Introduction
On Wednesday, October 9, 2024, I hiked House Mountain for the 192nd time. Yesterday, part one of this two-part series focused on birthday greetings to our beloved and “adopted” great niece, Addy. It includes my audiovisual birthday wishes to her from the upper-middle bluff on her 15th birthday.
This part two, the 68th entry in the hiking topic section, concentrates on the fallen trees along the trails, caused by the remnants of Hurricane Helene. Twenty photographs are included. I counted at least 19 freshly fallen trees that were blocking three trails.
The weather was clear and sunny. The sky was brilliant blue. The morning low of 46 degrees Fahrenheit quickly warmed to about 78 degrees. I sweated enough. From 12:19 PM to 4:04 PM, three hours and forty-five minutes in the woods was better than not having been there, despite negotiating over, under, and around fallen trees!
Remnants of Hurricane Helene's Effects on House Mountain
Hurricane Helene struck the western coast of Florida on Thursday, September 26. Turning inland, remnants of the tropical cyclone ravaged swaths of Georgia, South Carolina, western North Carolina, northeastern Tennessee, and southwestern Virginia. Closest nearby, Newport in Cocke County, Tennessee, was devastated. Farther east, Asheville, North Carolina, was hit hard. Small towns and rural communities were destroyed or isolated. Sections of Interstate 40 and 26 were destroyed. Flood water swept away homes, businesses, roads, train tracks, and bridges. Livestock drowned. People perished.
Volumes of online resources chronicle the historic devastation. For this article, I selected two. The first is “ETSU experts explain Helene’s impact on Appalachia,” East Tennessee State University (ETSU), by O.J. Early, 10/8/2024. The other is “Rising with Hope: Appalachia After Hurricane Helene: On September 27, 2024, Hurricane Helene brought devastation to the Appalachian Mountains.” ETSU, by Dr. Andrew Joyner. The latter is an ongoing series of audiovisual episodes about the devastation of and recovery from Hurricane Helene in southern Appalachia. These are good sources; however, I disagree with their implicit allegations that so-called man-made global climate change caused the calamity. That humans are behind the so-named global climate change chicanery is scientifically false and politically propagandized.
Join me on a virtual hike, as we explore the fallen trees along the trails. House Mountain is only one area that was damaged by the remnants of Hurricane Helene.
Up the West Trail
At 12:19 PM, I started hiking the west trail to the west bluff. Touching the marker near the covered picnic area marked the time.
The first photograph below, taken at 12:31 PM, shows the first fallen tree or trees that blocked the trail leading to the third lower switchback. The view looks northwest. The wooden fence posts were still standing, but the wooden rails were down. I could see one fallen tree. There could have been more.
A minute later, standing at the same spot, I turned east to take the second photograph below. It shows the fourth and final lower switchback still above me. On hands and feet, I climbed up a few yards to reach the trail again. I didn't see any damage at the fourth lower switchback.
Still hiking up and west at the southern base of House Mountain, I photographed the following at 12:37 PM:
The marker shows 0.25 of a mile hiked so far. The trail up to the west bluff or overlook is claimed to be 0.8 of a mile. Years ago, an old sign showed 1.0 miles exactly. The mountain did not shrink! Two trees looked to be freshly fallen across the trail.
Four minutes later, not much farther up the west trail, I took the fourth photograph. Leaning forward, I could walk under this fourth fallen tree.
Once I reached the first of the six upper switchbacks, I didn't see any trees down across the trail, until I arrived at the fourth upper switchback. Just below that switchback, I took the fifth photograph at 12:47 PM.
Two trees were down and blocking the trail. Another tree was down off the trail. The smaller tree was easy to step over. The once majestic tree had stood proudly and marked the switchback. I will miss that tree. Three minutes later, now above the huge fallen tree, I took the sixth photograph.
This is a better view, looking east, of the once mighty tree that had fallen. A young man and his mother were coming up the trail. I happened to catch him in the image.
At 12:53 PM, I took the following seventh photograph. The view looks southwest toward the fifth, or next to last, upper switchback.
Four trees were down. Two fell across the trail. Two others were suspended above the trail.
I took the eighth photograph below at 12:58 PM. The final or sixth upper switchback is above me. The view looks northwest. The one fallen tree was easy to step over.
At 1:04 PM, hiking the trail just below the ridge toward the west bluff, I photographed the one fallen tree below. I hunkered down to pass underneath it.
The rest of the trail under the ridge to the west bluff appeared undamaged. Hiking up the west trail, I saw several other freshly fallen trees, but they were off the trail.
The West Bluff
I reached the west bluff at 1:20 PM, slowed by photographing the fallen trees and navigating over, under, or around them. I met and conversed briefly with a couple of groups of hikers as well.
At 1:23 PM, at the west bluff, I took the tenth photograph below. The view looks southwest. No tree was down. The top of the tree trunk to the left in the image had snapped off years ago. New branches are still growing from the tree trunk near the center of the image.
Hiking East across the Ridge
From the west bluff, I continued hiking east along the ridge trail, heading to the upper-middle bluff. I found two fallen trees across the ridge trail. I took the eleventh and twelfth photographs below at 1:48 PM and 2:01 PM.
I stooped a little low to walk under this tree.
I stepped onto and over this tree.
Upper-Middle Bluff
Arriving at the upper-middle bluff, I enjoyed the magnificent views! No newly fallen trees were in the area. I took the following three photographs, numbers thirteen to fifteen, within five minutes from 2:12 to 2:17 PM. In the first, I was sitting on a rock in between the two large rock formations. The view looks northwest. Notice the recently placed American flag.
Climbing down to the flag, I took the next close-up photograph of the flag. Hand-painted on the big rock below the flag are the words, “Thank you. You're welcome.” I wonder who placed that flag and wrote on the rocks.
Turning around at the same spot, I photographed up to where I had sat to take the first photograph from this bluff.
Down and Out the East Trail
At 2:20 PM, leaving the upper-middle bluff, I started hiking back to and down the east trail. My descent was unhindered by fallen trees, as I continued down the seven switchbacks. On the lower and meandering trail, however, I saw the following five trees that were newly fallen. These are photographs sixteen through nineteen. I took them within four minutes, from 3:39 to 3:43 PM.
I had to bend low, moving on hands and feet, to cross under this tree. The view is southwest.
This once majestic tree will be missed. The view looks north. I had passed the tree and turned around to take the photograph.
I walked only a few yards farther, before stopping to photograph the above fallen tree. The image looks southwest.
Two trees were newly fallen at this location, only a few yards from the last image. I could bend under the first tree and step onto and over the second tree.
Conclusion
House Mountain is owned by the State of Tennessee and managed jointly by the state and the Knox County Parks and Recreation Department, under a lease agreement with the state. Both entities may already know about the fallen trees that need to be cleared along the trails. I may contact Knox County to see if they could use my help. I did clear several fallen tree branches during this hike. The photographs in this article may help the county understand where trees need to be cleared.
Where was my 2006 Nissan Frontier? He was parked in the shade. With 192,454.5 miles on the odometer, my truck runs as good as new, and he likes to take me hiking! Ending the hike, I touched the marker near the sheltered picnic area at 4:04 PM. The photograph below was taken three minutes later.
A future article will be about my 193rd hike on House Mountain on Columbus Day, which happened to be another dear family member's fifteenth birthday. I enjoyed hiking twice this month, as birthday gifts to two fine young Christian ladies, each of whom turned fifteen on the days that I hiked!
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