Brenda and Rick Harris, crew leaders, pre-hiked the Brookshire Creek section of the Benton MacKaye Trail on July 17. Because of the density of foliage and the remoteness, Rick has decided to label this section as the "Heart of Darkness Annex". He is the originator of the Heart of Darkness moniker for the section from Sandy Gap to Sledrunner Gap.
There are over 40 trees across the trail. Most are in the middle of the section, but there are two huge blowdown messes on the lower section of the trail. Also, the middle and upper thirds are very overgrown with shrubs and briers. It appears this middle section has not seen any TLC in a long time. The map shows the location of the 46 trees across the trail. Thus we are modifying the plans as follows:
We will want to send out 3 crews.
Crew 1 will clear trees and brush on the upper third, down to the campsite about 1.5 miles from the top. Most of the downed trees are in the half mile above the campsite, but there is heavy brush the entire 1.5 miles. There are no creek crossings of any difficulty. Rock hoping should keep your feet dry.This crew will come in from Beaverdam Bald and return by the same route. This crew needs one or two saw crews and several loppers and swingbladers.
Crew 2 will clear downed trees and heavy brush from the campsite downhill. Most of the downed trees and brush are in the half mile or so below the campsite. This crew can either enter from the top and exit at the bottom or both enter and exit from the bottom. There are 5 creek crossings. This crew needs one or two crosscut crews and several loppers and swingbladers.
Crew 3 will enter from the bottom to first clear a major jackstraw blowdown involving several trees near the junction with the Bald River, then will go uphill a half mile or so to a second huge double-tree blowdown. This crew should have at least two crosscut crews. Also, if they have time, they should clear a few other small blowdowns they encounter. This crew will exit downhill to Campsite 11 on Bald River Rd. There are 5 creek crossings. This section needs some lopping and brushing out, but nothing like the upper stretches of the trail. So, we don't need as many swingbladers, but there is plenty of lopping needed.
This will be an epic trip through the Upper Bald River Wilderness. Joseph Conrad would approve of our sojourn. Please join us on this trip. We can use all the help we can muster.
We have room at our house for a few folks who would like to spend the night at our house before or after this trip, though you may need to bring a sleeping bag and pad. We can even serve you a special dinner Friday and/or Saturday night, maybe our famous Cincinnati Chili (meat or veggie available).
Please reply to Rick Harris through Facebook messenger if you can attend and which crew you would like to join. We need replies in advance so that we can plan the crews, tools, shuttles, etc.
Richard Harris
Benton MacKaye Trail Association
Also check out other Trips & Adventurous Activities in Tellico Plains.
