Roanoke Canal Hike

Saturday, I made a day trip to Roanoke Rapids to hike the Roanoke Canal Trail.  I arrived at about 830 and parked at the Roanoke Canal Museum.  First, I went westbound following the trail.  It was surprisingly scenic and there was still some fall color showing.

In about a half-mile, I came to the overlook for the Power Canal Bulkhead, which was used to generate hydroelectric power when the canal was in operation.

Right past here was Rochelle Pond, a stormwater retention basin.

I went as far as Roanoke Rapids Lake Day Use Area and headed back.  Once back at the museum, I continued eastbound on the canal trail.

The trail crossed NC-48 at the railroad tracks and ran behind the West Rock plant.  After crossing River Road, there were some scenic spots along the Roanoke River.

A surprising amount of fall color remained for the end of November.

After this, I crossed under I-95 and continued southeast.  Right after the wastewater treatment plant, the trail crossed over the Chockoyotte Aqueduct.

A short trail led to an overlook of the aqueduct, built in 1824 to route the canal over Chockoyotte Creek.

Right past here, a short detour led to the Confederate Cemetery as the trail entered Weldon.

The trail led through the downtown of Weldon and went under US-301 in a tunnel.

Right past here was the eastern trailhead at River Falls Park.  Great Falls of the Roanoke was just upstream.

Waterfall is a bit of stretch, but it was pretty impressive on the river here.  The Roanoke Canal was built to bypass this waterfall.  After a couple pictures, I started to head back.  While in Weldon, the trail passed under an old railroad trestle.

It was the advent of the railroads that ultimately led to the demise of the canal.  I stopped for one more short break at the aqueduct, probably the most scenic part of the trail.

Then I finished the hike back up at the museum.

Thanksgiving at Medoc Mountain

Thanksgiving morning, we headed to Medoc Mountain State Park for a hike with Alex.  Parking at the picnic area, we went to the far end and picked Stream Loop Trail to Discovery Loop Trail.  This one led to Fishing Creek at the confluence with Bear Swamp.

At the bridge, we crossed and went left on Dam Site Loop.

The first dam ruins were just ahead, where the trail ran concurrently with the Saponi Loop Bike Trail.

A second set of ruins was further along.

Then the trail crossed Spring Branch and started heading up to Medoc Mountain.  Near the top, we reached the intersection with Summit Trail and went up to the top.  It's only 320 feet above sea level, so not much of a mountain, but the views were nice with most of the leaves down.

We stopped and head a break here and then continued on the Summit Loop.

Further down the trail, we saw the Vinson Cemetery.

The trail then headed down the ridge and to Little Fishing Creek and upstream back to the bridge.  There was a Lion's Mane mushroom along the creek here.

Across the bridge, we finished up Discovery and Stream Loop Trails and then got on Bluff Loop Trail.  There are some great views along here of Little Fishing Creek.

About half way through the loop, the trail heads up on a bluff overlooking the creek then descends stairs down to river level.  Looping around, we got off the trail and headed to the bridle trails and followed Main Trail for a half mile or so.

This is a newer part of the park, south of Medoc Mountain Road.  Medoc Mountain was visible from trail.  We stopped for a break and then made our way back.

On the drive in, we passed de Hart Botanical Gardens and I was pretty sure there was a waterfall there.  So on the way back, we stopped on the way for a short hike.  We hiked the waterfall trail down to the falls.

Unfortunately, the water level was very low so not much of a waterfall to see.  A little further, we did the short Homestead Loop to the see the old ruins.

Then we finished up the Waterfall Loop back to the car.

We had worked up quite an appetite and headed to my mom's house for a delicious Thanksgiving dinner.  Alex had some turkey and gravy with dinner too!

Fall Foliage at South Mountains

Monday morning, I had breakfast at the hotel and checked out.  I got on the road before sunrise and it was beautiful watching it driving through Asheville.  I got off the highway to go for a hike at South Mountains State Park.  At lower elevations, the fall color should still be good here.  I parked at the Jacob Fork parking and started off on the Little River Trail.  The trail climbed steeply right off the bat, but the pretty colors made a nice distraction.

I passed the intersection with Raven Rock and Turkey Ridge Trails and the Little River Campsite.

The trail then descended to cross a tributary of Little River.  Shortly past here was Little River Falls.  I bushwhacked around but could find no spot with an unobstructed view.  Rhododendrons blocked the entire thing from the base.  Half-way up the hill was an OK view.

Continuing on, I got on Upper CCC Trail and took this to Horseridge Trail.

There were some really nice views from along here.

At the intersection with Sawtooth Trail, I turned left.  I presume this trail is named for the constant up and down.  In about a half-mile was an overlook with fantastic views.

I stopped and had a snack here.  Continuing on, I passed Chestnut Knob Trail and the Sawtooth Campsites and then descended to the tributary of Little River.  There was a small sliding waterfall just below the crossing.

Right past the waterfall, the trail ended back at Upper CCC Trail.  Turning right, I got on Little River Trail and took it back to Raven Rock Trail and descended down to the road.

Across the road was River Trail.  This short trail followed Jacob Fork back to the parking area.

There were several scenic spots to get out in the river.  I finished the trail and then made the drive home.

Rock Slab Falls

Sunday morning, I had breakfast at the hotel and then got on the Blue Ridge Parkway heading south towards Cherokee.  The mountains were beautiful and I made a few stops.  First I stopped at Bunches Bald Overlook for a nice view.

Then I stopped at Big Witch Overlook.

The next stop was View Thomas Divide.

Finally, I stopped at View Ballhoot Scar.

At the south end of the parkway, I entered Great Smoky Mountains National Park at Occanaluftee.  There was a bull elk in the field so I stopped for some pictures.

There were also some wild turkeys here in the field as well.

I then drove up to Clingmans Dome to start my hike.  There were great views from the parking lot here.

I started off hiking down Forney Ridge Trail for just over a mile and turned right on Forney Creek Trail.  This trail was even steeper in its descent.  It headed towards its namesake then switchbacked towards a tributary.  It got pretty narrow in places.  At the tributary, the trail followed it down steeply towards the confluence with Forney Creek.  There was a scenic cascade just upstream of the crossing.

Rock Slab Falls was just downstream of the crossing and there was a campsite here.  There was also evidence of old logging operations in the area.  The view from the base was poor due to a big tree that fell across the middle.

Another path from the campsite led to the base of the upper cascade, just above the downed tree.  There was a better view of the upper drop from here.

There were some scenic drops just downstream of the falls as well.

After some pictures, I continued on the trail down to Steeltrap Creek.  There's a waterfall about a half-mile upstream but absolutely no trail.  I started to rock hop up the creek but it was so overgrown with rhododendron.  I was by myself and no one would ever find me out here if something happened, so I turned back.  It was a very steep climb back up Forney Creek Trail.  When I finally got back to Forney Ridge Trail, I turned right to go out to Andrews Bald.

There were really nice views from here and Fontana Lake was visible far down below.

Heading back, I took Clingmans Dome Bypass Trail up to the Appalachian Trail.  I went to the top of Mount Buckley but there was no view here.  There was one spot along the AT with a really nice view and I could see Gatlinburg.

Turning around and going northbound, I passed Clingmans Dome and went out Mount Love.  There were a few breaks in the trees but not much to see.  Turning back, I stopped at Clingmans Dome and climbed the tower.

It was super crowded but the views were fantastic.  Mount LeConte was towering to the north.

Then I headed back down to the parking lot and enjoyed one more view from way up high.

From here, I headed back towards Maggie Valley.

At Oconaluftee, I got back on the Blue Ridge Parkway and made a couple stops.  First, I stopped at View Raven Fork.

Then I caught the sun setting behind the mountains from Jenkins Ridge Overlook.

I made one more stop at Plott Balsam Overlook and saw the moon over the mountains.

After this, I finished the drive into Maggie Valley.  I had dinner at Legends Sports Bar and then headed back to the hotel and got ready to head home.