Cluster of dwarf crested iris on Alpine Mountain
Standing Stone State Park Camping Trip Day 6
Roaring River & Alpine Mountain WMA
Kenny & Dana Koogler
Thursday April 11, 2019
Total miles for the day 25
Roaring River Attempt #2
We returned today to make an attempt to cross Roaring River. We wanted to explore and learn more about it. We also wanted to try to reach Honey Branch Falls. We set out with the RZR and were down in the bottom lands in no time. It is built to handle terrain like that.
We decided the best thing to do was get on down to the ford to see if we were going to be able to make the crossing. We turned back the other day because it was too deep to cross in my jeep.
We were here today with the RZR, but the rain caused the water level to be even higher.
Jamie Emerton spent time with Kenny last Saturday explaining the technique to cross.
He went into minute details which we believed crucial. Kenny decided we'd chance it.
I was reminding myself that if we somehow failed to make it across the river it didn't mean a
certain drowning. I am a strong swimmer. The shore was not a long way off. I also noticed that in places it was possible to see the bottom 80% of the way across.
I said a little prayer and Kenny got a good head of steam up to make the crossing.
He kept that throttle mashed to the floor which made me feel a little better. It required going across at a certain spot then making a hard 90° turn just before the bank. A rock ledge jutted out into the water. It wasn't much to pull up on, but better than nothing. The river straight out from it was very deep. The bank on the far shore was loamy and steep. It was clear that it wasn't seeing a lot of travel. We managed to make it across and get up on the opposite bank.
Big sigh of relief. We continued down the trail heading west on the river. I had the GPS coordinates for Honey Branch Falls plugged in. We believed we had to ford the river, go downstream on the far shore a short distance and then ?? I don't know what we thought we would do. Honey Branch is on the north side of Roaring River for certain. I guess in our minds we were going with Jamie's report of a waterfall he believed was Honey Branch Falls. He reported it was necessary to ford the stream to see it. I knew it was on the same side of the river we started on, but wondered if we had to go down stream, cross back over and go up a side drainage?
Once across we realized the trail played out completely. We'd have to go back the way we came. We knew the trail on this side of the river was supposed to lead up to plateau level at some point. We decided we'd look for that. Before we could do anything further I noticed we had passed signs of human habitation. I walked into the woods toward the house ruins. We happened upon a farmstead. The chimney and foundations of a house were left. We found a big log barn behind that. I followed the sound of water past the barn. A waterfall was behind it.
It was not the greatest falls, but indeed there was a falls. The area was really nice and had lot of wildflowers. I saw something new to me. Anemonella thalictroides. It is a form of Rue anemone, but it has differences.
Above and below: Chimney and what is left of the foundation and steps of a house.
Nice brick chimney closer view. Piece of corrugated metal from maybe a roof?
Above and below: Kenny is wandering around the barn.
Log barn is in remarkably good shape! Looks like it is just waiting for some animals and the farmer!
Un-named waterfall behind the barn. I'm guessing this is a wet weather falls. It was not very impressive even after the rain.
Above: Rue Anemone-- A different type. Anemonella thalictroides. New to me!
We checked out the old farmstead. We checked out the wildflowers and waterfall. I cannot imagine what it would have been like to try to live and farm along this river bottom. Roaring River has a reputation for destruction and death. It was still cool finding that someone had lived down here in the past. We back tracked and neither of us was really looking forward to having to recross the river. The trail on this side went up the plateau steeply. We'd try that and see where it led. We followed it and it was a Buck Coward type trail. Rough as a cob.
He is a fan of difficult and rough trails. This one would have won his approval. We laughed so hard going up it. It ended up at plateau level it came out at Edmonds Lane and some private residences. It would provide an alternative way to reach that side of the river safely.
We headed back down and prepared ourselves for a white knuckle trip. Jamie's advice and direction was on point!
Going back across the river was possibly going to prove more tricky. Kenny did some thinking on how he wanted to approach it. He ended up just reversing course and while I was very tense it was over with quickly. It went much better than I expected. We got mid river and all I could think was 'Don't let off that throttle!!" I need not have worried. He was thinking the same thing and said so! Once we were safely across we breathed a sigh of relief. We drove straight up the stream. I do not know which drainage we were even in. It was real pretty. It was the same one I had explored the other day. I had an epiphany all at once. I told Kenny that Honey Branch has to have a different approach than what we are trying. We are making this way harder than it has to be. I later learned from Chuck that was indeed the case. By the time I figured that out I was over it. I was so aggravated at the futile search I was ready to do something else. Anything else. That waterfall will have to be for another time if ever.
We found the little drainage we explored to be interesting and beautiful. The stream is very flat and has lots of low cascades and ripples. The bottom in most places is like a cement road.
Wildflowers galore to be seen on both sides of the stream. The bluffs around us were steep sided. We found morel mushrooms enough to make a mess! We were tickled about that.
We were treated to a small, low cascade coming out of a side stream. The further up the drainage we went the tighter the gorge got. The rock walls of the gorge were huge and rounded. We saw some rock formations that were gnarled and covered completely in moss.
Below are some photos of this neat area.
Above: The stream is nearly flat as a fritter!
Very small cascade coming out of a side holler
Above: Few ripples in the creek.
above: fairy saddle fungus
Above: Pair of prairie trilliums
above: interesting rock formations covered in moss
Above: the walls of the gorge got like this the further in we went.
We finally were just over it. We weren't convinced there was anything more up this drainage. We were both ready to leave. I had an idea. I figured we'd go back through Livingston and eat lunch. We'd then hit up Alpine Mountain for the last half of the day. We had only ridden there once before and it was beautiful. I had a feeling it would be a nice place to find wildflowers.
We did take a side trip down to the Johnson Hole along Roaring River on the way back out. It was pretty too. Not any great shakes, but we were satisfied that we'd checked out where a few of the other trails lead. Back up top we loaded the RZR and headed toward Livingston.
Lunch again at Waynes Grill. It was even better today than it was the first time! When we stayed at the Overton Motel one Spring weekend there was a restaurant there. It was connected to the Overton Motel. We never tried it then. It may not have been open the day we got up and needed to find breakfast. Who knows?! Well, Honey Branch had thwarted us again, but I was not going to let it ruin my good time. Time to move on!
Above: the start of the main trail on Alpine Mountain.
Above: The old stone structure on top the mountain I believe was connected to the Alpine Institute back in the days when it was on the mountain. After being burned down twice once by the Klan and once by marauders.. they moved it down into the village near the church.
Fascinating and beautiful scene of Spring at the stone house ruins.
above: Stone house ruins.
We checked out the stone house, but not for long. We continued down the main trail and soon came to another set of ruins. It is the ruins of a concrete block construction house. The double seater outhouse is falling apart right across from it. Dwarf larkspur and phlox dotted the forest floor around it. A spring flowed from the bank behind the house. I saw a well pipe also. Some sort of enamel ware tray was propped against a tree trunk. I like the signs of former habitation. Fun to imagine what life was like on the mountain back in those times. I'm sure it was a tough life.
Phlox divaricata in the forest near the old house
Well pipe I think.
Double seater outhouse ruins
Above and below: different views of the house ruins.
Above: I wonder if this concrete block house is older than the stone house? Concrete block was invented during the 1830s, but wasn't used very widely until the 1900s. The stone house reminds me of other examples of CCC era construction. That would date it to the 1930s!
An old enamelware tray or possibly the door off some appliance. Enamel ware is older than I'd have guessed. It has been in use since the 1760s!
We kept going further down the trail. We came to an area below us where there were all sorts of interesting rock formations below the trail. The woods down in that area were not very green and there was not much blooming. We came upon an area I recalled from our previous trip. It is a pond with a spring at the back of it. I do not know the purpose of its construction, but it was a man made contrivance. It has a pipe that drains it down the mountain. When we saw it the first time it was just a muddy black spot of leaves on the mountain. Today it was full to the brim with clear blue water! It sat there on the mountain cold and clear like a gem. Perhaps it was a swimming pond or to water livestock or maybe both. Fencing and perwinkle vine and a low cement wall bordered the trail near this. A small stream cascaded down the mountain on the lower side.
Beautiful blue pond on Alpine Mountain
above: the outlet of the pond. where it drains
Stream from the pond flows partly over the trail
and then continues down the mountainside.
Sunny, wide path. Easy trail here.
Small waterfall beside the trail.
Rock formations down the lower side of the trail.
We passed the pretty cascade on the side of the trail. I got out to take pictures of it. About the time I was finishing up my picture taking two men on four wheelers came down the trail from the opposite direction. They stopped and we visited with them. They had questions for us and we for them.
We introduced ourselves and visited awhile. They were a delight. I could have talked with them all afternoon. They were good friends out hunting and camping and wheeling. Rusty Bales and David Moseley. Rusty is from our neck of the woods while David hales from Memphis. They were funny and interesting and friendly. I hope we run into them again some day. Finally we made ourselves move on and quit chatting.
We went all the way to the end of the trail where it intersects a gravel road or lane. We could see some residences in the distance. We were not absolutely sure where we were far as did this road have a name? Did it come out along Hwy 52? The upper end of it was gated so we weren't going that way. A cemetery sat up the hill from us. We headed back the way we'd come. We got turned around for the same reason Rusty and David had. We did not feel comfortable going further in that direction for one. For another.. we couldn't on account of the gate. We back tracked and came upon a side trail that lead up the mountain. We followed it and were very glad we did. It was another Buck style trail. Very rough, steep and rocky. It was fun! We climbed and climbed until we came out at the top of the mountain. We'd not ever been up here before. A trail lead south, but we were trying to ride a loop. We went east and followed the main track. The forest was pretty, but not a lot blooming up here. We saw a few black water ponds along the way! We had the GPS running and it indicated we were heading the correct way to close a loop. We finally passed a few things that looked familiar from a previous trip. Kenny had to clear some trees, but it didn't hold us up long.
Once we got down the mountain lower in elevation things greened up again. The sun filtering through the forest canopy was magical. We came to a place along the trail where on either side was nothing but green growing things and wildflowers far as the eye could see. Prairie trillium, southern red trilliums, deep purple dwarf larkspur, bright yellow wood poppies, rue anemone, wild iris, wild geranium, and great white trilliums.
Purple larkspur in the forest by the trail
Saw loads of blue cohosh in the forest today. It is such a lush plant!
Southern Red Trillium
Trilliums and a crazy tangle of grape vines!
Red dirt track on the way down the mountain
White trilliums on the way down the trail to the bottom
We came through one more real muddy place and Mr. Snapping Turtle was sitting there by the track.
He was pretty big!
We came on down the mountain and back to the truck. We did not see Rusty or David again though we looked for them. We packed up our stuff and headed back to the camper. What a great day we had despite things not working out how we planned initially. I took in the scenery as we drove back through Alpine and soaked up the good vibe I get here. I like that feeling of time standing still. I can't even say this place is like Mayberry. I left today with the feeling I often do. That feeling we have still only scratched the surface of what there is to see and do in a given area. Today I realize that is a gift and that it lives within me and within Kenny.
That ever present source of wonder and ceaseless curiosity and happiness at seeing these beautiful spots on God's earth. That is why these places will never wear out or grow old. It isn't the places that continue to be new and surprising. It is the spirit of the individual who partakes in it and engages in nature that makes it so.
**Edited to Add Notes to Self**
One of the things we missed at the back of Standing Stone was a waterfall cave. We also missed a trail in that vicinity. Need to visit Glascock Cemetery again. Need to check out Mill Creek along the Lake Trail and off trail in that area for waterfalls. Missed some old fire ring structure in the woods between the loop road and the creek.
Below is a video that shows the pretty pond.
Once across we realized the trail played out completely. We'd have to go back the way we came. We knew the trail on this side of the river was supposed to lead up to plateau level at some point. We decided we'd look for that. Before we could do anything further I noticed we had passed signs of human habitation. I walked into the woods toward the house ruins. We happened upon a farmstead. The chimney and foundations of a house were left. We found a big log barn behind that. I followed the sound of water past the barn. A waterfall was behind it.
It was not the greatest falls, but indeed there was a falls. The area was really nice and had lot of wildflowers. I saw something new to me. Anemonella thalictroides. It is a form of Rue anemone, but it has differences.
Un-named waterfall behind the barn. I'm guessing this is a wet weather falls. It was not very impressive even after the rain.
Above: Rue Anemone-- A different type. Anemonella thalictroides. New to me!
We checked out the old farmstead. We checked out the wildflowers and waterfall. I cannot imagine what it would have been like to try to live and farm along this river bottom. Roaring River has a reputation for destruction and death. It was still cool finding that someone had lived down here in the past. We back tracked and neither of us was really looking forward to having to recross the river. The trail on this side went up the plateau steeply. We'd try that and see where it led. We followed it and it was a Buck Coward type trail. Rough as a cob.
He is a fan of difficult and rough trails. This one would have won his approval. We laughed so hard going up it. It ended up at plateau level it came out at Edmonds Lane and some private residences. It would provide an alternative way to reach that side of the river safely.
We headed back down and prepared ourselves for a white knuckle trip. Jamie's advice and direction was on point!
Going back across the river was possibly going to prove more tricky. Kenny did some thinking on how he wanted to approach it. He ended up just reversing course and while I was very tense it was over with quickly. It went much better than I expected. We got mid river and all I could think was 'Don't let off that throttle!!" I need not have worried. He was thinking the same thing and said so! Once we were safely across we breathed a sigh of relief. We drove straight up the stream. I do not know which drainage we were even in. It was real pretty. It was the same one I had explored the other day. I had an epiphany all at once. I told Kenny that Honey Branch has to have a different approach than what we are trying. We are making this way harder than it has to be. I later learned from Chuck that was indeed the case. By the time I figured that out I was over it. I was so aggravated at the futile search I was ready to do something else. Anything else. That waterfall will have to be for another time if ever.
We found the little drainage we explored to be interesting and beautiful. The stream is very flat and has lots of low cascades and ripples. The bottom in most places is like a cement road.
Wildflowers galore to be seen on both sides of the stream. The bluffs around us were steep sided. We found morel mushrooms enough to make a mess! We were tickled about that.
We were treated to a small, low cascade coming out of a side stream. The further up the drainage we went the tighter the gorge got. The rock walls of the gorge were huge and rounded. We saw some rock formations that were gnarled and covered completely in moss.
Below are some photos of this neat area.
We finally were just over it. We weren't convinced there was anything more up this drainage. We were both ready to leave. I had an idea. I figured we'd go back through Livingston and eat lunch. We'd then hit up Alpine Mountain for the last half of the day. We had only ridden there once before and it was beautiful. I had a feeling it would be a nice place to find wildflowers.
We did take a side trip down to the Johnson Hole along Roaring River on the way back out. It was pretty too. Not any great shakes, but we were satisfied that we'd checked out where a few of the other trails lead. Back up top we loaded the RZR and headed toward Livingston.
Lunch again at Waynes Grill. It was even better today than it was the first time! When we stayed at the Overton Motel one Spring weekend there was a restaurant there. It was connected to the Overton Motel. We never tried it then. It may not have been open the day we got up and needed to find breakfast. Who knows?! Well, Honey Branch had thwarted us again, but I was not going to let it ruin my good time. Time to move on!
Alpine Mountain WMA
Alpine Mountain is in the little town of Alpine. It is a place I really like a lot. Today we have so many modern conveniences and so much technology. So many modern worries and so much fretting over gloom, doom and destruction. Today's world is indeed a difficult and complicated place.
Today here in little Alpine, Tennessee it is hard to believe any of those troubles exists. Time has largely passed this area by. Not much cell phone service. No wi-fi to speak of. It is a rural, agrarian life around here. Alpine has a storied history. Nettlecarrier Creek flows through the "town". The Cherokee Indians last chief was Chief Nettle Carrier and he lived in this area. He was one of the great grandfathers of my son in law Adam. He comes from Matoy Cherokee down in Monroe County.
White folks had the Christchurch Presbytery here and later the Alpine Institute. I won't get into the history here since I went over all that on the previous report about the mountain. It is interesting.
Alpine Institute is now Livingston Academy. We parked by the old gymnasium building.
We saw a couple other trucks of riders. We got some drinks in the cooler and set off to see the mountain.
We checked out the stone house, but not for long. We continued down the main trail and soon came to another set of ruins. It is the ruins of a concrete block construction house. The double seater outhouse is falling apart right across from it. Dwarf larkspur and phlox dotted the forest floor around it. A spring flowed from the bank behind the house. I saw a well pipe also. Some sort of enamel ware tray was propped against a tree trunk. I like the signs of former habitation. Fun to imagine what life was like on the mountain back in those times. I'm sure it was a tough life.
An old enamelware tray or possibly the door off some appliance. Enamel ware is older than I'd have guessed. It has been in use since the 1760s!
We kept going further down the trail. We came to an area below us where there were all sorts of interesting rock formations below the trail. The woods down in that area were not very green and there was not much blooming. We came upon an area I recalled from our previous trip. It is a pond with a spring at the back of it. I do not know the purpose of its construction, but it was a man made contrivance. It has a pipe that drains it down the mountain. When we saw it the first time it was just a muddy black spot of leaves on the mountain. Today it was full to the brim with clear blue water! It sat there on the mountain cold and clear like a gem. Perhaps it was a swimming pond or to water livestock or maybe both. Fencing and perwinkle vine and a low cement wall bordered the trail near this. A small stream cascaded down the mountain on the lower side.
We passed the pretty cascade on the side of the trail. I got out to take pictures of it. About the time I was finishing up my picture taking two men on four wheelers came down the trail from the opposite direction. They stopped and we visited with them. They had questions for us and we for them.
We introduced ourselves and visited awhile. They were a delight. I could have talked with them all afternoon. They were good friends out hunting and camping and wheeling. Rusty Bales and David Moseley. Rusty is from our neck of the woods while David hales from Memphis. They were funny and interesting and friendly. I hope we run into them again some day. Finally we made ourselves move on and quit chatting.
We went all the way to the end of the trail where it intersects a gravel road or lane. We could see some residences in the distance. We were not absolutely sure where we were far as did this road have a name? Did it come out along Hwy 52? The upper end of it was gated so we weren't going that way. A cemetery sat up the hill from us. We headed back the way we'd come. We got turned around for the same reason Rusty and David had. We did not feel comfortable going further in that direction for one. For another.. we couldn't on account of the gate. We back tracked and came upon a side trail that lead up the mountain. We followed it and were very glad we did. It was another Buck style trail. Very rough, steep and rocky. It was fun! We climbed and climbed until we came out at the top of the mountain. We'd not ever been up here before. A trail lead south, but we were trying to ride a loop. We went east and followed the main track. The forest was pretty, but not a lot blooming up here. We saw a few black water ponds along the way! We had the GPS running and it indicated we were heading the correct way to close a loop. We finally passed a few things that looked familiar from a previous trip. Kenny had to clear some trees, but it didn't hold us up long.
Once we got down the mountain lower in elevation things greened up again. The sun filtering through the forest canopy was magical. We came to a place along the trail where on either side was nothing but green growing things and wildflowers far as the eye could see. Prairie trillium, southern red trilliums, deep purple dwarf larkspur, bright yellow wood poppies, rue anemone, wild iris, wild geranium, and great white trilliums.
Trilliums and a crazy tangle of grape vines!
He was pretty big!
We came on down the mountain and back to the truck. We did not see Rusty or David again though we looked for them. We packed up our stuff and headed back to the camper. What a great day we had despite things not working out how we planned initially. I took in the scenery as we drove back through Alpine and soaked up the good vibe I get here. I like that feeling of time standing still. I can't even say this place is like Mayberry. I left today with the feeling I often do. That feeling we have still only scratched the surface of what there is to see and do in a given area. Today I realize that is a gift and that it lives within me and within Kenny.
That ever present source of wonder and ceaseless curiosity and happiness at seeing these beautiful spots on God's earth. That is why these places will never wear out or grow old. It isn't the places that continue to be new and surprising. It is the spirit of the individual who partakes in it and engages in nature that makes it so.
**Edited to Add Notes to Self**
One of the things we missed at the back of Standing Stone was a waterfall cave. We also missed a trail in that vicinity. Need to visit Glascock Cemetery again. Need to check out Mill Creek along the Lake Trail and off trail in that area for waterfalls. Missed some old fire ring structure in the woods between the loop road and the creek.
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