On Saturday April 21, 2012m Nancy Juodenas led a wildflower hike on the Cumberland River Bicentennial Trail (Eagle Pass section) near Ashland City.  It was a misty, cool morning, just perfect for hiking.  We saw at least 30 different varieties of wildflowers and flowering shrubs.  Can you name the five examples in the photos below?

  

There were seven hikers including Riley the Dog.  The newly discovered bluff trail at the Cheatham Dam, Corps of Engineers Campground offered amazing views of the river and some mysterious ruins at the top of the bluff.  All in all it was a great day for a hike!

Saturday, April 14, 2012.  Doug Burroughs and Karl Dupre, from Nashville, along with Patricia Serio, from Knoxville, hiked almost 13 miles on the Collins Gulf trails in the South Cumberland Recreation Area.  The weather was sunny and pleasant.  The spring wildflowers were past their peak but the variety of species was tremendous.  This is one of the best hikes in Tennessee.

On Saturday, March 24, 2011, we had a small group for a wonderful 5 mile hike at Nathan Bedford Forrest State Park.  We saw the arrival of springtime close up, with budding leaves and new plants coming up out of the ground.  Here is a link to Fran Wallas's description of this hike: A Colorful Woodland Loop 

The trip also included a visit to the Tennessee River Folklife Interpretive Center and Museum.  The staff there was very friendly and even made fresh popcorn for us.  - Tom Vickstrom

On Saturday March 10th Nancy Juodenas, and Amy Sutton from the Nashville chapter and Lora McBride from Soddy-Daisy, hiked the Hidden Passage Trail at Pickett State Park in Jamestown TN.  It was a gorgeous day with cobalt skies and temperatures just perfect for hiking. All the creeks and falls had plentiful amounts of water in them and were a sight to behold, especially the spectacular Double Falls.  To get to Double Falls we took a short 1 mile side trail.  On the way we had to ford ice cold Thompson Creek.  Our feet were bone numbing cold half-way across.  But oh! the rush of warm blood back into the toes felt so good when we reached the other side.  Lunch was enjoyed on sunny Thompson Overlook where we soaked up the sun's energy for the last half of the loop back to the parking area.  The total hiking distance was 10 miles with the side trip to Double Falls.  This mileage was a little confusing to us since all the descriptions said that Hidden Passage was 10 miles.  After clearing it up with the rangers we realized that this mileage includes the 2 mile roundtrip to Double Falls.  A note for future hikes; there is also another 2 mile roundtrip side trail to an old railroad tunnel.  This would be doable in the summer with the longer daylight hours. All in all it was a fabulous day for a hike!

Devil's Backbone hike – with extras - was led by Amy Sutton on March 3. 

A great hike and great weather near Columbia. We first went to the Gordon House 

and did a short hike to the Duck river where Mr. Gordon ran a ferry. 

We then hiked the 3 mile loop at Devils Backbone, and then went to Fall Hollow, 

a really pretty spot with  several waterfalls. We ended the day with a meal at the 

Mt. Pleasant Grille and a visit to the Mt. Pleasant museum.

Preview of the Saturday, March 10, 2012 Hidden Passage hike at Pickett State Park.  A few photos from the February 12th scouting hike.  See specific information about the hike and how to register on the schedule at right.

Nashville Represented at Annual Chili Hike

January 28, 2012.  Elizabeth Gerlock, Dianna Richter, Doug Burroughs, and Nancy Juodenas (pictured above at Bridal Veil Falls in Sewanee) attended Jim & Marietta Poteet's Chilly Chili hike last month.  The chili and other food after the hike were delicious.  Certainly didn't burn as many calories as we ate.