Trail Section: Iron Mtn. Gap - Indian Grave Gap
Distance: 11.2 miles
The morning temperatures are in the high 50s to low 60s...ideal for hiking. Starting at Iron Mtn. going south on the trail. The trail is ideal; wide smooth with a gentle incline. It stays that way pretty much until Low Gap. At this point it begins getting progressively rockier and steeper. From Low Gap, we climb approximately 1300 ft. to the top of Unaka Mtn. (Unaka means 'white' in the Cherokee language). Near the top we come across a large stand of Red Spruce. On this hike we go through several areas where different vegetation is prominent: mature spruce at summit; young evergreens just below summit; below that, other green tunnel vegetation; large meadows where a farm had once been; and finally near the bottom, a burned area where the trees have not yet reestablished.
I had three creature encounters today (no pictures). First, a fawn jumps in front of my vehicle. The next encounter, I'm already on the trail and a deer in the brush right next to me spooks and runs. To say that I was startled is an understatement! Lastly, a deer approximately 50 ft. from me gets spooked.
Today was a moderately hard day but very enjoyable.
A unique tree among a stand of red spruce on Unaka Mtn.
Young evergreens
The green tunnel
A meadow
Trail Section: Carvers Gap - Hughes Gap
Distance: 5.3 miles
This hike takes us over Roan Mtn. Here there is a rhododendron garden that is supposed to be spectacular in June. Unfortunately it is August, so we did not visit the garden.
The morning is chilly and very foggy and very wet (water streams were flowing down the middle of the trail in numerous places). It was cool in more ways than one.
Near the top of Roan Mtn. we visit Roan High Knob Shelter. This is the highest shelter on the AT. The shelter was built in 1933 by the CCC (an organization that was formed by Franklin Roosevelt to put people back to work during the great depression) to serve as the fire warden’s cabin.
The trail today was both some of the worst we have been on; and for at least a mile, it was the absolute best trail we have hiked. The worst section was a very steep decent with large loose, slippery rocks. The best was a gentle sloping wide trail consisting of mulched vegetation that was compressed and soft. This was easy on the feet and legs.
The only critters seen today, with no pictures, were two woodchucks.
Roan High Knob Shelter
Can you see the trail??
The Trail in fog
Date: 8/27/10
Trail Section: Hughes Gap - Iron Mtn. GapDistance: 9.2 miles
Today we relocate from Hot Springs, NC to Elizabethton, TN.
We start the day with a nice two mile 900 ft climb with the remainder of the day downhill except for three or four, 100 to 200 foot bumps in the trail. The forest that we were hiking through was pretty, but not pictorial. Along the way, we hike through an old apple orchard. Lots of apples; but I could not get any to fall for me (darn it). When we get back to Hughes Gap, we have a late lunch. Just as we are getting ready to leave I find a chestnut. Richard looks around and finds another. We had lunch under a large chestnut tree. In our vehicles headed down the hill, we see more chestnuts in the road. Now if we only had an open fire, we could have roasted chestnuts. We both were under the impression that chestnut trees were nearing extinction.
Of note on this hike, we meet a fellow hiker from the Asheville NC area, our age, who had served on the USS Oriskney in the sixties. He was on board when a fire occurred that killed 44 crew members. Ironically, as I was typing up this blog, I had the television on and the story of the sinking of the Oriskney as it was making a man-made reef off the coast of Florida was showing. During the program, the story of the fire is televised.
Sorry no pictures today.
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