Well, it was time for the Thanksgiving Holiday to end and for us to are way back to Georgia. That is all I have got...seriously. Now for something completely different, the pictures are in reverse order.
Well, today was the second annual Thanksgiving Weekend Hike. Last year Glen and I hiked to Rich Mountain Fire Tower. Well this year we were in the area of Hot Springs, again, and traveled to one of the best spots in the southern Appalachian Mountains, Max Patch. We went up from the Tennessee side and it was an icy drive. Once we got to the mountain it still had plenty of snow. We hiked about 2.5 miles, most of it on the AT, including the spectacular summit of Max Patch with 360° views of the mountains of North Carolina and Tennessee. We came back down the North Carolina side and went to Hot Springs. This small town has the AT going right down Main Street. We went to a number of little shops and at Bluff Mountain Outfitters I finally found the Greenville, SC raised relief map that includes the North Georgia Mountains. I have been looking for this for two years. Overall it was a great day and I will write more about my two trips to Max Patch soon.
Because of Thanksgiving Week I have waited until Turkey Day to do this week's Top 5 list. So in honor of Thanksgiving I am going to be doing the Top 5 sides of Turkey Day 2014. I am leaving off turkey and ham. These would be one and two so it wouldn't be very fair. Anyway, this is a list of sides. If anyone wants to list theirs just post it on my blog or the Facebook or Google+ link.
Honorable Mention: Cranberries - This is a go to one for every table, but there is no other dish that can vary more from year-to-year. We had the basic cranberries this year, but in the past we have had more intricate dishes. I had a very good one at the Avalon Whole Foods last week and I have a recipe for a very good dish, that I made last year.
Number 5: Deviled Eggs - This is a go to dish that I think has been at every Thanksgiving I have ever had. I once was not to hot for these, but now I love them.
Number 4: Baked Cream Corn - This is a rather new edition, for me, to the Thanksgiving table and now I couldn't imaging the day with out it. The corn is baked with cheese in dessert dishes, so it takes up no room on the plate and it is tasty.
Number 3: Mashed Potatoes & Gravy - This is getting into the heavy weights of sides and nothing is anymore traditional. I know Terry's niece Riley says she even likes them better than turkey or ham (sacrilege!). While I don't think there that good no Turkey Day would be the same without them. Oh, I added gravy because that is a no-brainier.
Number 2: Sweet Potatoes - When I was a kid I passes on these and have spent the last 30 years making up for lost time. At the Thanksgivings of my youth (and into adulthood) they were made with pineapple a marshmallows on top. Don't get me wrong I love them this way, but the last two years we have had them sliced and cooked with brown sugar, butter and cinnamon and they are delicious! But, I just love sweet potatoes.
Number 1: Dressing (Butt Stuffing) - Stuffing is great, but there is something just a little better about the stuffing in the turkey cavity that I have always refer to it as Butt Stuffing. I know, some recommend not to put stuffing in the cavity. However, I have eaten it this way most of my life, it was always a part of Turkey Day. In recent years I have learned to make stuffing that is close to Butt Stuffing, but the stuffing in the turkey just seems to be slightly better than my best efforts to replicate it outside of the bird. These days when I make it I don't stuff it tight so it cooks through better. Anyway, it is my number one Turkey Day side for 2014.
I know it is Wednesday and not Monday, but here is the Week 12 or the Thanksgiving Week edition of the Beard Blog. Because I am on the road this week and I wanted to trim it up closer to Thanksgiving I moved this week's Beard Blog back two days. I am 86 days in and the third day of Week 12. So, below are this week's photos.
Well, it is Thanksgiving week (or it will be tomorrow) so Deb and I headed out toward Tennessee this morning. Most of the time the trip is uneventful, but not so today. First someone almost side swiped us in downtown Gainesville, GA. Then someone almost pulled out in front of us in Erwin, TN. Finally a four point buck leaped out just missing the front of our car. If I hadn't been going slow we might have had deer meat for the freezer. I guess, depending on how you want to look at it, we were either unlucky or very lucky. Anyway, I don't have any photos of our problems today but I did get some nice shots of Big Bald and the other mountains that can be seen from the I-26 West Metcalf Overlook. We also stopped at the Tennessee Welcome Center in Flag Pond and earlier in the day at the Smoky Mountain Host of NC near Franklin.
In some ways Rabun Bald is about being second. It is Georgia’s second
highest mountain. So to many that means it is second best. However, it was on
my second trip to the summit that I discovered that second can sometimes mean
you are a winner.
One of the Georgia Giants, Rabun Bald later in the day from Black Rock Mtn.
As I pointed out here there are a lot of perks to being first, as in
Brasstown Bald the highest mountain in Georgia. In that blog I talked some
about my first trip to Rabun Bald which ended with a fogged in finish at the
summit. I felt that the mountain was either hiding itself because it felt
inferior to its taller cousin or unlike Brasstown, Rabun just doesn’t give
up its pleasures that easy.
Brasstown Bald summit.
Like the first time I scaled the mountain, last October (2013), I went up from
the Beegum Gap Trailhead. To get there you first go through Sky Valley which is
about a two hour drive from Dawsonville. What's funny is on my way up I
ran into fog at Dillard, which is eight miles from Rabun Bald and I said to
myself "here we go again." But when I got to the Sky Valley Overlook, off GA 246,
the mist was confined to the valley which was a big relief!
Headed toward Gainesville...
...as the sun rose.
Here is what met me in Mountain City & Dillard.
Stopped at the Sky Valley Overlook...
& the beautiful mist in the valley.
To get to Sky Valley, GA one has to go through North Carolina.
I pointed out in my previous blog about my first visit that there was no sign at
the turn on to Bald Mountain Road. However, to my surprise (it is like the U.S. Forest Service read my blog) there was a sign indicating the Rabun Bald Trailhead. I
hate to point this out, since I am not the best speller, but they misspelled the name of the trail it was
spelled Bartrum where it should be Bartram.
The new sign at the turn off at Bald Mtn. Rd.
Parking at Beegum Gap.
Still, when I got to Beegum Gap it was just the same as the last time I was
there (except most of the leaves had fallen) plenty of parking because I was
the only car there. I will say the trail was different with leaf drop, but I
always find this with trails, the difference between the trail with leaves and
without.
The start of the trail in October, 2013...
...& in November, 2014.
1.6 miles.
More leaves on the ground in 2014...
...in the trees in 2013.
Sunrise on the trail.
On the way up another addition I found was where the Rabun Bald spur
connects with the Bartram Trail. For those who don’t know this is a 115 mile
trail that follows the path that 18th Century Botanist William Bartram
took. The trail visits three states North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia
and Rabun Bald is the highest peak it passes over in the Peach State.
New markers at the junction with the Bartram Trail...
...remember to right which is this way.
The difference between mid-fall...
...& late-fall on the Bartram Trail.
More contrast between my October, 2013 trip...
...& my November, 2014 one.
The Bartram & the Bald.
Anyway, at the spot where the spur connects with the Bartram Trail they
added some arrows and yellow blaze pointing the way. I will say this
trail can be described as strenuous because it has over 1,000 feet in elevation
gain. But since this is a major regional trail it is well maintained and it
switchbacks the first half of the trail is just less than a mile where it comes to
an open area where the trail meets the 4WD road. The start of this road is to the right at Beegum Gap. That means from here the hike can actually have a loop. When I did the hike last October I went back via the 4WD road, but for my latest hike I did an out-and-back on the Bartram Trail. But, from here there is only one trail for the final 7/10 of
a mile push to the top.
Here is the view from the 4WD road...
...on the way back to Beegum Gap.
This is the Bartram Trail...
...on the way back...
...to Beegum Gap.
Here is where the Bartram & 4WD road meet back in 2013.
Rabun Bald 0.7 miles.
At my last visit the leaves are almost on the ground.
The trail mostly tunnels through Mountain Laurel and Rhododendron on the way
to the top. There is a spot halfway that looks like it used to be steps and it
even has an inscription. I will say that the first time I came up it seemed a
little spookier, but that might have been the leaf cover and mist rolling
across the top blocking out the sun. This time there were less leaves and sunshine, I really enjoyed this trip
more than my first. Well, the homestretch is a long uphill through more
Rhododendron it was about here the last time that I saw a turkey cross the
trail.
Rhododendron tunnel on my first visit...
...same spot in November.
More Laurel & Rhododendron tunnels from October, 2013...
...& November, 2014.
The steps area...
...& the inscription it was greener in 2013...
...than 2014.
The steps in late autumn.
Early fall on the Bartram Trail in 2013...
...& November, 2014.
When the trail finally reaches the summit area one finds these two stones one
for the Bartram Trail and the other for the Three Forks Trail which heads down
the eastside of the mountain, three miles, to another trailhead. However, there
was a new addition (once again it is like they were reading my blog) a
trail sign pointing the way I came from Beegum Gap and where the Bartram
continues, the 15 miles to Warwoman Dell.
There is more color in October...
...than November on the homestretch to the summit.
This was once the only trail markers...
...but this sign has been added.
For me it is on to the summit where I am greeted by the old CCC Tower.
Unlike the huge observation deck at Brasstown Bald this one has a quint charm.
The CCC Tower, shrouded in leaves & clouds...
...in November it is bathed in sunshine.
The front of the CCC Tower...
...& the back as seen from the Three Forks Trail.
Before I headed up I decided to look at the US Geological Marker, again. Again to my surprise it even
looked like someone had cleaned it up or replaced it too.
With the US Geological Marker...
...when I found it in November it looked like it had either been cleaned or replaced...
...it looked a lot rougher in 2013.
Looking down at it from the tower.
When I got to the summit and climbed the tower I noticed that blue sky had
replaced the fog from my first visit. When I stepped out on the view platform
all I can say was….WOW!
The view in October, 2013...
...& my recent visit.
West Vista...
...North Vista...
...East Vista...
...South Vista...
The Wood Booger likes!
The tower offers a 360° view and because of its smaller size it feels more personal. The location of the mountain doesn't hurt. One can see the most
prominent peaks in North Georgia, the higher peaks of South Carolina and the Smokies. It also affords views of four
states (Georgia, Tennessee, and North & South Carolina) and the highest
peaks in three of these, Clingmans Dome (TN), Sassafras Mountain (SC) and
Brasstown Bald (Ga). This quite possibly is the best vista in Georgia, bar
none.
On my previous visit I saw no one, but today after about 15 minutes a lone
hiker came up. He said that he lived in Scaly Mountain and that his house was
visible from the mountain and guess what it was.
Shadows on the summit.
There was a number of planes in the sky.
One last look back at the CCC Tower.
Headed back to Beegum Gap.
What is funny is he wasn't the last hiker
I would meet. I had read that the mountain could get busy, but up to this point
I had seen no evidence of this. On the way back down the mountain I passed 12
more hikers. I guess on a nice day like this was it does get rather busy, but it was
Veterans Day.
Where the trail & 4WD road meet.
In November I took the Bartram Trail which went right.
When I got back in October of 2013 my car is the only one parked...
...but is was a different story on Veterans Day.
It also tested another theory. I think in my previous blog I had heard there was
room for around five-to-six, but it will hold at least seven (because that is how many was there). At least no one
blocked me in like at Buffalo Mountain last December. I still remember you
Maryland guy!
Next time I think I want to come here on the Three Forks Trail.
Well, that about covers my two visits to Rabun Bald. I have to say that while
both hikes were fun the vista on the second hike made that trip extra special. I
hope to hike this again via the Three Forks Trail in the future. I would just like to
add while it might be second it is the first winner and earns its place as one of Georgia's Giants.
Trail Rating:
My Take:
For Difficulty – 3Stars
For Trail Conditions – 4 Stars
For Views – 5 Stars
For Solitude – 3 Stars
Overall – I went over my review above.
Pete’s Take :
For Difficulty – 2½ Rabbits Paws
For Trail Conditions – 4 Rabbits Paws
For Views – 5 Rabbits Paws
For Solitude – 2½ Rabbits Paws
Overall – This was a excellent hike both times, but the Lummox was spooked by the fog the first trip up. Anyway, it is a nice hike not too hard, but challenging. Since it is a major regional trail the maintenance is good and it was nice to see the new signs. On the view, I have to agree with the Lummox the vista is outstanding. As for solitude I preferred it the first time because there was nobody. It got busy on our second trip, but there was only one kid and the crowd was nothing like Brasstown Bald.
Honorable Mention: Cranberries - This is a go to one for every table, but there is no other dish that can vary more from year-to-year. We had the basic cranberries this year, but in the past we have had more intricate dishes. I had a very good one at the Avalon Whole Foods last week and I have a recipe for a very good dish, that I made last year.
Number 5: Deviled Eggs - This is a go to dish that I think has been at every Thanksgiving I have ever had. I once was not to hot for these, but now I love them.
Number 4: Baked Cream Corn - This is a rather new edition, for me, to the Thanksgiving table and now I couldn't imaging the day with out it. The corn is baked with cheese in dessert dishes, so it takes up no room on the plate and it is tasty.
Number 3: Mashed Potatoes & Gravy - This is getting into the heavy weights of sides and nothing is anymore traditional. I know Terry's niece Riley says she even likes them better than turkey or ham (sacrilege!). While I don't think there that good no Turkey Day would be the same without them. Oh, I added gravy because that is a no-brainier.
Number 2: Sweet Potatoes - When I was a kid I passes on these and have spent the last 30 years making up for lost time. At the Thanksgivings of my youth (and into adulthood) they were made with pineapple a marshmallows on top. Don't get me wrong I love them this way, but the last two years we have had them sliced and cooked with brown sugar, butter and cinnamon and they are delicious! But, I just love sweet potatoes.
Number 1: Dressing (Butt Stuffing) - Stuffing is great, but there is something just a little better about the stuffing in the turkey cavity that I have always refer to it as Butt Stuffing. I know, some recommend not to put stuffing in the cavity. However, I have eaten it this way most of my life, it was always a part of Turkey Day. In recent years I have learned to make stuffing that is close to Butt Stuffing, but the stuffing in the turkey just seems to be slightly better than my best efforts to replicate it outside of the bird. These days when I make it I don't stuff it tight so it cooks through better. Anyway, it is my number one Turkey Day side for 2014.
My Take:
Pete’s Take :