You know I bet someone will say to me you swore that you would never buy a drone. Well, technically I did as it was a Xmas Gift. So, today was the test flight of the new drone.
The drone, a DJI Mini SE, is a small lightweight beginner craft. It just weighs 249 grams which places it on the line for registering it with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), since it didn't cost much I went ahead and did it anyway. I named it after the ship in Alien, the Nostromo. This one has good battery life and a good camera that moves Like most beginner drones it uses a cell phone as the screen hooked up to the controller. I did end up getting an extra battery, landing gear, and pad. You might ask it is the end of February, so why am I now doing a test flight. Well, there are a number of reasons let's just say I needed to learn to drive it.
Oh, when I went to finally fire it up I had forgotten I needed to charge the controller up. Finally, after I got the stuff ironed and it was time for the test flight. I decided to play it safe and do a flight that was mostly up and down and just 20 meters up (I preset the height). I mean I didn't want to break it on the first flight. I took it up and then down without breaking it.
So, there will be pictures on this blog from the drone, but there is only one first flight...
It's February and besides being the last month of winter it also means tree tapping time and Sugar Maples to be exact. This is my sixth season tapping trees.
This year I was a little behind for a number of reasons. The first one of the big maples here at St. Clair is out of action as I am letting it heal after the trauma of having some big limbs removed. Two there has been work going on at the house and three I had to get some new, permanent tubing.
So, I had one big maple to tap and after getting ready and drilling the hole it came up dry...not a good start. The following day I checked some of the younger trees and found one that was 10 inches in diameter making it ready to tap. So far this tree has outproduced the much larger Sugar Maple. Well, when it is time to cook I will give a rundown of that.
It is February, while it is still winter, it can one minute be cold and the next more like Spring and that describes my day hike in the Cherokee National Forest (CNF).
The winter I mentioned was there when I left Tuesday morning as the temperature clocked in at 22 degrees. Before I had to worry about the change in them[atures I had to decide where I was going. After deciding on the Margarette Falls Trailhead I still had to pick a route. Margarette Falls was out because I went here a month ago, in the snow. So it was down to Bullen Hollow and Phillips Hollow and I didn't choose the latter trail until I reached the junction at the information kiosk.
Snowy January trip
The trailhead for three trails
Trail junction
Before crossing the creek I had a chat with an old local guy who had hiked all over the trails in "my backyard." Anyway, once across I headed up the Phillips Hollow Trail and it wasn't long before I ran into blowdown. It was here that I made an executive decision which while not popular with Pete was to abandon this hike. You see, at this point in my life when I hit the trail some days, I feel like I'm in my 30s (like my snow hike at Roan Mountain). Then there are the days I feel my age (like recently at Beauty Spot) and then days like today when I just feel...old!
Phillips Hollow Trail
Plenty of ice
Had to cut some blowdown
Didn't feel old on these hikes...
So, I decided to go up the Bullen Hollow Trail and then do an exploratory hike up a manway that is part of a loop of the Bullen Hollow Trail to Kennedy Cabin and down Renyolds Ridge. I saw this hike on the Greeneville Hiking Club site. It is around 10 miles and since it was already noon I was doing the loop, but I wanted to see if this part is still possible. I was right about where it came down I must say it wasn't as steep as I thought but was longer. One other thing the manway is in far better shape than I expected.
Bullen Hollow Trail goes right
Start of the manway
There were a lot of good winter views heading up and on top of Renyolds Ridge. Oh, and while I saw some aspects of snow on earlier in the day I ran into much more on top of the ridge. Most was in the shade hiding from the Sun.
Greeneville...
...Tusculum...
...Blackstack Cliffs...
...Jones Meadow...
...Towers on Camp Creek Bald
Snow on the mountainside...
...& on Reynolds Ridge
As always the trip back was quicker than the journey up and eventually, I got back to the trailhead and looked to my right and could see where I had been. While everything didn't go as planned it was a day in the mountains, on the trail which is better than a regular day!
There are two things guaranteed when the Hiking Machine hits the trail. First I will be shredding trail and the second...the Lummox will whine like a little pansy!
I mean today he was moaning before we even left for the trail. "My foot, my knee they hurt" what a baby! Then we started up the Phillips Hollow Trail and I was ready to burn up this loop, but not the Lummox. He said he could make it and I was spitting nails! Then we decided to go up the Bullen Hollow Trail to go off on a manway Hiking Machine style...HELL YEAH, DADDY! When we got to the top of the ridge once again in wussed out so we went no further. Oh well, it was better than the hiking we had been doing. That's all I got so I'm out...BITCHES!
This past week I decided to go on another adventure on the first day of February, but it would be on January snow. Where did I choose to go? Up to Indian Grave Gap for a hike up the Appalachian Trail (AT) to the Beauty Spot.
This wasn't the original destination because after the snow last weekend (really Friday) I decided I would go to the Smokies and up to Newfound Gap. I haven't done a snow hike in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park (GSMNP) and Newfound Gap since March of 2018, just shy of four years. I like hiking out of here because will tough the climbs are brutally steep and snow can make it twice as hard. Since I am still getting into shape, again, going somewhere else like Mount LeConte was a little too ambitious.
Smokies March 2018
As I have said before big snows close Newfound Gap Road and since the Park Service only plows this route, don't salt. So, it can be closed for a couple of days and that was the case as of Sunday night. I was planning to go on Monday but when I got up and checked the GSMNP Road Twitter page nothing was said about the road being open. It was way too long and far of a drive to get there and it is closed. I will admit I did think about going to Beauty Spot on Monday but decided to give it one more day... I mean the road had to open later in the day? Well, it didn't and as I prepared for the morning I knew I probably needed to go with the backup plan because if I was going out it was Tuesday. See Heat Miser was bringing weather Wednesday of warmer temperature and rain. This meant by the time the rain passed nearly all of it would have melted. Also, I was going to the Cabin on Friday, so it was Tuesday or bust!
GSMNP (T) & TDOT (BL & BR)
Since it hadn't opened on Monday it most likely would be late morning before it would Tuesday. Since it is a two-hour drive, one-way, to Newfound Gap and the hike was at least six miles I really didn't want to start at 11 am. That means when I got up Tuesday morning hoping that the GSMNP Twitter would have news but it didn't and when I got home I checked the Newfound Gap webcam it opened around 11 am. What all of this means it was off to Indian Grave Gap. I will say on my way I got a little worried about snow. I didn't see any before finally seeing some just before reaching Johnson City. From there a little more, some on Buffalo Mountain and even more in Erwin. By the time I made a pit stop at Rock Creek Recreation Area, there was snow around. This is the final stop before heading up the last three miles to my destination. The snow got better with each mile and was good at Indian Grave Gap. There wasn't as much snow as Newfound Gap (there is over a 2,000-foot difference) but like the road to Roan Mountain, TN-395 is plowed and salted.
Speaking of Carvers Gap, something Indian Grave Gap shares is wind. So with temps in the 20s, it was a cold start. The first half of this hike saw the trail go in and out of snow, and at times even half-and-half. So, when I reached Unaka Mountain Road it had plenty of snow (I made note of this). It was then up and I did hit a couple of spots that for Sun, so less snow. However, I finally reached a section where it became all snow when I reached the west end of the bald known as the Beauty Spot.
Cold start at Indian Grave Gap
Snow (T), Half Snow (BL) & almost No Snow (BR)
Cutline with a view of Pinnacle Mountain
Crossing Unaka Mtn. Road
As readers of the blog know the Wood Booger has a long history with this accurately named place. Back to when I use to go here when I was in college to several visits in recent times, including camping here in the summer of 2020 and returning later in the fall. The fun thing was there were spots with no snow (like the actual summit) and others with eight inches and drifts in places north of afoot.
Summer 2020 (T&M) & October 2020 (B)
There were deep spots of snow
July 2020 Campsite
At the summit, I had lunch and took care of a foot issue I had with my boots. For this trip, I decided to wear my leather L.L.Bean boots. I usually only wear these in cold temperatures, snow, and with blister socks under my wool ones. While there was snow, it wasn't super cold and I didn't bring blister socks. So I probably should have worn another pair of boots and you can guess what happens...blisters. But, not just one heel, but both heels.
Green & Gravel Knobs
Big Bald
Unaka Mountain
Pleasant Garden
The Roans
Lunch: Soup & "the Steak of the Woods"
The Devil Boots with YakTrax
Because of this, I decided to not go back to the AT because it hurts more climbing than going downhill, which Unaka Mountain Road does. Still, I had planned to go the road back because I thought it would have more snow and it is also the former route of the AT before it was moved across Beauty Spot in the mid-70s. Instead of going down to the parking area and down to the road, I decided to go down an extra two-tenths of a mile to where the AT meets its former route at the stile. When I got to the road I was right about the snow. After a short uphill, I started down where the road from the parking area meets my route.
Parking area
Down the AT
Where old & current AT meet
Snow-covered...
...Unaka Mtn. Road & the former AT
On the way down I noticed something that I had thought of as there were ski tracks. I have said that the road up to the Roan Rhododendron Garden is one of the best spots to cross-country ski in this area, but it can get crowded. Well, there will always be a lot fewer people here.
Old AT Blaze (L) & Ski Tracks (R)
Where the current AT crosses
There was plenty of snow until about the spot where the cut line goes overhead. About here I started seeing some of the gravel road, and then more until most were gone when I arrived back at the trailhead. I will say my feet were happy to see the car. A five-mile day in the snow, while tough (not to mention the blisters) was well worth the effort.
The gate for the road which crosses the AT
The cutline tower is seen from two different views
