Day Two – Piney Creek lakeside vistas. I never tire of the play of light on the trees here. +2
Backpacking
Everything backpacking: our gear, trip write-ups, and individual pictures.
It’s good to be back – Camped in Piney Creek Wilderness. I was last here on a day hike with Katie and Lanie back in April. It’s good to be back and I’m planning on staying for three nights in a repeat of my visit over Independence Day Weekend last year. One-minute read, +2
July 3, 2021 12:24
First glimpse of the lake – but not my first encounter. I checked the lake level before I left, and it was five feet above standard pool. When I was here this time last year, I think it was eleven feet above pool. Anyway, the lake was high enough to have covered the trail in places on the way in. One-minute read
July 2, 2021 20:10
Leave no trace – How NOT to camp in the Wilderness. Got your own land? Go for it, cut down trees, and make as much mess as you like. Public land? Leave no trace, Let’s not trash the wilderness. One-minute read, +3
July 2, 2021 20:04
‘Top-up Creek’ – On my trips to the lake at Piney Creek I almost always stop here to get water. So I’ve decided to name this feeder-creek ‘Top-up Creek.’
July 2, 2021 19:36
Trail journal – don’t knock my writing. It’s not easy to write neat notes while you are hiking. Note the tiny mechanical pencil I bought just for hiking. I included a normal-sized one in the picture for comparison.
June 30, 2021 16:53
View to the southeast from the Pilot Trail, and the hike out.
June 6, 2021 15:11
Fire ring and campsite – I showed Ginger a little scenic overlook on a hidden trail. It looks like someone has been making themselves at home on the short trail leading to the overlook.
June 6, 2021 14:07
Journal: Gary & Ginger, a couple of nights at Hercules Glades, June 2021. Journal: 5 18
June 6, 2021 14:00
Ginger disappearing around a corner on the Pilot (Tower) Trail
June 6, 2021 13:53
Small spring and creek near ‘Ant Hill’ – The spring we found can be seen right at the bottom of the frame. The water was pouring out of a small one to one-and-a-half-inch hole in the bank. +3
June 6, 2021 10:09
Sunday Morning at ‘Ant Hill’ – We put most of our gear away after breakfast, leaving the tarp up in case it rained — it did, but only a few sprinkles. We sat around chatting and looking at the trees until noon, when we packed away the last of our gear and headed back to the trailhead. +3
June 6, 2021 7:47
Saturday evening, camped on ‘Ant Hill’ – We called this place ‘Ant Hill’ because of the huge number of carpenter ants. We couldn’t decide if the ants killed the trees or they moved in because the trees died.
June 5, 2021 18:19
Ginger’s new tent – we splurged a lot of cash on an ultralight (24oz) Dyneema tent. Now Ginger or the kids can come out with me. +1
June 5, 2021 9:00
Flowering Prickly Pear Cactus. +1
June 4, 2021 17:14
Gary and Ginger at the Pole Hollow Cairn — Ginger is never one to miss the chance to ham things up. There are several outtakes.
June 4, 2021 17:12
Gary and Ginger at the Pole Hollow Cairn – I know how to treat Ginger to a good time, I made sure she had plenty of exercise, time to relax, and her own room with a forest view. 2 2
June 4, 2021 17:10
Back to the start and some notes – From here there is just a short thirty-minute hike, south, down the Ozark Trail to get back to the trailhead. That’s it, trip over, though there’s still the two-hour drive home to complete.
May 23, 2021 14:25
Ready for the trail – Don’t come to me for outdoor fashion guidance. I hike to my own tune, and I like mixing my metaphors!
May 23, 2021 13:41
The view from my chair – Stereo image.
May 23, 2021 13:35
And very tall trees too.
May 23, 2021 13:33
Trees, trees, and more trees.
May 23, 2021 13:31
Lunch break, and I’m showing a bit too much thigh – I had a choice of routes to take today. The short route takes the North Fork Loop east back to the Ozark Trail, where I could get back to the trailhead. The longer route goes south, and into the Devil’s Backbone Wilderness, and returns to Highway CC via the McGarr Ridge Trail. One-minute read
May 23, 2021 12:57
Day Three – Back on the North Fork Loop Trail