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Here's another look at the new Tweetsie Trail, connecting Johnson City to Elizabethton, TN, set to open with an inaugural Walk/Run/Bike on Saturday, August 30, 2014 (Labor Day weekend). My first post describing the Tweetsie had images of the trail from the Milligan Depot to Elizabethton. The photos today are from the Johnson City end of the trail. It's still not completed, but it's almost there.

It's better than I ever imagined it would be -- I know it's going to get a lot of use. People are really going to love having a long flat, largely uninterrupted trail for biking, jogging and walking. I see lots of smiles and hear lots of "This is amazing" comments from the people I've passed on the trail. I'm impressed with the thoughtful planning and the quality of the work that has gone into this project. If you'd like to take part in the inaugural event, click the link above to sign up and register. Click here to like the Facebook Page.

The East Tennessee and Western North Carolina Railroad was affectionately known as the Tweetsie for the shrill "Tweet, tweet" of its whistle.  The 66 mile, narrow-gauge line originally ran from Johnson City, through Elizabethton, Doe River Gorge, and Roan Mountain, ending over the state line at Cranberry, NC; it was eventually extended to Boone, NC.  Click here to see the the Tweesie in action in 1949! You can ride a train pulled by the last surviving coal fired locomotive used on the Tweetsie at a theme park located between Blowing Rock and Boone, NC, appropriately named "The Tweetsie Railroad."  Another place to experience the old railroad is at Doe River Gorge, a Christian Campground that provides its campers with a train ride out to Pardee Point, a narrow overlook of the Doe River with sheer rock walls rising hundreds of feet above the narrow passage. Fast forward this video to 5:30 to see that section of the old railroad line. Doe River Gorge typically has an open house each October where the public is invited to take a ride on the train.  Below is the curving, re-purposed (almost complete) bridge over University Parkway in Johnson City.

The Tweetsie Trail

The first phase of the Tweetsie Trail is scheduled to be opened to the public with an inaugural Walk/Run on Saturday, August 30, 2014 (Labor Day weekend). The
 trail follows the old "Tweetsie" railroad line connecting Johnson City to Elizabethton, TN. The first phase is 4.5 miles long, but when the entire project is complete it will be 10 miles long.

The trail itself is fantastic -- very wide, with compacted, fine gravel perfect for walking, jogging and bike riding. Along the way, you'll traverse through beautiful woodland settings and farms and over bridges.  This project has been years in its planning and execution and will provide great recreational opportunities to the residents of both communities.


Pictured (above left) is a replica of the original Milligan depot that stood about a half mile from the College. It will eventually have a bench and signage.

To sign up to take part in the inagural trek, click here.

Additional photos can be found on the Tweetsie Trail Facebook page.

many more hills to climb

After climbing a great hill, one only finds that there are many more hills to climb. 
--Nelson Mandela (1918-2013) South African President. 

For directions to this overlook of the Nolichucky River along the Appalachian Trail, click here.

old timer

Darn the wheel of the world! Why must it continually turn over? Where is the reverse gear?
--Jack London (1876-1916) American author, journalist.

This train trestle spans the Nolichucky River in Unicoi County, TN just south of Erwin. It replaced the original wood bridge in 1908. It wasn't until after I took the photo I realized there are two young people hanging out under the tracks on the middle pillar.  Makes me nervous thinking what they had to do to get under there. Yikes!  For a photo of the tracks from above click here. And here's the view from the Appalachian Trail high above.

Vintage

This impressive railroad viaduct over Boones Creek Road in Johnson City, TN was built in 1908. The VW Bus ahead of me was built in 1973. :)

love is...

Love doesn't make the world go 'round. Love is what makes the ride worthwhile.
--Franklin P. Jones (1887-1929) American Businessman

darkness and light

Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.
--Martin Luther King, Jr. (1929-1968) Minister and Civil-Rights Leader

The first of two tunnels found at Doe River Gorge outside of Hampton, TN where the old "Tweetsie" railroad used to run until the 1950s. The narrow gauge tracks were laid in the 1880s to run iron ore from Cranberry, NC to Johnson City, TN.  Even though I've taken photos of these tunnels numerous times, I still enjoy it.  I'm already looking forward to going back out there in the fall! I love the wind whipping through the tunnels (especially on hot, scorching days like today) and the interplay of light and dark in these shots. In the shot above, I also like how deceptively short the tunnel looks - as if you could take three big steps and come out the other side. In the shot to the left you see that the tunnel is actually fairly long; I was kneeling in the middle of the tunnel when I took this shot. Click here to see more photos from Doe River Gorge.

forever young

The pursuit of truth and beauty is a sphere of activity in which we are permitted to remain children all our lives.
--Albert Einstein (1879-1955) German-born American Physicist

These narrow tracks are for a unique miniature locomotive which gives kids a looped tour of Steele Creek Park in Bristol. The train was a fixture from 1964 until 2001 when the train and the tracks fell into disrepair -- both were restored in 2008, and kids can once again ride the Steele Creek Express. Video here.

kindle a light

As far as we can discern, the sole purpose of human existence is to kindle a light in the darkness of mere being.

--Carl Jung (1875-1961) Swiss psychiatrist

Another Doe River Gorge shot from last weekend. I always enjoy photographing the two tunnels there - there's something about the contrast of light and dark and the curving lines that just works for me. I can't image how difficult it was in the early 1880s to construct the "Tweetsie Railroad" from Johnson City, TN to Cranberry, NC. Those at Doe River Gorge Ministries have done a wonderful job restoring and preserving their section of the railroad. Click here to see a similar shot taken in autumn.

Finish. Find. Live.

To finish the moment, to find the journey's end in every step of the road, to live the greatest number of good hours, is wisdom.
–Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882) American philosopher and writer

winter thrill

When I no longer thrill to the first snow of the season, I'll know I'm growing old.
–Lady Bird Johnson (1912-2007)

Follow your bliss.

If you follow your bliss, you put yourself on a kind of track, which has been there all the while waiting for you, and the life that you ought to be living is the one you are living.
--Joseph Campbell (1904-1987) American Author, Philosopher and Teacher

trust the engineer

When a train goes through a tunnel and it gets dark, you don't throw away the ticket and jump off. You sit still and trust the engineer.
--Corrie Ten Boom (1892-1983) Christian Holocaust survivor and author

Spanning a Century

This curved train trestle spans the Nolichucky River in Unicoi County, TN near the location of the Unaka Springs Hotel. It replaced the original wood bridge in 1908.

So far this week I've posted some photos that were completely manipulated. For this photo, I actually did very little in Lightroom except minor changes to white balance and exposure. The only preset I used was a very slight vignette.

Virginia Creeper Trail

This is one of the best and most popular outdoor recreation destinations in our area. The 34 mile Creeper Trail runs along an old railroad bed from Abingdon through Damascus ending near the North Carolina line at Whitetop, VA. While it is popular with hikers and horseback riders, it is as a biking destination that it is best known. There are bike rental shops in both Damascus and Abingdon -- and even shuttle outfits that will bus you to the top of the trail at Whitetop so you can ride downhill for 17 miles (2.5 to 3 hours) to your car in Damascus. Click here for more information and maps. [Above is a view from the Abingdon trail head -- click to enlarge.]

Applauding Softly

The leaves lay like hands upon the ground. When the wind rustles them, they applaud softly.--Laura E. Stevens

In the heart of the gorge

Here is another shot of the Doe River in Carter County taken from Pardee Point along the old Tweetsie Railroad. This is a point deep within Doe River Gorge where the tracks make a sweeping curve with the river roaring far below and sheer rock cliffs soaring high above. It's at this point that passenger trains would often stop to let people get out and enjoy the views. Click here for a interesting website that has many more photos and information about the Tweetsie and Doe River Gorge.

Walk the line

An annual tradition of mine is to walk the rails at Doe River Gorge each fall. Click here to learn more about this special place where the old ET&WNC Railroad (known affectionally as the 'Tweetsie' railroad) entered the narrow Doe River Gorge outside of Hampton, TN. Doe River Gorge is now a privately owned Christian campground and conference center, so plan to visit in the off-season during business hours and sign-in at the office. And let them know you appreciate their care and preservation and sharing of this beautiful place. Click here to see a video and to go along for a ride on the Tweetsie.

Doe River Gorge

I guess you could say I have a lot of favorite places in east Tennessee. Doe River Gorge is certainly one of them. (I just can't be limited to one favorite!) Beginning in the 1880s this was an important link to transport iron ore over the mountains from Cranberry, NC to Johnson City, TN. The narrow gauge rail line, known as the "Tweetsie", ran until 1950. Click here and here for more history. Today, the area (just outside of Hampton, TN) is a Christian campground. The current stewards have done an amazing job preserving and improving the immediate area for campers and visitors. Visitors are welcome to walk the old rail line and venture down to the Doe River during the off-season (when the camp is not being used) -- all they ask is that you stop by the main office, sign a release, and respect the property. They also have an open house in mid-October for the public. Click here for directions.