Sugarland Mountain Trail with AT from Newfound Gap

Date: 3/9/13
Distance: 16.5 mi

This hike was initially going to be a 12.3 mile mostly downhill hike on the Sugarland Mountain trail.  However bad weather during the week closed the Clingmans Dome Road, so the hike leader added on the section of the AT from Newfound Gap to the Sugarlands trailhead. I hiked it with 7 other hearty souls in the GSHAG meetup group.

We quickly learned that this hike was going to be a challenge.  8" of snow was on the trail with drifts over 2' deep.  It wasn't the kind of snow that you walk on top of.  Every step sank in 5 or 6".  Fortunately there had been one or two hikers ahead of us so we had some footprints to walk in.  However it was still very tiring.  The climb up to the Sugarland Mountain trailhead had an elevation gain of > 900ft.  The trail was beautiful with the snow cover and the views were amazing.  We started about 8:50, but didn't reach the Mt Collins shelter till nearly noon.

The sun was shining bright and the high was in the 50's, so we weren't cold even with the snow.

After lunch the trail was supposed to be mostly down hill, but there were still a number of up hill sections that gave the illusion that we were still going up more than down.  A few trees on the ground added to the excitement.

The views along the Sugarland Mountain trail were spectacular.  There were lots of good views of the Chimney tops, Mount Leconte, Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge.
  
At one point, you could look back and see the Clingmons Dome tower.  Look close it is hiding in the branches in the picture below.
We were still walking in a fair amount of snow until about 5 miles from the finish, so we didn't pick up speed until that last few miles of the trail.

This Hike was very challenging, but mostly due to the snow.  I think the snow added 1-2 hours to the Adventure.   We finished about 6:00.  By the time, we shuttled the cars, I didn't get home until 8:30.  It was a long day with lots of new experiences, challenges and adventures.  Can't beat that.

Spence Field-Russell Field-Rocky Top

Date:  2/23/13

Distance: 15.2 mi

Today I hiked with the GSHAG group up to Rocky Top.  We started from the back of the Cades Cove Picnic area.  We climbed up the Anthony Creek Trail (3.5mi) to the Bote Mountain trail.  It was quite a climb (1800') to Bote Mountain and then another hard climb to the AT on Bote Mountain.  At the AT, we turned left and went out to Rocky Top (~1mi) which was also a hard climb.  There were a few nice views as the clouds moved through.  I could imagine that on a clear day, it would be very spectacular.  Regardless of the clouds it was very rewarding to reach the summit and the views we did see were beautiful.  The total elevation gain was approximately 3600'.  The open fields on the top of the mountain were interesting to see.

We returned on the AT to the Bote Mountain trail intersection and then continued on the AT to Russell Field.  We then returned to the Cades Cove picnic area via the Russell Field trail.  The final 1.6 miles was back on the Anthony creek trail.

We started at approximately 8:30 and didn't get back until 4:30.  However I spent about 30 minutes at the summit, an additional 30 minutes at Russell Field, and stopped for 10-15 minute breaks at the Anthony Creek/Bote Mtn intersection and 10-15 minutes at the Anthony/AT intersection.

Crib Gap - Turkeypen Ridge - School House Gap - Chestnut Top

Date: 2/16/13
Distance: 10.6

Today's hike was a shuttle hike that I did with the Meetup group.  We left cars at the Y and drove to the Cades Cove Picnic area.  The trail starts in the very back of the picnic area.  The 1st 0.3 miles was on Anthony Creek Trail.  The Crib Gap trail follows very close to the road to Cades Cove.  At 0.5 miles or so, the trail crosses the road.  From that point, the trail moves away from the road and all of the noises associated with the road move away as well.  The day we hiked there was light snow, so the trail was very scenic.

After 1.6 miles, the trail intersects with Turkeypen Ridge Trail.  We turned to the right to pick up the 0.2 miles and then turned around and hiked back to the intersection and continued on Turkeypen.  There was enough climbing for me to strip down to a couple of long sleeve shirts even though the temperature was about 32.

We stopped for lunch at the School House Gab trail intersection.  After lunch, we headed up the old road to Chestnut Top Trail.  I continued past the Chestnut Top trail to get the 0.2 miles where the Scott mountain trail intersects.

Final leg was the Chestnut top trail.  I hiked it earlier in the winter, so there is already an entry in the blog about it.

Bearwaller Gap Trail - Carthage TN

Date: 2/9/13
Distance:  ~13 miles

I spent some time in the Nashville area this weekend.  Since I had some time, I drove over to Carthage and hiked the Bearwaller Gap Trail.  This trail skirts the edge of Cordell Hull Lake.  The distance is marked as 10km at the trailhead.  Along the way, I took a short side trail up to an overlook, thus the 13 mile estimate.  I started from the Defeated Creek Recreation Area at about 11:30.

About 1 mile into the hike, a sign indicated that an overlook trail was to the right.  It was a steep climb up to the ridge and the blazes didn't seem to make much sense.  The view was nice with the leaves off of the trees. I expect that in the summer there isn't much to see.  There is a park bench at the overlook, so I sat and ate my lunch before making a phone call to home.  I had cell service throughout the hike, so it seems relatively safe to hike alone.

After hiking back down the Overlook trail, I continued on the Bearwaller trail.  It hugged the shoreline of the lake for the majority of the hike.  There are about 4 rather steep climbs as the bluffs on the edge of the lake rise and fall.  I saw on one website that  the gain while climbing was 1200 ft one way.  I felt it and was pretty tired at the end.

The trail ends at another parking lot of another overlook.  There is a restroom and plenty of parking.  The hike would be a good shuttle hike.  I didn't have a shuttle, so I climbed up to the overlook, just to turn around after a look at the Dam.  There were many places on the trail with nice views of the lake and the surrounding hills.  I don't imagine that there are many views when the leaves are out.

There were about 6 or 7 dry stream beds that I crossed.  They looked like they carried lots of water at times, so I don't think I'd try this one if there is rain in the forecast.

At about the middle of the hike, there was a very nice backcountry camp site.  It had an outhouse, a picnic table with a trashcan and lots of space.

The day was bright and sunny.  An excellent day in the woods.

Approximate Times:
11:30 Started
12:00 Finished lunch at the overlook and back on trail
1:20 Campsite
2:20 Half Done
4:35 Back at Car

Ace Gap Trail

Date: 1/5/12
Distance: ~12mi  (5.6 mi out and back on Ace Gap + a short walk to a cave near the trailhead)

The Ace Gap trail is a trail along the park boundary near Townsend.  On this day, I hiked with the GSHAG Meetup group.  We met at a the Back Porch in Townsend and carpooled to the trail head.  The road to the trail ends with a small gravel parking area.  There is probably room for 15-20 cars at the most.

The trail is smooth and well maintained.  It has several up and down sections with only a few hundred feet of total elevation change.  We reached the end of Ace Gap after about 2 hours of hiking.  There were a few nice views along the way and a few small stream crossings.  We did pass several very nice houses which were very close to the trail, yet outside of the park.  Being so close to the edge of the park, I had cell phone service for nearly all of the hike.

At the end of the trail, there are a couple trails from Blackberry farms that meet up at the trail intersection.  There were no marking, but there were purple blazes showing the trails.  The leader of our group knew that the trails were associated with Blackberry Farms.

In the trail head parking lot, a small trail leads off to the left of Ace Gap to a deep sinkhole and a cave.  It was worth the walk down to look at it.  A guy in our party indicated that the cave has a drop in it of over 400'.

Meigs Mountain - Lumber Ridge

Date: 12/29/2012
Distance: 10.5

Hiked this trail with the Greater Smoky Hiking and Adventure Group (Meetup).  The trail was a shuttle hike.  We met at Tremont and took two cars to Elkmont (9 hikers).  The ride was about 30 minutes and we started on the trail at 9:40.

The day started rainy and cold (~35F).  The rain wasn't hard, but enough that I used a poncho for the 1st mile or so of the hike.  Later the rain changed to snow and thus made a very beautiful and scenic hike.  When we stopped for lunch at the 4.5 miles in (I think this is where Meigs turns into Lumber) the snow was really falling and we got cold.  We ate quickly and got back on the trail before we got too cold.

The trail itself had several up and down sections that weren't too difficult, but did warm me up to the point that I was wearing only a long sleeve shirt and a nylon jacket.  The final couple of miles were downhill with an elevation drop of 1300 feet.  There were about 10 small stream crossings that we easily hop rocked across.  I only fell on one of them, but fortunately I didn't land in the water.

We got back to Tremont about 2:30.

Frozen Head - Panther Creek - N Old Mac - Spicewood

Date:  12/22/12
Distance: ~9mi

The day started cold (~28), but the sun was shining and the forecast was calling for temperatures to reach the mid-40's.  I had seen that the Meetup group (Greater Smokey hiking and Adventure) were going to hike in Frozen head today, so I went that way as well.

One of the trails which I had not hiked was the Panther Branch Trail, so I started with that one.  I parked at the Panther Branch Trail-head and set out about 10:15.  The 1st waterfall on the trail wasn't huge but it was quite nice with a 15-20' drop.  It had a nice overlook area from above and steps down to the base of the falls for viewing from below.

The 2nd waterfall (Emory Gap) was larger and very scenic.  It was set back from the trail with lots of boulders in the creek leading up to the falls.  The Meetup group was at this falls (>30 people), so I mostly watched from a distance.   The total distance to this falls was about 1.5 miles from the car.  It would be a nice hike for the family.  The elevation did change enough that I had to remove my 2 fleece jackets before I got there.

I circled back to the Panther Branch Trail which goes up to North Old Mac trail.  It was a steady climb with more than a few small creek crossings.  Since it rained earlier in the week, a few were a bit dangerous.  One of them looked slippery enough that I went 20 or 30 ' below the trail to cross at a safer location.  There was a bit of snow on the north side of the mountain, but the trail was clear.

I had lunch at the Tub Spring Camp area.  Views were great and enough sun was shining in to keep it from feeling too cold.  I did remove my hiking shirts which were a little damp and wore the 2 fleeces.  By the time I finished lunch, one of the shirts had dried and I put it back on along with 1 fleece.  I was cold for a while on the way down.  I opted not to hike up to the firetower, as the Meetup group went by and I figured it was crowded at the tower.

I opted for the Spicewood trail  on the way down to get a bit more distance.  I had also remembered that the S. Mac trail was a little rocky at the top.  However, I had forgotten about all of the stream crossings on the Spicewood trail.  Several times it was a little slippery, but I managed to stay on my feet and only splashed myself once while flailing around with my hiking stick.

The walk back up to the car seemed longer than it looked on the map.  I was hoping someone would come by and give me a ride up to the car, but alas no cars came by during the walk up the road.

Start: 10:15
Top of Mountain: 12:15
Start off of the Top: 12:45
Back to car: 2:15