The Nickajack Naturalist

German Professor Completes 652-mile Tennessee River Swim for Science

                                                                                                                                                  Tennessee Aquarium News Release

Dr. Fath.                                                                                    (Photo: Contributed)

August 29, 2017

 Dr. Andreas Fath, scientist and endurance athlete, completed an almost superhuman feat today by swimming the entire Tennessee River in just 34 days. To reach the goal in world-record-breaking time, Fath maintained a swim pace of 20 miles per day on average as he swam the from river's headwaters near Knoxville, Tennessee, to its mouth near Paducah, Kentucky. Along the way, he endured punishing summer sun, uncomfortably warm water temperatures that reached 86 degrees Fahrenheit in places, and wind whipped waves on many of the nine reservoirs he crossed.      Read more.   

Original post - July 21, 2017

  After breaking the world record for speed swimming the Rhine River from the Swiss Alps to the North Sea in 2014, Dr. Andreas Fath, Professor of Medical and Life Sciences at Furtwangen University in Germany, is preparing for another endurance challenge on the Tennessee River. Dubbed TenneSwim, Fath's secon "swim for science" will see him swim the entire waterway from late July through August. Fath will conduct daily analyses along his route to determine how water quality in the Tennessee River compares to the Rhine.      Read more.

Update - August 04, 2017                      From Tennessee Aquarium News Release

 Dr. Andreas Fath is One Quarter Through Swimming and Analyzing the TN River

 Since entering the river at its confluence in Knoxville, Dr. Fath has traveled 188 miles, the equivalent to driving from Nashville to Birmingham, Alabama.     Read more.  

 

Update - July 27, 2017                            From Tennessee Aquarium News Release                                                   

 The TenneSwim Event got off to a great start this morning at the confluence of the Holston and French Broad Rivers, the headwaters of the Tennessee River. Dr. Andreas Fath entered the water at about 9:30am, swam one mile downstream to the Ijams Nature Center to address Knoxville-area media, and then he continued swimming downstream.

Video is available here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fn-ytUkeTEw&feature=youtu.be (**Be sure to check HD settings**)

Anyone can track his progress online: http://event.gps-live-tracking.com/tenneswim/

Andreas will deliver a presentation at the Tennessee Aquarium on Thursday, August 3^rd at 7 p.m. There will be media availability beginning at 6 p.m.

Andreas is scheduled to swim into Downtown Chattanooga on Friday, August 4^th.

To put this endurance swim in perspective:

-        A standard Olympic pool is 50 meters long. Swimming one length is considered one lap.

-        There are 1609.34 meters in a mile, so it takes 32.18 laps to equal one mile.

-        Dr. Andreas Fath will swim the entire 652-mile length of the Tennessee River in about one month. That’s the equivalent of 20,985 laps in an Olympic-sized pool.

-        In an average training week, Michael Phelps swims 49.7 miles. Dr. Fath will average more than 140 miles each week during TenneSwim.

-        Expected milestones: Chattanooga, TN Aug 4; Huntsville, AL Aug 10; Pickwick State Park, TN Aug 16; Paducah, KY Aug 26

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tracy City Releases Map of New Mountain Goat Trail Project

                                                                                                       Mountain Goat Trail Alliance News Release

Map of new section of Mountain Goat Trail to be constructed in Tracy City.  (Click on map to enlarge.)

The Town of Tracy City released a map showing the route of the Downtown Tracy City project, consisting of more than a mile of the Mountain Goat Trail. The paved 10-foot-wide path will connect Tracy City Elementary School with the downtown area of Tracy City. Construction is scheduled to begin later this year.

 

According to Tracy City Mayor Larry Phipps, the project will benefit the town in a number of ways. “The Mountain Goat Trail will give our residents a safe place to exercise and be outside,” Mayor Phipps said. “It will also give visitors another way to enjoy our town.”

 

The project is made possible by a $604,000 Transportation Alternatives grant to the town from the Tennessee Department of Transportation. The Mountain Goat Trail Alliance has provided technical assistance to the town for the grant.

 

The map, which was created by Chris Van de Ven of the Landscape Analysis Lab, University of the South, can be viewed and downloaded on the MGTA’s website at mountaingoattrail.org/tracygrant  

 

The project is one of three grants currently funded for the Mountain Goat Trail between Tracy City and Monteagle. The six total miles of trail under the three grants are scheduled to be completed by 2019. More information on the Mountain Goat Trail can be found at mountaingoattrail.org.

The Land Trust for Tennessee's Chattanooga Office Reaches 10-Year Milestone

By Bob Butters

View from the Fiery Gizzard Trail of the latest addition to South Cumberland State Park.  (Photo: Bob Butters)

 The Land Trust for Tennessee is a nonprofit conservation organization formed in 1999 that has since been involved in conserving more than 350 special places across the state, totaling over 119,000 acres. The trust opened its Chattanooga office in 2007 and in the decade since has worked on over 85 projects, conserving approximately 49,000 acres in the Southeast Tennessee region.

Read more.

Experience the Solar Eclipse from a Scenic Overlook

By Bob Butters

A total solar eclipse.                                                                                (Photo: NASA)

  By now, you're most likely well aware of the upcoming solar eclipse of August 21. For many of us, this will be a once-in-a-lifetime experience. There are numerous viewing events planned at various locations in its path. But if you'd prefer to experience the eclipse on your own, you might consider doing so from one of our region's scenic overlooks. Here are several possibilities, all of which have enough of a south or west facing view to ensure an unobstructed view of the sun.      Read more.  

Related Nooga.com articles:

Where to Get Safety Glasses to Use During the Aug. 21 Solar Eclipse

5 Chattanooga Solar Eclipse Events

Cool Off at South Cumberland Waterfalls

                                                                                                                                                        By Bob Butters

Greeter Falls.                                                                                 (Photo: Bob Butters)

 If you want to get outdoors this summer but find it's just too hot for a strenuous hike, one of the many waterfalls in South Cumberland State Park may be the answer. Here are five waterfalls in the park that have places to swim or wade at the base and can be reached with a relatively easy hike.      Read more. 

Chattanooga Connector Trail Opens at Lula Lake

By Sean Phipps                                                                                     at Nooga.com

Lula Lake.                                                                                      (Photo: Bob Butters)

  A hiking/biking trail that connects Lula Lake Land Trust's core property with Covenant College on Lookout Mountain is now open. The Chattanooga Connector Trail is a 4.1 mile trail that links multiple trail systems, including Cloudland Canyon State Park, the Cloudland Connector Trail, Five Points, Lula Lake, National Park Service trails and the Tennessee Riverwalk.      Read more.