[at-l] trip report (long)

[hopefl@juno.com]

Hello all, I wish I was still hiking but at least I can still play mental
hooky thinking about the next trip! I spent last week hiking from Devil
Fork Gap to US19E near Elk Park, NC. That section is beautiful! The color
really had not started but it was still beautiful.

Saturday the 20th, was a short hiking day. I had to drive about 4 hours
to get to my buddy Plodder's house. His wife shuttled us to Devil Fork
Gap and we got on the Trail about 1100. We spent that night at the
Hogback Ridge Shelter. The spring there was flowing pretty well and we
cross a few small creeks on the way. All of east TN is under a fire watch
and the governor has put a band on any outside fires until we get some
rain.

Sunday, Plodder and I hiked down to Sam's Gap where he had to leave me.
Poor man, he had to go back to work on Monday morning. I, on the other
hand, did cart wheels all the way up Bald Mt because I'd still be hiking
on Monday! 

By the time I was within half a mile of the top of Bald Mt, I had been
out of water for some time. The day was unseasonably warm and I wasn't
looking forward to another 1.5 miles of dry trail. My good fortune was to
come across a small trick that was right on the side of the Trail, just
before I reached the tree line. I was a little concerned that I would
clog my PUR Scout in the dribble of a spring, it tends to clog easily.
Well, I got to studying on the situation and I came up with an idea that
worked great so I thought I'd share it with the rest of the crew. I dug
out a small hole that the water could flow into. It was just deep enough
for the silt filter to be submerged. Next, I put two small flat stones
into a plastic sandwich bag that had been used for my gorp. I "lined" the
dugout with the plastic bag and within minutes all the silt had flowed
away and clear water filled the shallow hole. I pump some of the
sweetest, coolest water I've ever drunk and never had any clogging of my
filter. I have added a sandwich bag to my "filter kit" as standard gear.

On top of Bald Mt, things were a little depressing. Some thoughtless
folks had been there partying and trash was all over the place. Worst of
all, they did their business without digging any cat holes. What a
stench. I didn't tarry long there because a storm looked to be blowing
in. I headed on the to next bald and there I saw some mist nets used to
capture birds that are being tagged and released for a study. I also saw
the last three blue berries of the summer. I looked for more but only saw
the three. I offered to share with the biologist who was working the nets
but he declined. He said he had been eating berries all summer. I didn't
try to convince him to partake. While we were talking, we were joined by
a thru hiker from Germany. The thru hiker was doing a flip flop because
of an injury earlier in the year. From the dust cloud he was raising, it
was easy to see he was now in top shape and able to do long days. He and
I shared the Bald Mt shelter together Sunday night. I packed in extra
water from the trickle but found the spring at the shelter to be in good
shape.

Monday, we awoke to rain. Welcome rain! It would have been nice to have
better views as I hiked down into Spivy Gap but considering the dryness
the rain was pretty good looking it's own self. I didn't see another soul
all day on the Trail. After the thru hiker left, that is. I was amazed
that even with the rain coming down steady, the runoffs never had any
water in then. The ground was so dry that every drop was being soaked
right up. About 5pm I got to the No Business Knob Shelter and changed
into dry camp clothes. In about an hour a father, mother and their son
came into camp. They are thru hiking as a family. We had a very pleasant
evening.

Tuesday, I hiked down to the new Nolichucky Hostel. On the way, I came
across the first of two yellow jacket nest I saw on my trip. Someone was
thoughtful enough to leave a note on the Trail warning of the nest so I
was able to pass without stirring them up any. I have to give two thumbs
up for the Nolichucky Hostel! It is in it's first season of operation and
from all reports seems to be a great place to stop. It is right on the
AT, at the highway bridge that cross the Nolichuchy River. Uncle Johnny,
is a former thru hiker so he is well aware of hiker needs. I picked up my
mail drop I had sent there, bought some snacks and such and reluctantly
headed on up the Trail. While there, I met the lead south bounder. I
stayed the night at Curly Maple Shelter because all there reliable
springs seem to be near shelters.

Wednesday I hiked over Unaka Mt to stay at the Cherry Gap Shelter. The
day was near perfect weather for hiking. That night was the only really
cool night I had on the trip. At the Cherry Gap shelter I met another
south bounder. He had many wonderful stories of the Trail and I, being a
hill billy, just like to talk. So, we were still up at about midnight. He
warned me of the second yellow jacket's nest that was just north of
Greasy Creek Gap. 

Thursday, I met up with a couple at Greasy Creek Gap and told them of the
bee nest. None of us got stung. I hope no one stirs that nest up because
it looked to be hugh! We hiked on to the Clyde Smith Shelter and got
there about 2:30 or 3pm. Again the spring was running slow but at least
there was water. We ate and decided it was just too early to stop for the
day so we headed on for Roan Mt. I was glad not to stay at Clyde Smith.
Someone had gone to a lot of trouble to draw a design in the center of
the shelter floor. It resembled a compass rose but I didn't recognize the
usual letters for north, south, east and west. Also, a candle had been
burned right in the middle of the design. Frankly, it gave me the willies
and I'm not a skittish person. I don't hear bears (or red necks) in the
night. Sorry, Patty. Anyway, I didn't like the looks of things so I was
just as happy to move on. 

The hike to Hughes Gap was fairly easy because the Eastman Hiking Club
had put in some nice relocations that made for smooth walking. Thank's
y'all. Now, the hike out of Hughes Gap got my attention. By the time I
got to the top of Beartown Mt. it was dark and the wind was up. I had
stopped near the top to put on warmer clothes but by the time I got to
the summit it was time to put up the tent. I found a nice spot just big
enough for my tent that was maybe a half mile from Ash Gap. The night was
inspiring! I hated to go to sleep because the stars where out in force
and the air was so clear and cool. 

Friday morning I woke up to a light fog. I hiked on to Ash Gap and had to
walk down the mountain several hundred yard to the spring. My little
plastic bag came in handy because I had to dig another water hole. On
returning from the spring, I met the lady of the couple I met on
Thursday. We waited for the fella for awhile but he was in on hurry so we
decided to head on up to the shelter on top of Roan Mt. It is good that
we carried our water because the top of the mt. was dry. We cooked a
lunch and rested for a long while before heading on down to Carter Gap
and from there on to the Overmountain shelter. Overmountain Shelter is in
the most idealistic spot I have seen so far for a shelter! When I
arrived, I dropped my pack and just sit on the table and looked til I
thought my eyes would pop! I can hardly wait to go back there for another
visit. 

Saturday I was in no hurry to end my hike but about 10am I finally got
going in ernest but I had to tarry up on Little Hump and (big) Hump
Mountains. Even with the unseasonal haze, the views were amazing. I
played with my map and compass identifying different place and just
generally enjoying the day. By and by, I knew I had to move on. I got to
the Apple House Shelter about 4:30. The only water there was from a small
creek that was about dried up. I used my little plastic bag once again to
pump two bottles of water for the couple I had left at the Overmountain
Shelter. They didn't have a pump but filled their water bags from the
pipe springs. I was concerned that they wouldn't be able to get water
that wasn't full of silt and trash. Very reluctantly, I moved on about
5:30. I had hoped to say goodbye one more time because they were very
pleasant hiking company but they were still up the Trail. I walked on
with just a little sadness that the trip was over. Just as I was almost
at US19E my spirits were lifted to see Plodder hiking in to meet me. He
shuttle me back to my car and I headed home, reliving my wonderful trip
as I drove to Harrison.
Hopeful

___________________________________________________________________
You don't need to buy Internet access to use free Internet e-mail.
Get completely free e-mail from Juno at http://www.juno.com
Or call Juno at (800) 654-JUNO [654-5866]
* From the Appalachian Trail Mailing List |  http://www.backcountry.net  *

==============================================================================