April 25 Photo Outing - Porter's Creek in Smoky Mountains

Want to photograph wildflowers, creeks, cascades, old cabins, old graveyards, and a waterfall?  You can find all of these on the Porter's Creek trail in the Smokies.  The Eastman Camera Club is sponsoring an outing to Porter's Creek Saturday April 25.  Here are some specifics

We have two meeting places to car pool from:

1. Ingles parking lot in Colonial Heights between McDonalds and the Bank at 7:00 AM.  Plan to arrive early as we will leave at seven to meet others at
2. McDonalds on Highway 11E at I-81 at 7:30 AM

We will carpool to the trailhead.  Parking will be limited so we want to have as few cars as possible. We will be driving about 3.5 miles on a dirt road to get to the trail.  Be aware the spring rains may have made this road unsuitable for low clearance cars. We will arrive at the trailhead around 9:00 AM.

There are two sections to the Porter's Creek Trail

1. First mile is on an old gravel road and is an easy walk along the creek.   There are wildflowers and an old graveyard along the way.  This takes us to an old home site with barns and cabins.
2. Second mile is on a dirt footpath through an area that has been carpeted with wildflowers in the past.  This takes us to Fern Branch Falls.  The falls are not very photogenic but the hike is.

You are welcome to hike as little or as much as you want.  When we finish our hike we will stop for lunch at a picnic area on the dirt road.  Bring your own lunch and drinks.

I suggest you bring some water and maybe some snacks for the hike.  No need to go thirsty or hungry.  

You will want to bring a tripod, and a camera/lens capable of taking close-up shots of the flowers.   A moderate zoom (24-105mm range) and maybe something wider will be good for landscapes.   If you have a pop-out diffuser/shade you may want to bring it.

This is a rain or shine event.  A little rain and fog will make for nice photos.  Come appropriately prepared for the weather.

If you plan on going, please send your name, email address, cell phone number and where you plan on meeting us to Richard Siggins at r.siggins@charter.net.  That way I can let you know if there are any last minute changes of plans.  Richard's cell phone is 423-416-1258.