View from Cool Springs Overlook
Day Two
Sunday, July 26th
Today we got up and got going early. We had breakfast and then got checked in to our campsite at the camp store, where we also did our part to support the state park by buying stuff we did not really need, like a sticker for the camper and bandanas with the trail map printed on them.
View from Cool Springs Overlook
We headed up to hike to the rock wall and tower, both hikes I really wanted to do-and they were both on the same .9 mile loop! The wall was not particularly amazing, I realize the historical significance and the cool mystery surrounding it, but the actual wall was like a long pile of rocks. It made me think of planting a garden when I was a kid, the adults plowed and the kids ran along behind and piled the tilled-up rocks along the edge of the garden.
The mysterious rock wall
Early leaf color!
Too...early...
The tower was if anything, less impressive as we could not climb it.
I consulted my bandana-map and discovered there was an overlook off a nearby spur trail, so I got us going in that direction. The kids got there ahead of me, as usual, and Jake reported back that the view 'grabbed your stomach, shook it around and shoved it up your esophogus'. I had to agree-we have been to a LOT of overlooks, but that was the first one with so MUCH view. It was out on the point of a mountain, with full views on 3 sides and back around the mountain we were hiking on. It was fantastic!
Taller than his mama
Above is the Chatsworth
Courthouse from the overlook with my camera zoomed in on 40x
Below is the mountain from the front steps of the courthouse later the same
day.
We finally had to head back, though I would have considered the trip worth it just for that view, and would have happily remained there all day. We met the rest of the group at the naturalist cabin where a mostly native-animal show was in full swing.
Ball pythons are not native.
This is the cutest turtle in the world.
The adults conversed and opted to split up for lunch and meet up around 2 at the Ocoee Whitewater Center to swim.
We headed out, and after confirming the expected water levels at the center, we headed on in to Ducktown to the Ducktown Basin Museum for a geocache. It was closed, but we were able to get loads of pictures of the old machinery and complete the virtual cache requirements.
We made a second stop at another overlook, this one was not as amazing as the west overlook up here on the mountain!
Back at the Whitewater Center, we met up with Gina and Suzette and had a snack and changed into our swim gear.
The water levels were dropping all the while and we finally were able to get in safely at the Blue Hole, where we played for the next 2 hours, sliding down rapids and swimming and playing on the rocks.
Here is how most of the time went, the
kids walked up and jumped in the rapids and floated down where Matt and Dave
waited to catch them.
Once, Britney did not quite get caught and went on downstream through a second
and much larger set of rapids, followed by Dave. They were unhurt.
Matt found an underwater tunnel and he and the kids went through that a few times. Bobby and Gina headed out to get groceries followed by Dave and Suzette to do the same. They left Britney and Emily with us, so we stayed another hour or so, heading downstream now and then to check out other places to play while making our way back to the van.
At one point Matt heard Ben say, "Cave!" Matt replied, "Cave?" "Yes, and it's this long and headed toward you!" It was a snake, not a cave! Hard to hear over the rush of water and so we evaded it by...moving further downstream! : )
Jake swam face-first into a rock.
We finally had to head back to the campground to meet the curfew enforced here. We had dinner at Burger King and stopped one last time at an overlook to get a glimse of the sky a good 30 minutes after sunset.
We got to camp and swapped Ben for Britney and everyone is settling in for some well-earned rest!