Once again the weather was just perfect for October, although the fall colors weren't quite up to par. But we enjoyed our stay at Bandy Creek campground, a very nice facility with its bathhouses with hot showers! And they've even added a camp pet, a skunk that apparently made the rounds every night! Betty, Donald, and I had a close encounter with it Saturday night as we sat around the campfire, but apparently it didn't like my headlight and quickly scampered back into the woods. But a dog at a nearby site wasn't so lucky on Friday night!
Friday afternoon we hiked down the river to Angel Falls Rapids. Saturday we hiked down the other side of the river and up to Angel Falls Overlook for some great views of the river. Most of us also did the short Sunset Overlook Trail afterward. Sunday we hiked down to Twin Arches. We explored a little bit of the nearby bluffs, wiggled thru the West Tunnel, and discovered a new overlook on the South Arch.
Lunch on the way up and the way back was the mandatory stop at Cumberland Mtn General Store just north of Clarkrange - wonderful 50's diner with great burgers and milkshakes and such.
Campers were Betty Petty, Linda O'Neal, Reggie and Rusty Jay, Donald Box, Monty Simmons, Doug Cooper, my friend Carroll Viera from Cookeville, and leader John Rowland reporting.
Last updated: 15 November 2011