Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, October 3, 1995 TAG: 9510030041
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: MIKE HUDSON STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Allen de Hart isn't wilting under the August sun. He seems almost cool in a short-sleeved plaid shirt, gray-blue slacks, Hi Tec hiking boots and a floppy fishing hat.
De Hart has the mild-mannered look of the college professor he is. He weighs the same today as he did when he was 18 years old: 158 pounds.
He and Steven Hughes, a former student of de Hart, are walking under the shade of poplars and oaks. The path is narrow and ferns rub gently against their ankles.
As he hikes, de Hart likes to give his companions a running commentary spiced with tidbits of history and natural science.
"This is yellow root," he says, pointing beside the trail. "The Indians used it for face paint."
Later the trail climbs onto the ridge tops and widens onto what seems to be an old logging roadbed. Then it moves out of the shade and onto a rock ledge covered with scrub pines. A creek gurgles below.
"Notice as we get back down in the canyon," de Hart says a few minutes later, "the rhododendron are getting more frequent. And the trees are getting taller."
De Hart is pushing a measuring wheel, a device that looks something like a unicycle with no seat and no pedals. The handle comes up high enough so that de Hart can comfortably hold it in his hand as the rubber wheel clicks of the distance in tenth-of-a-mile increments.
At the bottom of the gorge, the trail cuts back and forth across the creek, mostly on flat rocks. Along the banks there's wild ginger and a pungent green plant with heart-shaped leaves called Galax.
Nearby, de Hart spots another plant that interests him. "This is wintergreen," he says. "It smells like teaberry gum. But actually the flavor for teaberry gum comes from the black birch tree."
They cross a wooden bridge close to where the creek runs into the Dan River. Steven steps into the water and washes the poison ivy off his legs.
Over less than two miles, de Hart estimates, they've seen maybe 150 species of plants. "And that's not counting all the spring flowers that are hiding right now."
|n n| Same hot August day, another trail:
The sun burns higher in the sky now. As they climb a ridge, de Hart says, "I'm too old to be doing this - pushing this wheel up a mountain when it's 96 degrees out."
"Well, it's good for you," teases Hughes, who is 20.
De Hart has had his share of hiking mishaps. He's gathered perhaps two dozen stitches in his scalp. Once, on the Appalachian Trial, a swarm of yellow jackets stung him so fiercely his face swelled up and by the next morning he couldn't see. When it happened, de Hart was jumping around and his hiking partner started laughing because he thought de Hart was doing some sort of Indian ritual dance.
"He quit laughing when they popped him," de Hart says.
De Hart recalls this while he's standing on Wolf Rock, at the top of a towering cliff. He waves off toward the distance. You could see the tallest buildings in Winston-Salem, he says, if it wasn't for the polluted haze blocking the view.
"Well," he says finally, "it's time for us to move on."
After descending the ridge, the hikers cross a bog on narrow boardwalks.
"Ooooh!" de Hart says suddenly, puffing out a breath of air as he looks at a lavender flower. "Look at this. It's called turtlehead." He hadn't expected to see one of those. "Take a look at it and see how it looks like a turtle head."
Hughes asks him the name of a small tree growing nearby. De Hart admits he doesn't know. "You've stumped me on a tree," he says with a chuckle.
A bit farther on, Hughes steps into a creek and starts pumping water through his hand-held purifier.
"Do you know what you're sitting between?" de Hart asks. He points to some green stalks - as tall as 21/2 feet - with red flowers on them. "It's as red as red can be. It's a cardinal flower. Cardinal like the bird. It grows only where it can get wet feet."
Near the end of the trail, Hughes and de Hart run into a trio of guys in their teens or early 20s. The say they're looking for "some rocks." Two are in running shoes and the third is barefoot, a Bic lighter in his hand and an unlit cigarette dangling from his lips. De Hart explains the options for rock overlooks and the boys move on - heading for a steep climb over jutting rocks and tree roots.
As he walks on, de Hart shakes his head and chuckles.
by CNB