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Ok boys, here's another trip report with ample fotogs to describe my last backpacking trip in the mountains of TN and NC. I promise my next trip will be somewhere different, like the Cohuttas.
Bald River/Upper Bald River/BMT/Citico/Slickrock Wilderness Areas
April 12--28 2011
TRIP HIGHLIGHTS
17 DAYS WITH A NEW TENT: THE MSR FURY
MEETING BMT THRUHIKERS BAMA AND 65
MULESKINNERS ARLEN PHILLIPS AND JIM CLIMBING SUGAR MOUNTAIN
REVENGE OF THE RAMP EATERS
8 DAYS ON THE BMT
HIKING WITH SLADE AND COLE
AT NAKED GROUND WITH RANDY AND BRIAN DE LAY
ON THE BOB WITH RANDY
BACKPACKING DOWN THE NORTH FORK WITH RANDY
THE HOT CLIMB UP FLATS MOUNTAIN
GOING DOWN THE HEMLOCK CREEK TRAIL
HITCHING TELLICO RIVER ROAD
BIG STORMS ALL AROUND ME
DAY 17 HITCH TO THE RANGER STATION AND OUT
BABY FALLS: Little Mitten and I drive past Baby Falls on the Tellico River and see the high water and notice several kayakers preparing to shoot the rapids. My trip thusly begins by watching some water sports.
The first guy to go over is in a yellow boat.
Now here comes a red boat.
Here's a close up of white water in action. I'll be sticking to land trails, thank you.
The red boat hits deep and pops back up.
MY TRIP BEGINS: How to hoist a monster load? Grunt loudly and yell out strongly.
Voila! Upright and ready though contemplating the futility of it all. Uncle Motard and his Silverback Titan.
AND NOW THE NEW TENT: On this trip I decide to move away from the Hilleberg tents and go back to the old style of tent I am more familiar with: a two piece tent with a rigid inner not supported with elastic---the MSR Fury. There are some obvious differences, namely, the Fury's floor is "substandard" when compared to Hilleberg, and the blasted thing stinks of flame retardant---there's no smell with the Hillebergs.
On Day 2 I leave Bald River and enter the Upper Bald wilderness and set up at Fern Camp on the BMT and the Brookshire trail.
DAY 3: Here's a good view of the Brookshire climb up the valley and on the BMT. It goes to Sled Runner Gap.
THE HOLY MOREL: I couldn't bear to pick it and eat it, but everyone should pay homage to these guys.
BAMA AND 65: Near Sled Runner Gap I run into an old acquaintance Bama and her backpacking companion 65. They are thruhiking the BMT north. I first ran into Bama when she was thruhiking the AT in 2006 and I was pulling a section hike from Fontana to Cheoah Bald and back.
Bama and 65 preparing to shove off north on the BMT.
Bama and 65.
IRON RING CAMP: Below Sled Runner Gap there is this fine campsite with a tiny creek passing by. It's where I spent my third day.
UNCLE FUNGUS AT THE BROOKSHIRE CROSSING: On Day 4 I planned to go south on the BMT and follow State Line Ridge but then I heard about a big storm coming and I didn't want to be at 4,000 feet so I bailed back down the Brookshire and decided to stay low for the night at the jcts of Brookshire Creek and Upper Bald River. Here I am at the Brookshire Creek crossing.
Right past the crossing there is Tony Camp which is very level and next to two creeks. Here's the Fury with the fly.
A decent view of Upper Bald River right next to Tony Camp.
On Day 5 I leave Tony Camp and climb over Sugar Mt. The BMT climbs up and over and here I am by the trailpost at the new cut switchback.
On the other side of Sugar Mt the BMT crosses the Tellico River road way upstream from Baby Falls and passes thru a picnic area called Pheasant Fields.
I cross the Tellico River and head up the Sycamore Creek trail a ways and set up at a totally pig-rutted camp by the creek.
THE 3,000 FOOT CLIMB TO WHIGGS MEADOW: On Day 6 I run into these horsemen coming off the Whigg. The last stretch of the BMT is off the Sycamore Creek trail and up a steep roadwalk.
ATOP THE WHIGG! Haw Mountain is behind my pack. The big thunderstorm I got below Sled Runner Gap ended and the day was fine for a stay atop a 5,000 foot bald.
This fotog shows all the many peg out points on the Fury tent. It takes around 21 stakes for full protection. I brought 20 and only used them all once during a mean blow atop a different 5,000 foot bald.
I like this shot showing the tent and behind it Little Haw Mt, the brother to Haw Mt.
On Day 7 I pack up and follow the BMT south and cross thru the Rock Quarry. The big mountain in the back is Bob's Bald, my eventual destination.
Here I am posing by the BMT trailpost in the Rock Quarry.
Here's a neat scene on the trail between Mud Gap and Beech Gap.
I get into the Citico wilderness and set up at Barrel Gap and prepare for another storm.
On Day 8 I leave Barrel Gap and stay on the BMT all the way to Crowder Camp on Fodderstack Ridge, a hike of about 8 miles.
Late on Day 8 I get walloped by another thunderstorm and it keeps me up all night in white lightning bolts and death zaps. A portent of what's to come.
On Day 9 I was gonna pull a zero day at Crowders in the rain but then the sky stopped raining and I bailed late in the day down the Big Stack Gap trail to Slickrock Creek where I pulled this ford and camped on the other side.
I reach Slickrock Creek and set up nearby on the other side so I can climb 3,000 feet to Hangover Mt in the morning after a night of rain.
On Day 10 I leave the Slickrock watershed and climb up the Big Fat Gap trail and rest before the long hot slog to Hangover Mt on the stepped trail behind me, called the Hangover Lead South trail.
COLE AND SLADE: As I hump up the Hangover trail, I run into a father/son team also pulling the long trek so we band together and hike to the top. Along the way I show them some nice little pull off spots and overlooks.
Below the Hangover there is this "secret" little pull off area with a big rock I call Table Rock and it give a good view of the Slickrock wilderness with the Big Fodderstack Mt in the background. The whole ridge to the left is the BMT.
Slade and Cole make it to the top of the Hangover. The distant ridge is the Appalachian Trail between Fontana (left) and Cheoah (right).
While Slade and Cole stay on Four Mile Ridge to the Bob, I pull into Airjet Camp which is right next to the Hangover overlook. It's a good camp with water.
On the morning of Day 11 I survey a wet rainy camp on the Hangover. My plan is to slowly pack up and head over to the high gap at Naked Ground.
NAKED GROUND CAMP: I set up all alone at Naked Ground but it soon fills up with friendly fellow backpackers and one who I know.
THAMSON AND JOEL: I hope I have their names spelled right. These two experienced backpackers pull in and set up camp with me and several others. Isn't April backpacking great!? Except when there are tornadoes.
Another great backpacker comes into camp at sets up his tarp and he is Bryan DeLay, friend to Will Skelton and Johnny Molloy, both famous backpackers in their own right.
SURPRISE VISIT: Old backpacking buddy Nashville Randy shows up to Naked Ground after humping the Nutbuster trail from Slickrock Creek. We end up spending a couple days hiking together. He's out pulling a ten day trip.
Here are some of the campers posing for a night shot at Naked Ground. Randy is on the left and Eleanor and Miss Scarlett on the two women on the right.
Bryan DeLay preparing a late evening meal at Naked Ground.
On Day 12 I get up and start saying goodbye to all my fellow campers. Here are Eleanor and Miss Scarlett preparing to head out.
Bryan and Randy greet a new day and a good day for some backpacking.
Here's a fotog of Bryan's MSR water filter in gravity mode.
Me and Bryan and Randy leave Naked Ground and climb up to Bob's Wall and take a break and talk to some other backpackers. This may be my favorite shot of the whole trip.
Bryan and Randy hiking the Wall.
Randy and I decide to stay on top of Gorak Hill at 5,300 feet while Bryan bails off towards Cherry Log Gap to stay at Snow Camp.
Then again, this may be my favorite shot. Here is Randy on the upper part of the North Fork Citico trail where the creek is the trail. This is the part I recently cleared in three days of work and it was fun to finally walk it again.
I leave Randy at a high North Fork campsite where he will stay and then bail out on Trail 149 back to his car at Beech Gap. We say our goodbyes and I continue down the NF all the way to the bottom.
As I fall down the North Fork trail, I stumble onto this friendly black snake on the trail. We hang out together for a long while and I make a brand new friend.
Saying goodbye is never easy but I've got to keep to my schedule and pull many more creek crossings.
I get to the bottom of the North Fork and dump my load and go swimming in this pool called Johnny's Hole. It's cold but after 13 days, who cares?
I set up the tent at Camp Two at the second crossing of the North Fork trail.
On Day 14 I head down the North Fork trail and pass over a high footbridge on a long day of climbing.
FLATS MOUNTAIN SWITCHBACKS: I leave the Citico and climb to Beehouse Gap and the start of the Flats Mt trail. The first part of the trail is a steady climb on three switchbacks. Here is the first becoming the second.
INDIAN LAKE: After the three hot switchbacks, you reach Lakeview Ridge and down below to the right is Indian Boundary Lake. It's a good place to take a break after a very hot and sweaty climb. But the worse is yet to come! The Three Terrible Pitches!
After the three pitches you descend slightly and reach a series of hollows and I set up camp in one of them that has water. I call it Flathead Camp.
Day 15 becomes a very long day of backpacking to get off the high ground in preparation for some terrible storms heading thru the Southeast. Here I am on top of the highest Flats Mt bald and getting ready to bail off the mountain and connect to the Hemlock Creek trail. This picture was taken in very high winds and on a Tuesday before the bad Wednesday storms and tornadoes.
This is a very rare sight as no one will every backpack this trail, and it's of the Hemlock Creek trail near the top. Recently cleared, it's much better than the last time I hiked it, and I'm going down it this time and not up.
This shows the Hemlock Creek trail after some trailwork by the Crosscut Mountain Boys. Thanks.
My route took me from the middle of the Flats Mt trail and up and over it to the Hemlock Creek trail and then a two mile North River roadwalk and then a 2.5 mile Tellico River hitchhike and finally a campsite where I spent my first night of the trip, at the Black Cave Camps.
AN OLD INDIAN TRICK: Put mullein leaves in your boots! It helps.
The morning of Day 16 finds me packing up the gear at the Black Cave Camps and moving upstream on Bald River to a more protected spot to prepare for the terrible storms about to arrive.
THE CALM BEFORE THE STORM: Here I am on Wednesday, the day of the TN storms and tornadoes. I am heading upstream on my way to Rock Ledge Camp.
ROCK LEDGE CAMP: It's a good place to hole up and hunker during a storm as it's high above the river and next to a rock face.
Here's the rock ledge of Rock Ledge Camp. It's nice to have when the big trees start falling and the face will block their complete falling. I spend the day and night of the storm here listening to the tumult and decide to cut my trip short by one day to get back to Little Mitten and the doublewide.
Even though I was a day early on my evac, I decided I could hitchhike out and just use my thumb and my feet to get closer to home after the storm. Gotta check in with the home crew.
I leave the wilderness and pass by the mighty Bald River Falls.
I hitch the Tellico River road and get dropped off by the Ranger Station and get a call out to Mitten who picks me up by the river.
Day 17 ends the trip as I wait here by the Tellico River for Little Mitten to pick me up. When I get back I find all hell has broken lose.
