[at-l] Opinions on next section (NC/TN)

[trippclark at mindspring.com (Tripp Clark)]

Hi all,

I am hoping to hike my next piece of the trail this weekend unless something pops up to de-rail my plans.  So far we have covered from Springer to Carver's Gap, NC/TN, with our next major milestone being Damascus, 87 miles north.  We've been trying to take the sections in order, South to North, but the road crossings and our available time are not matching up well with the next few sections, so it looks like we'll have to mix things up a bit.  On this trip, it looks like the earliest we'll be able to get on the trail is mid afternoon on Friday, and we'll have to head back by lunch time on Sunday.  With our hiking pace, that looks like about a 25 mile weekend -- 15 miles Saturday and 5 miles or so each on Friday and Sunday.  Our best options look to be either (1) between US 19E and Dennis Cove Road (this, with the relocation should be 25.1 miles) or (2) between US 321 and Low Gap (26.7 miles).  I hate to skip the 13.7 mile section between Carver's Gap and US 19E, because I hear that it is a beautiful section and that Overmountain Shelter is wonderful, but I just can't do 38.8 miles in what basically is under 2 full days of hiking (38.8 being from Carvers Gap straight thru to Dennis Cove).  So, I guess I'll skip this short piece and pick it up later.  SO. . . I'd appreciate any feedback on these two sections that I am considering (1 & 2 above).  Does one stand out as significantly better than the other?  Any significant "WOW" spots in either section? Do any of these spots present unusual "risks" for leaving a vehicle for the weekend?  Thanks in advance for the feedback!

Tripp