North Carolina, Virginia and Kentucky

Cumberland Gap from Tri-State peak

052226. First stop was Jackrabbit Campground in Nantahala National Forest, part of the Southern Appalachians in North Carolina.  The weather was warm with off and on rain throughout the day, discouraging weekend campers. There was a single geocache along the Jackrabbit Mountain trail system that meanders down by the lake before turning up hill to the ridge making a nice loop, I waited for a break in the rain, but decided to go for it anyway before it got dark. The trail was well maintained yet muddy, especially on the downward slope. I found the cache in good shape feeling like it was well earned. There were just enough daylight left to complete the hike. The camp host was very friendly and told me where I can dump my gray water and top off on fresh before heading north to Virginia in the morning. 

052326 - 052526 I camped at the Wilderness Road Campground just across the border in Virginia  Now I was really enjoying the history traveling through the Daniel Boon trail of 1776 from North Carolina to Kentucky. The Cumberland Mountains comprise borders in Virginia, Carolinas, Tennessee and Kentucky. Borders that were declared by Great Britain in 1665, but not surveyed until 1728, but were not settled until 1803. I often wondered how the states borders were established. Imagine all the border disputes that went on between the Virginians and Tennesseans back in the day.  There was a lot to do in the area, all the monuments and geocaches, but it rained most of one day so I packed what I could into the next. I hiked the Tri-State peak and visited the ‎⁨Cumberland Gap National Historical Park⁩. I would like to go back and spend more time in the area, but for now, I need to keep on with my route which takes me to the Mammoth Caves in Kentucky. 

052526 - 051726 I got an early start on Memorial Day because I wanted to spend some time at the Mill Springs Battle Field National Monument on the way to Mammoth Caves. The virtual cache at Mill Springs is no give away, it requires visiting several sites and a hiking tour through the mass graves of confederate soldiers. I spent 2 hours completing all the logging requirements, but had a wonderful time learning about. This victory broke the right section of the confederate forces allowing union advance into Tennessee and control of the upper Mississippi river. When I was finished, before driving away I sat and thought about the many Americans that lost their lives in the civil war. 

I arrived Mammoth Caves Campground about 1500. Before setting up I walked over to the visitor center. This place is big, they have a restaurant, a hotel, cabins and a large gift shop. At the information desk is when I found out there were no cave tours available, apparently you need to purchase them online well in advance. But they did have a limited self guided tour, so I got one of those for the next day.  I got settled in and had dinner. No cell service and too many trees for Starlink. But it was only a short walk to the ranger's booth for wifi to check my phone. In the morning I visited the cave at the Historic entrance and spend about 90 minutes on the self guided tour. It was like an underground museum with different exibits and information plaques detailing the cave's history. The rest of the day I drove to where some virtual caches were, one in a graveyard and another at a sinkhole pond with a nice trail.  I spend some time in the visitor center parking lot so I could get online through starlink. In the evening I took a nice walk on the campground trails, there were no geocaches, but I had a good walk. The next day I left the park and visited Russell Cave National Monument just across the Tennessee and Alabama border. Not much there but a small display and a short trail to the cave opening. No entry into the cave allowed. Later in Anniston AL,  

I visited the Freedom Riders National Monument  before arriving back at Camp Carla in Pell City for some birthday baseball. 

Here is a link to the weekends shared photos. 

Until next time, bye.