterling Ridge Trail and Swallow Fork Trail. Here I met three gals who barely acknowledged my presence and two fellows who were college buddies in their late 20s, one from Boston and one from San Francisco. The west coast guy had both boots tied up in cloth. Apparently, on the first day of a five day backpack, both boots fell apart. They tried and ran out of duct tape and then found, using their engineering degrees, a tee shirt tied around the boot, held the soles on. They had gone through 3 tee shirts and had one left. I didn't ask about underwear but figured that might come into play at some point. They were a joy to banter with. They both were worthy beer drinkers. I told them of the pernicious weed Henry the VIII railed against but provided the inspiration for the my favorite brewpub in Asheville, Wicked Weed. 

After Mt Sterling, the trek was downhill ever so gently. Mouse Creek Falls is a much photographed place. It drops into Big Creek right at this point. There are few waterfalls which drop right into other rivers or creeks. Here is one.

Bloodroots are beginning to bloom in the lower elevations. Bloom time is here.

Mar 19 Cataloochie Valley Loop Hike

It is another day on the horse rutted trails of Cataloochie. The scene above is a great example of the type trail I saw today. All the creek crossings were like the scene below, a foot bridge for us folks and a ford for the horse folks. 

All the foot bridges today had an arch like this one. Most had been newly installed in the past couple years. I understand there were some foot bridges washed out on Caldwell Fork Trail but I did not encounter any of those today.

I did follow a short spur trail to "Big Poplars". This is the only one I thought was really big. There were a few other marginally big ones and a big one on the ground. So this one was it. Look how it dominates the canopy surrounding it. A giant amid large brethren. 

Mar 18 Cataloochie Divide Loop Hike

These are not trails I would normally hike but if your quest is to hike them all, that is what you should do. My hike began on the Cataloochie Divide trail where it begins at the entrance road to Cataloochie Valley. I proceeded to McKee Branch Trail to Caldwell Fork Trail, up Hemphill Bald Trail to the intersection with Cataloochie Divide Trail and back to start. 17.8 miles and all of it new miles.

Caeleum Sereum? There is a ridge there by that name but otherwise I drew a blank on this one. It has no meaning in Latin.

These trails are heavily used by horseback riders and thus it was a rutted, muddy mess in many spots. The trail which ran right along the divide was also right next to the park boundary, seen above. I did pass several homes, structures and The Swag bed and breakfast. They have beautiful grounds, below.

On my return, I followed a trail which led to Purchase Gap Science Learning Center. It looked like a regular residence except no gas grill and pickup on blocks in the yard. Otherwise, it was just a nice day to be outside but nothing to get really excited about.

Mar 16 Hike to Hanging Rock Plane Wreckage

In May of 1963, a Piper aircraft carrying 5 persons crashed into the north side of Hanging Rock Ridge. Two persons died as a result of the wreck. Hanging Rock Ranger Sam Koch presented a short program at the visitors center for our group, the Friends of Sauratown Mountains. Sam's research detailed the causes of the wreck, the local response and some more recent events which are indirectly related to that day.

The five aboard were all employees of the Grand Piano and Furniture Co of Roanoke Virginia. They were en route from Roanoke to Hickory that day. The FAA report attributed several factors as the cause. The plane was flying too low, low cloud cover was present, there was icing which may have prevented proper operation and alcohol was cited as well. Locals heard the plane sputter as it flew low toward the mountain. A loud noise followed. The first on the scene were a crew of power company employees working nearby. Word spread quickly. Many folks made the trek as did reporters, an ambulance, a nurse and many others. The scene was gruesome with terrible trauma. Sam did not report these details. On the wrist of one of the victims, a stopped watch indicated the wreck occurred about 11:40 am. The scene was not cleared until 4 pm. 

The wreck site had been mostly forgotten over the years. Staff at the state park changes and things and places get forgotten. Just a few years ago, former park superintendent, Dave Cook, was shown a high resolution aerial photograph with a shiny spot amid mountain laurel. Dave found the wreckage and shortly afterward, the plague above was placed on the plane.

The daughter of one of the victims, now age 60 and in poor health, expressed a desire to see the wreck which caused her to grow up without a father. State park staff along with local firefighters and a number of other locals agreed to take her there. They formed 3 groups of 6 with 2 alternates to carry her up in basket attached to 2 poles for carrying. Although they had permission to cross private property, making the trip shorter, it was still a grueling feat to accomplish but all agreed it was well worth it as she was so grateful and overwhelmed by everything. Sam pointed out, this occurred on the first Saturday last November. In Stokes County that would be prime deer hunting time for many of the basket bearers.

Our group managed the off trail excursion well. We walked out in fair weather and back in the rain. Some of the rock scrambling was slick on the return but much fun for everyone.