KEEPING TRACK

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Saturday, July 4, 2015

RIDE ROYAL BLUE...July 4 weekend

JULY 3, 2015

Loading the RZR's for a weekend of mountain riding in Eastern Tenn.

Weather forecast is for rain, then more rain, with the chance of more rain. Actually, there is a Flash Flood Advisory out for all of Eastern Tennessee this weekend.

Annie says bring it on, I'm ready for the mud.





Arrived at Royal Blue after driving four hours in heavy rain.

Gonna be a sloppy weekend of trail riding but the ladies are ready. Foul weather gear will be the fashion apparel.









Well, we didn't get far until it was obvious we were going to be doing as much "puddle bustin" as trail riding.

Sure hope we can get across Ol' Stinking Creek when we get there.
This is just a sample of what's to come.







Annie got in some sightseeing along the way. This small waterfall was running full force after one of the showers moved through.

The woods were beautiful, lush green plants everywhere. All the streams were running, valleys filled with steam at times. Looked like a scene from the Great Smokey Mountains.







And we weren't the only "Crazies" spending Independence Day weekend with Mother Nature and her elements.

The campground was sold out, the little cafe on the hill was filled with activity and the trails were busy with families from all over just doin' their thang.

Seems we meet some of the nicest people on the trail. It's fun to see the kids doing something other than playing games and texting.







Annie said,  Let's go folks, it's gonna rain any minute and I want to do some more riding.

And boy was she right. It came a gully washer just a few minutes later.












Well, Ol' Stinking Creek don't look as bad as we thought. Just up a little and really muddy. These mountain streams usually don't flood very easy but can get rather swift during heavy rains.

We crossed her at several places and actually was just a good place to wash the mud off the RZR.






JULY 4, 2015

Not much different today than yesterday. Lots of water everywhere, muddy trails and lush green foliage. Notice the flowers blooming on the "Roto-dum-dums".

At times it seemed we were in a dense jungle, especially during the nite rides. The tree frogs were so loud at night that you could hear them over the RZR's.














Here we stopped along the trail to walk down a steep walking trail to the biggest waterfall at Royal Blue.

Alison waited at the top.

Can you believe she was having surgery at M.D. Anderson just last week and here she is riding the trails.
This girl is unstoppable. She might slow down a bit but she ain't about to stop. She is an inspiration to us all.





Christine, Annie and I made it down the walking trail but it took awhile. The trail was slick as a gut and Christine ain't the most sure footed mule in the team.
However, Annie had a big time running down the trail, then back up to check on us.

I only got one picture of this beautiful waterfall. Why? Because just as we got to the bottom the sky opened up and poured. It was a greasy climb back up the trail.

And, again, Alison was the smart one. She jumped in the RZR and stayed dry The rest of us got soaked.
Oh well, just another day in the mountains.




A much better picture taken by Jimmy. He got down closer before the rain started and got some good shots

Would have been a great place to spend some time playing in the water or having lunch. Maybe next time it won't be a rainy day.









Just some of the views from the trails atop the Cumberland Mountains.

And what did you do this 4th of July?

Ya' might want to get off the couch and see what Mother Nature has to offer.





Come join us some time......You might get a little dirty but we sure have a good time.