Every good plan is subject to change. We had to make big modifications to our original plan based upon water levels and weather.
April 7, 2003 Miles 7.5 – This trip was planned as 2 days canoeing and 3 days backpacking for Carl and Lori Fisher. However, the previous day was cold and rainy – plus water levels on the Buffalo River were very low so we decided to do it in the reverse order. Started today at Pruitt at 9:15am. Temperature in the 50’s and sunny. Ultimately the temperature reached 70 degrees and we really sweated. Trail is mainly flat and the views of the Buffalo River were limited and disappointing. Despite the low elevation and little up and down we were both whooped at the end of the day. Most interesting part of the day was visiting the Adair Cemetery. One grave of a person killed (Civil War?) in April 1864 at Limestone Valley. Spent the night at the Erbie campground, which for backpackers is like heaven, with picnic tables, potable water, bathrooms and a fire pit. Came across a tree marked with printed tape that said “Killer Tree”. Not sure who or what the tree killed but we gave it a wide berth! All in all a good day but tiring.
April 8, 2003 Miles 6.5 – Started the day at 8:30 with a temperature of 39 degrees. Quite the change from yesterday. There was a light sleet part of the night. We stopped at the Parker Hickman Farmstead and the Cherry Grove Cemetery. The farmstead dates back to the 1830’s and the house is the original building-which was occupied until 1973. The construction of the barn was interesting. The cemetery had several Civil War soldiers buried there and some misspelling on the gravestones. Route, again today, was uneventful and not at all inspiring. We are the only persons staying at Kyles Landing and it is no wonder. The high temperature for the day was 43 and light sleet off and on all day. During the day we passed by a Boy Scout summer camp. Around 6:00pm a Park Ranger stopped by and asked if we were OK and if we needed assistance. He seemed surprised when we said no. He then confided to us that we were not supposed to stay in the bathrooms but they were heated to 50 degrees. We didn’t need to stay in the bathroom.
April 9, 2003 Miles ?? – No notes from today but there was only one, somewhat memorable item. When we finished up we called Lori’s parents who live about 30 miles away to come pick us up. Here we were standing beside the road, waiting for them, when they drove right by us and didn’t stop. They had not seen us. They drove another 10 minutes before deciding they must have missed us and turned around.