Training Log Archive: dlevine

A friend offered Theresa and me the chance to take his kayak down the Allegheny River from the Allegany Transfer Station to Rte. 219 while he and his wife paddle-boarded down. There was a good headwind at times and we had to deal with both slow paddlers and low water, but we made it.

Appalachian Trail Section Hike

Wesser Bald Shelter to Nantahala Outdoor Center

It's our shortest day with beer, pizza, and showers waiting for us at the end of the trip. It was supposed to be a hot day, but we figured that we would be done early and didn't take any extra water. The first part of the descent was trickier than we expected and then we got to the "endlessly long" section - as many other hikers had described it to us. Unusually for us, we were able to appreciate the beauty on the last day (perhaps because we were getting out a day early thanks to two long days in the last 48 hours). The only problem was that we ran low on water and actually finished with about two ounces left. Still, NOC was a very welcome site and we were even able to visit with our shuttle driver before getting in the car and heading north.

Summary: The south was beautiful and we really enjoyed the terrain and the beauty. It was odd to be among the faster and more fit hikers on the trail - not a common occurrence for us. We had a great time for most of the trip and will happily go back next spring to tackle the Smokies.

Appalachian Trail Section Hike

Campsite just north of Winding Stair Gap to Wesser Bald Shelter

The day was going to be hot so we wanted to get at least one climb in before the sun got high. As we were camped at the bottom of a hill, this was easy to arrange. We headed out and up the trail towards Siler Bald Shelter. We went past the turnoff and a good bit further up the hill when we saw the turnoff to the shelter. Hunh? Two different accesses quite a distance apart? And there was a trail up the (meadow and) hill that seemed to be the right direction, but had no blazes. We were very confused, but found that if we crossed the meadow and headed down, we had a trail with the correct blazes. It was getting hot and we were glad that we had put that climb behind us. On the way down to Wayah Gap we passed a woman heading the other way who claimed to be heading north from Siler Bald. We told her that we were doing so, but she told us that we were confused. She had left the shelter this morning and had made good time and stopped for water at the spring "just ahead" and so she couldn't be wrong. This is one of those situations where you can't win so we headed off, finding her spring right where we expected it. (We never did see her again.) The climb up to Wine Spring Road was the longest, hottest, and most depressing of our trip. We were making good time, but were feeling the sun and it seemed to take forever. Knowing that we still had another down and up (minimum) before the lookout tower on Wayah Bald played with our minds as well. We trudged down to the valley before the climb to Wayah bald feeling out of it. The last small climb to the Bald wasn't so bad and was even paved (ADA access) for the last 150 yards. When we got there, there was a very friendly group of hikers having lunch and we decided that that was a great idea. We now realized that Wayah Bald Shelter was a silly destination - being only 0.9 miles away. Like the group that had started only 2.5 miles back, we would head to Cold Spring Shelter, another 5.7 miles away. So, down we went ahead of them, but planning to enjoy their company that evening. It's a 700 foot climb (over 1.2 miles) into the shelter and we felt it. When we got there, we found that this shelter was closer to the trail (within arm reach) than any we'd ever seen. It was also dark with holes in the floor. The water source was 15 feet in front of the shelter and very nice (piped spring). Theresa read various recent entries from the log: "The bear got our food"; "The bear got everybody's food last night"; "It's nice to have water nearby, but that brings bugs - which really annoyed me until I woke to find the mice making a nest in my hair (and the bear got my food)"; "Wasn't worried about the bear getting my food as I am headed out tomorrow, but I came face-to-face with him while using the latrine". Okay, we're out of here. A small climb and then a long descent to Tellico Gap. No good camping anywhere! At Tellico Gap, we debated pitching a tent in the parking lot, but decided on a "cold dinner" of more bars and gels before heading up for what we thought would be our last climb of the day - up Wesser Bald. One and a half miles up, we came to a view and saw the tower (mentioned as on the trail 60 m to the right). We went up to the tower and saw that a couple of "good old boys" were camping at the base. They were up on the tower - and obviously drunk - so we decided to press on the last 0.8 miles to the shelter. They did say that they didn't know anything about the shelter down our way, but they didn't seem reliable so we pressed on. We saw two more groups of young, with-it-looking folks climbing the mountain for a sunset view. None of them knew about the shelter either. After we had gone almost half a mile, I noticed that we hadn't seen a white blaze in a long time - like since the tower. OH SH*T! Back UP the hill, past the tower, to the view where the blazes clearly headed down the other side of the hill. Surprisingly, we felt okay - tired, but okay - as we headed down to the shelter. Thankfully, it was a very nice shelter with one friendly hiker already there. Since we didn't have to cook dinner and weren't worried about water, we were able to make camp quickly after our longest day on the trail.

Appalachian Trail Section Hike

Carter Gap Shelter to Campsite just north of Winding Stair Gap

Left on time, but near the back of the pack. Bunny was ahead of us and we never did see her again. Tripper was thankfully behind us and there was no danger of seeing her again either. Vegas Bob had left very early. We passed everybody else somewhere climbing Albert Mountain. Albert Mountain is not particularly high, but the last quarter mile is the steepest ascent thus far on the trail. We met Vegas Bob at the summit; he was talking about changing his mind and possibly heading to town. In any event, he was "off to the shelter" that he said he would be at by noon. We enjoyed the views and headed down after him. He must have made the shelter by noon because we were there by 12:05 and he was settled in. The shelter was dark and uninviting so we decided to have lunch and then head to a random campsite further up. Since the next day was supposed to be 14.8 miles with climb, it seemed like a great idea. M&M passed us while we ate, but we headed out to Wallace Gap and then over the hill. As we descended to Winding Stair Gap, we passed M&M talking to two southbound section hikers. At the gap, we stopped for water and hung out with him as he waited for a shuttle to town. While he waited, two of the through hikers from the night before came by and joined the shuttle crew. We bade them farewell and then headed 0.3 miles further to a beautiful campsite by a stream - our first "stealth" site of the trip. It felt great to have knocked three miles off the next day's trip AND to have made camp before 4 at a beautiful site.

Appalachian Trail Section Hike

Muskrat Creek Shelter to Carter Gap Shelter(s)

This should have been a relatively easy day with a single mountain near the middle. We passed on woman on the way up Standing Indian Mountain; she had apparently done almost six miles when we saw her (at the eleven mile mark) but she seemed lost. She was headed in the right direction, but she still seemed lost. We went the last 1.5 miles to the shelter to discover three guys already there. One moved on, but the shelter was very crowded. Tripper (the lost woman) came in late, a bit wet from a late afternoon shower - and begged everyone for food and drink. John (now called M&M) and Gabby (recently christened "Bunny" by Yogi Bear) were there as were a larger group of people that we either didn't meet (tenters who arrived late) or didn't care for. Some folks were going on to Big Spring Shelter (6.8 miles) the next day; some, including us, were headed to Rock Gap Shelter (12 miles); others, including M&M and Bunny were heading for Winding Stair Gap and a shuttle in to Franklin, NC. It was crazy and everyone seemed to try to beat everyone else out of camp the next morning.

Appalachian Trail Section Hike

Dicks Creek Gap to Muskrat Creek Shelter (NC!)

Took the shuttle with John and Gabby up the the Gap. We headed out first, confident that both of them would pass us soon. After a real bed to sleep in and some food that we didn't have to prepare (including breakfast at Subway!) we motored up the hills. The trail was beautiful - one section was coated in mountain laurel blossoms; it looked as if some flower girl had gone nuts for about 1/4 mile! We made the climb to Bly Gap, taking pictures at the state line (WOW! We did an entire state this year!) and having lunch by the most photographed tree on the trail. John came by at that point, but was confident that we would pass him soon. Actually, we did as he stopped for water by a beautiful brook. We had a great night at the shelter.

Appalachian Trail Section Hike

Tray Mountain Shelter to Dicks Creek Gap

Dicks Creek Gap meant a hotel, showers, restaurant food and reprovisioning so we just set out "with a mission". Okay, we were a bit preoccupied, but it seemed like a forever downhill on a very hot day. When we got to the gap, we rested a bit and prepared for the hitch to town. We chatted a bit with Yogi Bear (though we didn't know that was his name) and tried to hitch to town. Walking some - just in case we never did get a ride - we made it about a mile (and twenty minutes) before we got an offer to ride in the back of a pickup, We accepted and were able to recover well, get a DQ Blizzard, receive and send a mail drop and have a Chinese dinner out of the rain. Met two other section hikers, John and Gabby at the Inn. It was all great, but at 4:30 in the morning some lost kid went through the motel banging on doors and looking for directions to some place I'd never heard of. Oh well.

Note to self: it does seem that no matter what the distance, any day we are heading "to town" becomes a "get there" mission rather than a day where we enjoy the hike for the hike's sake.

Appalachian Trail Section Hike

Low Gap Shelter to Tray Mountain Shelter

Three climbs today, each about the same elevation change, but the first is very gradual. We head out and enjoy any number of times where the trail contours around reentrants. Everything is a gorgeous green except for the ribbon of brown for the trail path. As usual, Theresa is ahead of me and I sometimes see her across the valley walking in the opposite direction from me. Very cool. Made a quick stop for a snack at Blue Mountain Shelter (where J2 had been the night before; we're almost keeping up with him!) and then down to Unicol Gap. Here we had our most dangerous encounter of the hike - not from animal life, but from the danger of crossing GA 75. You see, there was a big car rally in Helen, GA and the various drivers love to speed up to and through Unicol Gap. Unfortunately, the road curves at the top of the hill, so the drivers are "blind" to pedestrians - and don't seem to care about this. We meet a day hiker who is going up and over Rocky Mountain and back as his hike. He sets out at warp speed up the hill. We struggle to the summit and sit down for lunch. Then a southbounder tells us that we aren't at the summit so we move on. Alas, he was basically lying and we end up eating on a random log. As we are about to descend, the day hiker returns and tells us that he saw a bear, just this side of the construction crew working near the next gap. We saw the construction crew, but not the bear! And so we began to head up Tray Mountain. We took water from the piped spring and met two guys who were surprised that we weren't the two women they were sort of hiking with. (It turns out that we passed the women when they took a break at a picnic table in the previous gap.) The guys took off and the women came through, too. We passed the women and hiked on to Tray Gap where we met a friendly couple with the best trail magic we could have gotten at that moment - bottled water! The guys passed us without saying hello and continued up the mountain. The couple showed us pictures of a snake they had seen near the summit and told us that it was harmless, but on our way up, a guy coming down told us that he had just seen a rattlesnake and to take care. Harmless or poisonous, the snakes were gone when we summit-ed, again through rhododendra tunnels. It doesn't get much better than this. Down a half-mile to the shelter and relaxation! The guys and girls came through, but were going to push on so that they would be able to make it to Hiawassee the next day. (We were planning the same, but obviously we cover more ground.) Theresa gave one of the women a vitamin I cocktail and boy was that appreciated. We were joined by a couple that we had passed near Blue Mountain shelter and then a group of four going the other way. The latter group made a great campfire - to which we contributed foraging efforts - and we had a very pleasant, but somewhat late (for the trail) night.

Appalachian Trail Section Hike

Neel Gap to Low Gap Shelter

Theresa got some blister therapy at the outfitters store and we got a late start. Up the hill, we passed some boy scouts and then joined them for a snack. We went on and having done our "bad climb" of the day, we stopped for snack by the turnoff to Whitney Gap Shelter. Scouts came by in pairs and threes until the leaders finally came through "sweeping the trail" and telling us that they were having lunch in Testanee Gap. So, we passed them again there and proceeded up towards Poor Mountain. Along the mostly flat top, we began the hear thunder and then the rains came! On with the new pack covers, but we skipped the rain gear. We got wet - and then hailed upon! The trail became a stream of the type we were more familiar with from New England and we followed it all the way to the shelter. We were joined by several groups of wet scouts and then TOTALLY DRY leaders, They had hiked so slowly that they managed to avoid the storm. Sometimes it doesn't pay to be a "front runner". We stayed in the shelter with the leaders, but the scouts tented up the hill. At 9 p.m. the skies erupted again and we prepared for a crowded shelter, but those boys toughed it out and were chipper and bouncy the next morning. Georgia Boy Scouts are TOUGH.

Appalachian Trail Section Hike

Gooch Mountian Shelter to Neel Gap

As of 2012, there is a "bear zone" on this section of the AT. This means that, in this zone, between March 1 and June 1, it is not sufficient to use "normal" bear protection (even "bear-proof" sacks) if camping in this area. Rather, one must carry an official "bear canister". We did not have one, so camping in the bear zone was verboten. All of the other folks (except J2) were planning to camp at the southern end of the (5-mile) zone. Depending upon whether or not they were going for the boundary line, this meant either a 7- or a 9-mile day. We were going through so once again, we left early. We passed the "late folks" in Gooch Gap (about 1.5 miles out) and were on our own for the rest of the day. We stopped for lunch at Jarrad Gap (south boundary of the bear zone) and prepared for the climb of Blood Mountain (3rd highest in GA; highest GA point on AT). We stopped for a snack and water at the Woods Hole shelter and continued to climb the mountain. Near the top, the vegetation changed and we found ourselves in a tunnel of rhododendra. The tunnel is caused by the fact that nothing grows ON the trail due to foot traffic and nearby bushes that grow sideways get "pruned" UNLESS the sideways grow is at about seven feet or higher (so hikers pass beneath). The result is a very cool tunnel effect. We had timed it "right" so that the leaves were a gorgeous emerald green and the flowers were in a luscious fuchsia highlight - ABSOLUTELY BEAUTIFUL. The trail turned "New Englandy" with the treadway becoming rock as we summit-ed. We visited the cabin at the summit, climbed on some rocks, took some photos and "drank up" for the descent. Theresa hated the descent - which did seem to take forever. When we got to the outfitter store (to "check in" for the hostel), the worker looked at us and talked us into going down the hill to Blood Mountain Cabins instead of staying at the hostel. Pizza for dinner, private cabin, showers and laundry done for us. It doesn't get any better than this - except for Theresa's blisters.

Appalachian Trail Section Hike

Stover Creek Shelter to Gooch Mountain Shelter

Early morning start had us cruising both downhill and uphill and we made it to Hawk Mountain Shelter by 10 a.m. The trail here seems to be both wide and smooth. We made time like we never made it up north. Saw a trio coming out the side trail and another group (same as the day before) still breaking camp. Had a snack and headed back out ahead of the group breaking camp. Sassafras Mountain was our first "steep" up of the hike (650 feet in a mile; not really steep by New England standards, but there were switchbacks to keep the grade low). Saw a group of twelve breaking their "lunch camp" near the summit; they said that they (along with everyone else we met) were going to Gooch for the night. Sounded as if it would be crowded! The day was hot and we got more water at Justus Creek and admired the campsite that Danielle and Ryan had used (and recommended). It was tempting to stop, but Friday was already going to be a long day - heading through the "bear zone" and we didn't want to add any distance so on we went. It was only "0.9 miles" from the campsite to the shelter and I was pace counting; and counting; and counting. I had us over 50% past the shelter and was thinking that we had missed it, but we decided to press on and see what happened. A bit further on, we found the turn to the shelter. Later comparisons showed that various guidebooks put the distance from the campsite to the shelter at either 0.8, 0.9, 1.2, or 1.5 miles! We had picked up "Turtle" near the shelter and found one couple (plus well behaved dog) there when we arrived. The trio came in much later and took the upper story. J2, a through-hiker came in and joined them. The "late group" showed up and decided that with the group of 12 coming behind them, they would move on. It would also set them up for a better plan for the bear zone. So, they moved on to Gooch Gap, taking Turtle with them. [Apparently, he really is with them, but is very slow so he leaves early in the morning.]

Appalachian Trail Section Hike
Amicalola Lodge to Stover Creek Shelter

Headed out on the Approach Trail to Springer Mountain to begin the southernmost of our section hikes. Great day. Saw a group getting ready to leave Black Gap Shelter as we stopped for a break. Odd. We're over halfway done (after what we thought was a late start) and they haven't begun. Had lunch at the summit of Springer in the sun and took the obvious photos. Basically, it was all gentle downhill to the shelter - a gorgeous two-story unit that we had all to ourselves. Most other folks seemed to press on to Hawk Mountain, but we didn't want to push it the first day. (The folks who went to Hawk Mountain all started at Black Gap or Springer shelter.)

Round trip hike from Amicalola Lodge to the falls and then around the hilltop trail near the lodge. Last chance to walk without too many pounds on our backs!