Andrews Bald and a Perfect Day

Some days are truely magical from start to finish.  This July 1st hike to Andrews Bald in the Great Smoky Mountains with three friends had that quality.  

No one expects to find a day in the 60's in July in east Tennessee!  Nor do you expect to drive to the Smoky Mountains National Park on a holiday weekend without throngs of traffic.  We managed to enjoy both--low traffic and perfect weather!  (It was 69 F degrees when we finished our hike at 3:00 pm!)

We started at Clingman's Dome and hiked the rocky steps, some natural, most constructed for visitor comfort, leading down the slope to Andrew's Bald.  The trail takes you through pristine forest along the ridge edge, lush with native vegetation in various stages of maturity, thriving in the rich forest floor.  

There is something truely magical about the ferns, algea and lichen that line the trail edges and thrive in the shade and water that trickles down the mountain face in numerous places.

Part of the fun is the curiousity stimulated by these plants.  We stopped to take photos of some of them and wondered about their identification.

 Small Purple Fringed Orchid, above and below.

Our ultimate goal was to see the Flame Azaleas on the bald and enjoy the spectacular view.  We enjoyed that and more!

 Above, the view from Andrew's Bald through a rare and spectacular clear atmosphere!

Flame Azalea.

Though the azaleas are expected to be in full bloom in early July, their peek occurred earlier this year. Maybe that was due to our unseasonably warm May weather--I'm not sure how that works--but we were delighted to find blooms nonetheless.

The above beautiful blossoms were found on the shady side of one of the azaleas, showing a variety of color from pink to peach to orange.

The bald was a great place to relax for lunch and I checked out some of the bird activity around us. For the first time, I heard a breeding Dark-eyed Junco burst into song.  Normally I see them in the winter months.  The one below was hopping along the plank path and foraging along its edges.  I also found Cedar Wax Wings and heard a Common Raven.

After lunch, Kara pulled a package of bubble blowing liquid from her pack!  Of all the things I've seen someone pull out of their hiking pack, this was by far the most surprising.  What happened next was delightful.

On the bald with us were two families from Houston, traveling together.  The family members originated from Bolivia, France and Chicago.  It was the children of these families that Kara invited to play with the bubbles.  An unexpected entertainment for all of us in the higher elevation of the Smokies!

After the families started back down the trail, they encountered a bear foraging only ten feet from the trail!  They also saw a deer!  When we caught up with them only minutes later, the children could speak of nothing else.  "We saw a BEAR, and a DEER, and DEER POOP!"  I felt so happy for these children--an experience in nature they will never forget.

No, we didn't even catch a glimpse of a bear.  I'm sure he was long gone by the time we passed the spot!

Links and resources:
Wildflowers
People and places 
Hiking

Piece-by-Piece--Hiking Knoxville's Urban Wilderness Trail

Piece-by-Piece is the name of a series of hikes scheduled monthly by Ijams Nature Center, and led by naturalist, Stephen Lyn Bales.  These hikes will traverse the South Loop of Knoxville's Urban Wilderness Trail in 2-3 mile sections.  

Saturday, Feb 8th included the Ross Marble Quarry Natural Area, an area of natural limestone deposits, quarried by the Ross Marble Company beginning in 1881.  The area is an interesting combination of large quarried limestone block, some stacked into towering walls, and nature's gradual reclaiming of the area.  The marble produced here was not true marble but a crystalline limestone that polished easily and had an attractive pinkish-gray appearance.  It became known as Tennessee Marble and has been highly favored for use in buildings and monuments in Tennessee, New York and Washington. DC.

Above, an area of slag deposits, the "ashes" created from a lime kiln used to convert broken chunks of limestone into agricultural lime powder.  As the slag area is reclaimed by nature, it supports cedars that favor its alkaline quality.  

As we reached the trail end in the Hayworth Hollow area, we were surrounded by towering stacks of limestone rock.  Large chunks of limestone that were not used for marble were stacked into these enormous walls. The reddish coloration seen in some of the blocks is caused by iron oxide which leaves a rust-like stain.

A system of caves runs under the limestone deposits in this area and provides habitat for the endangered Berry Cave Salamander (Gyrinophylus gulolineatus).  Several species of bats are also known to roost in these caves which are gated to protect wildlife.

Lyn, a master naturalist, turned over some leaves in the pond to demonstrate how you can generally find salamanders and recognize salamander eggs during breeding season.  A talented story teller and author of two books and numerous articles, he shared some tales of frogs and salamanders from his years growing up in the Smoky Mountains.

Further down the trail we explored the Keyhole "wall" at the Ross Marble Quarry, below.  At the top of the wall you can see railing that was installed to offer a safe crossing as you continue on the trail. 

The limestone desposits that included the prized industrial grade limestone sold as Tennessee marble in the area are part of the underlying Holston Formation that passes through the 300-acre Ijams property.  

You can walk through the keyhole to explore the other side.  The images immediately above and below were taken at a different time of year and show the proportional size of the keyhole feature.

On our return to the trail head, we hiked along the ridge with a distant view of the Smokies on one side and blocks of limestone on the other.  

Links and Resources:

Tennessee Marble
Ijams Nature Center
Stephen Lyn Bales--Nature Calling
Marble Quarry Map
Piece-by-Piece--Urban Wilderness South Loop
Knoxville's Urban Wilderness
Legacy Parks Foundation--Knoxville's Urban Wilderness hike descriptions with trail maps
More about geological features of the area:  Ottosee shale to Lenoir limestone