Tennessee Eastman Hiking & Canoeing Club – Page 8 – Supporting hiking and canoeing in the North East Tennessee area

March 5, 2016March 4, 2016

Trail Value Assessment Completed for TEHCC Section

Vic Hasler and Carl Fritz reporting

ATC worked collaboratively with the APPA NPS office to develop a system for assessing the value of the A.T. and its associated facilities. The results are to help the APPA (Appalachain National Scenic Trail) better compete for funding relative to other National Parks in our region by accurately accounting for the true worth of the extensive work provided by the volunteer corps. The monies help support A.T. relocations, trail rehab, and facility improvements.

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March 4, 2016

Wilderness First Aid Course

The APEs and TEHCC will host a Wilderness First Aid (WFA) course taught by NOC/SOLO (Stonehearth Open Learning Opportunities) on March 19-20. The class will be hosted at the Eastman Lodge and will run from 8:30am – 5:00pm on both Saturday and Sunday. The cost is $115 for WFA and $35 for CPR.

Fast paced and hands-on, this two-day course covers a wide range of wilderness medicine topics for people who travel and work in the outdoors. If you plan to spend time in the backcountry, this training will provide you with the tools to provide patient care in remote settings where assistance may not be readily available. Training will include both classroom instruction and structured scenarios. All levels of training and experience are welcome. Minimum age is 18 years old, or 12 years old if accompanied by a chaperone. This class can be used to recertify WFR for an additional $15.

Class size is limited and registration is on a first-come, first-serve basis. TEHCC has limited positions available for sponsorship in the form of partial course fee reimbursement (~$50). You must be a TEHCC member to apply. Contact William Werner at wwerner@eastman.com for additional information. Register online at http://www.riverapes.org/registration.html. After submitting your registration you will be directed to http://www.riverapes.org/paypal-1.html to pay for the course using PayPal. APEs (or TEHCC) membership is required to participate and can also be purchased online at http://www.riverapes.org/paypal-1.html for $10. No need to fill out and send in a separate membership form. Your online registration will double for that purpose.

Please Contact Scott Fisher at TFisher1@its.jnj.com for additional information.

March 2, 2016

Trail Wiki Update

Submitted by Tim Schaefer

The holidays and getting the new year started slowed progress a bit, but we were able to complete tagging every page with its current short comings. Now, if there are improvement needs, the trail page has a banner highlighting the potential improvements, and anyone reading the page can see how they can help. Needs include everything from more pictures, trail description detail, to GPS logs. With that complete, I will now turn my attention to trail searching. I’ve played with it a bit and have a basic working version, but the aesthetics need some improvement before it’s ready for the non-engineer. Beyond that, others have added details about Hampton Creek Cove State Natural Area and its trails. There have also been updates to the Overmountain Victory National Historic Trail and Mountains-to-Sea Trail, and several GPS track file updates to trails throughout our area. Progress continues and we hope you find it useful and will one day help out as well.

March 1, 2016March 1, 2016

Hiking through Israel with Bob Peoples

Excerpt from longer article by Rebekah Price originally appearing in Elizabethton Star on January 11, 2016

bob in israel Rebekah’s quote regarding the interview was: “Wish I could have spent the day hearing more of Bob’s stories. When Bob Peoples tells a story, books write themselves.”

Hampton resident and hiking legend Bob Peoples, 72, returned this Fall from a venture of Biblical proportions. Hiking through Israel, he followed the Yam el Yam (Sea to Sea) trail and then took a bus to Nazareth and hiked the Jesus Trail, each of which ended at the Sea of Galilee. He covered about 100 miles by foot and visited over 25 churches and numerous historical sites. The high temperature was below 100 degrees Fahrenheit on only one day of his three-week journey.

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February 25, 2016February 25, 2016

3rd Saturday Maintenance – Hiking with Tools!

Contact: Kim Peters, atmaint@tehcc.org, 423-366-0128

Hiking with Tools! is an opportunity to enjoy a day hike on our beautiful section of the A.T. while helping out with some routine maintenance, such as breaking up fire rings, cleaning out waterbars and steps, lopping rhododendron, and painting blazes. All tools will be furnished and no prior experience required! Last year we typically had four to five people on each trip – with eight new volunteers making a contribution. Contact Kim for hike details, including meeting time and place.

February 3, 2016January 22, 2016

Trail Wiki Update

Holidays and getting the new year started slowed progress a bit but we were able to complete tagging every page with its current short comings. Now, if there are improvement needs, the trail page has a banner highlighting its potential improvements of how anyone reading the page could possibly help. Everything from needing more pictures, a trail description detail, to needing GPS logs. With that complete I will now turn my attention to trail searching. I’ve played with it a bit and I have a basic version working, but it will need some improvements for aesthetics before it’s ready for the non-engineer. Beyond that, others have added details about [[Hampton Creek Cove State Natural Area]] and its trails. There have also been updates to the [[Overmountain Victory National Historic Trail]], [[Mountains-to-Sea Trail]], and several GPS track file updates to trails throughout our area. Progress continues and we hope you find it useful and hope one day you’ll help out as well.

January 24, 2016

Trip Report – Margarette Falls

Trip Date: January 17th
Schaefer Family Reporting

Our timing is off in planning these hikes. Another missed chance to see frozen falls as it’s surely bedecked with ice now. Alas the problem with planning one to two months ahead. I just have to put it on the calendar and hope for the best. It is not to say that it wasn’t worth it. Despite no ice, the trail scenery was beautiful with freshly fallen snow and frosted top mountains. The hike was fairly straight forward, well worn, and well marked. We made our way to the falls, enjoyed the view and a quick snack and got moving again before the cold got to us. The return home included a stop at the Greeneville Pizza Inn. No takers on this hike, just the Schaefer family including dogs Zoinks! and Beetle.

We saw the profile of a face.

One day I'll see you covered in ice — One day I’ll see you covered in ice

It's cold - where's the ice? — It’s cold – where’s the ice?

January 10, 2016

Hike Report – Laurel Fork Gorge and Falls 1/9/2016

Tim Schaefer Reporting
Frozen waterfall hikes in this area can be fickle. Although the beginning of the New Year was cold, we finished the week with some warm days. This apparently melted away whatever ice may have formed. It didn’t matter, as often, the destination is a motivator, but it’s the journey that is enjoyed best. The hike began at US321 to the AT and on to the falls. After enjoying a cool (but not frozen) stop at the falls for lunch, we decided to hike up out of the gorge to see the Koonford Bridge redone in 2014. The hike was more steps than I remembered the last time I visited here five years ago. We made it to the bridge and returned except staying on High Water Trail to see more trail (but really to avoid the descent back into the gorge). Joining us today was the Schaefer Family (Tim, Carrie, Jamie, Bob, Josie), the Zimmerman Family (Yuyan and Frankie), Jeffery and Amy Bryan, Gabrielle Ashley with dog Lucy, and Andrew.

January 8, 2016

From the Chair – January 2016

William Werner, Steering Committee Chair Reporting
Happy New Year, everyone! It’s going to be a great year for hiking, paddling, and maintaining, and I’m grateful for the opportunity to serve. I want to sincerely thank all of our members for the time and effort they invested in the club in 2015, and I encourage everyone to make 2016 even better. Serving on the steering committee for the past year has shown me that the officers and committee are only a small part of the club—it’s the contributions of the members that make this club great.

This coming year we have three members who are rotating off the committee: Fred Mullner, Michael Watts, and Brien Lewis. Steve Ankabrandt will continue as past-chair, Yancey Appling as treasurer, and Vic Hasler as a non-voting representative of the A.T. Committee. We also welcome our new Committee members: Mark Cox, Lane Daley, Kay Parker, and Tim Schaefer. With such an experienced and talented team, I’m confident the club can overcome any challenge it faces.

See you on the trail!