Wood Booger's Top 5: Favorite Day Hikes of the 2018 Fall Outdoor Series

I haven't done one of these in a while...a Wood Booger Top 5 Day Hikes blog. There were a lot of great hikes beyond these, so it was hard to widdle it down, but I did. So here are the Top 5 Day Hikes of the 2018 Fall Outdoor Series...enjoy!

Honorable Mention #1:  Hikes at Sierra Club Tennessee Fall Chapter (October 20, 2017) - As always there were many highlights from the Tennessee Sierra Club Chapter meeting and Saturday was full of hiking. The first was a hike the Sierra Club was invited to by Tennessee State Naturalist Randy Hedgepath at the historic town of Rugby. We got to tour this 19th Century town modeled on an English Village. We also got to hike the "Hidden Trail" as it is that, one not on maps which runs through the Big South Fork National River Recreation Area (BSFNRRA). The second hike was one we do when the Chapter Meeting is at Pogue Creek Canyon State Natural Area. Lead again by Ranger Randy we hiked into this amazing canyon and got to see the impressive rock formations. this was another great hike.
Meeting 

Honorable Mention #2: Backpack on Fiery Gizzard Trail in South Cumberland State Park (October 6-7, 2018) - Since I don't count backpacks in the Top 5 I thought I would add it here. This was my first time hiking in this state park. It was very beautiful. Once we set up camp we did a day hike back to the base of Foster Falls. We had hiked above it near our start, but the hike to its base took us by areas where people were rock climbing. However, the main event was the 120-foot plunging cascade, it was amazing. I also got to see some crazy people jump off it. Over the two days, I saw BLANK waterfalls.

Number 5: First Hike of Fall to Bruce Creek Falls & the Devil's Backbone (September 2, 2018) - It is all was good to start out the Fall Outdoor Season on a high note and that is what I did. I had seen the Devil's Backbone when driving up I-75 (usually headed to Big South Fork) and knew there was a trail up there. However, the trip up also passed the impressive three-tier, Bruce Creek Falls. Once at the top there was a wonderful view of Cove Lake State Park, LaFollette, I-75 and the soaring mountains. However, there were two negatives...the first it was hot and the second I hauled out a constructor trash bag of garbage. Still, it was a good hike overall..

Number 4: Happy Hikers Hike on Roundtop Trail in GSMNP (September 6, 2018) - This 7.6 miler was one of the hikes in autumn that I did with the Happy Hikers group I am a member of out of Knoxville. This hike started at the Metcalf Bottoms entrance of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park (GSMNP). This hike had wildflowers, mushrooms and a good view of the new "Missing Link" of the Foothills Parkway. Then we had to ford the Little River at the end at the Townsend Wye. This was a very good day out. 

Number 3: Return to Mt. Cammerer Fire Lookout in GSMNP (October 19,
2018) - It had been three years since I had been to the Mount Cammerer Fire Lockout and I thought it was time for a return trip. I once again s=did the out-and-back that starts in the Cosby Campground up the Low Gap Trail. While still steep and hard it wasn't as bad three years ago. Then I headed north on the Appalachian Trail (AT) to the Mount Cammerer Trail and the lookout. While the view was again amazing, the fall colors were late this year, which meant they weren't as good as 2015. All-in-all it was still a good 11.5-mile hike in the Smokies High Country.

Number 2: Fifth Annual Halloween Hike at Camp Creek Bald (October 31, 2018) -  The fall colors I did get at Mount Cammerer awaited me at Camp Creek Bald on Halloween. Seeing autumn's splendor was the main reason I chose hiking out of Jones Meadow for the annual Halloween Hike. But, the other was last year I attended for this to be the 4th Annual Halloween Hike but was stopped by ice and snow at the top. While most of the color was gone on the AT across the top, just below it was wonderful. I hit all the spots...Big Firescald Knob, White Rocks and Blackstack Cliffs and my new favorite, Camp Creek Bluffs. You can't beat a day on "the Camp" except...

Number 1: Sixth Annual Thanksgiving Weekend Hike to Mt. LeConte - (November 23, 2018) - There was no better way to finish the 2018 Fall Hiking Series than a trip to Mount LeConte. This was a repeat of my first trek to the summit of the Smokies most famous peak, up the Alum Caves Trail. I will say this was a better hike than my first trip up to Mount LeConte. I will say that this hike was more like winter than fall. It was a cold start and only got more so on the way up. There was ice on the trail and then the wind...oh the wind! At the top, it was 25 degrees with single digit wind chill...cold! Oh, the Lodge was closed so there was no warming up. The season ended on the opposite side of the temperature scale. Even with all of this, it was still a great day on the trail!