Mapping the Sheltowee

[rootman]

We are 52 and 62 year old hikers who have been chipping away at the ST for a few years. This segment was significant because it filled in the only missing piece between Yamacraw and the northern terminus. The midsection of the ST had initially been a concern because we didn’t know of any commercial shuttle companies in the area. Jim Honchell, the owner of Rockcastle Adventures in London, KY, (606-864-5987) came to our rescue and shuttling became the least of our concerns. He helped us on two different hikes by meeting us in London, using our vehicle to take us to the starting trailheads then dropping off our vehicle at our end point three days later. In both cases the end point was the cemetery near the Rockcastle Bridge at Lamero.

We started on February 17th after spending the night at a motel in London. Jim shuttled us to Turkey Foot campground on a cool, sunny day in the high 40s. Our goal was to camp just south of route 421. We made such good time, however, that we arrived at 3 PM, too early to quit. The trail was in good shape despite its ATV use and there were few big changes in elevation. There were several good campsites in our planned area and we were a bit reluctant to leave them behind. Nevertheless, on we went for another hour and a half when we stumbled upon a little used campsite on a section of trail that closely parallels a forest service road. Location: N37*26.9296, W084*03.1272 . After setting up the tent we discovered a marker out on the road indicating that this was a designated forest service campsite, which explained the metal pole typical of the poles used for hanging gear at these sites. The marker is one of those four inch wide brown vinyl uprights. It faces the road so is very difficult to see from the trail. There was also a fire pit at the site but a tree had fallen across it. The only drawback to the site, besides the unusable fire pit, was that it was on a ridge with no water close by. We got by with what we had and refilled our containers the next day at a small creek about a mile down the trail (mile 141.2).

The 18th started well but morphed into the most discouraging trail segment in my ST experience. Some of these areas could rival the notorious Cromer Ridge. S-Tree campground is a gathering point for ATV folks, all of whom are nice people who stick to the designated areas but unfortunately like to motor through the woods rather than use the “leave no trace” philosophy. The damage was compounded by the recent rain which made every hole a pond and most bypasses a muddy mess. Some of the damage ran right next to one of the ST’s typically lovely streams. I think it was Hooten Branch. I’m not an over-the-top tree hugger but this was sad to see. We had to be attentive to our footing throughout this section so we made slower progress than expected. The “great camp” mentioned in the trail guide at mile 134.36 is indeed a great camp but it didn’t fit into our schedule.

South of S-Tree we made our way to the area of Horse Lick Creek. The trail guide in this area seemed difficult to follow and there were few trail markers of any kind. One of the vinyl upright markers was broken off down to the left-pointing arrow. Fortunately we knew we were due for a left turn and correctly assumed this was
an ST marker. After turning, we just stayed on the trail near the creek and trusted our GPS mapping software. There were three fordings of Horse Lick Creek, with the water at these levels being above our ankles and rock-hopping not an option. We changed into our “water shoes” each time.

Finally we came to what we believe is the ford mentioned in the guide at mile 129.39. There is a trail leading down to the water and two vinyl uprights indicating that this is the proper way. This is the right arm of a Y-intersection (if hiking southbound), with the left arm being the route taken by ATV traffic. Looking across the river at the end of this short trail all we could see was a small cleared area that was blocked to the south (where the trail was) by a sheer cliff face about 75 yards long at the water’s edge. Using this crossing we would have had to wade along the water’s edge to pass the cliff or climb over the very steep hill that formed the cliff. With the water looking to be well over our knees and the creek bottom not visible, neither option was very appealing for two old guys with backpacks and over 12 miles on our legs that day. So we decided to not cross at that time and take some time to strategize about what to do next. I felt so discouraged that I didn’t rule out walking back to S-Tree. Temperatures the next day were predicted to be in the 30s.

Later that evening Tom noticed in the guide at mile 128.48 that northbound hikers are told to “keep left at creek on ATV road” while “FR-455 continues across Lick Creek”. In other words the trail came upstream on the other side of the creek rather than crossing a mile downstream from us at what could be a fairly well established crossing for FR-455. We had noted earlier that ATV’ers and horseback riders were continuing down the left arm of the Y-intersection and not coming back. All the clues pointed to a safe crossing point downstream so that was our “Plan A” for tomorrow. We didn’t want to think too much about “Plan B”.

The next morning, the 19th, we went back to the Y-intersection and took the left arm for a mile downstream. About 100 yards from the stream our spirits were lifted by the sight of a bright white ST turtle marker on a tree, something we hadn’t seen for a while. The crossing was very cold but uneventful, with the water just above our knees, a very gentle current and the river bottom clearly visible.

Apparently the trail diverges here from the trail guide and avoids the rather harrowing crossing described upstream. Trail markers at the river’s edge on either side of this crossing will be a big help. The water in Horse Lick Creek is probably lower at most times since we were there a couple days after a rain.

The remaining six miles to Lamero were easy walking on the forest road and along route 89. Having the Horse Lick crossing behind us was a great relief and we reached our car just as the snow started to fall. We now have just 32 miles south of Yamacraw to go and we can officially be anointed as sectional through hikers of the ST.

NOTE: If you are concerned about the water level at the FR-455 crossing of Horse Lick Creek, the gage at Billows on the Rockcastle River can be checked at http://waterdata.usgs.gov/ky/nwis/uv?site_no=03406500 . Horse Lick Creek empties into the Rockcastle. The gage was at 4.5 feet on the day we crossed.

[PR]

I'm usually available to shuttle/ferry/evacuate folks in this area. Say from Heidleburg to Laurel lake or so. Anybody needing a shuttle (or whatever) send me a pm, or give me a call. Should you encounter difficulties on trail in the Jackson county area, give me a call or just tell the first local you see to call me. They'll probably know me .