It was another nice day in the Smokies, so Ellen and I decide to take a local morning hike. The closest was up the Bradley Fork starting at the end of the campground, so that's the one we took. It is a fire road/horse trail and was easy walking. After about a mile, we took the right fork up the Chasteen Creek trail, following the Creek up to the Chasteen Creek Cascade.
There was a hitching post for horse trips at the cascade and they had built a platform to make it easier for riders to mount and dismount. It reminded me of a train platform. Evidently, they bring the horse along side and the rider can just step off or on. It looked like a new construction and made a good place to sit in the sun and enjoy our lunch, before heading back down the trail. As in other Smokies hikes there were many wildflowers to see and on this trail, there were also many butterflies. Strangely, they seemed attracted to the horse dung.
The masses of dung along the trail led to the questions of "why horses and not dogs?" and "why horses and not mountain bikes?". They allow horses on many of the trails in the park. They are big and heavy and produce voluminous amounts of manure, which the riders are not required to remove and which the hikers must almost constantly avoid. Dogs on the other hand are allowed almost nowhere, must be on leash and the owner must pick up any droppings. Similarly, horses dig up the trails and, as a result, the popular horse trails are graveled roads. Why can't mountain bikes use those same graveled roads. They would do no more damage than horses and leave no manure. Somebody has a better lobby is all that I can think.
After our hike and musings on horses, dogs, bikes and butterflies, we unhitched Speedy from the trailer and took it into Cherokee in search of showers and groceries.
The search for showers was not successful. Unlike at Sugarlands, the Oconaluftee Visitor Center wasn't helpful. They suggested asking at the Cherokee Visitor Center, which could only suggest one. That one, to remain un-named, looked like a rundown trailer park—not particularly inviting. Groceries were a different story. There is a Food Lion outside of town, not our favorite Southern supermarket chain, but it was just the ticket.
After that it was back to camp to use Speedy's inside shower—a bit tight, but clean with hot water.
Hi Steve, Just catching up on your exploits.... the reason MTB's are persona non grata is likely the same as in Godzone, some bright spark in DOC figured that MTB leave tracks in the mud which when it rains encourages water to stream downlill and erode the track...as to dogs , my horsey sister will tell you they frighten horses.
ReplyDeleteIf you can really figure the logic let me know it baffles me :-)