Old Fort King Trail South

Old Fort King Trail South

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I have hiked this area before but don’t confuse this trip with the other Fort King Trip. This is the actual Old Fort King trail. My previous trip started at the same trail head however goes more south and is a bit longer. The Fort King Trail is 6.7 miles long with the last or first 2.2 miles as a paved portion that runs alongside Hwy 301 which is great if you don’t like to get into the woods. Not me in this case. I first hiked south on the trail not tracking it then when I reached the paved portion, doubled pack and tracked back to my truck. The woods portion is aprox 4.5 each way so it is a nice walk.

How to get here;

You start off on Hillsborough River State Park property although not in the pay for portion but slightly South of that area on Hwy 301. There is a pull off on the Left and signage for the Old Fort King Trail on 301 to direct you.

As I said before, it’s a nice hike but 9 miles should not be taken lightly. Pack water and snacks as you will get a little hungry on the trip. The area close to Model Dairy is a wetland prairie and is full of life! Many different types of plants and animals out here. I have seen boar and deer and many different types of birds. You will eventually leave this area and find yourself on Dead River Rd. The trail follows this road for about a quarter mile then you are back in the woods. This portion is extremely wet. Be prepared to dodge some serious puddles. Also this is a horse trail too so be on the lookout to dodge other things as well. This will go on for a while but eventually it dries out. Koda went with me today and couldn’t resist the puddles. Nothing like a solid white dog covered in mud!

Have fun!

Hillsborough River State Park

Hillsborough River State Park

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This was a nice little get out of the house and walk somewhere close to where I live walk. I have walked these two trails before and it only takes two hours or so. Pretty easy stuff.

About the Park. Hillsborough RiverState Park is a great little Park. There is something for everyone here. There are pavilions for large picnics and plenty of facilities as well as playgrounds for the kids. You can launch canoes in a couple different spots alongside the river too. In regards to camping, RV, kind of primitive and primitive sites are available. There is also an extensive network of trails that mingle up and down the river.

On our walk, we did The Barnyard Trail (1.1) and The Florida Trail (3.2). Both trails are easy going and for the most part, flat as a board. Be warned as the trails can get soggy and on some of the other trails, completely washed out in some cases. The mosquitoes can be a big issue in the summer and fall so be prepared or you will be miserable. The Primitive Campground is on The Florida Trail and lies .1 mile off of the main trail. You need a permit to stay the night be there are several open areas so it looks like it could accommodate a few people. Overall, very fun little hike.

Tips:
This is an easy walk. Wither or not you do both trails, you will barely break a sweat.

Withlacoochee State Forest Citrus Tract Loop C

Withlacoochee State Forest Citrus Tract Loop C

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Withlacoochee State Forest Citrus Tract Loop C 2

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Withlacooche State Forrest Citrus Tract Loop C 3

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Story:

This is the second time that I have hiked in WithlacoocheStateForest and once again had a nice hike. This was a very nice hike which pushed me a little as the first day was a bit more than I have packed in a long time.

For a little background;

The Citrus Hiking Trail is the state’s longest backpacking loop trail in a single contiguous forest and is Central Florida’s most rugged hiking trail, with aggressively rolling sand hills, steep descents into sinkholes, and rock-strewn footpaths. Backpacking the 40+ mile perimeter Citrus Hiking Trail can take up to 4 days and requires some logistical planning. There are no surface streams, so you must consider this a dry trai. lYou will enjoy a stunning array of contrasting habitats and numerous opportunities for wildlife encounters. It is also a well-groomed trail, easily followed, with a clearly defined footpath and signposts at trail junctions. Orange blazes designate the outer loop, while blue blazes mark the cross trails and side trails.

For this trip as well as the other time I hiked this forest, I went with the Tampa Adventure Group. A group of about 25 of us hit the trail at about 10:30. A small group of us made it o the campsite at about 3:00 so it was a good walk. I will post a good map on the side bar so that you can take a look at the mile breakdowns as well as know how to get there.

We woke up Sunday morning around 6:00 when we got a small sprinkle. Pretty much everybody was out and about come 7:30 cooking breakfast and getting the fire going again. We knew that the weather was unstable from the night before so I decided to head out a little early. Plus I took Koda and she doesn't like walking behind people, she always has to be first. Maybe its a sled dog thing. Plus who wants to hike when its all hot?

Anyways, Koda and I pressed on rather quickly as I wanted to track the entire C loop and my battery in my BB Storm was n its way out so we had to book it.

Overall, it was a great walk! As mentioned above, the scenery is constantly changing. We didn’t see a lot of wildlife though which was kind of a bummer but the coolest thing was when Koda paid particular interest to a tree and a few steps later I saw what I am 90% sure was a bear print. I asked the ranger at the trail head and she said that they are out there just not seen that often.
(edit)
Tips:
Pack water... This is a dry trail. (edit)

Looking Glass Falls

Looking Glass is a rare treat as it is a significant fall and it can be observed from the car! I have been to this fall several times and it has yet to disappoint.

As you head to the fall there are spaces on the side of the road to parallel park and if the weather is even close to nice, during the middle of the day, the fall will be packed with people so even though you can see it from the road, if you park you might be walking! Once at the fall you will notice steps and an observation deck. Not at all a bad place to sit and take in Looking glass. For our last trip, I was determined to get in the water. I live in Florida and routinely get into the springs which keep a content temperature of 72 degrees so I figured, " No big Deal"... This water almost took my breath. That water was COLD! However after about 5 minutes your body will start going into mild hypothermia and you will stop feeling the cold. Although dangerous, quiet useful body function!




As you can see, I am not the only one in the water. When we first got here, the place was packed with swimmers but had cleared out as the sun was about an hour from setting.

There are rocks at the immediate base of the falls to sit on as the water falls 60 odd feet smashing onto your back but the pool further out is 6+ feet deep. I swam around for 20 minutes or so before I stopped feeling my toes and got out.

Looking Glass Falls is defiantly kid friendly as the paved path gets you extremely close to the falls. To get here is not hard but can be if you don't know where to go so I will do my best as there are not a lot of great reference points to start from. We will start near Brevard NC south west of Asheville. Brevard sits to the south of the Pisgah National Forest so this will work as a starting point as Looking Glass is inside the forest. In Brevard, locate Us Hwy 276-64 and follow it north where it will split. 64 goes right and 276 goes left into the forest. Hwy 280 continues straight ahead. Shortly after the left onto 276 you will come to the Pisgah Ranger station. Keep going through the valley another 4 miles and the parking will come up on the right side of the road.

Have fun!!

Whitewater Falls

This is is noted as being the highest waterfall east of the Rockies and is a must if you are in the area! Taking in this fall can be as easy or hard as you want it to be.

It is extremely easy to take this fall in as there is a .4 mile round trip paved trail to get you to an observation deck which will give you the view above. This trip is kid friendly as it is a short walk and facilities are provided.

If you are looking for a little more adventure I suggest that you head down The Foothills Trail approximately 400 steps where you will find a bridge that crosses the stream. The bridge is part of The Foothills Trail which in whole is 80 odd miles in total so time to get off the bridge and head up stream. I will caution you. Make sure you have ample time! That is a relative term because based on your ability it will take you a while to make the trek to and from the base. Plus the wonder of what you will see will make you want to stay a while. I have no idea how long we took but sundown comes quick in the valley and we got caught by it.



My wife Anitra traversing the various boulders on the way to the falls base. This goes on for a while... You can vaguely make out the bridge in the background. Also, be prepared to get a little wet as you can't always hop from stone to stone.













As you get closer to the falls the roar of water is overwhelming to say the least! As you can see the trip has not gotten any easier. This is one of the most ridiculous and amazing things that I have ever done!













My wife took this picture of me from the distance. I am still 100s of feet from the base of the falls.

I hated to put the arrow in but felt it was necessary...














Here I am much closer to the base however this is only a small portion of this massive fall. Down in this canyon the temperature drops several degrees and the mist coming of the rocks will chill you.

In order to get here we will start in Tuckasegee which is south west of Asheville. Start out by taking NC 107 South for 7 miles into South Carolina. Continue on 107 for another mile and turn left onto State Rd 37-413 (Wiginton Rd) at a sign for Whitewater Falls. Follow 37-413 for 2 miles then turn left again onto Rd 130 Whitewater Falls Rd. After a short while you will re-enter North Carolina then after a quarter mile you should see the sign for the falls scenic area. A short drive down this road will land you in the parking area.

Have fun!!

Old Fort King Trail

Old Fort King Trail

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This is a very nice walk. Six miles round trip so no big deal. Me and Koda are doing some training for a big hike this weekend so we wanted to get some miles behind us. We have done this trip once before but didn’t track it then. We have seen both Boor and Deer on this trail.

You start off on Hillsborough River State Park property although not in the pay for portion but slightly South of that area on Hwy 301. There is a pull off on the Left and signage on 301 to direct you. As you walk down Model Dairy Rd you will leave Hillsborough River State Park and enter into Dead River. I would have to say that the Dead River portion is more enjoyable then the prior as you walk alongside the river and there are fishing trails to take you down to the waters edge. You will eventually get to Dead River Park which can be driven too but like I said, Its a nice walk!

Linville Falls

Linville Falls is a must see if you are on the Blue Ridge and it is close to Grandfather Mountain which we will talk about later.

The Linville Falls Recreation Area offers different trails to view the falls. The upper falls are smaller and flow into a large pool then the water rushes down a 60 foot shat then pours another 40 feet or so down to the main pool. The sound that this thing makes is amazing! There is several options trail wise to choose from. We were short on time so we took the shortest trail which was stupid because as my curiosity compelled me to explore, my wife and I could have saved some time and an argument had we taken a different route.

There is a detailed map at the visitors center but I also will post one as well on the side bar. We took the trail to the Plunge Basin Overlook which is about a half mile in length from the visitors center. As you walk down the trail about .2 miles down the path it will fork. The trail to the right is the way we went and that will take you to a nice observation area where you can take in the lower potion of the falls and the chimneys that surround it. The picture above is a good representation of the view from this location.

Where I got into trouble...

I was so enamored by the force of the water that flowed through the shaft that I had to get a better look at it. The shaft is only partially enclosed and I had to get a look in this thing. From the observation platform I headed right and up through the woods. This was not a trail other then a little washout and this was also stupid. There are other trails that will give you great angles of the falls without having to bushwhack through the woods.





Anyways, I came to a clearing at the edge of the canyon wall that gave me a great view of the canyon. You can barley make out the observation area I started from in this picture. Its the top most rocky outcropping on the far left.

Over my shoulder and up a bit was a distant view of the upper falls. You can see how placid the top is. If you were to take the Erwin's View Trail you would end up on the rock dead center of this picture able to see the gorge, upper falls and the shaft below that makes a thunderous sound.

Finally, below me is whats causing all the ruckus. After the upper falls, the water is channeled into a 60 foot shaft before it re-emerges into the lower falls and from there then spilling into the pool at the bottom.

Even though I did a bad thing walking through the woods not on a trail, I'd like to think I got a better view!

There is also a trail that will take you to the bottom of the falls down by the pool. I understand that there is some climbing involved using exposed roots and rocks as handholds. We didn't go down there due to time constraints but I hear its pretty cool. Apparently no swimming because there is a pretty strong current as the water moves from the pool down through the canyon.

So how do you get here?

Take Interstate 40 west to towards Asheville and get off on exit 86 for Highway 226 . Head north on Hwy 226. It gets kinda weird up there as 226 and 221 cross and eventually merge however you want to ultimately follow 221 till you get to the Blue Ridge as eventually 226 heads off in another direction. Head north on the Blue Ridge Parkway and you will see the right turn for Linville Falls about a mile down the road.

Have Fun!

Tory's Den

Let's talk now about Tory's Den and Falls. These are still in and around Hanging Rock State Park. Even though you might leave the park boundaries as you travel you will usually pop back into the park as you get close to the parking lot.

Last time I talked about being out at the Lower Cascades on Hall Road. If you continue west on Hall Rd you will be driving around the north rim of the park and looking south. As you travel you can see the back of what is part of Moore's Wall Loop. As you continue to drive you will come to Mickey Rd where you take a left. Proceed to Charlie Young Rd and take another left. As you do this you will drive up a small hill towards the parking lot.

Both the cave and the falls are on the same trail and close together so you might as well take them both in. The map says the trail is 2.3 miles one way but it didn't seem like that at all. Ther sources say .6 round trip.

Apparently the story of the caves naming goes back to the Revolutionary War. The story goes that a member of the Whig party lived nearby and had a daughter that was kidnapped and held for ransom by the Tories. The daughter was eventually rescued. The cave isn't very deep but it's a large room and you can see evidence of smoke all throughout the walls of the cave. I don't know if this is the kidnapped daughters doing but I'd spend a night here for sure!

The adjacent falls are more drippy then anything. I'm sure it lets go after a good rain but the day we visited, not so much. However, toward the bottom of the falls there is a little gully that is fun to climb around in. All in all, the hike was short and the cave was cool. You can see the falls just fine from rock ledges around the falls plus there is a wooden observation area with steps down to it so this is fairly kid friendly.

Have fun!

Hanging Rock State Park cont

Picking up where we left off with Hanging Rock State Park.

I want to talk briefly about Hidden and Window Falls. Both of these falls are on Indian Creek Trail and very close to the main parking lot.

Hidden Falls is first on the trail. It is "hidden" except for the sign that points to it . Follow the side trail down to a rhododendron filled cove. It's small but neat and not hard to get to.

As you get close to Window Falls don't miss the top portion of the falls to the left before the trail drops down to the lower portion. Tucked back in a narrow crack between to larger boulders is how the falls gets its name.

The large over hanging rock forms a window to revel the top of the falls. It is small but neat and not hard to get to.

The rest of Widow Falls flows across and down to the bottom portion of the falls. The bottom portion of Window Falls has a pretty good drop to it and there are wash out trails to take you to the bottom of the falls. I have never seen it gushing as the creek that feeds it is small.

There is lots of stuff to climb around on at the bottom so have fun!

I am really looking forward to talking about the next area of the park. Upper and Lower Cascade Falls are must sees. They are fairly easy to get to and are very nice waterfalls. We will start with the Upper as it is closer to the main parking lot of Hanging Rock State Park. Head out on the short trail and you will end up at the head waters of the falls. Be careful as the rocks are covered in moss and they are very slick. Plus there is a nice drop over by the edge.

Its maybe a 50 ft drop to the bottom and to get there you have to take a wash out trail so keep your eyes open for it as your walking to the Upper from the parking lot. If you find a wash out trail and get below the Upper (this is not Lower Cascade) you will find a neat place with lots of places to climb around. See to the right... When I took this, the big tree was there which was fun. We used the tree to climb half way up the falls. I don't know if its still there. If it is, it has to be rotten by now so I don't recommend this... Cool place and close to the parking lot!





Now I want to head to the Lower Cascades. This is a nice waterfall. The fall itself is maybe 15 feet high but it's in this little cove and there is a very large pool a few feet deep at the bottom that is excellent on a summer day.

To get here you have to leave the park so head out the way you came. At the entrance gate as your leaving the park, turn left back on to Moore's Spring road which is how you came in. Not far down take a left on Hall road. Right as you cross back into the boundary of Hanging Rock State Park you will see a sign for the falls on the right. There is a parking lot to pull into there. Once out, locate the trail and start your decent. There are a few places along the trail while it's still flat to look down into the gully that hides the falls. The trail turns into a washout and gets steep. I remember having to use exposed roots and tree limbs to get up and down so be careful.

Lastly, please take the "Don't throw rocks" sign seriously. Last time I was there with my family, my mom stayed topside while my wife, little bother and myself went down to the falls. Well my mom got bored and started throwing rocks over the side. She almost killed my little brother... We were swimming in the water and a huge rock missed my brothers head by maybe a foot. That was almost a bad day.

Other then the near death experience... This is one of my favorite places so I hope you enjoy it!

Pilot Knob & Hanging Rock State Park

Lets start with North Carolina... My wife and I lived in Winston-Salem for about a year and a half while I worked in a retail store in a local mall there. Whenever we had time off together we would literally run for the hills. I will start with one of the closest places to Winston and then go farther out. All of my directions will start from Winston unless I'm speaking about multiple places in an area of NC. There is much to see in this great state and I regret that I have not seen much more since we moved from there.

Pilot Knob is really easy to get to and you can make it as adventurous as you want. Once you get past the drive up the mountain, you park and walk up a short semi steep in parts well maintained trail. I took this picture from the end of the short trail at the observation area. There is another trail down below that allows you to walk around the entire base of the knob. Really fun to do! Once my younger brother-in-law came up with Mom and Dad to visit me and my wife and we took them up here. He was about 7 then and had no problem on the trail around the base.

To get to Pilot Knob,

Take Hwy 52 North from Winston to the exit for Pilot Mountain Park Rd/Hwy 2053 . There is not an exit number but a state park sign for Pilot Mtn greats you about a quarter mile before the exit. It is about 30 miles North of Winston.


I took this picture from an over pass just prior to the exit you need to take. As you can see, you will be able observe the mountain well before you get to it. It will be on the left side of the highway as you travel towards the exit.

Once you exit, hang a left on Pilot Mountain Park Rd/Hwy 2053 and pass under Highway 52. Follow the road up the mountain to the parking lot and have fun! There are also facilities there like bathrooms and water fountains.



Hanging Rock is also in the area close to Pilot Knob. There is much to do in Hanging Rock State Park so set aside a whole day. You can also camp in the park so you can really make it a weekend trip if you want.

First I'll tell you how to get there, then we can talk about stuff to do.

From Hwy 52, heading north from Winston, take exit 122 on RJR Moore Road. Turn left at the top of the ramp and for a distance of 17 miles follow the signs for Hanging Rock State Park. From RJR Moore Road turn left on NC 66 north. Turn right on Moore's Springs Road, which ends near the park entrance to the right.

Once your in the park, head on into the main parking lot. Not the Lake lot, not yet. I recommend getting on Hanging Rock Trail first. The trail is moderate at 1.3 miles one way so plan accordingly. The trail starts out nice and gravelly with some ups and downs. It will however get skinner and more aggressive. This is a great trail with lots of things to climb around on. There were not any guard rails last time I was up here so be careful! The drops are step and it is very easy to get hurt up here. Not the best place for kids. As you can see the view is awesome. There are a lot of levels when you get to the top. My wife took this of me after I climbed down and around to get to this boulder where I took the above shot.

Another cool hike I did one day was Moore's Wall Loop. It is 4.3 miles all around and starts by the lake which is where it also finishes. This was a nice day hike. It is labeled as strenuous on the map so pack a lunch and plenty of water. I don't recall the hike being too bad but that was 7 years ago when I was 50 pounds lighter... Once you get to the top of the ridge, you can see lots of cool stuff. The observation tower is up here as well. From the top of the tower, the view is amazing.

On your way down you will come to a feature called balanced rock. You can see it below in the low center of the picture. I guess it looks like it might fall? I guess it sort of did... Wasn't about to go stand on it to see if I could get it to wobble...

Indian face is listed on the map but I never could find it so good luck. On my way back down once in the valley, instead of going back the way I came, I took a fishing trail to the left and walked around the back of the lake. Its neat because a lot of people don't take this path and towards the end you come to a man made dam that forms the lake. You will end up back on the road to the parking lot for the lake. You just have to walk around the lake house. The hike was awesome! To see the whole park laid out in front of you from the summit is pretty cool. The detour in the valley was cool but it will won't make or break the trip.

There is a few more sites to talk about in this park but I hate long web pages so I am gonna start another blog. I plan to discuss Upper and Lower Cascades, Hidden Falls, Window Falls and the Tory's Den area.