This is a hiker-friendly biking trail with little elevation change which features lake views, cedar glades and barrens, other types of terrain, and wildflowers. Bring plenty of water and snacks. We’ll meet at the Jones Mill trailhead for an 8:30 AM step-off. Register with Mark for details and updates. Alternate date for inclement weather: Tuesday, May 7th.
Saturday, April 13 — Booker T. Washington State Park Trails, 6.2-7.4 miles, moderate. This park is near Harrison and Chattanooga TN. There are three loop trails that meander all over the state park, with very nice views of Chickamauga Lake along with several optimally placed benches (where the trip leader is guaranteed to sit). We will hike the Outer Loop (3.90 mi.) and Inner Loop 2 (2.25 mi.), and perhaps Inner Loop 1 (1.20 mi.). Check the weather forecast and choose appropriate layers; wear hiking shoes or boots; bring snacks and/or lunch along with more water than you think you need; and gather up hiking poles, rain jacket, sunscreen, and insect repellent as needed. Meet at the Park Office at 8:30 am. Please register with hike leader Tom McElhone, 805-208-4654 or sarmitta@yahoo.com
Saturday, May 4 — Chickamauga Western Loop, Chickamauga Battlefield, 6.4 miles, easy/moderate, 442’ el. gain. This is a pleasant hike, sometimes on roads and sometimes on wide trails. Monuments, woods, fields, more monuments, more woods. The visitors’ center is full of information about this battle as well as the succeeding battle at Chattanooga. Pay tribute to all who died here. Check the weather forecast and choose appropriate layers; wear hiking shoes or boots; bring snacks and/or lunch along with more water than you think you need; and gather up hiking poles, rain jacket, sunscreen, and insect repellent as needed. Meet at 8:30 am at the lower parking lot at the Chickamauga Battlefield Visitors Center, 3370 Lafayette Rd., Ft. Oglethorpe GA.Please register with hike leader Tom McElhone, 805-208-4654 or sarmitta@yahoo.com.
Coytee Loop Branch and Glendale Branch Loop Trail – East Lakeshore Trail in Greenback, TN on Tellico Lake. 5.4 miles. This hike is rated easy.
The hike will start at the Coytee Loop Branch trailhead parking lot off Axley Chapel Rd., and connects with the Glendale Branch Trail. The trail follows the shoreline and is relatively flat with a few hills. We will park at the Glendale Trailhead and shuttle to the Coytee Trailhead. Wear appropriate clothing, and bring snacks and drinks.
Directions to Glendale Trailhead: Take Hwy 321 to Hwy 95 near the Ft. London Dam close to Lenoir City. Go South on Hwy 95 to the first right at Glendale Community Rd, which is a long narrow road to the trailhead. The parking lot is up a hill on the right. Let’s meet at 10:00 am. Call, text, or email: Karen Towle, (865) 254-2044, delicadeze@aol.com
Hike Emory Gap, Panther Creek, Judge Branch, Frozen Head State Park. Join us on a flower hike in the Cumberland Mountains. We will park at the end of Flat Fork Road, hike a portion of the Panther Creek trail and the entire Emory Gap trail to the falls. On the Panther Creek trail we will go about 2.3 miles and gain about 250 feet, turn around and go back to the Emory Gap trail, losing about 200 feet. The Emory Gap trail to the falls is about 1.0 mile and gains about 300 feet. At the falls we will turn around and go back to the parking area, losing about 350 feet. The total distance for this hike is about 4.1 miles. If time and energy allow we will relocate and take a second hike on the Old Mack and Judge Branch trails. This second hike is about 2.6 miles and gains about 300 feet by the turn around point. All of the elevation changes are estimates based on a topo map. If we take both hikes the total distance is about 6.7 miles which is about average of most of our hikes. The hike difficulty is rated as moderate. We recommend shoes to wear to and from the hike plus sturdy hiking shoes, other weather appropriate clothing, a snack, a drink and a camera.
We will meet in Oak Ridge at Books-A-Million, 310 South Illinois Ave, meeting in the parking lot nearest Illinois Ave. We will leave at 9:00 am. Round trip distance from Books-A-Million is 43 miles. After the hike plan on stopping on the way back for a meal and refreshments. For specific information about the hike please call Tom before the 20th at 865-588-5622, leave a message or send an email to cressler@retiree.utk.edu.
This park has approximately 15 miles of outstanding hiking trails. We will hike about 6 miles on several different trails. All trails are filled with lots of history and beautiful lake views. We will begin our hike at the Big Valley trailhead and pass the Ghost House loop before connecting to the Dark Hollow Trail. Dark Hollow connects to Lakeview that borders on a very scenic portion of the lake. We’ll also find small family cemeteries that are very interesting. For those who want to carpool, we will meet at 9:00 am at the Ingles parking lot on Cedar Lane off the Merchants Rd exit of I-75 North. We should arrive at Big Ridge State Park, Old Mill parking area by 10:00 am. Be sure to bring $$ for carpooling. Please pre register with Rosie 865.985.9144 or rosemary_L@hotmail.com