Well I can tell you that Tennessee is a beautiful state. But our trip up there was not so great. We ran into so many storms it rained the whole way and the wind blew so hard with our canoe above the cab of the truck I thought sure we were going to go off the road.
But made it we did and it was so good to see those cabins as we pulled up and our good friend Jeffrey Teagle waiting outside to greet us.
Jeffrey ushered us all inside while welcoming us to Standing Stone State Park. Well we met the others and immediately stories begin to fly around the room. It was fun but we were beat, Brandon Travis and Felipe and I had a silly notion that we would drive all the way through from Texas. So we just unloaded all our gear and put it in our room that had only two double beds. So like good dear friends we decided a hand wrestling match was in order to see who would get the beds. Of course Felipe and I won. So as we curled up in our beds while the boys rolled out their sleeping bags on the floor and grumbled things at us under their breath ha ha, we snored to the rhythm of the wind playing around the cabins walls outside.
I slept well and dreamed of the adventures that I would have the next day, and I was not disappointed as the sun broke through the windows of the bed room. There was a small herd of deer walking around the cabins in the early morning light. We watched them through the window and ironically they looked up at us and without a care in the world they continued their wanderings around the cabins. Breakfast was cooking and smelled so good our stomachs took us into the kitchen. And after a hearty breakfast we all decided to explore the trail that would take us to the river below the cabins.
Well the trail was on a steep grade and very narrow, the rocks were also slippery. The trail wound down in little switchbacks and was a bit hard on my old knees. I was a little worried about Felipe because his knees aren’t that great either. But with a slip and fall here and there we actually made it down to the water’s edge. I was very delighted to see geese all over the water and you could see where beaver had been working very hard at bringing down some trees. The water was sky blue and clear and a couple of kayakers were resting in the boat shed that was made out over the water. They gave us a quiet hello and I nodded to them. It seemed like it would be a crime to break the silence all around us, and I know the kayakers were feeling the same way.
I set down in the boat shed and looked out over the water to the other side where a large ridge back rose up in front of me about maybe 400 feet. The thick bear limbed trees that rose up on this great hill gave it the look of smoke. I turned to the boys and said that is where we need to be right on top of that ridge back. If I was a Sasquatch that’s where I would be up there looking down at the world.
Sitting there over the water I realize there was a cold coming up off of the water itself. And the wind brought with it the smell of damp cold coming down from the ridge back. Now to me this was real beauty.
The kayakers slowly begin to move out upon the water. And the currents of the river slowly begin to take hold of them and move them along towards the bend in the river. Just as they were out of sight we heard a huge tree fall into the water and the kayakers came back quickly and sat near the bend of the river and watched up the ridge back for a long time. The guys and I wondered if it had been beaver or something larger that had fell that tree. After a little investigation and talking to the Ranger he suggested to us not to stand very long in one place because trees seem to fall almost daily everywhere in the park, we found this to be very interesting.
Well we reluctantly went back to the cabin and geared up for a small adventure higher up into the plateau’s. Today we were going to explore a small graveyard and the area around it.
The graveyard was awesome and very old. It was in a very remote area and we took our time exploring everything. Outside of the graveyard there were several limestone overhangs, some were very deep some were not. Water trickled and flowed from out of the limestone and we found a whole menagerie of animal prints in the overhangs. Possums’s and cats some little mice and coyotes all seem to use these overhangs. It was very interesting and we spent a lot of time here just exploring and taking pictures. But all too soon it was time to go.
That night we recorded some very strange sounds which I’m still editing and downloading to my computer. The next day was fun we did a lot of exploring and walking up and down the ridge backs. It was awesome to say the least and so very beautiful.
Jeffrey told us some very intriguing stories of disappearances and the mystery’s of the area. He told us of the Native Americans that had lived in this area and of a statue that they worshiped. The statue was of what looked like a man wolf and now it was in a museum not far from where we were. Also there had been a Boy Scout camp right on the site of the Indian village. The camp was abandoned now but the cabins from the Boy Scout camp were still there, though they are dilapidated now. Jeffrey had found hair samples in and around those cabins that apparently have come back unknown which was very interesting to us.
Well we put the canoe in the river the next night I did it exploration around the river’s edge from the dam to around the been. It was very interesting with the beaver did not like us in all and continuously slap the water and and let us know that they were displeased. Not much was found and it was so loud the beavers fussing at us that we decided to call it a night. But after getting back to the cabin and standing on the deck at night we were able to get a few more sounds that were very interesting. Wouldn’t you know it at the next day was mostly rain and so we were unable to go out until the afternoon.
But we decided to explore an area where the swimming pool was. The swimming pool was made by putting a dam in front of a springfed marsh and then using native rock they walled in. I have to tell you this was a very eerie place. Then we found out why it felt so strange here. Jeffrey told us a very sad story of three blind students actually drowning in the swimming pool. Jeffrey said that’s when they shut everything down the camp and all. Brandon got a very intriguing picture here. It seemed that he mist was frantically trying to get away from Brandon. But Brandon Following snapping pictures with his camera the result is awesome and I will try to include it in this blog.
While we were there at the pool area we decided to explore the marsh. The marsh had a feel to it that I did not like. But we continue to explore and we found to our surprise a bipedal track line. But hold on these were not Sasquatch tracks these were canine tracks and they were big and three toed with calls a good guest estimation we would say the tracks where a good 13 inches long and possibly 8 inches wide. We were so amazed and we studied the tracks for so long but it really was canine bipedal. We had never found tracks like these before and were very excited. Jeffrey told us he had a picture of a dog man and we were also thinking a bout that man will statue that the Native Americans worshiped.
Well we could hear sounds growling in the distance we took pictures of the tracks and the trackway and begin to pursue the tracks of this new mystery. All the while our hair was standing on end. We continued on tracking our shoes were filling up with water from the ice cold Springs that flowed through the marsh and the sun was starting to set. So we turned around miserable and cold and thought that we would pursue this again tomorrow. We showed Jeffrey our findings and he was very excited by the prints. I had taken sick the next day from the cold water in my boots and Felipe’s work was calling him back. So reluctantly we decided that we would go home.
And so sadly we said our goodbyes to Jeffrey and we assured him of our friendship. But I am also sad to say that we lost a good friend on this expedition. All I can really say about that is that we discovered he does not walk in the same forest as we do and so when we parted we no longer had a friendship. And that’s all I will say about it. But to Jeffrey Teagle who I find to be a very truthful person and good person I hope that our friendship endures many years. Thank you Jeffrey for a good time and a good expedition.
Until next time I’d like to say goodbye. The hermit
sasquatchmountain 