May 2, 2017
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Today’s hike at Black Rock Mountain involved three shorter trails. We hiked the beautiful Tennessee Rock Trail followed by the Black Rock Mountain Lake Loop and the lower portion of the James Edmonds Trail to a nice waterfall. HIKERS – Jenny Bell, Mike Bell, John Bellamy, Bob Browe, Joe Collins, Renee Corbett, Greta Driggers, Jim Driggers, Pam Euliss, Gary King, Dick Metzgar, Jeanne O’Connor, Tony Presley, Vic Robson, Linda Schultz, . TRAIL INFORMATION – The Tennessee Rock Trail is a beautiful 2.2 mile loop trail that has beautiful mountain views along with nice rock outcroppings and a lush wildflower environment. The terrain is moderately hilly since this is the North Georgia mountains. We did a portion of the James Edmonds Trail West Fork which is a moderately hilly hike that includes gushing mountain streams and a nice waterfall. We also did the Black Rock Mountain Lake Trail which is just off of the James Edmonds Trail. It is a very nice flat walk around the lake. There are a couple of nice boardwalks along with a gravel surface trail portion and a wood chip trail portion giving a loop of almost one mile. Today’s hiking distance – 4.9 miles – moderate difficulty. Directions: Black Rock Mountain State Park is located on Black Rock Mountain Parkway, 3 miles north of Clayton, GA off U.S. Hwy. 441. Look for brown directional signs in Mountain City. There is a parking fee unless you have a GA State Parks Pass. Another great day for a hike! Mostly sunny with temperatures ranging from the low 60’s to the mid 70’s F. FLOWERS IN BLOOM: Catesby’s Trillium, Purple Toadshade Trillium, Vaseys Trillium, Yellow Round-leafed Violet, Purple Violet, Star Chickweed, Indian Cucumber Root, Mayapple, Wild Strawberry, Blackberry, Tall Buttercup, Foamflower, Robin’s Plantain, Yellowroot, Sweetshrub, Jack-in-the-Pulpit, Pink Lady Slippers, Canada Violets, Oxeye Daisy, Flame Azalea, Catawba Rhododendron. BIRDS IDENTIFIED: Black and White Warbler, Oven Bird, White Breasted Nuthatch, Carolina Wren, Tufted Titmouse, Blue Jay, Black Throated Green Warbler, Phoebe, Hooded Warbler, Towhee .
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