Cheaha, AL, Chinnabee Silent Trail

[OwenM]

To get the whining out of the way..it was a rough day for me. I had big plans that included about triple the distance we covered, and maybe staying overnight for more in the morning. As it happened, I invited a friend, but then had to wait for him to get his son off to school and do other things from cooking breakfast and folding laundry(single dads' work never ends!).
We hit the trail 5 hours later than I'd planned, and both felt sick. I have good and bad days with my knees, and was having a really bad one, plus my stomach was swollen and I looked like I was pregnant or something. So things were less than ideal.
We had a great time, anyway!
I ditched most of the gear from my lumbar pack, since an overnighter wasn't going to happen, and we only went in 3 miles to a shelter and back, but did lots of playing around the rocks and water, and collected a bunch of trash that the trash like to leave behind.

Ah, water. And no, your iPhone doesn't work here!

Fine, go find a signal. This was fairly typical of the terrain, though the trail was usually narrower, and there were lots of ups and downs, sections of rock, small stream crossings, etc.

This area has several series of small waterfalls, and opportunities for me to make diving leaps from rock to rock to try to make my knees feel better:

The first of several little piles of trash we collected-another reason to always take trash bags with you.

Again, no shortage of rocks to play on, and I have a tendency to follow the water instead of the trail.

 

[OwenM]

Cheaha Falls. Not much rain lately, so they're not in spectacular mode.

Above the falls.

Meanwhile, being of the belief that anything that can be burned, must in fact be burnt, Dennis has gotten his massive ferro rod out. And yes, that is a diaper in the foreground. Another reason I keep a couple pair of latex gloves with the garbage bags. We picked up plastic bottles, broken glass, aluminum cans, tin cans, snuff cans, food wrappers, cigarette butts...people seem to want to trash everything we have left that's decent.

We left the burnables burning, stashed the bag for the return trip a little further up the trail after getting a couple more piles together, and continued on.

Trying out some Black Diamond trekking poles, to see if they help my knees. I like them so far. The scenery changes as we cross a stream, and hit another ridgeline.

 

[OwenM]

No more pics 'til we reached the shelter.
Black Diamond Trail Compact poles, Mountainsmith Day with strapettes. I want to do the Pinhoti on a short vacation. Knees willing, 3-4 days. As they were today, I'd probably be trying to call in a chopper a day overdue and halfway through...

Shelter views, new notebook for logs that someone left yesterday.

View from the shelter, and one of the river on the way back from a walkway we'd skipped, being off-trail.

Regardless of how it started, a fine day, overall.

 

[mtnfolk mike]

great pics man.. thanks for sharing..:thumbup: looks like a gorgeous area..

 

[bladz]

The Cheaha trails are some of my favorite! I am going over in a few weeks to run the Skyway Loop Trail, which includes the Chinnabee Silent. Great Pics!

 

[milani74]

Nice pics Owen. I wish I had time to do that trail. Thanks for sharing.

 

[Sufler]

Thanks for that, Owen.

Nice to see that MT Day lumbar out and about. I just got the strapettes for my Tour pack - so much more comfortable to wear now; I don't even buckle up anymore. I hid the hip-belt and just throw those strapettes on... when I'm running or in tight spaces I buckle up for a more secure fit.

I'm thinking of getting the Day version now.

:thumbup:

 

[lambertiana]

Lots of rocks and water, just what I like.

 

[j williams]

Awesome pics....looks like a cool place. Good for you, cleaning up that trash. People can make a difference.

 

[OwenM]

Thanks guys.
It really was a gorgeous day.
Rocks and water do it for me, too.
Mike, you won't be gone forever I'm wanting to go several places in GA right now, too.

Thanks for that, Owen.
Nice to see that MT Day lumbar out and about. I just got the strapettes for my Tour pack - so much more comfortable to wear now; I don't even buckle up anymore. I hid the hip-belt and just throw those strapettes on... when I'm running or in tight spaces I buckle up for a more secure fit.
I'm thinking of getting the Day version now.
:thumbup:

I'm tempted to get a Tour myself, but have so far managed to restrain myself from overpacking the Day, and ditch unneccesary items rather than tote them around everywhere. Those strapettes make me feel like I'm wearing my old LBE, which I always loved for some reason.

The Cheaha trails are some of my favorite! I am going over in a few weeks to run the Skyway Loop Trail, which includes the Chinnabee Silent. Great Pics!

Running is out for me right now, but I'm hoping to get back there soon. Was planning to do the Chinnabee Silent Trail, connect to the Skyway Loop, and then check out either Nubbin Creek or Cave Creek. With my knees bothering me, it was a good thing I waited for my friend-'cause I'd have done all that, and been stove up for days instead of doing the 4 hours behind a push mower that's going to start momentarily. That last mile of the Chinnabee gains something like 1200+ft. of elevation, which is actually what prompted me to try out those trekking poles.

Awesome pics....looks like a cool place. Good for you, cleaning up that trash. People can make a difference.

Gonna restrain myself from ranting about that trash. Pet peeve, and there might well be an episode if I came upon people in the process of leaving with their crap still scattered all over the place.

 

[tknife]

Wow, that looks like a really great area to play in. That river looks so damn refreshing! Too bad about all the trash, I don't get the pigs who get out on the trails. I always pack out trash I find too, the cigarette butts are hilarious yet sad. "I'm going hiking, better pack my smokes!"

 

[OwenM]

True. Those falls are close to the parking lot, though. Most people don't go any further, and we didn't see any garbage after another hundred yards.

It is pretty screwed up that the reason people go there to begin with is that it's beautiful-and that's the place they trash.
Every time I go in the woods or on the river, I carry a quart or gallon ziploc bag for my trash, and a full-size garbage bag for other people's. Some places aren't bad at all, but there's been a time or two I've had to get a second bag out.
Ok, I said I wouldn't rant

 

[Sufler]

I'm tempted to get a Tour myself, but have so far managed to restrain myself from overpacking the Day, and ditch unneccesary items rather than tote them around everywhere. Those strapettes make me feel like I'm wearing my old LBE, which I always loved for some reason.

I'm in a bind myself. I'd like to get the Day, but 'am afraid that it might not be as comfortable as the Tour. At the same time, I want to own and use just one. Ha! Tuff!!!