Introduction
On Thursday, 11/12/2020, a reader from Louisiana, with whom I became acquainted, emailed me. He wanted to know about my hikes on Devil’s Nose. Several years ago, he hiked Devil's Nose, with a group, on Thanksgiving Day. The gentleman seems to be a fine feller! He inspired me to publish this article about my hikes on Devil’s Nose, each within the context of life at the time.
The following is a redaction of my Sunday, 11/15/2020, email reply to the gentleman from Louisiana. I edited it for style and added additional remarks. His personal information is removed.
I hope, by reading this article, that you are inspired to go hiking! A day in the woods adds a day to your life!
11/15/2020 Email Reply
Thank you for your 11/12/2020 email, and thank you for your interest in my website journal. I’m glad to “meet” you in this manner!
I haven’t been brave enough to hike Devil’s Nose, since my last hike “up the Nose” on Friday, 11/29/2013. (The 1/1/2014 article is about that hike and includes 12 photographs.) I don’t have plans to “hike the Nose” this year, unless they change. The 8/26/2016 article, “I’m Still Alive – Why?,” explains why I haven’t hiked Devil’s Nose in a while.
I grew up in Hawkins County. During elementary and high school years, a friend, with whom I still keep in touch, had an uncle, who owned property at the southwest base of Devil’s Nose. My friend, another friend, the younger brothers of two of us, and I hiked Devil’s Nose an uncountable number of times, from the late 1960s until the late 1970s. I have many memories of those hikes!
Eventually, I educated myself formally and got married. My wife and I lived in Missouri (1986–1994), then in Russia (1994–1999). We returned to northeast Tennessee in late 1999. Since then, my public journal and commentary have included several details about life. (A search by “Mom” will find several key articles.)
On 4/23/2000, I started keeping a hiking log. My hikes on Devil’s Nose, since that date, total the following ten (so far):
(1) 02/16/2002, Saturday, with two of my three younger brothers and my youngest brother’s wife.
(2) 11/30/2002, Saturday, with the same family members, as on 2/16/2002. We “hiked the Nose” twice in the same year! We had to skip 2003 for various reasons.
(3) 11/26/2004, Friday, with my youngest brother and his wife. I took two photographs.
(4) 11/25/2005, Friday, with my youngest brother only. I have one photograph.
(5) 11/24/2006, Friday, with my youngest brother. The hike was dedicated to our mother, who was born on 11/24/1932. Mom “went to see Jesus” on 12/27/2000. I took 23 photographs.
(6) 11/23/2007, Friday, by myself. No one else could hike with me. My notes from that hike: first time to hike alone. 11 AM - 3:40 PM. 50 minutes to hike up to the west bluff. It took 45 minutes to hike across the ridge. 45 minutes at the east bluff. 45 minutes back to the west bluff. 35 minutes to hike down and out. A little white and black dog followed me. The weather was partly cloudy, breezy, and in the 40s. I took eight photographs. An additional note: on 1/25/2008, Dad joined Mom. This marked the last hike that Dad saw me leave the homeplace to hike and return after the hike.
(7) 11/28/2009, Saturday, with my youngest brother. My notes from that hike: 10:45 AM – 4:15 PM. It took one hour to hike up the west trail and one hour to hike across the ridge. One and a half hours at the east bluff. It took one hour to hike the ridge back to the west bluff. We took 45 minutes to hike back down and out. A black dog followed us. The weather was sunny and in the 60s. I took nine photographs. This hike is mentioned in the 12/12/2009 article and includes two photographs.
(8) 11/27/2010, Saturday, with my youngest brother. My notes from that hike: 10:15 AM – 3:45 PM. It took one and a half hours to hike up to the west bluff and one and a quarter hours across the ridge. We were an hour and a half at the east bluff. We took an hour to hike back to the west bluff and forty-five minutes to hike down and out. The weather went from sunny to cloudy and back to sunny. The temperature was in the low 40s. I took 21 photographs. The 11/28/2010 article is about this hike. It includes 10 of the 21 photographs that I took.
(9) 11/25/2011, Friday, with my youngest brother. My notes from that hike: 10:15 AM – 4:00 PM. We took an hour and a half to hike up to the west bluff. It took an hour to hike east on the ridge. We enjoyed an hour and a half at the east bluff. It took an hour to hike back west on the ridge. Hiking down and out took 45 minutes. The weather was clear, warm, and in the 60s. I have 21 total photographs.
(10) 11/29/2013, Friday, with my youngest brother. My notes from that hike: This was my tenth hike on Devil's Nose that is recorded in my hiking log. 11 AM – 4:30 PM. I didn't record the time that it took to hike up, across, back, and down. The weather was clear and about 45 degrees Fahrenheit. Snow was still on the north slope and on the ridge. I photographed bobcat tracks! On the east bluff, we met a former son-in-law of a first cousin, his daughter, and others! (Using ropes, they had hiked up the steeper east trail.) I took 12 photographs. The 1/1/2014 article is about this hike and includes all the photographs.
Thank you again, my newly found hiking friend and distant neighbor, for your email. I will publish a section of this email, without your name mentioned, on my website. Thank you for inspiring me to write another article on hiking!
I trust that you have accepted the Good Lord’s salvation and are living accordingly. This world is a training ground for our everlasting Home. Can you imagine hiking in heaven? I can! Will it not be great? If we don’t meet here, I’ll enjoy a heavenly hike with you eventually!
Kindest regards, in Him,
Marion W. Ferrell
PS: On my website, I write under my pen name, Merrion Fearghail. From Gaelic, Merrion means “brave man,” and Fearghail, my ancestral clan from County Longford, means “man of valor.”
Conclusion
I hope that this article inspires you to hike! As I've said many times, a day in the woods adds a day to your life!
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