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Hike Down the East Fork of Barron Creek in Franklin County
3/25/17
The rain was finished. I assumed this while driving away from breakfast at South Park restaurant in Clarksville. My destination arrival off Hwy 23 in Franklin County occurred at 5:30 a.m. Radar showed the bulk of the shower activity had moved through but a minor line was trailing in behind it. I reclined and took a nap. Around 6:00 a good storm came forward and dumped a nice bucket on the already soaked surface around me. But wait...one more blob to the south was moving in my direction. Finally at 7:15 it seemed safe enough to move into the ever so moist forest, so that I did. All minor tributaries were flowing nicely. The first small creek to cross was much more of a task than it should have been.
The temp was a comfortable 58° but the humidity was not terribly pleasant. Occasional blue gaps in the clouds indicated some clearing and the promise of a lovely day. The creek was a bit brown and rolling along at a goodly rate of speed. The upper end of this creek is mostly bedrock for a fairly long stretch and is quite unique in appearance due to this. I wished my kayak was with me, for this branch had some sweet whitewater action. Following the left bank downstream revealed numerous small ledges and narrow chutes. At some point the flow slowed into a more quiet section, but not for long.
Jimmy Shlabotik Falls came in from the side and diverted me for a moment. The next narrow gorge was entered without delay. Numerous drops snaked along and ended in a pool with another another tall waterfall coming in from the left. At his juncture it began to rain again. The decision was made to head out due to the unpredictability of the weather. The nearest ridge was mounted and lunch was ingested on the move as I passed through a dark pine forest that was oh so scary. The rain did let up again but the skies remained dark. At 12:40 I was back and the temp had fallen to 56° after stabilizing around 60° most of the morning. My total hike came in at 4.6 miles.
