Stone Mountain Number Two 04/29/19

Posted on May 2, 2019 by blainepeck

Byrd’s Branch Campground, Elkin, North Carolina

Love the Lord you God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.  These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts.  Impress them on your children.  Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.  Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads.  Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates. ~ Deuteronomy 6:5-9

We were out the door by 8:15am, and considering all we did today, it’s a good thing we were!  After about a 30 minute drive, we were ready to hit the trails of Stone Mountain State Park in North Carolina.  We began with the Stone Mountain Loop trail that’s 4.5 miles long.  Just the walk to the summit is 1.7 miles, with an elevation change of 938 feet.  Plus, we started walking before we got to the trail which actually made the hike closer to six miles.  By the way, climbing 938 feet is like climbing to the top of a 93-story building.(The Empire State Building is 102 stories) Ugh!  Actually, it wasn’t too bad except for the switch-back section.

And just for kicks, I’ve thrown in a few comparison pictures from when we were here in early November, 2017.

Today, we climbed to the top of Stone Mountain twice!  Why?  Because the sun was shining this afternoon and we wanted to see if things looked any different. 

Because nine strenuous miles wasn’t enough. 

Because every once in a while, we have to do something particularly note-worthy to try to hold your interest.  Hopefully, thirteen strenuous miles of hiking will be enough for you, because I’m not sure we can ever top that at this stage of the game. 😊

It was overcast and cool this morning with the promise of partly sunny and mid seventies.
This is one of the roads we had to take to get to the Park! Good thing we have a Jeep!
The sun’s trying to get over the mountains . . .
Almost there! But that’s not Stone Mountain. (Darn bugs! Can’t they learn to stay away from car windshields? Guess not. They really don’t have an opportunity to warn others.)
This is the 1/2 mile section from the parking lot Blaine chose, and leads to the start of the actual Loop Trail.
We’re not to the trailhead yet . . .
This chimney marks the intersection of two trails. To the left, is the waterfall. To the right, the summit. You can take this one just up to the summit and back, or you can extend your hike and your experience by hiking the loop.
It’s still a little chilly this morning, but we’re wearing layers should the weather improve. We’re not to the top yet.
You’d think we’ve arrived, but not yet.
Although you may notice that this looks very similar the pictures from the summit, we’re not there yet.
We’re arrived at the switchback area. This is the steepest part of the climb.
Bloomin’ Rhodies!
Aren’t they beautiful? Still can’t believe the people who bought our house cut them down!
The entrance to the summit!
When we were here a year and a half ago, there was an elevation sign here.
The last time we were here it was Fall.
There are no Fall colors, but it’s still a beautiful place!
And soooo quiet!!
How you get someone to quit bugging you when you’re trying to commune with God and nature. hahaha!
Blaine walked over the edge.
That’s part of the Hutchinson Farm area.
We stopped there and looked around last time, so we won’t be doing that today. . .
He was so far over the edge, I had to wait for him to start back up in order to take his picture!
I prefer the one he took today much more than this one!
This is just scary!!
We’ve left the summit and are now working on the Loop part of the trail. This is the very beginning of the blooming of Mountain Laurel!
It seemed strange to us that the Rhodedendron were blooming at the higher elevations and not the lower.
Not exactly the same place, but close.
Every so often, we’d hear a chain saw, as a Park Ranger walked the trail somewhere ahead of us.
Here’s the proof he was here this morning. : )
Wild orchids!
Gorgeous!
I sure hope we’re headed home by then!
There was a large prescribed burn in this area,
but look how the Rhododendron are still budding!
Blaine found this centipede on the trail – before his foot went down on top of it.
Lucky pede!
It wasn’t moving very much and we’re not sure if it’s because of the cool temperatures,
or just a life cycle, but the warmth of Blaine’s hand seemed to revive him some.
That’s the Hutchinson Homestead.
Our trial goes right alongside it.
View of Stone Mountain the Hutchinson’s had. Lovely!
Two roads diverged into the woods . . .
We had plenty of water to walk beside, making the trek even more wonderful!
Eventually, we came to the main waterfall in the Park.
Sand under the water at the side of the falls.
See the paths in the sand?
Pretty cool, huh?
This is one of the little guys who made those trails!
Another marvel at God’s vast and wonderful Creation!
Last time, we had to climb around an “area closed” sign and struggle up broken steps from a recent storm.
You’d think I’d say it was easier this time, but I’m not.
There are 302 steps!
Blaine counted every one,
but I was soon too busy trying to catch my breath to bother with counting!
Hey! At least my body wasn’t screaming at me to stop. : )
The top of the falls.
NOW they tell us! Guess we walked the trail backwards!
There’s no sign at the base of the falls, so how were we supposed to know? : )
Lunch time!
We discovered a perfect spot!
Getting ready to begin our next trail – Widow’s Creek.
Not sure I want to know how it got it’s name . . .
The length’s he’ll go to for a picture! : )
Notice the stick? Believe it or not, t’s the same one!
Notice the same stick’s still here?



We got a little closer.
What is it about running water in the woods
that makes you want to stick around forever?
We had some trouble locating the trailhead.
It ended up being down the road a bit from where we parked the Jeep.
Here we go again with the caution signs . . . .
These were just dumped here along the trail.
Looks like they did some trail work recently.
This trail also seems to serve as a road for ATVs.
I’m sure that’s how they check on the campsites.
Time to rest.
Looking straight up from the campsite.
Great!
Unless it’s windy or storming . . . .
Rhododendron ready to bloom!
Isn’t this pretty?
Looks like a terrarium!
It was on a rock wall along the side of the trail.
We heard this and it took a minute to find, but we got there. : )
On our way back.
It was along the way that we discussed where else we wanted to hike.
We looked at the sky and settled on Stone Mountain Summit again.
And a-waaaaay we go!
TADA!! We made it!
Thank Heaven! We’re back to the Jeep!
It took us an hour and a half to hike up and back,
including the “absorbing the view” time.

All that hiking certainly deserves a special reward, don’t you think?

Pizza at Mazzini’s!

In the end, according to the app on Blaine’s phone, we took 32,435 steps today, more than three times the recommended amount!  But since it was in his backpack most of the day, it’s not as accurate as when it’s in his pocket or the number would’ve been even higher!  Something tells me, we’re gonna pay for that in some way tomorrow . . .   and maybe the next day . . . .

But I know you don’t read this blog to see how far we walked, and not even for the great nature photos, you read it purely for the educational value, right?

So here’s something you can learn today.

If you’re approaching 60 years old, don’t try to climb every mountain in a single day – especially not twice.

There, now I’ve taught you something valuable, which makes spending your precious free moments on reading this blog worthwhile.  😊

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