Doe River Gorge, Sunday, April 10

Leader: Vic Hasler

Ah, a spring walk on a warm Sunday afternoon!  With area temperatures reaching 87˚F, the shaded Doe River Gorge offered a comfortable hike while viewing and photographing the early wildflowers (wild ginger, yellow and wake robin trilliums, longspur, bleeding hearts, fire pink, and more).  The three cars for the eight folks from TEHCC converged from different directions at the camp around 1:45.  A surprise was when more cars with another 21 people pulled up at that same time.  During the hike, we figured out that two hiking clubs had arrived coincidently for the same hike.  Thus the trip was enjoyed with the “Little Lost Hikers” from Linville, NC (including some Boy Scouts from two troops).  A real benefit was their wildflower expert who helped with identification.  (FYI, looks like more flowers would be in bloom in early to mid-May.)  The 5-mile hike was completed in roughly three hours.  From TEHCC were Troy Greenwald, his daughter Ella, and mother Joan Amato, Sharon Burnette, Solange Adams, Serita Blankenbecler, and Cinda Foglesong.

Details of this trail have been captured in the new club wiki, including the wildflower pictures and identification.  This shared knowledge could be useful to others for deciding where to hike and explore in the region.