February 15, 2008 Trail Update

February 15, 2008 Trail Update – Misty Day On the Mountain

Traildogs
Everyday as we drive up the old mountain road to the rally point we marvel at the beauty of the Hickory Nut Mt. Valley that flows off the right side of the road. On clear days the morning mist veils the rising sun giving the valley the look of the beautiful valleys of the Great Smoky Mountains. Some twenty miles to the east you can just see the purple peaks of West Mountain rising to the west of Hot Springs. This scene always gives us the little boast of energy we need to start our morning dig.

Friday was a misty day at a cool 45 degrees as we hiked in and up to our tool cache. Looking directly south we can see that we have driven the trail higher than Broken Rock Mountain that is the southern border of the valley. We have six traildogs today all seasoned members of the “Mountain Brigade” who quickly assess the stretch of trail ahead as it rises into the steepest grades of the Mountain. Your first impression is someone sneaked in during the night and dumped a load softball sized gravel on the newly dug trail. We, however, find a way to massage a proper tread and angle of repose out of this rock slide.

The Forest Service lead team continues to astound us as they push further and further up the steep grade. We are now just a stones throw from the summit where the newly dug trail stopped two weeks ago. The team is using great care to push the tread up this challenging slope as they thread their way though large trees and huge rock outcroppings. They are currently searching for the best location to make the next switchback turn to start the final climb to the summit.

An interesting side note one of the traildogs found a bleached white deer antler with shards of camouflage clothing clinging to it. We spent lunch musing about who won that forgotten battle.

Monday February 18, 2008 will start our last week of having the US Forest Service team leading the dig with the two machines. The summit looks possible by Friday but it will take some good weather and an exceptional effort by the machine operators and the volunteers to complete the dig.

Pack a lunch and plenty of fluids and join us starting at 8:30 am at the same rally point on Hickory Nut Mt. Road.

Come when you can and leave when you want.

Jerry