Scout Trip to Roan Mountain Area

A group of Scouts went to Roan Mountain over the weekend of April 25, 26 and 27, 2008. A group started at 19E near the Apple House Shelter. We spent the night about 3 miles up in Doll Flats. On Saturday we hiked across Big Hump, Little Hump and over to Carvers Gap. We spent Saturday night at the Roan Mountain Shelter (which is the highest Shelter on the AT). On Sunday we hiked up to Cloudland and had a great view from the deck up there. We hiked back down and picked up the cars at Carvers Gap and met the other group which had traversed the same area in the opposite direction. Our group spent most of Saturday hiking up and the other group spent most of the day going down. The Roan area is a really nice area and the views up on Big Hump and Cloudland are awesome. The total hiking for the weekend was about 20 miles. Most of the miles were done Saturday and everyone was pretty tired.
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Day Hike to Charlies Bunion

On Wednesday May 7, 2008, I took some time during the day to make a great hike up to Charlies Bunion. I started at Newfound Gap which can be accessed off of State Road 441 through Cherokee. There was quite a crowd at Newfound Gap but as I have always heard and witnessed, most of the millions that go through the Smokies never get out of their car and really explore. I hiked up the AT to Icewater Shelter. Then on up the trail to Charlies Bunion. The Bunion has some really great views. It is at about 5800 feet and looks down into the valley below which settles in at under 4000 feet. The sign at the Bunion says to make sure you have control of children. I think this is excellent advice. I spent about 45 minutes talking to a few folks (there was agroup of students from Indiana university up there exploring plants in the Smokies). I hiked back down pretty quickly so I can get to TN by dinner. The entire trip was about 8 miles an took me a little less than 3 hours. Its a great hike for a day hike and can be made into an overnighter but the camping up there is limited.

Walnut Bottoms-Trip Report

6 of us went up to Walnut Bottoms in the GSMNP (Big Creek Trail) On Friday March 28 to Sunday March 30. We stayed at campsite #37 on both Friday and Saturday night after hiking in Big Creek Trail on Friday evening. On Friday night after we got in the tents, it rained a little and then early on Saturday morning we had a thunderstorm and about 45 minutes of really hard rain that was pretty well over by 7 AM. We hiked up Swallow Fork Trail to the gap at Mt. Sterling. Its about a 4 mile hike up a pretty steep/strenous trail with a few overlooks but mostly in pretty deep cover with old growth trees. We then did about 1.4 miles to the top of Mt. Sterling and climbed up the fire tower for a really cool view of 30+ miles in every direction. It looked like it was going to pour on us so we started back to the gap. At the gap a few of us were thinking about going up and over the Mt. Sterling Ridge trail and back to #37 via Gunter Fork. But we decided it would be well after dark before we reached our camp so we bagged that and walked back to camp to work on a fire with wet wood. Jim and I tried to start a fire "survivorman" style with a magnesium stick and tinder. We would probably have done it but we needed fire. So we used the conventional method of a lighter. We had a great dinner and swapped a few lies around the fire. After dinner we listened to UNC play Louisville on an AM radio. Well Robert listened on headphones and gave us play by play. Sunday, 3 of the guys needed to get back to Mooresville so the other 3 of us hiked up Low Gap to the AT. Then North on the AT to Crammerer for another great view of the Smokies. Then on to Chestnut Branch and a major decent back to Big Creek. The total hiking for the 3 of us for the weekend was about 27 miles. 14 on Saturday and 13 on Sunday. Its still one of my favorite places to camp. If you love large forests and remote camping, its the place to go. We probably saw 20 other folks during the weekend which is a lot for the backcountry. The Smokies is overused as a camping area but is still a nice place to go. This group had a great time and we were all pretty whipped Saturday.

Planning For The Grand Canyon

Well, I just spent an hour talking to the people at the Grand Canyon that help you plan your trip. It was pretty well decided that we (Laura, Kyle and Hannah) would hike into the GC on one day and out the following day. That may not happen now. The ranger said hiking in wouldn't be too bad but hiking out in the 115 degree heat would be a real chore. So, he suggested a hike into Indian Garden (about 2 -2 1/2 hours), set up damp and spend the heat of the day just lounging or hiking to the base and swimming. Then a hike out the next morning. He also suggested the Bright Angel Trail as it is better shaded and a little cooler. I guess June is such a hot month there that they do not suggest a lot of hiking. He also suggested Havasu Canyon and Walipi Indian Reservation as sites to see. We have a lot of planing to do....

So this is A Blog?

Well, I thought maybe I would start a blog to keep track and let others read about some of my escapades backpacking and cycling. I don't know how much I will use this thing but at least its set up and the option is there. Hopefully I can keep a running track of things so others can get a chance to see trail reports and camping spots.