I would like to take this opportunity to thank those officers and board members who have served with me these two years.  A special thanks goes to the 123 members who have chosen to receive the BotSoc News electronically via the website, thus, saving the Society printing and mailing costs.

Directions: Take I-20 exit #44. Turn left onto Thornton Rd. (Hwy 278) West. Follow Hwy 278 for 10 miles. Make a right onto Hwy 92. Travel North on Hwy 92 for approximately 6 miles. Look for brown Pickett’s Mill signs as you continue. Turn left onto Due West Rd. Continue 2 miles. Turn right onto Mt. Tabor Church Rd. The site is 1/2 mile on the right.

Remember, September 11 at 11am.  Hope to see you there!

Leader: EdMcDowell, ed.mcdowell@cox.net, (478)929-1267.

Description:  This is the seventh inventory trip to Red Top Mountain and features the Georgia Aster and other late summer  and fall wildflowers. The state park has a lodge (770 975-0055),  tent camping and yurts; in addition,  Cartersville is nearby with abundant motels.

Directions: From I-75 take Exit 285 Red Top Mountain Rd. and go 1.5 miles east to Visitor Center

Leader: Tom Patrick  706 476-4541 (cell) or Tom.Patrick@dnr.state.ga.us

Walking: Easy to moderate, some bushwhacking off trails.

Facilities:  At visitor center and in picnic area for lunch.

Bring:  Hand lens, notebook, water, picnic lunch

Description:  We will walk down and up the hills of East Palisades in search of late summer wildflowers and early signs of Fall. Along the way we have lots of beautiful river views, a chance to identify trees and plants perhaps including Fothergilla major.

Directions:  From I-285 East Take Exit 22.  Turn Right on Northside Drive to Powers Ferry Road Go through Intersection at Powers Ferry Road and 1.1 Miles to Indian Trail. Right On Indian Trail which dead ends at the unit’s entrance From I-285 West Take Exit 22. Go straight to the second traffic light. Left onto Northside Drive to Powers Ferry Road. Go through the intersection at Powers Ferry and 1.1 miles to Indian Trail. Follow as above For additional directions, contact leader.

Walking:  moderate, ~4-miles with two big hills.  The terrain is not difficult

Facilities: none at Indian Trail.  There are Wendy’s & McDonalds on Powers Ferry Rd.

Bring:  water, a hand lens, sunscreen, tree or field guide, camera and notebook, $3.00 parking fee or annual pass.

Leader:  Maureen Donohue   macaire75@att.net, 678-687 -7963

Description: This will be an exploratory trip to two of Georgia’s newest Natural Areas – Fall Line Sandhills and Black Creek Natural Area.  Target species will include pond spicebush (Lindera melissifolia) and sandhill golden-aster (Pityopsis pinifolia), both protected species.  Pickering morninglory (Stylisma pickeringii var. pickeringii), another protected species, occurs here, but will already be past flowering.  We may also find sandhill specialties like Carolina pineland-cress (Warea cuneifolia).  Fall is the best wildflower season in the sandhills, so many common species, especially members of the aster family, should be in flower.  Both Natural Areas are maintained by prescribed fire and nearly all of Black Creek was burned this past winter and spring, allowing us to see the impact of fire on sandhill plants.

Directions: Take US 19 south to Butler.  Pass through the town on US 19 to the light at the intersection of US 19 and GA 96.  Go across GA 96 and the HJ gas station will be on the left.  If you are coming from the south, take US 19 north to the intersection with GA 96.  The gas station will be on your right just before the light.  From the east or west, just take GA 96 to the intersection with US 19 just south of Butler.  Turn south onto US 19 and the gas station will be immediately on your left.

Parking: If we need to carpool because of the number of vehicles, we’ll stop at the parking area for Fall Line Sandhills Natural Area and condense into fewer vehicles.   

Facilities: At meeting place only, neither Natural Area has any type of facility.

Walking:   We’ll be walking on old sandy logging roads.  Walking will be fairly easy, but the sand will be deep at times and it could be very hot.  We may make side trips down old fire lines.  Total walking for the day won’t exceed 3 miles.

Lunch:  Bring to eat near the vehicles.  A picnic blanket or some other cover to sit on is recommended.

Bring:  Hat, bug spray, water and food. 

Leader:  Hal Massie,  478-836-4907, 478-957-6095 (cell, will be on the morning of the hike, reception not guaranteed)  massiefarm@aol.com

Meet:  

Description: This is an easy stroll of ~1.5-2 miles along the Oostanaula River on a paved walkway. We hope to see a wide assortment of vines including honey vine (Cynanchum laeve), balloon-vine (Cardiospermum halicacabum), melonette (Melothria pendula), bur cucumber (Sicyos angulatus), cupseed (Calycocarpum lyonii), moonseed (Menispermum canadense), coralbeads (Cocculus carolinus) and fivelobe cucumber (Cayaponia quinqueloba). Unusual flowers blooming include fog fruit (Phyla lanceolata), branched foldwing (Dicliptera brachiata), creeping Eryngium (Eryngium prostatum), Peruvian daisy (Galinsoga quadriradiata), wingstem (Verbesina alternifolia), frostweed (Verbesina virginica), turnsole (Heliotropium indicum), valley redstem (Ammannia coccinea), and eastern black nightshade (Solanum americanum). A wonderful variety of trees along the route will also be identified.

Directions: Follow Ga. 20/US 411 to Rome. After 4th traffic signal, take the right fork and follow Ga. 20 towards downtown Rome. Go through 5 more traffic signals, up a small hill, look for Days Inn on the left, turn left at the next traffic signal (Riverside Parkway). Library is first turn on right. Turn right again and park near beginning of concrete trail.

Meal: Optional meal at a Mexican Restaurant after the walk.

Facilities: At library and in two places along the walk.

Leaders: Richard & Teresa Ware – 706-232-3435 – (Cell) 706-766-5143 – gabotany@comcast.net

Description:   We will hike from the parking lot up the paved walking trail to the top of Brasstown Mountain. As an alternative, those wishing can take the shuttle up to the top and wait for the group. On the hike up we will take a couple of short side walks. We should see Showy Gentian, Gentiana decora, several autumn flowers including composites and others, and maybe a few chestnut burrs. Lunch will be at the observation tower on the top of Brasstown Bald. After lunch, we will hike back down the paved trail (or take the shuttle) back down to the parking lot. From the parking lot we will travel to the Trackrock Gap area to see Fringed Gention, Gentianopsis crinita, and other autumn flowers.

Georgia State Park fees apply at the Brasstown parking lot. There is a small fee ($2 last year) for the shuttle.

Difficulty:   Walking up the paved trail to the observation deck is smooth, but uphill and somewhat strenuous in places. The Trackrock portion will be a couple of stops for roadside botanizing. However, those wishing may hike around in a field just off the paved road to look for more Gentianopsis blooms.

Directions:  From Blairsville: U.S. 129 S/GA 11S, turn left onto GA 180 for 7.3 miles. Turn left onto GA 180 Spur N for 2.9 miles to Brasstown Bald parking lot.

Leader:   Jim Drake,  (678) 482-2127, drake3800@charter.net

Description:  We will walk a wonderful unit of this national park, enjoying the beautiful fall weather, the leaf colors and the views over Blue Sluice Lake and the Chattahoochee River.  We’ll expect to see the bottle gentians  that bloom lakeside at this time of year.

Difficulty: moderate, 3-5 miles depending on group’s wants

Facilities:  None. Closest at McDonald’s on Lower Roswell, east of Johnson Ferry

Bring: water, good walking shoes, poles (optional), snacks, $3.00 parking fee or annual pass, camera, hand lens, notebook, field guide

Directions: From I-285 East, take Exit 24, Riverside Drive. Left for 2.3 miles to Johnson Ferry Rd. Left 2 miles to Lower Roswell Road. Right for just under 2.5 miles to park unit on the right.

From I-285 West- Take exit 24, Riverside Drive. Right for 2.3 miles to Johnson Ferry Road. Then follow above directions. For other directions, contact leader.

Leader:  Maureen Donohue  macaire75@att.net or 678 687-7963 – cell.

Description: We’ll explore an old growth hardwood forest along the Ocmulgee River during the peak flowering period of the fragrant ladies’ tresses (Spiranthes odorata). We may also see Canadian Horseweed (Conzya canadensis), dyersweed goldenrod (Solidago nemoralis), downy lobelia (Lobelia puberula), poison sumac (Toxicodendron vernix), the Florida swamp azalea (Rhododendron viscosum), many varieties of ferns, and dwarf pawpaw (Asimina parvaiflora), horse sugar (Symplocos tinctoria) and laurel oak (Quercus laurifolia) trees.

NOTE:  THIS TRIP REQUIRES PREREGISTRATION. Call or write trip leader by Oct 2  with full name and social security number. Also please bring your valid government –issued photo I.D. with you on the day of the trip.

Directions: Take I-75 to Exit 45. Go East on SR 247C to the Museum of Aviation parking lot in Warner Robbins AFB.  We will be driving ~5-10 miles from the meeting site.

Walking:  ~1mi. but potential swampy and muddy conditions with several creek crossings.  Bring knee high boots or a change of shoes as your feet will get wet!

Facilities: At meeting and lunch site.

Leader: Tom Patrick    e-mail  Tom.Patrick@dnr.state.ga.us  home 706 468-2508, work 770 918-6411.

Meet:  10 A.M. at south edge (farthest from Confederate Hall) of parking lot for the walkup trail.

Description: Stone Mountain is probably the most botanically rich area in the metro area, a well kept secret! We will start by walking part way up the mountain, leaving the walkup trail first to see some typical granite outcrop plants at the site where botanists discovered some of them, and then meandering back down through the botanically rich and unique forest on the mountain’s northwest flank (see the 1994 Tipularia) to enjoy fall wildflowers and unusual shrubs (especially the granite gooseberry, Ribes curvatum, and Rafinesque’s haw, Viburnum rafinesquianum). After lunch in the picnic area beside Old U.S. 78 E, we will make a leisurely exploration of the “cove” forest at the northeastern base of the mountain, suggestive of the North Georgia mountains, to enjoy carpets of ferns (including hayscented fern, rare so far south), a resprouting American chestnut, and another rare shrub, Schwerin’s leadbush (Amorpha schwerinii). En route back to the East Gate we will make a brief stop to see yet another rare shrub, state-protected Nestronia umbellula (called conjurer’s-nut, Jove’s fruit, etc.).

Directions: Georgia’s Stone Mountain Park is located south of U.S. 78, 16 miles east of downtown Atlanta. From U.S. 78 (Stone Mountain Freeway) take Exit 8 and enter park at its East Gate (admission is $10 per car or $35 for one year). Keep straight onto Jefferson Davis Dr.; after 1 mile bear right onto Robert E. Lee Blvd. Continue another mile (past the West Gate) and turn left into the large parking lot and then make an immediate right and head for the far end of the lot to park end-to-end along the (wooded) far edge. More directions available at http://www.stonemountainpark.com/maps-directions/driving-directions.aspx.

Walking: moderate, about 1 mile before lunch, less afterward. We will not walk to the summit.

Lunch: picnic area in park.

Facilities: Confederate Hall, close to meeting spot; porta-johns at lunch stop.

Leader: Jim Allison, jimbotany@aol.com, (706) 818-0210.

Description: Join us for the fourth annual count of this state endangered species. We’ll survey the corn and wheat field and tally the number of Georgia Aster we find. This survey tracks the status of one of the largest populations in the state. It is particularly important this year because there was a prescribed burn at Pickett’s Mill this past winter.  With their beautiful purple flowers in blooms, the asters are easy to see. This is a fun and valuable activity for beginner wildflower enthusiasts as well as professional botanists.. We look forward to a glorious autumn day in the fields.

Directions: Take I-75 to Exit 277. Actworth/GA Hwy 92. GA 92 make several turns and and an unexpected right just off the freeway. Proceed for 12 miles south to trun right at small brown sign for Pickett’s Mill at Due West Rd ( NOT Due West Street) . Go 1.8 miles to trun right onto Mt Tabor Church Rd. The park entrance is on the right,

Walking: Easy to moderate, some off trails

Facilities: At Visitor’s Center

Bring: Lunch, hand lens, notebook, and water.

Leader: Maureen Donohue macaire75@att.net or cell 678 687-7963,  Elaine Nash 770 922- 7292 einash33@bellsouth.net