Getting Our Bearings – Mon, May 18, 2015

Summer Travel Map
Lake Powhatan Recreation Area
Pisgah National Forest, North Carolina


I had this post ready to upload from Live Writer to Blogger.
However, before I could post it, the rug got pulled out between the two.
So now, I attempted to do it in Blogger and it just doesn't work so well.
This may well be my last post if I can't figure out how to use Blogger:o(((


The weather forecast was calling for RAIN today, so we decided to hold off on hiking. 

Instead we did a car trip to try to get our bearings and see a few sites.

We left Lake Powhatan and headed south on Rt 191 to Rt 280 towards Brevard.

Before reaching Brevard, 
we made a right on Rt 276 and visited Davidson River Campground.

We were allowed to ride through the campground, but I forgot to take photos. 
 This campground is much easier to get in to than Lake Powhatan. 


I believe when we return, we will try to get sites here instead of Lake Powhatan as it seems more central to so many things in the area.

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We continued down Rt 276 to a left on Rt 275.

There we visited the Pisgah Center for Wildlife Education and Fish Hatchery.



The Center's theme is "Mountain Streams-Where Water and Life Begin". 
The facility includes an interpretive trail with live and interactive exhibits, a film, an outdoor classroom, an amphitheater and raceway (fish) exhibits.





At the back of the parking area you will find a statute dedicated to Camp John Rock, the CCC camp where the the workers lived who built most of these structures and more in the area.

Also, you will find the trailhead to Cat Gap Trail.
This trail was a favorite of the Ranger we spoke with yesterday!!

Today was not a good weather day to do a 4 mile hike,
so we returned to Rt 276 and drove west toward the Blue Ridge Parkway.

Prior to reaching the parkway, we made several stops.

First Stop – Looking Glass Waterfall


You can see the fall from the road, but we got out for a closer look :o)

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Second Stop – Moore Cove Waterfall

All the literature said this was a 1 mile round trip hike to the falls.
In reality it is a 2 mile R/T hike… but worth the effort!!









Third and Last Stop – Sliding Rock

It was only about 70 degrees today and the water temperature was 55 degrees.
There were only a few folks brave enough to give it a try today!!!






We only spent a short time at Sliding Rock as the predicted rain started.











There was one more place we want wanted to check out before you reach the BRP.

The Cradle of Forestry

The Birthplace of Forest Conservation in America

Since the rain was coming down hard and there are both indoor and outdoor exhibits here,
we decided to come back on a nicer day to give this the time it deserves.

At this point, we reached The Blue Ridge Parkway (BRP)
where we headed north back to the campground.

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Not a very pretty ride, but we did pull into an overlook and enjoy our lunch:o))


















We did find the parking area for the Mount Pisgah Trail.




If the weather clears tomorrow, we will be back here to hike to Mt. Pisgah Summit :o))

We continued north on the BRP,
through many tunnels,
to the exit for Rt 191 which is just a couple miles from the campground!!






Weather permitting, 

we will be right back up here tomorrow!!!




6 comments:

  1. Nooooo! You have to stick it out and continue blogging. Don't let the bums of Microsoft get you down. It will get worked out one way or another. If you stop posting, we'll all go into serious withdrawal missing your beautiful pictures! :cO

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  2. Me too on the way too difficult without Livewriter. I'd say you did a great job of seeing things on a rainy day. Love, love those waterfalls!!! Rained here yesterday and all afternoon today with zero chance of rain the weather guys said.

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  3. Glad you were able to get this posted. I agree. It is a ridiculous amount of time and effort to do what was once simple. We are also discouraged by the increasing frustrations of continuing our posts. The waterfall pictures are great. Looks like we are missing some hikes.

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  4. Never did use Live Writer. Have no problem using Blogger's interface. Hope to see continued postings from you guys! Sure did miss being at the rally :(

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  5. I've never used LiveWriter either. It crashed my laptop when I first started back in 2011 and was never brave enough to try again. I find the blogger platform fine? For my pictures I load them into Picasa and then pull them into my entry as I'm writing. I haven't figured out how to stagger them artfully like you and Sherry do, but it works just fine. I would really miss both you and Sherry's activities if you stop :-(.

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  6. Ditto!
    I absolutely love that Pisgah Forest area around Brevard! Glad you had a chance to check it out.
    Syl

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