Bellsmith Springs & Burden Falls, Southern Illinois

Sorry for the hiatus folks but I refuse to hike during spring allergies and the nasty heat we get in the summer. So fall and winter are upon us and the time is right for hiking! This holiday weekend I went to Hematite Lake (Western Kentucky), Burden Falls (Southern Illinois), and Bellsmith Springs (Southern Illinois). The weather was chilly but that didn't stop my camera and I from getting out.

Hematite Lake, KY

Burden Falls, IL 

Bellsmith Springs, IL

Tunnel Hill, Vienna IL

This past weekend I took the bike out for a ride on the Tunnel Hill trail (part of the Rails to Trails Program). I prefer to start at the Vienna trail head and ride to "The Tunnel". Sadly I spent more time exploring and taking pictures and didnt make it to "The Tunnel". The River to River Trail crosses Tunnel Hill at one point but I have yet to explore that trail. I will provide pictures from past visits to the tunnel. For more information visit the site below. Enjoy.

http://dnr.state.il.us/lands/landmgt/parks/r5/tunnel.htm

Inside the Tunnel looking towards Vienna, IL

 River to River Trail Meets Tunnel Hill Trail

Fort Henry Trail (LBL Kentucky/Tennessee)

Made it out again this weekend for a nice day hike in Tennessee. I just recently discovered the Henry Fort trail system which also connects to the North South trail of Land Between the Lakes. The scenery is mixed between farm plots, pine woods, and creek crossings. This trail system offers up to 30 miles of hiking starting from the South Welcome Station in Tennessee. Today I only did about 5 miles of the trail starting on the Telegraph section and looping back to the trailhead but with warmer weather on the way I hope to hike longer sections each weekend. On top of hiking I did manage to sneak in some geocaching on the Kentucky side of LBL. The days are only so long and the sun was only going to offer so much light to enjoy the day.

http://www.kentuckylake.com/lbl/pdfs/LBLFTHenryTrails09.pdf

 LBL (Kentucky side, Winter Dafodils)

Jackson Falls, Illinois

Saturday was a nice COOL day to get out and hike and the destination was Jackson Falls, Illinois. The trail system here is easy enough and offers a few waterfalls (a couple were only spitting water). There were a ton of rock climbers out this day as well as folks on horse back. The area has plenty to of photo opportunities thanks to the cliffs, bluffs, and water falls. If you get a minute stop and watch the rock climbers, it is a great experience. I also made it to Trigg Tower which is on the way to Jackson. The tower offers a great view of the surrounds county and farmland. The first flight of steps can be wobbly! The third place we made it to was Millstone Bluff Archaeological Site, again close to Jackson Falls and Trigg Tower. I was not all that impressed with Millstone and be prepared for an all up hill hike that really only offers a few views of rock walls. Once your reach the top you are expecting to see more than just signs expecting you to "imagine" the natives at work. One spot of the trail did offer Petroglyphs but I couldnt really see this as a reason to drive all the way out to the site. If you just want to add another calorie busting hike then make a stop at Millstone and enjoy the information posted along the trail.

Jackson Falls http://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/shawnee/recreation/camping-cabins/recarea/?recid=32359&actid=34

Trigg Tower http://www.theshawneenationalforest.com/home/shawnee-national-forest-trails/trigg-tower

Millstone Bluff http://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/shawnee/recreation/hiking/recarea/?recid=10689&actid=51

  

I found that one patch of nasty mud trying

takes pictures of the two tunnels! Very sticky

stuff!

This tree was not happy with the sign

attached to it!  

Trigg Tower landscape view. 

 Trigg Tower (the first set of steps are wobbly!)

Farthest corner of Millstone Bluff where we

saw the petroglyphs.