Race Report - 2012 Cove Lake 5k

Hers:
I'm patting myself on the back right now. You want to know why? Because I completed my first 5K! Yup. The "un-runner," the introvert, the non-competitor, the girl afraid of crowds, and (most recently) the injured ran her first race, The Cove Lake 5K, on June 16, 2012.

It was interesting to say the least. We began (like every race does) in a crowd of people. At the sound of the gun, we all started jogging at once. I felt like I needed to run ahead of everyone, like something was after us, like zombie apocalypse. After a few minutes though, the crowd thinned out with most everyone in front of me. Apparently, I'm slow. *giggle*

New Featured Park - Cove Lake State Park

I know it's the middle of May and it's long overdue but better late than never right? So our new "Featured Park" for May - June 2011 is Cove Lake State Park in Caryville, TN. Cove lake has lots of great amenities and just in time for summer to boot. So what are you waiting for? Head on over to our "Featured Parks" page and learn what Cove Lake State Park has to offer to the outdoor lover.

Happy Trails,
Tim and Robin

No, not Devil's Haircut by Beck... It was the Devil's Racetrack.

It almost sounds reminiscent of Rob Zombie's "Devil's Rejects" and... well... it might have seemed like it. This weekend we hiked the Devil's Racetrack and let me tell you what, if you think you've found a good trail description of a hike, you'd better try to dig a little more. The write up we found for this one was a far cry from accurate. Here is the link, Devil's Racetrack writeup, I suggest you read that first, then come back here and finish reading for a comparison to the blithe write-up.

So the Devil's Racetrack is 3.3 miles from the trail head. If you read the aforementioned trail description then you now know that this is part of the Cumberland Trail on the Cumberland Segment which leads to Cumberland Gap on the Tennessee, Virginia, and Kentucky border. Behind Cove Lake State Park is the parking area for the trail head. This is located on Bruce Gap road, again if you read the aforementioned trail write-up you would know this as well. For a little extra information you can check out the Cumberland segment of the Cumberland Trail on the Cumberland Trail Conference website.

Sorry for the digression, back to the trail description. From the trail head to the Devil's Racetrack overlook is a total of 3.3 tough miles. The average elevation gain, as best as I could ascertain, is almost 1900'. The terrain is pretty rough due to boulder fields, scree piles, overgrown thickets, etc. There are several switchbacks once you reach the man made waterfalls. This helps to make the ascent to the overlook a bit easier, but still for us experienced hikers, it was definitely challenging.

I have to admit, if you take away the lack of proper trail description, the detraction of I-75 traffic (yes the trail pretty much follows alongside I-75), the heat, and poison ivy galore, then the hike isn't all that bad. There is plenty flora and fauna to set your sites on, as well as geological features galore. The view from atop the 'Racetrack' ain't half bad either.

If you decide to go on this hike, I suggest plenty of water, a few snacks, and something to keep you from getting poison ivy, I pulled my socks up as far as they go. Gaiters would be a good suggestion or pants too. If it's as hot as it was for us then gaiters would be the way to go.

So here are some of the snapshots along the way. You can also view the following site for more pictures of the trail that I wish we had found prior to going. http://www.easttennesseewildflowers.com/gallery/view_album.php?set_albumName=Cumberland-Trail

Happy Trails,
Tim and Robin Bird

The Pictures --

It's a Cove... No..It's a Lake... No It's Cove Lake

Well well well, here we are again, still trying to play catch up. We promise we will get caught up so you can hear about our wonderful camping trip. Until then, this little ditty is all about a little trip to Cove Lake State Park.

Cove Lake is a nice little park located just north of us about 30 minutes up I-75. We like to come here from time to time when we want a quick out of doors experience. We bring our bikes from time to time as they have a nice paved trail to ride bikes on. Sometimes, as with this day, we like to take the kids and walk the trail. One day we will eventually hike the section of the Cumberland trail that is just on the back side of this park. There is also a little trail that branches off the paved trail and leads to the Beaver workshop. This area is pretty neat as there is plenty of evidence of beaver work. If you are ever up this way, you will definitely want to visit. They also have a swimming pool, a restaurant, and much more.

So the day was July 15, 2007 and we were dog sitting Clover's friend Zorro once again and decided we would get the both of them another entry in their pawports by visiting Cove Lake. To be quite honest, there was nothing of real interest that happened this day other than walking the kids around the back part of the path. We were starting to train Zorro how to not pull us everywhere when we brought him with us. He was definitely starting to figure that out before we were done.

Anyway, as I said before there wasn't much else to mention about this day so I will leave you with a few glimpses of our travels here.



Next Up: Is that a hole for gentlemen to swim in?
(A very wonderful hike by the way.)