Here it is the end of May and we’re still squeezing in a hike now and
then. Spring got off to an early and wet start, but this month has been mostly dry and mild, so we won’t complain. Our plan for today is to drive to Woolum,
wade across the Buffalo River and hike to the Narrows and Skull Bluff. We arrive at Woolum with no problem, but the
Buffalo is much higher than we anticipated.
 |
near 'The Barns'
|
A canoe outfitter at the Woolum ford is doing a brisk business and asks
if we would like to ‘go for a float’. I
explain that we were hoping to cross the river and hike down to the ‘Nars’. He advises against trying to wade the river,
tells us it’s at least five feet deep and a strong current, but he doesn’t offer to give us a ride across in
a canoe, and I don’t ask. |
a great day to be out in the woods
|
We drive east
through the large field with Woolum Campground along the river. While checking out the campground which is
about half full, I take a look at the map to see what might be close by that we
could hike to. I see the Rockhouse is
basically ‘right around the corner’, we jump in the car and head back up the
dirt road we came down on. |
at Lawrence Cemetery
|
In a little 'neighborhood' I’ll call Pine Bluff Church we turn right, then a
quarter mile later right again (south).
This is Brewer Road, very dusty but in good shape, then as we start downhill
into a little hollow the road gets worse. We stop at the Lookout, a narrow pull-out between the road and the
top of Jamison Bluff with the Buffalo River below. It's a fantastic view down to the river along the High Banks. |
vintage auto next to trail
|
On down the road we go which ends at a cable gate, there are in fact a bunch of cable gates around here. We park back in a little field after reaching the bottom.
Near where we’re parked, I notice an opening in the woods at the edge of
this field and we head that way (west) to investigate. Back in the woods maybe 100 feet from the
field we find Lawrence Cemetery. It’s a good-sized cemetery with probably 70 or 80 gravesites inside the chain-link fence.
 |
at The Rockhouse
|
It appears a little neglected
recently, especially since Memorial Day was just this past Monday. After our visit at Lawrence Cemetery, we
explore the old roads beyond a couple of the cable gates and find two large
hay fields along the Buffalo one with a big doe staring at us from the road
at the edge of another field. |
Rockhouse 'the Barns'
|
Back up the road maybe half a mile we find a wide spot to park just
uphill from another old road blocked by a cable gate. Past this gate we hike down the old road into
a small side drainage and soon encounter more deer, this time a doe with her
fawn. Continuing down the old road we
soon come to the point where this little creek merges into a larger creek coming down
from the north.
 |
May Apple
|
Near this confluence and
right next to the trail is an old car that looks to me to be from the late 40’s or
early 50’s. From here we keep going down
the road which stays up above the creek about 20 feet, and at times is
hard to tell that we’re even on an old road.
In another 100 yards are the beginnings of a bluff around on
our right (south) and out in front what appears to be another little side creek flowing to the north.
Come to find out later this isn’t a creek but part of the Buffalo River
floodplain. |
crossing Brewer Road
|
The road swings around to the south along the bluff, and we arrive at
The Rockhouse aka ‘The Barns’. Ken Smith
explained, ‘The Barns’ is so named because the long-ago owner of this property used
the Rockhouse to store hay through the winter, and here is where we find an old hay-bailer. This shelter style cave is long; about 100
yards, but shallow; only about 20 feet deep. On the back wall of the shelter are massive draperies of flowstone.
 |
sign near cemetery entrance
|
Beyond the
Rockhouse the old road turns to mud and then enters the corner of the big field we had
seen earlier from the other end. We turn around and head back
through the Rockhouse then past the old car and eventually to our car where our
hike today ends. This was a great little
impromptu hike, exploring an area we probably would have never seen had it not
been for the high water encountered on the Buffalo. We only hiked 2 miles today with an elevation
gain of just under 200 feet, and a lot of fun!
 |
one of the large hay fields
|
Rockhouse & Lawrence Cemetery: Statistics Chart 52 Start at the turn off Highway 65 on the west
side of St. Joe, this paved road is S. Woolum Road, there is a sign for Woolum
and Baker Ford. After about 3.65 miles, where Woolum Road curves a little to the right stay
straight onto Brewer Road. Continue south
on Brewer Road about 2.25 miles to the Overlook, then on down Brewer, the
old road with a cable gate which is the trail to Rockhouse is at 2.7 miles,
and down to roads end where you can park in a small field near some cable gates, Lawrence Cemetery is at about 3.4 miles. |
base map before fair use alterations is property of ArcGIS-
-licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 U.S. License |
Comments