Tribble Mill (Gwinnett County, Georgia)

 

It's been raining the last couple of days and my ankle is still not back to full strength after rolling it on the Uwharrie Trail last weekend, but I decided to join the Meetup group for a quick hike around Tribble Mill Park. It's only about twenty minutes from my house and I know the trails are mostly easy. A few miles here shouldn't be bad for my ankle and it might even help to get it moving again.

I met with the group near the playground area on the southside of the park and after a quick round of introductions we headed into the woods. It seems we have about a four-hour break between stormfronts, which should be more than enough to get a few miles in here. Our normal hike leader is out of town and another friend is leading today. I'll actually be leading the Sunday hike next weekend, as the main organizer will still be out of town.

We follow the trail right next to the lake and encounter a few people fishing along the way. As our group, our pace is pretty slow today and we end up needing to stop and allow people to catch up a few times. After following the Ozora Lake shore for a ways, we cross the road and do a lap around Chandler Lake. This is a new section of trail that was incomplete the last time I was at the park.

Between the storms, it's actually turning out to be a pretty nice day, though it is getting to be humid. With less than five miles covered so far, and having nearly returned to our starting point, I offer to lead the group to Tribble Mill "Waterfall", which most of them are unaware even existed. I figure it will add a mile or so to our hike and it might even be a nice way to cool off.

As we approach the waterfall, which is really much more of a natural waterslide over a solid sheet of granite, we hear music blaring and the laughter of small children. It seems this is a popular hang out after the rains and there are nearly eighty people here, including many small children sliding down the mossy green waterslide. A couple of our hikers take their shoes off and enjoy the cool waters. One even slips and falls on her butt, but is luckily uninjured. 

Soon, I announced that I'm heading back to the cars and folks can decide to stay or follow me back. As good timing would have it, we start to hear thunderclaps just as we approach the parking area where we started. I was able to get in about 5.8 miles today and my ankle, while still tender, didn't seem to complain too much.