The Great Adventure 2019: The Ovens Natural Park

 
I'm not sure where CH heard about The Ovens but this was one stop he definitely wanted to make. We spent 2 nights in the park. It was a nice break from trying to see everything. We relaxed, took a hike, and enjoyed ourselves as our time in Canada was rapidly coming to a close.

The Ovens is owned by the Chapin Family. If you remember the song "Cat's in the Cradle", you'll know who Harry Chapin is. That is just part of the history, though. "The Ovens" are actually the sea caves that can be found as you hike the sea cliff trail. They just aren't the kind you can walk in like the ones in New Brunswick.

There is a legend that a M'kmaq Indian paddled into one of the caves and came out 90 miles on the other side of the province. The real history is the Gold Rush of 1861. Sitting on this property was a town of over a thousand miners. Bank, hotels, and stores were in this town. Sadly, the town only lasted 6 years. There is a small museum on site. 

We hoped that our campsite would be right on the cliff, but we had to settle for being right across the road from it. Still, it wasn't a bad spot.

If I remember correctly, there was a water spout not far from our spot, but the campsites did not have electricity. We had a couple of fantastic nights' sleep, and the view when we woke up wasn't too shabby:

Something funny that happened: when we first arrived, I saw what I thought were a couple of people sitting in chairs on an isthmus:

See what I mean? Doesn't that look like 2 people sitting in chairs? Well, as soon as I had the chance I walked over because those people hadn't moved in a long time. This is what it actually was:

At least I provided CH with some comic relief! 

We opted to take the easy way out while we were there and take advantage of the diner that is in the campground. There was music playing (thanks to the Chapin family!) and the food was pretty good.

Overall, the campground was a little rugged. I have no idea what the shower places look like because I decided to really rough it and go without the full day we were there. I will say that the outside didn't look very welcoming! The toilets reminded me of the ones in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park...you know, the ones that don't flush? Yep, those are the ones that were there. Someone left the door open at night & I was a little concerned I was going to surprise some critter. Luckily that didn't happen!

Once again, the beauty of Canada just astounded me. The rocks weathered by the sea were captivating.

We only had one more stop in Canada. 2 more nights and then we would be heading back to East Tennessee. 

       

Weekend Wrap-Up

Time to get back into the blogging groove!

The highlight of the weekend was Saturday.  CH wanted to take me to this place called Buck Bald in the Cherokee Forest. He's been there many times on the motorcycle, but I had never been. It's really just a clearing on the top of a mountain where a fire tower once stood. The tower is gone; there are a couple of picnic tables. We had the area to ourselves; it was so quiet you could hear the wind. I packed a lunch for us, so we had a nice little picnic with this view:

Unfortunately, the day was hazy, so the view wasn't as clear as it could have been, but the 360° view was still stunning. There is still a concrete marker that may have been for the fire tower. CH said that one time when he was there, he saw a couple of military helicopters hovering over the spot. He said he could see some of the guys with a map, pointing to the marker, so he thought it may be now be a landmark for aircraft.

On the way, I saw a sign for Conasauga Falls, so we stopped on the way back for what we thought was going to be a nice little hike. And it was...on the way down. Coming back up was a completely different story. The sign at the beginning of the trail said it was 1 mile, but I swear it was more than that, and we didn't go down the whole way.

I saw a couple of interesting things on the trail:

We stopped for ice cream and saw this gigantic frying pan:

After we got home, we rested for a while, then CH grilled brats for supper. I mixed up some Tennessee Tea. CH had some at a local restaurant, so I got the ingredients and tried it..and it was just what we needed after the day we had!
Never in my life have my calves hurt as bad as they did on Sunday! I really had trouble walking around, so I spent most of the day recovering relaxing.
Now it's Monday. Time to get my rear in gear and actually do something productive around the house!

Mt. LeConte

If you're looking for my Weekend Wrap-up, click here.

There are 2 peaks higher than Mt. LeConte in the Smokies:  Clingmans Dome & Mt. Guyot.  It is quite a hike to the top of the mountain, but well worth it. This is a hike that I did a loooong time ago...like when I was in high school.  The hike to Mt. LeConte is 5.5 miles.  Along the way, you'll encounter Alum Cave (which isn't a cave at all but a bluff).  Saltpeter was mined out of here by Confederate Soldiers to make gunpowder during the Civil War.  Epsom Salt from here was also mined for dye.  

The half-way mark is "Gracie's Pulpit", named after a 92 year old woman who hiked up to LeConte.  There are a couple of ledges that you have to walk on.  I vividly remember those ledges, because I'm not crazy about heights.  Luckily, there are cables that people like me can hold onto as you go over the ledge.  

When you get to Mt. LeConte, you will find cabins to welcome overnight visitors.  There is also a "lodge", which is the highest lodge in the Eastern United States.  This is no ordinary lodge:  there is no electricity, so guests can enjoy kerosene lamps and propane heat.  Oh, and there's no running water, either, but a wash basin and bucket is provided for sponge baths!  They do, however, have a building with flush toilets.  Overnight guests can enjoy a home-cooked dinner & breakfast.  They even offer wine with dinner for a $10 fee.  For an additional $10, they will provide you with a sack lunch for the walk down the trail.
The Lodge's website suggests the Alum Cave trail is the "easiest", although they also say that some people think Trillium Gap Trail is easier since that's the trail the llamas use to bring supplies.  If you take Trillium Gap, you will go by Grotto Falls.  Visitors to this waterfall can walk behind the falls.

For some beautiful pictures of Mt. LeConte, click HERE.

Abrams Falls

(For photo creds, click on the pictures)

Abrams Falls isn't a very high waterfall, but it can be very "heavy".  It's also very beautiful.  The hike is also very beautiful.  It's a little bit of hike to get to, but well worth it.  It is rated as a "moderate" hiking trail, but there are parts of it that seem more like "difficult".  The total round trip hike is 5 miles, and should take anywhere between 3-4 hours.  And, of course, there's always the danger that you may see a bear wandering around. Appropriate footwear would be hiking boots due to the trekking over rocks, as well as a couple of log bridges.
The trailhead is just inside Cades Cove.  Due to this, if you're planning a trip to Abrams Falls, you probably should add in at least an extra hour to get to/from the trailhead...just in case.  There are times when traffic is heavy in The Cove.

As with any waterfall, there is a serious danger of drowning if you get in at the bottom of the fall.  There have been some deaths due to people not heeding this warnings.  www.hikinginthesmokies.com reports that this hike is listed in the top 10 most dangerous hikes in the country.  (I'm glad I didn't know that last time I hiked it!)  The reason for its listing is the threat of hypothermia, as well as the drowning risk.  But, don't let that deter you from hiking to Abrams Falls...it's well worth the hike as long as you respect the surroundings.

A Walk in the Woods

Yesterday started out as a really yucky day.  It was raining when I woke up (YAY!), but I was afraid it was going to mess up part of  my plans for the day.  Oldest Son had a day off, so I went up to see him.  He's turning into quite the "Nature Boy", so he had a hike on a very small part of the Appalachian Trail planned for us.  I love waterfalls, so OS had one he wanted to show me.

By the time I got to OS' house, it had pretty much stopped raining.  We had to go by Financial Aid and drop something off, then we grabbed a quick lunch and we were off on our adventure!  On the way we went through a little town that has the oldest covered bridge still in use in the state.  

Then, we made it to the trail:

At the beginning of the section we hiked, there was a canopy of these gorgeous rhododendron:

I bet it's absolutely stunning when they're blooming!

Not too far in, we came across this sign:

My trail guide!

We crossed a bridge that was just a little  scary to me because  it was pretty high and you could see between the slats:

But the view was lovely:

We saw walls of rocks:

Then, we came to a very large "hill" with rocks built into the side to make stairs:

We finally made it to the falls:

This picture  doesn't do it justice as to how big it really was.  OS & I had a discussion about how anybody could see that and not believe in God.  

I was pretty fascinated by the foam that the falls made:

 The whole way down to the falls, I kept thinking about having to climb back up the hill.  It sure would be a lot easier if they had installed an escalator when they made the rock steps!  I mean, there's plenty of water, so it shouldn't be that hard to generate electricity, right?  It turned out that it really wasn't all that bad; I stopped a couple of times going up, and it was all good.

I spent 4 years in that area when I was in undergrad school, but didn't take advantage of everything that the area had to offer.   After yesterday, I regret that I had no idea of the beauty of the area.  I did go to the river a couple of times, but never hiked.  

After spending quality time with OS yesterday,  I learned a few things:

1.  OS knows what he's doing when he's out on the trail.  He showed me things to look out for just in case something happened to him and I had to make it back by myself.

2.  His tendency to wear out shoes is apparently now working to his advantage.  The shoe company is sending him free shoes to wear out, then send back so they can figure out how to make them last!  

3.  OS loves him mom.  He looked out after me during our hike, stopping every now and then when we were walking up the hill from the falls.  He made sure I had plenty of water and gave me a walking stick to use!  Yes, I am the queen!

4.  I am incredibly out of shape.  Now that my back is better, I'm definitely going to have to hit the walking trail & treadmill.

5.  OS is in incredibly good shape.  It's a different shape than he was in when he played football, but I don't even think he broke a sweat when we hiked.  Me,well, I was soaked by the time we  got back to the car!
6.  I really enjoyed being out in the middle of nowhere.  Taking in the clean, fresh air and just being out there with my boy, and feeling completely safe.  (Of course, I don't think I'd like it when it was dark...I have too great of an imagination-thinking about the bears and other wild animals that are roaming out there!)   I may even invest in some boots (which are necessary to keep the rocks out of your shoes!) and take in some trails around here!

You know, as hard as it is to admit that my baby is all grown up, it is just as satisfying to see him as an adult.  Sure, there are areas where he still needs some guidance, but I'm extremely proud of the man he's become!