THE ALLIGATOR BACK
I
had an unusually light work schedule last week.
My job was scheduled to start on Tuesday, and for once, I didn’t have a
report to write from the previous week.
Since I didn’t get a chance to hike over the weekend, I decided to head
for the mountains on Monday.
I
had two main goals. First, I needed to
get a good workout in. Christy and I
leave for Peru in five weeks, where we are planning to do some serious
backpacking. At this point, I can’t
claim to be in tip top shape. That needs
to change, and the best way for me to get there is to do a lot of hiking and
backpacking in the next few weeks.
I
was also hoping to find a good wildflower hike.
I’ve managed to miss a lot of the best blooms this spring, and I wanted
to correct that. The ideal choice
would’ve been a hike at Roan Mountain.
The wildflowers there would be near their peak, and the hike from the
valley to Grassy Ridge is enough of a grunt to get me a fine workout. The only problem is that I didn’t really want
to do that hike. It seems like I do that
hike every year at this time, and I feel like I’m in a
bit of a rut. I wanted to change things
up, and do something different.
I
wasn’t able to come up with a completely new hike within a reasonable drive of
home. Instead, I chose a hike that I
hadn’t done in a long time. My plan was
a long hike to Bluff Mountain in Doughton Park, off
the Parkway near Stone Mountain. It had
been several years since I’d hiked there, and even better, when I do go there
it is usually in the winter. I was
looking forward to seeing Doughton Park at a
different time of the year. I wasn’t
sure what wildflowers I’d find, but I figured something was bound to be
blooming.
I
escaped Charlotte traffic Monday morning and drove up I-77 to Elkin. From there, it was a relatively painless drive
to the trailhead off of Longbottom Road. The parking area was deserted when I arrived,
which was pretty much what I expected on a Monday morning. I was looking forward to some quiet time in
the woods without a lot of people around.
I
freed Boone from the car and followed him up the old Grassy Gap Fire Road
alongside Basin Creek. The valley was
impossibly green with ferns and shrubs, but I didn’t see much blooming. The main exception was Firepink,
which was blooming in several places along this stretch of trail.
After
30 minutes or so I reached the ford of Basin Creek. The water was fairly low, and rock hopping
was easy. On the far side I passed by
the designated campsites on Basin Creek.
These campsites are really pretty, situated in a lovely Hemlock
forest. I was pleased to see that at
least some of Hemlocks here have been treated with pesticides. It would’ve been a shame to find that grove
dead from the blight.
I
began the climb there. Initially I had
trouble finding the “primitive trail” that leads to Bluff Mountain. Finally I spotted a switchback hidden behind
some deadfall. I attacked the climb
aggressively, looking for the maximum exercise benefit. Fortunately, it was a cool morning. In fact, it was chilly enough that I could
see Boone’s breath as he darted past me on his way up the mountain.
Wildflowers
were in short supply on the ridge. There
were a few blooming Mountain Laurel, but otherwise there wasn’t much to look
at. I focused on the climb, eager to
reach the summit before lunch time. I
knew I was nearing the top when I reached an open glade covered in ferns. From there, it wasn’t much further to a day-use
shelter a short distance below the summit.
From the shelter I was treated to my first view of the day. I gazed out to the south, looking over green valleys towards the Brushy Mountains in the distance.
From
there, I climbed a bit more, reaching a meadow a short distance from the Blue
Ridge Parkway. I joined the Mountains To Sea Trail there, and arrived at a rock outcrop just
beyond the summit of Bluff Mountain a few minutes later. From there I had a great view of the Parkway
below and the high peaks of Ashe County in the distance. I had lunch and attempted to identify some of
them. Mount Jefferson, Three Top, and
Elk Knob were all prominent, while Grandfather Mountain was actually visible
farther to the south.
There
were some interesting shrubs blooming on the summit. I’m not sure what they are, but they looked
like they might be some sort of Azalea.
From
there I descended on switchbacks to a parking area and the shoulder of the
Parkway. From that point, I continued
following the MST, which runs parallel to the road. Just beyond the parking area I reached an
impressive rock outcrop with fine views back to Bluff Mountain. Beyond Bluff Mountain I could see the jagged
ridge I had hiked to reach the summit.
This ridge is known as the Alligator Back, presumably due to its rugged
nature.
From
there I continued through woods and fields, never straying far from the
Parkway. I found some nice flowers along
here, including lots of Fire Pink and my first Flame Azalea of the season. I also passed the only other hikers I saw all
day.
The
only real drama of the hike came a few minutes later. I rounded a bend to see a handful of cattle
sprawled in the middle of the trail just ahead.
Boone was ahead of me, and he chose this moment to display selective
hearing. He wasn’t interested in coming
back to me to get leashed. What he was
interested in was playing with these fascinating new creatures he’d found in
the middle of the forest. He started
dancing around them, playing like he does when he meets an energetic dog at the
bark-n-park. These weren’t dogs though,
and they didn’t appear to be very amused with Boone’s antics. I was a bit concerned that Boone might get
stomped by a cow. I finally resorted to “angry
daddy” voice, and Boone finally came to me.
I leashed him and we walked past the cattle. I didn’t set Boone free until after we passed
through a gate in the fence that indicated the end of the pasture.
A
bit later we passed the upper end of the Grassy Gap Fire Road. I could’ve returned on this route, but I
prefer to avoid horse trails when I’m hiking with Boone. Instead I continued on and reached the
junction with the Flat Rock Ridge Trail a mile or so later. I took this trail, which also leads back to
the Longbottom Road Trailhead. Early on I passed a couple of decent views,
along with some blooming Rhododendron and Mountain Laurel. Most of the rest of the hike was an uneventful
stroll along the ridge through hardwood forest.
By the time I reached the road, I had covered about 13 miles of trail,
and had climbed around 3000’ or so. This
loop gave me the workout I’d wanted.
More importantly, it had given me the chance to spend a day out in the
woods.
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