HELLO CHER!
Editor’s Note: Click on the following link (and turn on
your computer’s speakers) to add music to this trip report:
Recently
my work schedule had me in the Atlanta area for two consecutive weeks. This was convenient, as I already had tickets
for a Widespread Panic concert in Alpharetta on the Saturday in between the two
jobs. I planned to spend that whole
weekend with friends down there. With
those plans made, it meant that I only had to make the long drive to Atlanta
and back once each.
My
only dilemma was that the first job, in Dalton, GA, was only scheduled for
three days. I needed something to do
from Wednesday evening through Friday.
So I chose to do a quick backpacking trip. I considered a number of options for the
trip, but ultimately settled on the Smokies. I chose the Smokies
for a couple of reasons. First, I wanted
it to be a high elevation trip, where the fall foliage would be more
advanced. Second, since the dog wasn’t
with me, it was the perfect opportunity to visit the National Park. Finally, I was much closer to the western
part of the park than if I’d been at home in Charlotte.
Gregory
Bald is one of my favorite places in the Smokies, but
I hadn’t been there in almost 10 years.
I think the hike from Forge Creek, on the edge of Cades Cove, to Gregory
Bald is one of the best trips in the entire park. This time though, I decided to approach
Gregory Bald from a different direction.
I had never visited the Twentymile area. I decided to do a loop hike from there
connecting the Wolf Ridge Trail, Gregory Bald Trail, A.T., and Twenty Mile
Creek Trail. Including the A.T. in the
trip added several miles to the route, but meant that I could take in the view
from the Shuckstack fire tower.
I
finished up my job in Dalton late on Wednesday afternoon. After working out I drove up to Cleveland, TN
and stopped at a Beef O’Bradys to eat dinner and
watch the Phillies game. The restaurant
was inexplicably closed, so I ended up driving back towards Chattanooga before
I found another one that was open. The
food and the baseball game were both disappointing. By the time the game was over I was more than ready to go find a place to camp.
I
drove up to Tellico Plains and on up the Cherhola
Skyway before turning to follow the Tellico River. My hope was to find a free campsite along the
road, but I knew there were developed campgrounds farther upstream if I didn’t
have any luck finding one. I passed Bald
River Falls and a couple of picnic areas before turning off onto a side
road. A short distance up this road I
found a small parking area and trailhead.
It wasn’t much of a campsite, but it was late and I was tired. I pitched the tent quickly and went straight
to bed.
When
I selected my campsite I hadn’t anticipated that it would be a high-traffic
area. I was surprised when the traffic
started around 5:30, with a nearly continuous procession of trucks passing by. I’m not sure if it was hunters, fishermen,
construction workers, or all of the above, but sleeping quickly became
hopeless. I guess that’s what I get for
trying to save a few bucks by dodging a formal campground.
I
got up at sunrise and broke camp. I then
drove back down along the Tellico River to check out a couple of
waterfalls. First I stopped at Baby
Falls. I’d been through this area a
couple of times before, but I’d always missed this one. Baby Falls isn’t tall, but it’s eye-catching
because it’s on a fairly significant river.
I parked on the shoulder just downstream from the falls and found a
short but steep path leading down to the base.
I took a few photos there before returning to the car and driving down
to Bald River Falls.
Bald
River Falls is one of the most impressive waterfalls in Tennessee. The water level was low on this visit, but it
was still worth seeing. I took a few
photos from the highway bridge before driving to a picnic area for
breakfast. I made instant coffee and ate
some granola cereal, and then packed up for the drive to the Smokies.
I
drove the Cherhola Skyway from there over to
Robbinsville. I’m not sure what “Cherhola” means in Cherokee, but in Spanish it translates
to “Hello Cher”. The drive was as scenic
as always, and featured some nice fall foliage up at the highest
elevations. I also made a brief stop at
the Indian Boundary campground to fill up on water. I eventually reached Robbinsville, where I
was able to check my emails and voice mails to make sure there weren’t any
pressing work concerns. From there it
was on towards Twentymile Creek in the Smokies.
HENRY PARSONS DIED
I
drove past Cheoah Dam and on up to Deals Gap. As I approached Deals Gap, “Deal” by the
Grateful Dead came on my Sirius Satellite Radio. It’s funny how often things like that happen
with that radio. From there it was
through “The Tail of the Dragon” and finally to Twentymile
Creek.
Twentymile Creek doesn’t amount
to much. There is a ranger station
there, which was closed when I arrived.
I picked up my backcountry permit, and then drove up to the trailhead,
where there is a small parking area.
There I organized my gear and loaded my pack. It was after 11:30 by the time I finally got
on the trail.
I
hiked up the Twentymile Creek Trail, an old roadbed,
for 15 minutes to the Wolf Ridge Trail junction. I headed up this trail, which started out as
another old roadbed along a small tributary.
After an hour or so I reached a side trail to campsite 95. I headed that way to check out the campsite
and to eat lunch. Campsite 95 isn’t one
of the more appealing sites in the park.
It features only a small stream, and there didn’t seem to be many flat
places to tent. On the other hand it
does appear to be lightly used. It would
make a quiet destination for a night in the park.
After
a quick lunch I returned to the trail and resumed the climb. The ascent from Twentymile
Creek to Parsons Bald isn’t steep, but it is relentless. The entire stretch of trail is wooded, and
there aren’t any views along the way.
Still it’s a pleasant, well-designed and maintained trail.
I
reached Parsons Bald for the first time in almost 15 years. I’d been disappointed at my previous visit,
as the bald is mostly overgrown. There
is no view, and after coming from the breathtaking scenery of Gregory Bald, it
was a bit of a letdown.
My
impression this time was much more positive.
I wasn’t expecting a view, so I wasn’t disappointed. Although the “bald” is now mostly wooded,
there is a small meadow there. It’s
largely covered in blueberry bushes, which were a brilliant red. The bald featured some additional fall color,
which was the best I’d seen on the hike to that point. I took my pack off and spent several minutes
taking photos before resuming my hike.
From
there it was an easy walk over to campsite 13, where I had reservations. Campsite 13, Sheep Pen Gap, is one of the
nicest in the park. It’s situated in an
open, grassy forest, and features many excellent tent sites. The place was deserted when I arrived. I set up camp quickly, and got water from a
spring located a few minutes down the Gregory Bald Trail towards Parson Branch
Road. I hung my food on the bear cable, and then headed up to Gregory Bald for
a couple of hours of sunshine.
I
arrived on the grassy bald around 5:30.
That gave me a couple of hours to enjoy the bald before sunset. I wandered through the meadows, taking photos
and enjoying the views of Cades Cove, the Joyce Kilmer / Slickrock
Wilderness, and the high peaks of the Smokies to the
east. The sun gradually sank as a nearly
full moon rose. Sunset finally came, and
I stayed on the summit until the last light began fading from the sky. Then I hiked back to camp, the dim light from
my headlamp and the shining moon providing the only source of
illumination. I hiked carefully, and
made it back to camp eventually, though I did have to wander around for a few
minutes before I stumbled upon my tent.
I
made dinner quickly and headed to bed early.
I had big plans for Friday, starting with breaking camp early so I could
experience sunrise from Gregory Bald.
I
slept reasonably well and got up shortly after 6 the next morning. It wasn’t too cold at that point, but
breaking camp in the dark was a hassle.
I was highly concerned that I’d leave something behind in the dark.
I
made it back up to Gregory Bald in time for first light. The sun eventually rose over the high peaks
of the Smokies, while fog filled the valleys of Cades
Cove and Fontana Lake. It was chilly up
there though, as there was a constant wind blowing across the summit.
After
sunrise I ate granola cereal and then hit the trail. I followed the Gregory Bald Trail east to Doe
Knob, where I picked up the Appalachian Trail.
Then I headed down the A.T. towards Fontana Lake. This part of the A.T. is a bit of a roller
coaster, with constant ups and downs along the ridge. Not long after joining the A.T. I passed a
couple of other hikers. They were the
first people I’d seen in almost 24 hours, since passing a family on the trail
not far from the parking area.
I
ended up seeing quite a few other hikers along the A.T. It’s amazing how much busier that trail is
than the less-known routes in the park.
I followed it to the Twentymile Creek Trail
junction, but continued ahead on a short side trip to the Shuckstack
Fire Tower. I left my pack at the base
of the tower, and carried lunch and my camera up to the top. The tower is badly in need of repair, and
some of the rotten steps made me nervous.
It was worth it though, as the view from the tower is one of the best in
the entire park. Most of the Smokies, Fontana Lake, and a large chunk of the Nantahala
National Forest sprawled out below me.
Eating lunch up there was awkward.
The very top didn’t offer a place to sit, so I sat on the steps just
below. I had to be very careful not to
bump anything, as it was a long way to the ground below.
The
fall foliage from my vantage was impressive.
The higher elevations above, from Gregory Bald to Thunderhead and
beyond, were approaching peak color.
There was some color farther down too, though the valleys were still
mostly green.
I
loitered for an hour before heading down and returning to the Twentymile Creek Trail.
I made a steady, and initially steep, descent on this trail to campsite
93. This site is on Twentymile
Creek, but isn’t anything special. From
there I continued downstream to Twentymile Creek
Cascades. This is an official, named
waterfall, but I didn’t find it to be very exciting. From there I headed on out to the trailhead.
I
hiked about 12 miles on Friday, covering the distance from Gregory Bald to the
trailhead in under 7 hours. The hike in was much shorter, at a little
over 7 miles, but uphill the whole way.
From
the park I drove to Kennesaw, GA to visit my friends Jimmy and Chris. The drive was interesting. Early on I found myself stuck in the ultimate
driving nightmare. I was on a winding
mountain road, behind an elderly woman driving a Cadillac. With Florida plates. And a handicap sticker. Eventually I got around her. The real oddity occurred near Elijay, GA. I was on
a major road with a 55mph speed limit. I
reached a school zone, which was heavily marked with all sorts of signs and
flashing lights. The odd thing was that
the signs stated that the speed limit was 55mph in the school zone, when the
lights were flashing. I was more than a
little puzzled as to why the signs and lights were necessary if the school zone
speed limit and the regular speed limit were the same. Also, doesn’t 55mph seem a little high for a school
zone? Maybe they actually want their
kids to get run over.
I
made it to Kennesaw without further challenges.
I met Jimmy and Chris, whom I hadn’t seen in quite some time. I also met Jimmy’s new girlfriend, Brooke. We hung out that evening and Saturday morning
before getting ready for the Widespread Panic concert. Early Saturday afternoon we headed over to a
pre-show party hosted by one of Jimmy’s friends. From there it was on to the Amphitheater in
Alpharetta. We hung out in the parking
lot and drank some beers prior to the show.
It was the typically weird parking lot scene. I shared a Sam Adams Octoberfest
with one of Jimmy’s friends, and she remarked that it tasted like Kool-aid. Later, a complete
stranger wearing a mask gave me a big ol’ hug because
he liked my t-shirt. Apparently Moose
Drool was one of his favorite beers, too.
Like I said, it was the typically weird parking lot scene.
The
concert was a good one. Jimmy, Chris,
Brooke, and I had seats scattered around 3 separate sections of the venue. Most of Jimmy’s friends were sitting on the
lawn, so we just decided to sit with them.
It’s a surprisingly nice venue, with a good view from the lawn, ample
bathrooms, and good sound quality. The
beer prices were outrageous, but that wasn’t surprising. Fortunately I’d already consumed plenty
before the show.
The
highlight of the show was hearing “Henry Parsons Died”, one of my favorite
Widespread Panic songs. Before the show
I predicted they’d play it, which was a little bold considering that WSP has a
couple of hundred songs.
On
a side note, I’d like to introduce a new feature that I’ll call my
favorite… This week’s installment – My
favorite Parsons:
1)
Henry
Parsons (deceased)
2)
Parsons
Bald (overgrown)
3)
Allen
Parsons Project (defunct)
Stay
tuned for more installments of my favorite… in future trip reports.
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