April 12, 2005
| HIKERS – John Bellamy, Terry Doyle, Bob Presley,Donna Presley, Tony Presley, Dan Ross,
TRAIL INFO. – With uncertain weather conditions, we decided to do a combination of shorter trails. We first went to Black Rock Mountain State Park north of Clayton, GA and hiked on the Tennessee Rock Trail and then we traveled south to Tallulah Gorge State Park and hiked the South Rim Trail down to the gorge suspension bridge. Total round trip hiking distance – approx. 5 miles The Tennessee Rock Trail was awesome with the best selection of wildflowers that we have seen in a long time. The Red Toadshade and Yellow Toadshade Trillium were blooming by the thousands! Also, bloodroot and many others listed below were very abundant. At Tallulah Gorge, this is the time to see the endangered Persistent Trillium, Polygala (gay wings) and several other wildflowes as well as the nice trails with spectacular gorge views. Directions: Take Highway 441 north through Clayton, GA toward Dillard and look for the signs to Black Rock Mountain State Park. For Tallulah Gorge, drive south from Clayton on 441 to Tallulah Falls, GA and the look for the signs. Another great day for a hike! Cloudy and cool with only a brief shower. Temperatures ranging from the mid to upper 50’s. WILDFLOWERS IN BLOOM: Toadshade Trilliums (Purple and Yellow), Blood Root, Cut-leafed Toothwort, Star Chickweed, Round-leafed Yellow Violet, Halberd-leafed Violet, Purple Violet, Service Berry, Polygala, Persistent Trillium, Bellwort, Common Vetch, Trailing Arbutus, Little Brown Jugs, Pussy Toes, Cinquefoil, Yellow Root, Huckleberry.
BIRDS IDENTIFIED: American Crow, Pileated Woodpecker, Downy Woodpecker, Dark-eyed Junco, Solitary Vireo, Black and White Warbler, Black-throated Blue Warbler, Black-capped Chickadee, Turkey Vulture, Carolina Wren, Mallard, Rough-winged Swallow, Barn Swallow, Towhee. |
 The trail parking lot at Black Rock Mountain State Park. |
 A beautiful trail through the forest! |
 A very lush wildflower environment. |
 Here is a typical patch of Red Toadshade Trillium mixed with a few Yellow. |
 The nice marker at the top of Black Rock. |
 The view from Tennessee Rock was nice even on a cloudy day. |
 Walking across the Hwy. 441 bridge, we see the water spillway from Tallulah Falls Lake. |
 Then we arive at magnificent Tallulah Gorge and look down to see beautiful Tempesta Falls. |
 Some of our Wildflowers of the day. (l-r)top- Persistent Trillium, Polygala, (l-r bottom) Star Chickweed and Toadshade Trillium. |
 The OFHC gang for today’s hike. (l-r front) Terry Doyle, Donna Presley, Bob Presley, John Bellamy, Dan Ross, and Tony Presley. |