[at-l] Hills of Glory - Part III

[winchester@unnet.com (Ron Winchester)]

Curtis Balls wrote:

> I Have Seen the Hills of Glory - Part III
> The
> Ranger, a tall, wiry, late middle-aged man, told me that the Blue Heron
> Mining Camp Museum had been opened in the late 1980's and averages about
> 100,000 visitors a year, a figure I thought was incredible.  "Most of the
> visitors come on the Big South Fork Scenic Railway from Stearns,

Last March, I ran whitewater on the Big South Fork in an open canoe -- our take
out was at the Mining Museum. We camped along the river one night, and as it
had been raining we were warned to pitch camp above the waterline on the side
of the riverbank, which was about 30-40 feet above the water level.  The
outfitters who shuttled us indicated the river can rise that high in as little
as a few hours.
The Big South Fork is amazingly beautiful from a boat, and because we were
there so early in the season, we had the place to ourselves.
Interestingly, the folks who own the outfitters that provided our shuttles and
lodging when we weren't camping, are AT thru-hikers.  The name of their place
is Sheltowee Trace Outfitters, and they're great folks.  Coincidentally, as our
canoe group paddles the Ausable River in Northern Michigan every February, we
decided to extend our overnight paddle/camping trip by incorporating the South
Branch of the Ausable to make it a two night trip.  This necessitated hiring a
shuttle, and our shuttle captain there was none other than Ausable Mike
GA>ME2000.  So within two months, in two states a thousand miles apart, our
canoe shuttles were provided by AT thru-hikers.

> He
> said that the Cumberland River was prettier and that I should not miss the
> Cumberland Falls, the only place to see a moonbow in the Western
> Hemisphere.

When we finished the Big South Fork, we ran the Cumberland upstream from the
Falls.  While the Falls is in a beautifully kept park, most of the balance of
the river we paddled was not very memorable.  It was running about 6000cfs. and
we were advised of the inherent dangers of running such a fast river.  We
completed our run in record time and although we had planned to make camp along
the river, we finished well before dark, and surprised the outfitters when we
drove in that evening.  The upper part where we put in was pretty skanky- lots
of trash dumped over the banks, and I wasn't sure if I'd have much left of my
paddle each time I pulled it out of the brown stinking water.  Lots of farms
further down with the associated run-off.  The most interesting feature on this
stretch is called "Trash-Gate".  It is a politically inspired attempt to
control the garbage that floats freely down the river.  It's a 40' high series
of metal bars extending out into the flow of the river design to trap debris,
which is then scooped up by a huge backhoe.  You really didn't want to get near
it upstream in an open boat.  The locals claim it doesn't do diddly, but it is
strategically placed along a highway so it is visible, and makes it look like
the politicos are working hard to solve the trash problem when the real
solution is to stop the dumping in the first place.  Most times the river runs
a turquise green, and when we spotted our cars at the park in the morning, that
was the color of the river.  As we ran it during a rainy period, we got caught
in the brown ick for the full length of our trip.  Our take out was just a few
hundred yards up from Cumberland Falls, and it was pretty hairy with some dandy
standing waves just before the falls.

Thanks for your journals, Curtie.

Ron