Welcome to Breakfast in America
I’m a Brit who unexpectedly emigrated to the USA in 2008, and this is my photo journal.
It’s an eclectic mix of things; there’s no guiding theme or topic. It is whatever catches my attention, what I’ve been thinking, doing, or piques my interest. Currently that’s mainly backpacking and clearing some of the backlog on my ‘honey-do’ list.
Popular posts
Trending pictures and short posts.
Popular pages
Trending longer content.
Memories
A dozen pictures, picked at random from my favorite memories. You can see my portfolio here.
Jim Beam and 400 West Market
They Built Their Own Yacht
Come to me, all who labor and are heavy-laden
Mist after rain
Safety in Numbers – Reprise
Fall In The Forest
The Addams Family – Lanie as Morticia
Glorious colors
Beach Camping at Sea Rim State Park, Texas
The Addams Family Musical – Third Night
Labor Day Weekend With The Parents
Journaling
Recent Posts
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End of hike selfie
End of hike selfie — Whites Creek Trail, counter clockwise — December 2024. Copyright © 2024 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. I’ve not taken an end of hike self-portrait in a while. Here I am all ready for the drive home.
Trip over, four days, three nights, 21 miles, and 1800ft. climbed.
End of Trip Review
What worked & Lessons learned
- Taking the summer quilts and winter clothes worked well. I didn’t wear two items of clothing. My spare base layer top and spare pair of undies.
- My summer tarp was all I needed, though had higher winds been predicted the winter tarp with doors would have been appropriate.
- My cooking arrangements are just fine. I took, but, once again, did not use my wood burning stove. Nor did I have a campfire.
- All my wet weather gear and plans worked out, but I did struggle to find places to keep wet items such as my rain jacket, so that the dry side remained dry and wet side didn’t get my dry gear wet. I need to think about that some more.
- I had no plan as to how to actually use my GPS (phone) in the pouring rain. I keep it in a waterproof pocket, but that’s no help when I need to get it out to check something. I put the phone inside a spare Ziploc bag, and that seemed to work in the absence of any better ideas.
- I’m a lot fitter than I was, and the climbs were not as challenging as they have been in the past — which is very good!
- There are a huge number of trees down on the trail, and the trail is impossible to find/follow in places.
- I’m getting a lot better at not bothering to hunt for the trail and using the compass to find my way from place to place.
- I need a better way of attaching Hunter orange to both me and my pack. I really didn’t expect to meet any hunters and was quite happy with a scrunched-up hunter orange bib tucked into the back of my pack. I soon changed my tune when I realized there were hunters in the area, and I was going off-trail.
- I must be more careful getting into my hammock when I’m testing it out. If I’m not, one day I am not going to be so lucky, and I’m going to injure myself.
- I need to research what might have caused me to freeze when I heard the approaching animal on the first night. I must be able to deal with wildlife if it is necessary. I’ve a flexible plan for animal (and people) encounters and it has served me well so far. However, it doesn’t work if I refuse to engage whatever is heading my way.
All in all, it was a great trip.
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Camp Five Pond, Irish Wilderness
Camp Five Pond, Irish Wilderness. From the western side looking towards the trailhead and parking lot. Once more, ours is the only vehicle present. Whites Creek Trail, counter clockwise — December 2024. Copyright © 2024 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. -
Whites Creek Trail, loop complete
Whites Creek Trail, loop complete. Whites Creek Trail, counter clockwise — December 2024. Copyright © 2024 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. Day Four
Whites Creek Trail — Day Four. -
The Whites Creek Trail South Loop is much easier going
The Whites Creek Trail South Loop is much easier going Whites Creek Trail, counter clockwise — December 2024. Copyright © 2024 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. I’ve mentioned this before. If you don’t like hiking through oak woodland, this is not the trail for you.
The South Loop is much easier to follow, with few opportunities to lose the trail.
Trail Journal
1150 – Ready to go. 50°F -ish.
1215 – Top of the first ridge.
1315 – Rest & food.
1407 – Loop Complete.
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Whites Creek
Whites Creek — there was water running where I camped, but I’d filled up at Fiddler Spring. Whites Creek Trail, counter clockwise — December 2024. . Copyright © 2024 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. -
Spring
Spring Whites Creek Trail, counter clockwise — December 2024. Copyright © 2024 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. This spring pool was almost empty when I arrived, but it filled up overnight. The rain must have done some good. I’ve never taken water from this spring, for some odd reason I have never trusted it.
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Mist after rain
Mist after rain — After yesterday’s rain last night and this morning were very misty. Whites Creek Trail, counter clockwise — December 2024. Copyright © 2024 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. -
Day Four — Misty, damp morning
Day Four — Misty, damp morning. Whites Creek Trail, counter clockwise — December 2024. Copyright © 2024 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. I was planning on spending the night at Fiddler Spring, but there was a hunting camp set up there (no one was at home). I grabbed three liters of water from the much slower than usual spring and decided I’d head away from the hunters to this established primitive campsite around three quarters of a mile away.
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Dry – Looking up Whites Creek
Dry — Whites Creek was dry. Bliss spring and Fiddler Spring were both running, but much less than I’ve seen them in the past. Whites Creek Trail, counter clockwise — December 2024. Copyright © 2024 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. After the climb up to Whites Creek Cave and the ridge, I used the compass and GPS to move along the ridge towards Fiddler Spring. There were lots of trees down, but this wasn’t a problem until the last section of the ridge trail before the descent to Fiddler Spring. There the trail is on the edge of the ridge with a very steep and precipitous drop, and there were several trees blocking the trail. Getting around them wasn’t easy in the rapidly fading light.
Once I got to the social trail that leads down to Fiddler Spring, I had to be very careful as the trail is steep, and going down, was a tad fraught with the trail and leaves being wet and slippery from all the rain. I soon saw that the primitive campsite at the spring was already occupied, with a couple of big tarps hanging between the trees.
Approaching the camp, I shouted out, but no one was at home, the occupants were obviously away hunting — which was later confirmed by some shots being fired in the distance. I filled up with water and decided to hike further along the trail to another established primitive campsite that I had previously camped at in March 2023.
My trail Journal:
1515 crossed Whites Creek. Lost the trail near the descent to Whites Creek. Despite the GPS [I] went round in circles before I got it sorted.
1530 heading up to Whites Creek Cave.
16:35 Fiddler Spring — Hunters. Hunting camp at Fiddler Spring, no one there, so I decided to carry on to [another campsite] where I’ve camped before to be well out of their way & near to the trail.
1730 Camped Previous Spot. Getting dark but I just managed to arrive while I could still see.
— Read until late.
Day Three
Day Three — Whites Creek Trail Counter Clockwise. -
Caves on Whites Creek
Dry — Whites Creek was dry. Bliss spring and Fiddler Spring were both running, but much less than I’ve seen them in the past. Whites Creek Trail, counter clockwise — December 2024. Copyright © 2024 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. It’s the first time that I’ve been here when these caves have been accessible. With two hours until it got dark there was no time to stop and explore, so I took my pictures and hurried along.
