[at-l] Foothills Trail

[janl2 at mindspring.com (Jan Leitschuh)]

George,
Let me know what you come up with.

The FT is one of my favorite short trails, in a really cool part of 
the Pisgah.
I might join/hike near you guys, as my boyfriend is a 
"hiker-in-training, as he calls himself. I have the same objectives - 
enjoyment and sucking it all in.

It would be cooler and nicer if you did the section ABOVE the Blue 
Ridge Parkway - starting from the Davidson river end is nice in fall, 
but pretty "long-green tunnel." You're also climbing in elevation from 
the river up to 6K from that end.
If you start above the BR Parkway, you'll miss most or all of the long 
hard pull up Pilot mountain.

There are several 6K-ers you can knock out in the wonderful, basically 
treeless, vista-heavy, blueberry-bush-laden area before entering the 
Shining Rock Wilderness. I'm blanking on the Park Service parking lot 
area before this - Black Balsam, just off the parkway? That might be a 
good place to start.

You'll need a shuttle at the other end, the Boy Scout camp area. I'm 
blanking on that name too.
The outfitter in Etowah shuttles, or you may have enough cars to do 
your own.

Take a map and a compass through the Shining Rock Wilderness area, as 
its basically unblazed and the trails can be confusing.
If you have time, take the side trail up Cold Mountain, another 6Ker. 
There's a good spring up there.

Here's what one site says about the Shining Rock Wilderness, which the 
Art passes through:
" Here in this series of high ridges on the north slopes of Pisgah 
Ridge, you'll find extremely steep and rugged terrain ranging in 
elevation from 3,200 feet on the banks of the West Fork of Pigeon 
River, a major tributary of the Tennessee River, to 6,030 feet on Cold 
Mountain. Streams abound, cutting narrow passages through the 
mountains on their way to either the East or West Forks of the Pigeon 
River. Loggers cut down the forest between 1906 and 1926 and fires 
raged through the area in 1925 and 1942. These two factors account for 
Shining Rock's grassy "balds" and unique vegetation.

Almost all the trails in the area rate as difficult, and they can be 
hard to follow. Nevertheless, this Wilderness is one of the most 
trampled in the state. No campfires are permitted, and group size is 
limited to 10."

While it won't be full fall color in September, it will be a whole lot 
more "fall" up there than in Charleston, which won't see color and 
cool temps until November.

Seriously, keep me posted.
Shoester,
the recently-unwalked backpacker,
in need of brisk temps and a hill wander

PS Here's a webcam or two ro whet your wanderlust:
http://webcam.srs.fs.fed.us/
http://www.highcountrywebcams.com/webcameras_ShiningRock.htm

> Message: 10
> Date: Sat, 25 Jun 2005 12:08:32 -0400
> From: "George (Tin Man) Andrews" <tinman@antigravitygear.com>
> Subject: [at-l] Foothills Trail question
> To: <at-l@backcountry.net>
> Message-ID: <000a01c579a0$246b0990$6401a8c0@AGGMain>
> Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed; charset="iso-8859-1";
> 	reply-type=original
> 
> I am conspiring to 3-day-weekend hike part of the Foothills Trail in 
> September.  I will be going with a number of students - maybe 8 total - from 
> the Navel base at Charleston.  The experience level of the hikers will vary 
> from zero and up.  Anyone familiar with the FT and could suggest a moderate 
> or less 10 to 12 mile section?  I would prefer a section that would be a 
> good entry level experience for the first timers.  The object is to have 
> fun, teach the right way to backpack, and maybe inspire a lifetime joy of 
> hiking in these young pups.  Any help appreciated.
> Thanks,
> Tin Man


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