Entranced by the Magic of Fiery Gizzard

I could have hiked 13 miles from Foster Falls to get to the Fiery Gizzard trailhead in Tracy City, but of course I'm not in that kind of hiking shape!

Probably built by the CCC

Instead I drove to the parking area in Tracy City which was well signed and easy to find.  A few minutes later I was walking down the stone stairs into the gorge.

The Fiery Gizzard trail was once voted one of the 25 best hiking trails in the country by Backpacker magazine, and it wasn't hard to see why.

Little Fiery Gizzard Creek

Laurel, Rhododendron and Hemlock closed the forest in around me, and even though it was a Saturday the threat of rain had me on the trail alone.

It wasn't long before I came to Blue Hole, where a gentle 9 foot falls is so unremarkable they don't even have a sign up.  In Wisconsin it would be plastered on billboards as a tourist attraction!

Blue Hole

Tennessee never fails to amaze me with its boundless natural wonders!

Black Canyon

A little farther and Black Canyon appeared with its small falls.  I climbed down its eroded sides for a close up view of the rushing water.

How far had I gone?  What else was there to see?  This trail definitely had more treasures than I had seen outside a major national park!

The carved walls of the gorge reminded me of the Red River Gorge in Kentucky, as did the creek's  blue-green hue.

I came to what I assume was the "Fruit Bowl", where the CCC had strategically placed large stones to make stairs and a path.

CCC steps in the "Fruit Bowl"

View of creek near Chimney Rock

A sign pointed to Sycamore Falls, ignore that spur trail because it takes you to the top of the falls where the view is terrible.  Instead it's a short and easy scramble down to the bottom where you can sit on a large boulder and see this...

Sycamore Falls

The rush of the water echoing off the rock in my little alcove had me mesmerized, the cool air felt wonderful and if not for the no camping signs I could see this as the world's best place to spend the night!  There are backcountry sites along the trail, but sadly this is not one of them.

Toadshade trillium

The cliff walls pushed back, and I started looking for signs of spring in the more open areas along the creek.  Sure enough, trillium were blooming!

I think this is Snow Trillium

A few of the fungi from the fall were still in place, gaping hole where the spores had released were visible.

But the hepatica stole the show, it was literally everywhere, poking up through piles of leaves and from out of cracks in the rocks strewn along the trail.

So wonderful to see the flower that heralds spring in Wisconsin in March instead of in May!

My eyes were sharp and I found snail shells...

And bellflower struggling to come out and greet the day.

Finally people started to cross my path and I decided it was time to turn around.  I'd been on the trail for hours and by the time I got back I estimated I hiked 6.5 miles roundtrip. Fiery Gizzard is one trail  I hope I have the opportunity to return to soon!

Foamflower

In the meantime here's a quick video clip of Sycamore Falls, it will have to do to remind me why I should go back and hike the rest of the trail.  Mark from BCB mentioned hearing the roar from Foster Falls in the last post, this one will have to do!