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Re: [RC] SKYMONT trail review - patty basshi, i'm trying to get an entry form to this skymont ride. i got the loation thru an email but no forms,fees,etc or directions. sounds like i really need to go. its about the closest ride to me in the SE. coould you tell me who to contact? thanks Patty Bass Watkins home business opportunity http://www.tsginfo.com/index.php?rc=PB4364 click to see Hidden Treasure in Tennessee http://pattybass_1.tripod.com/dreams ----- Original Message ----- From: <rides2far@xxxxxxxx> To: <ridecamp@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> Sent: Saturday, October 04, 2003 1:56 PM Subject: [RC] SKYMONT trail review Info here for any Southeast (or NE) riders who are considering doing the Skymont High in the Cumberlands ride Nov. 8. I rode the entire trail pretty much yesterday and boy are you going to LOVE it! :-))))) If you happen to be a flat lander, keep reading because this is important. I'm just trying to get this info out there because this trail is very unusual for the area it's in. When you see a ride is in the mountains of East Tennessee, and that it has spectacular views, the natural thing to picture is a rocky, mountainous trail. NOT!! Can we say "lake loop at Liberty?" (SE people know what that means!) Josie & I hauled up there yesterday morning. It's about 63 miles from Chattanooga, easy, scenic haul. The directions were easy to follow and accurate. The Skymont Boy Scout Reserve has a beautiful lake that we'll be camping next to (they also have a great lake swimming area that makes me want to beg a summer ride out of them!). We saddled up and headed out on the trail and the minute I turned into it I just wanted to *sigh*. It's been sooooo long since I've seen a firm packed sandy jeep road that the Forest Service has never ever had a chance to dump gravel on. The roads sections are darned near level....miles and miles of it (you never go down the side, you're always on top of the Cumberland Plateau). It's got a sandy type soil that looks like it will hold up well in wet weather. Quite a bit of it has sparse grass growing on it. The trail would almost be *too* fast, except that Larry has literally put in single track, miles of it, just for us. The woods were fairly old growth and open underneath and they've laid out single track trail that was pretty darned slow for us yesterday, but still the footing is fantastic. They put in one slow loop which I think will be good for the horses. You won't mind it being slow because it goes along the brow (well back from it, you can thank June, she made Larry set it well back:-) The views were breathtaking yesterday and by the time the leaves fall off the trees it will be twice as good. Picture the scenery from "Last of the Mohicans". June has ridden it and marked or filled in holes and Larry is literally walking the whole thing with a metal detector making sure there's no old buried fence rows or anything (the fate of a man whose wife has had her horse hit barbed wire in the woods before). June is a good paranoid rider so she's cutting tops off stobs, beating them with hammers and painting them red. :-) The *only* rocks are the scattered "tripping" time, but not the "stonebruise" type. After being so funneled onto trails in the parks system that they all get over used and then wash creating rocky ditches, it was just amazing to feel dirt under my horse's feet all day. :-) There were I think two tiny sections with gravel that was worked in pretty well. I doubt they ever added up to a mile total. I would not be afraid to do this ride with a barefoot horse if he were used to going barefoot. As a matter of fact, one of the trail workers ponied her extra horse barefoot yesterday and June's horse is only shod in front. The name "Larry Jordan" as manager wasn't familiar to many people, so I wanted to let everyone know that he's June Parson's husband (manager for several years of Longstreet). Larry has always been our trail guy and he's a workaholic. After the successful "Boyscout Pow Wow" ride in south AL, the Boy Scouts up here got interested in putting on a ride and contacted June. Larry drove the over 2 hr. drive from his house to the place and ended up agreeing to run it. For 7 months he's been up there constantly putting in trails and trying to figure out the best way to route the ride. I am so grateful to him. I *really* hope people show up, and realize how much blood sweat & tears he's put into the trail before complaining about *anything*. My suggestion is to hug his feet, say "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" and then if you have any suggestions for improvement mention it to him about 6 months later. :-) The people from the Boy Scouts were very excited about the idea of the ride and several asked me "Do you think we'll get a good turn out?" I know they're getting the jitters so if you're coming please go ahead and pre-enter to give them confidence. I think the ride's going to be great...for one thing I think the riders will behave well because all down the road of camp there are the little "Burma Shave" type signs that say things like, "Respect" "Courtesy" "Loyalty" and other good character traits. I just wish Kaboot could read. >g< There were tons of *tiny* Cub Scouts up there yesterday. It was so cute I could have died. Made me *want* to give them my entry fee...and I might add I think their entry fees are very reasonable. :-) If there's any other questions anyone has feel free to ask me. If I don't know the answer I'll get it. June & Larry are too industrious to be wasting time sitting at a computer. >g< Angie ________________________________________________________________ The best thing to hit the internet in years - Juno SpeedBand! Surf the web up to FIVE TIMES FASTER! Only $14.95/ month - visit www.juno.com to sign up today! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net. Information, Policy, Disclaimer: http://www.endurance.net/Ridecamp Subscribe/Unsubscribe http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/logon.asp Ride Long and Ride Safe!! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net. 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