One Step Closer To That Elusive November Deer

When Thanksgiving approaches there is another November tradition...Deer Hunting Season, and to be specific firearm time.

It is hard to believe that this is the third year going out (2017 & 2018) and once again I wasn't too successful. However, for the first, I did see a deer while hunting. First, I decided I was going to the Cabin on Wednesday, but I ended up leaving before dawn as Dad needed to meet with Dwight about the spring.

So, I got to go out Wednesday evening and I stopped by two different deer stands. First was at the junction where I spent a few minutes. The second was on top of Gillenwater Ridge, it was the one I  spent most of my time last year. I saw animals...it was just squirrels.

On Thursday morning, I got up before dawn and headed up to that first deer stand and sat there quietly for three hours. So, I decided to get down to walk around and sit a little, so I headed up towards the other gate and sat down. As I sat there all a sudden a deer came out of the woods. I will admit I got excited, but I calmly scooped the deer and unfortunately, it was young, had no horns and was a doe...which means I couldn't shoot it. I mean it was obvious it was young because it wasn't too afraid of me. I mean it looked a lot like Bambi.

For the afternoon, I went up the hollow in front of the Cabin, mainly because I had tweaked my back, so I didn't want to go too far. I found a good place and in between all the squirrels I heard what might have been a deer. I never saw it, but this was my most successful days out yet. As I like to say if it was easy it would be called shopping not hunting.

This year I am going to practice with the bow and will be ready for bow season to resume in December.

Food Trucks Bring Back Memories Of Hockey Players Past

When I was in Johnson City after my hike Saturday I was trying to decide what I wanted to eat? Well, in the outer lot, of ETSU, at the corner of State of Franklin and University Parkway there were food trucks...four of them. I would have stopped anyway, but one was Auntie Ruth's Doughnuts, so you know I wasn't passing it up.

The other three were serving entrée, one the Caribbean Grill truck I have eaten at before next to Mahoney's. Let me just say they have great food, but I decided not to eat here for two reasons. One, like I said, I have eaten here before and two, I can eat there most days next to Mahoney's. So, it came down to two.

The first was called Trucky Cheese. It was a gourmet grilled cheese truck. The other was BiTE! at the time I thought it served up grilled fare, and because of this, I got a hamburger. Turns out a gourmet Philly Steak and Cheese was there specialty...maybe next time. But the hamburger was good and so was the waffle fries.

Maybe the coolest thing was this was all set up where we use to play inline hockey over 20 years ago. It was on the very spot where I sat that we played most of the time there was hockey in Johnson City. I couldn't help but think of my old friend Andrew Moore, who passed away this week. A lot of people know him as the drummer for the Johnson City band Plain Jane Has a Date, or as an artist but I use to play hockey with and against him on this old parking lot...good times!

Late Fall Trip Back To Tennessee Best State Park...Rocky Fork!

There are not many places that can make me change hiking plans. However, one is my favorite Tennessee State Park...Rocky Fork.

I was thinking of a hike to Pinnacle Mountain for Saturday, but as I was going to bed Friday night I looked at the Mid-Appalachian Hiking Club schedule I read they were going from Devil's Fork Gap back to Rocky Fork. This was going to be, another key swap hike, with Johnson City Hiking Club. 

After switching vehicles we started at Devil's Fork Gap. I had last been here back in the Summer on my birthday. This time I was going the opposite way, South on the Appalachian Trail (AT). But, this wasn't my first time going this direction on the AT. I last went this way on a hike to Shelton Graves three years ago. We were only doing half this hike as we would turn into Rocky Fork at Flint Gap.

The highlight of this first half of the hike was Flint Mountain Shelter. It is 2.7 miles from Devil's Fork Gap and is a log shelter, built-in 1988 by the Carolina Hiking Club. The shelter sleeps eight and has bear cables and a privy. This is where we stopped for lunch. Our leader Shambhavi brought some really good sweets called Kaju Pista Roll, it was very tasty.

Something else that was good to see, the whole day was up high there were patches of snow. It wasn't anything like Wednesday, but some snow is better than no snow. It was less than a mile to Flint Gap and where we got off the AT and headed down towards Rocky Fork. It isn't easy to find, but the Flint Connector Spur which is to the right. If you look close there is a brown Rocky Fork blaze and a log with two arrows and the initials RF.

The first part heading down is steep, but it isn't terribly long. It was here where we met the Johnson City Club for the key swap. Once it flattened out the hike wasn't too bad. We first passed a drained old pond, then the "closed" Flint Mountain Trail and then reached the junction of the Blockstand Creek and Flint Creek Trails.

We took the green one to the right. The Flint Creek Trail had several small waterfalls and footbridges, with a couple still with ice. We eventually came to a junction with the Flint Mountain Trail Backcountry Campsite. While I didn't hike too it, I take it that it's similar to the Headwaters Trail Campsite, complete with a bear box.

We finally reached a sign which is near the site of a "battle" or "massacre," between John Sevier and the Cherokee, take your pick. Then we passed the second pond before coming to were they are putting the new big bridge. I hope they keep the old one, it has Rocky Fork (spelled out in sticks...see cover photo). Then it was on back to the trailhead. I will say I made the right decision as this was an excellent hike all around, but hiking the AT and then into Rocky Fork...how could it not be.