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Mississippi Palisade 5 23 09 Day1
- 1. The Hike - Day 1 - 5/23/2009 Monday, May 25, 2009 3:32 PM 5/23/09 Left the house at 3:30 A.M arriving at the site by 6 A.M. with several stops in between. Set up camp and started the first trail at 7 A.M. Here is Home Sweet Home for the weekend…. I started on the North Trail System, with the first trail being the High Point Trail. The Trail gradually ascended for quite some distance. Mississippi Palisades Page 1
- 2. An assortment of lovely birds could be seen along the trail. Right at the beginning a bird with a blue back and red breast was seen, as well as a couple of Goldfinches. But trying to capture them with the camera was impossible, much more difficult than playing Pokemon Snap. Amidst all the greenery of the forest this dead tree caught my eye. As well as this plant Mississippi Palisades Page 2
- 3. As well as this plant The trail continues to ascend. As seen in this photo, some portions of the trail were asphalt. Other portions were dirt, grass, or gravel. Halfway up, I took the turnoff onto Rock Top Trail which was a little closer. This overlooks the valley through the trees. Mississippi Palisades Page 3
- 4. So trail guides and trail maps are all well and good, but an adventurous spirit soon disdains such comfort and follows her own trail. Well, it was a small deer trail that led to the vistas shown below… The bluff I stood on to get the picture shown above can be seen in the photo below… Mississippi Palisades Page 4
- 5. The bluff I stood on to get the picture shown above can be seen in the photo below… Quite the fall. Looking straight down that bluff…. And one last view of the overlook, looking south from where I was standing…. Mississippi Palisades Page 5
- 6. And one last view of the overlook, looking south from where I was standing…. So after the bluffs, I backtrack back to the main trail, but am too restless to remain on it for long. At the end of Rock Top Trail is another deer trail that leads straight down. Much of the trail was traversed by sitting on my heels and sliding down the slope. In the picture below I am attempting to capture the slope… And failing miserable. Below is another attempt to give the slope some perspective… Mississippi Palisades Page 6
- 7. And failing miserable. Below is another attempt to give the slope some perspective… The picture below is close to what I'm trying to show, but it still fails to capture the controlled fall necessary to get down this hill… And so we reach the end of Rock Top Trail. But the trails are not the only place in which lovely views can be found. The drive up alone was rather picturesque as well. This was taken on my way back into town for breakfast. Mississippi Palisades Page 7
- 8. way back into town for breakfast. So the next couple of hours were spent breakfasting as well as the administrative details such as registering at the campsite. I started the next hike at 10 A.M. Although the clouds looked ominous at the start of the hike, by the time I returned from this hike at Noon, the sun was out and heating up the day. Perhaps the sun had been out for a significant portion of the morning, however, under the canopy of trees, it would have been impossible to ascertain. As I skipped out on portions of the High Point Trail on my earlier hike, I once again started hiking it. Pictured below is where I turned off from the last hike and continue going straight on this hike… Mississippi Palisades Page 8
- 9. this hike… The next several photos show some of the interesting flora encountered along the way…Much easier to capture than the fauna… This looks like possible some sort of milkweed plant?... And here is some of the largest clover I've ever seen… Mississippi Palisades Page 9
- 10. And here is some of the largest clover I've ever seen… And just for giggles, I decided to play with this weed for awhile. Just kidding. This one kept me on the paths this time…. So finally, after endlessly going up, up, up, the trail suddenly starts to go down… Mississippi Palisades Page 10
- 11. So finally, after endlessly going up, up, up, the trail suddenly starts to go down… I always find ferns fascinating, one of the few organisms still living from the time of the dinosaurs… As we reach the end of High Point Trail, the path splits off in several direction. Two branches point to Route 84. It is intriguing that I can reach the highway by going left or by going right. That road must do some funky things north of the campgrounds, although I never drove it. Two other trails lead to dead ends. Below we see the view at the end of the 1/4 mile path leading in a dead end. There is almost a Mississippi Palisades Page 11
- 12. Below we see the view at the end of the 1/4 mile path leading in a dead end. There is almost a vista to be seen through the trees... And below is the view at the end of the 1/2 mile dead end… And finally, the one of the paths not taken leading to Route 84. It's down hill all the way…to easy…why take that? Anyway, it ends at a road… Mississippi Palisades Page 12
- 13. So continuing on High Point Trail, we see a lovely spot where the trees arch over the path… And what looks to be an awesome climbing tree… Mississippi Palisades Page 13
- 14. And what looks to be an awesome climbing tree… And we finally reach the end of High Point Trail. There is a shelter/Pavilion at the end of the trail. The name changes depending on what map or signs you look at. The pictures below show the view from the shelter… Mississippi Palisades Page 14
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- 16. From the shelter, one must back track on High Point Trail to find the confluence with Goldenrod trail which was the next trail taken. Goldenrod trail is more open than High Point trail, the canopy not as dense…. Mississippi Palisades Page 16
- 17. Goldenrod trail is more open than High Point trail, the canopy not as dense…. And from Goldenrod trail, we reach Aspen trail. Aspen trail is even more open than Goldenrod trail. On this hike we are only doing a portion of Aspen trail… Although there are still shaded spots along the way. Picture below is a fallen tree hanging over the path... Mississippi Palisades Page 17
- 18. The wildlife on this hike subscribed to the notion of heard but not seen…except for the robins…and the bugs…If my bug spray says 25% DEET and I apply it four times, will I get 100%? Just kidding. I heard several woodpeckers along this trail, but did not manage to even catch a glimpse of them let alone capture a picture with the camera…Again Pokemone Snap, the impossible version of the game. And yes, 9 hours without a cigarette and I'm going slightly nuts… The last hike of the day started on Bittersweet trail, traversed Aspen trail for a few yards, jumped onto Deer trail (not to be confused for the deer trail I followed earlier) and ended on Aspen trail. Mississippi Palisades Page 18
- 19. Aspen trail. Bittersweet trail started as a steep climb in which tree roots were all that kept the path from being washed away, and served as steps for the initial part of the climb… Fallen logs across the path were a more common site on this trail... Mississippi Palisades Page 19
- 20. Fallen logs across the path were a more common site on this trail... Had to limbo under this one…. So jumping onto Aspen and then onto Deer trail, we can see that the trail follows the woodline along a farmers field for some way…. Mississippi Palisades Page 20
- 21. But some interesting plants were seen on the trail… Mississippi Palisades Page 21
- 22. Deer trail and the end of Aspen trail eventually turn into valley walks which are second only to bluff walks as my favorite type of trail… The wildlife on this walk was by far the most interesting. At the confluence of Deer and Aspen trails, several half-naked men in their late 20's leading a Pit Bull could be found…And the Pit Bull looked rather tame…Whatever would possess such guys to flirt with someone a decade their senior and smelling of sweat and bug spay, I'll never know. Despite the urge to hand them my whistle (they almost needed it more than I), I controlled all animal urges and continued on the trail only to encounter their campsite at the bottom of the Aspen trail. Mississippi Palisades Page 22
- 23. the trail only to encounter their campsite at the bottom of the Aspen trail. So anyways, at 3:30, we finish the North trails for the day, having done one twice. I finished the day by visiting the scenic overlooks. Although one could drive to these, I once again chose to walk and as they say, a picture says a thousand words, so I'll just post the pictures without much comment… So the first pictures are views from Ozzie's point… Mississippi Palisades Page 23
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- 26. On the walk to Louis Point I encountered this interesting stand of trees… Mississippi Palisades Page 26
- 27. On the walk to Louis Point I encountered this interesting stand of trees… And here's a sign at Louis Point… And the view from Louis Point…So much better than from Ozzie's Point Mississippi Palisades Page 27
- 28. And the view from Louis Point…So much better than from Ozzie's Point Mississippi Palisades Page 28
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- 31. And finally, I sign at Oak Point…. Mississippi Palisades Page 31
- 32. And finally, I sign at Oak Point…. The look was reached by crossing this wooden walk… And views from Oak Point… Mississippi Palisades Page 32
- 33. And views from Oak Point… Mississippi Palisades Page 33
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- 35. So as I can no longer tolerate the smell of sweat and bug spray, it's time to head back to camp for a shower and then heading into town for dinner…What?...I should be more likely to cook for myself with fewer resources?...How perverse…Yes I'm heading into town for dinner. Mississippi Palisades Page 35