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Eagle Mtn North Slope Hikes Southern Nantahala Wilderness - Nov. 2017 |
All Text & Images: Copyright (2017) |
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Eagle Mtn North Slope Hikes Southern Nantahala Wilderness - Nov. 2017 |
All Text & Images: Copyright (2017) |
| I've been walking & GPS track-recording some of the old logging roads in our end of the Wilderness Area. I started this project a year ago, for personal use while exploring the area. I'll probably never finish because there is a virtual maze of these trails, covering over 1500 ft of elevation, and several thousand acres area in this small section alone. November 11, 2017 - North side of Eagle Mtn Images that caught my eye as I roamed upward toward the high elevation cliffs and boulder-fields... |
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Peak foliage was just a week ago, but already most of the leaves have fallen... |
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I like the variety of barks on the large trees. |
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| Still a little color at this lower elevation area. One of the old logging roads is visible on the left. |
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| A variety of lichens on a huge boulder |
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Birches will take root and grow in the tiniest of cracks in a rock. That and their capacity to germinate in moss mats make them common in high elevation boulder fields. |
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| A huge hollowed-out tree, almost 4 ft diameter at the base. I didn't look to see if there was a bear up there... |
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| Approaching the boulder fields... |
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| More mossy boulders, as I gain elevation. The center one looks like a whale to me... |
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| A series of boulder fields and cliffs stretch along the upper elevations of the north slope of Eagle Mtn. Unfortunately this image doesn't reflect the steepness or vastness of this area. |
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| Huge rock formation |
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| Tree fungi |
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| Another example of cliff and boulder field zones. Rhododendron and Mountain Laurel are found in this area. |
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| Sun sinking below the cliffs in late afternoon. |
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| November 20, 2017 - North side of Eagle Mtn On this afternoon, I worked my way up to the boulder-fields below Egypt Gap. |
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| A wet seep emerged from the base of this boulder. |
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| A nice American Holly (~25 ft tall) next to a huge Tulip Poplar. |
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| View toward the crown of the Tulip Poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera) It had a circumference at chest height of 14 ft, about 4.5 ft diameter. |
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| This image doesn't really illustrate the size, but there are many huge trees at the upper elevations. The old logging roads peter out below here; not sure how extensive logging was on these steep slopes. Few old stumps are seen. |
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| Mossy boulders and fallen tree trunks... |
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| Lush moss hanging from a boulder |
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| I believe this is Rose Moss (Rhodobryum ontariense) |
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This boulder field below Egypt Gap is one of my favorite spots. |
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| One of the bracket fungi... |
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| Leaves still remained on a few trees. |
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| Lungwort (Lobaria pulmonaria) One of my goals for the afternoon was to search this location for old-growth lichens, and I was fairly successful. Go to the Old-Growth Lichens on Eagle Mountain album for additional images of the lichens I found. |