Well, the non-St. John March hikes, and may this collective set get me back to better timeliness in write-ups for the countless millions who await them.
March 8: Tinker Creek Trail from Plantation Road to Carvins Cove and back: 5 miles.
There’s not any easier five miles than this pleasant walk through the woods to water. We had a wacky young dog along, and between the proximity of the water and the occasional other set of hikers, she pretty much turned the walk into a non-stop babysitting project for The Day Hiker.
March 15: Horse Pen, Gauntlet, Brushy Mountain and Trough trails at Carvins Cove. About 7 miles.
We usually do this loop in the other direction. This way gets the (older) dog to the water sooner, but makes the climb longer. Still a pretty easy 7 miles, and with lunch at the viewpoint over the McAfee Knob.
March 22: Four Gorges, Brushy Mountain and Hi Dee Ho trails at Carvins Cove. About 8 miles.
The Day Hiker loves the ambling, stream-crossing, curvy Four Gorges Trail. Problem is, when you start from the Bennett Springs, it tees into the near-low-point of the Brushy Mountain Trail, which means a long climb to the point where the trail makes its hard right, and then more climbing to get up onto the ridge line. We pushed onto the ridge before we stopped for lunch–out on a knob looking west. The rest of the walk–along the ridge and down the Hi Dee Ho–is easy-peasy.
March 30: Hike from home to Tanglewood Mall and back. About 5 miles.
Y’hate to be taking an urban hike after spring has sprung, but such was the fate this day when the Not Greatest Day Hiker didn’t feel so good and ended up getting a ride home for the last mile or so.
