Post 900 Hike #64: Parts of Middle Prong & Panther Creek

Today was the day for our hiking club’s annual chili luncheon; although it used to be held at Debbie and Richard Way’s home, for the past two years it has been held in their cantilever barn in Townsend. A short hike is always scheduled for this day; I did not hear of anyone taking it at our lunch because of rain. However, I did a short hike with Charlie Woodward and Bob Bolinger.

On March 3rd I reported on a somewhat demanding X-C ski venture to Clingmans Dome; after returning home I e-mailed Charlie and Bob and advised them that I would not be hiking with them on the 4th because of the X-C ski workout and because I thought that they had four hikers. As it turned out only Charlie and Tom did the hike; however, they got lost and required a rescue. Today’s hike was for Charlie to pick up that part of Panther Creek that he had missed on March 4th.

Both Charlie and I arrived at Food Lion ~07:40; no one else was there (our hiking group was also to meet there and the scheduled hike was Chestnut Top in and out). It was raining and we decided to go on; we met Bob at the U.S. 321 stoplight in Townsend and then he moved his SUV to the Y. We proceeded in Charlie’s SUV to Tremont, and then up the gravel road to the Middle Prong trailhead; prior to starting our hike both Charlie and Bob donned their gators (back on the 4th one of Charlie’s and Tom's rescuers had told Bob that with knee length gators and water proof boots, one can cross most any stream provided that one does not tarry).

We started on Middle Prong at 0850 and covered its 2.3 mi. section at 0940; my pedometer was quite exact but I neglected to record other data. I had not really paid much attention to what we were hiking (e.g., look at map or Brown Book as I usually do); however, I knew we had to cross Panther Creek (a relatively formidable stream). Bob crossed with little problem; Charlie’s technique and (possibly shorter legs) precluded similar success. I was the only one to wear water shoes; although I had no problem, the close to knee-level water was cold.

After crossing the stream I dried my feet, put on my socks and boots; we then had a couple of rock-hopping type crossings that were not a challenge. At ~0.5 mi. we came to a switchback that Charlie recognized as the one that he and Tom had missed on March 4, in part because of the snow covering Panther Creek Trail (then they were doing Panther Creek in the opposite direction). Charlie had now completed the section of the trail he missed; had I done my homework I would have known that we would be crossing Panther Creek a second time and I could have left my water shoes on).

Panther Creek this time was not as exciting. Bob and I crossed it the way we did the first time but Charlie did a real gutsy thing and crossed it bare-footed (i.e., he did not care for Bob's technique any more and he did not have his water shoes). At 11:40 we arrived at Charlie’s SUV (my pedometer registered very close to 5 mi., only 9,280 aerobic steps versus ~500 more that must have been dainty, e.g., I do not stride out crossing deep streams.)

Arrived at Debbie and Richard Way’s barn at ~12:05 and had a very nice lunch with our hiking group (must have been ~100 there--should mention that some of the attendees are spouses of the hikers and not hikers per se). I do not believe that anyone besides Charlie, Bob and I hiked today.