DeSoto Falls

We had to run to Scottsboro today, so we decided to take the afternoon and run up to Mentone.  We talked it over briefly and opted to see the falls, we have not been in a few years.

We took the trail to the overlook first, that's the first thing Matt and I ever did together-hike that trail.  : )  We climbed down to the Welch Caves, one of my favorite places in the world, then around to the overlook and then drove on over to the falls and stayed until sunset.

The joy of books and anticipation

Having made our big decision to hike part of the AT, some 550 miles of it, which is nearly exactly 1/4 of the total distance the trail actually covers, starting next April and, knowing we needed plenty of experience and a moderate amount of gear in the 11 months until our departure, our first stop was, of course, the library.

Among the books on how to backpack and what to take and cooking in the backwoods and defending camp against bears and skunks, we scored Bill Bryson's book about hiking the AT, A Walk in the Woods.  We started it on the way to hiking at Buck's Pocket last weekend and have made many slow drives to Dollar General, the mile taking an easy 20 minutes both ways so we could listen to it more.  Upon reaching the last disc in the van, the kids brought it inside to start it all over again from the first disc.  It's just as funny the second time, though I have to say, I feel more trepidation AFTER hearing him describe his hike, made at the age of 44 with no more prep than reading a little and buying a ton of gear he seemingly had no idea how to use.  He just...got on the trail and started walking North.  

I will be heading toward 38 when I finally get on the trail.  I have longed to hike it since I was 12. I was given a stack of Backpacker Magazines ranging from 1980 to around 85 by the school librarian and I was not without one of the issues for at least a year.  I memorized the whole vocabulary-always, always my favorite part of doing anything new are the words you can bandy about that are exclusive to that activity-then made gear lists, made lists of hikes I wanted to do, bought wool socks at the thrift store because they were best for hiking.  I got $50 a month in allowance starting at age 14 and I used it to buy hiking boots, a pack, fleece jacket, water bottle and a poncho, accumulating gear over the months, the whole while knowing neither of my parents would ever, ever take me backpacking. 

That summer, my mother went to Greeley for the summer quarter, a college just north of Denver.  She bought tickets for me and my older sister to fly out and we spent the next 3-4 weeks driving in her tiny car all over the Rockies, hitting the Tetons, Yellowstone, we drove into Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, camping in a minuscule 3 man tent she bought at JC Penney for the main reason that it popped up and required barely 90 seconds from taking it out of the trunk to crawling inside.  On the way home we went through Kansas and stopped at St. Louis and rode the arch cars all the way to the top.  I was hooked on camping travel.

The summer I was 16, I took a job with the forestry service and mowed grass all of June to pay for a ticket to fly to Missoula, Montana the first of July and I lived in a small tent with a girl from Denver for 5 weeks while we hiked and chopped trail out of the woods along the Continental Divide.  I wrote Matt the whole time I was gone and he NEVER ONCE WROTE ME BACK and years later when I got back in touch with my old tent mate, she had trouble believing we were actually married as everyone thought I made him up.  hahaha!  But that's how long we have known each other-over half my life and then some.  Longer than we haven't known each other.  But not as long as I have wanted to hike the AT.

Buck's Pocket hiking

 On Sunday, we headed to Buck's Pocket for the day hike we planned to do on our camping trip that did not happen.  April already and I have been in my camper only to clean it, fix it or stock it since last June.  : (

Between our really tight budget and gas going up and other things needing to be taken care of, it just has not worked out yet.  But, it will.  And, in the meantime, we have had some wonderful days together hiking and exploring.

 We let Jake sit this one out.  The pollen count was 11.5 out of 12 and he is already taking 3 different medications just to breathe, plus he has a nasty poison oak rash in his armpit.  I could not see making him wear a day pack on that. Not just to all go hiking together.

 At the trailhead, Matt sets the GPS to track our hike.

 The butterflies were out en masse, drinking from the damp sand.  Pretty sure this sand was damp from horse pee, which actually provides them with salts and other minerals they need.  Even if it's a little gross to think of nectar-sipping 'flying flowers' guzzling down some urine.

 Chan checking out her new hiking shoes.  We bought hikers for her and Ben on Friday, and I wore my new ankle boots, so we all stopped often to adjust things and check for hot spots.

The first mile and a half of the trail follows the road to the primitive campground, it's rutted and rough in sections, but passable in a truck-as many passed us coming and going.

 The trail follows a tumbling and wide creek with pockets of still, deep water until it opens out into this inlet of Guntersville Lake.  The trail keeps going another mile and a half past the campground to Morgan's Cove.  That section is very steep and rutted and we thought totally impassable, buy sure enough-some idiot on a 4-wheeler was pushing along, stopping every minute or two to navigate yet another fallen log.


Upon looking at a map I found AFTER the hike, I think we were on someone else's property and not on the hiking trail at all.  It seems to follow the lake much more closely and not have the climb we did, it also says it's yellow blazed.  I never saw a single blaze.  oops! I wonder if the idiot on the 4 wheeler thought 'great, there's another idiot with a daypack in my woods.'

 The primitive campground is right on the lake.  There are many wide, flat places and the bank is accessible for a good 1/4 mile or more.  There is a rope swing out over the water and one that goes out over a low hill, we all took a turn.

 The water is not very deep by the campground and we decided if we camped there, we would walk back up and swim in the faster-moving stream that fed into the lake.

 I had to have her lean out so I could see her!  hahaha

Playing around with the miniature effect on the camera. 

 We stopped about 1/4 mile shy of the end of the trail, as it finished up along a paved road that men hauling boats were driving so fast along that their trailers were literally swinging across the other lane when they hit the curve we could see from this little stream. 

We played here for a while, then started back, stopping at the campground swing and then making tracks for the van so we could meet up with Katy and her family at the main campground.

 After we met up, we had our picnic lunch and the kids played at the playground a while, then we walked to the creek to play:

 We ended up walking all the way to the bridge and  throwing various things into the swirling water to see if we could see it come out the other side.  We left just before dark, Ben had left his new sunglasses at the little stream, but that was right by the road, so we opted to drive back to the other end and look for them.  Ben stayed with Alex at the campground, Matt will pick him up after work tomorrow.

 

They found a rhinoceros beetle.  

 

And the sunset!  We did not find Ben's sunglasses, but we did find a crumpled beer can where they had been laying.  I guess someone decided to trade us.

The day would have been a 10 with the redneck factor removed, but I still give it an 8.5.  We did have peace and quiet the bulk of the time, the hike was tough and I did not have to stop on the hills, though by the last one, I was feeling that backpack and the new boots. 
I need to trade up in backpacks and wear one that has a hip belt, even on day hikes.  It pulls my neck and shoulders too much otherwise.  Chan needs a better day pack too.  I still don't have a swim suit for this season.  It seems like there's always something to put on that list.