Hedges Pouroff
& Smith Creek
September 3, 2006
It was great to spend a morning with my
original hiking buddy - just the two of us - enjoying some of
the scenic wonders of Buffalo River country. We left the house
really early in order to be at Hedges Pouroff before sunrise.
Cliff found a way of sleeping most of the drive in the back
seat.
On the way to the Smith Creek nature
preserve we drove slowly through a fog-filled Boxley valley.
There were several elk right next to the highway; in fact a cow
and calf walked across the road in front of us.
The one-mile hike down a mountainside jeep
road to Smith Creek was pleasant. Cliff brought his BB gun and
found the occasional leaf or rock to shoot. He quickly grew
tired of carrying it though, and we hid it behind a boulder
next to the path. The fog overhead dissipated about the time we
reached the creek and we started hiking up the mostly dry
stream bed. We passed several shaded pools that reflected the
sunlit forest canopy above.
Our turning-around point was an area with
several rocky drops and numerous giant boulders. This was just
a quick, exploratory visit anyway. We will return some time and
spend all day getting to know Smith Creek better.
It was a tough haul back up the
mountainside in the summer heat. Finally seeing the truck at
the top of the hill was a moment to celebrate!
