Christy and I were hoping to catch the Rhododendron bloom this year, so we headed to Mt. Rogers last week. We brought Saucony, and Bob and Laura, and Bob’s brother Phil joined us. We met in Yadkinville and drove up through Sparta and on towards Grindstone Campground. We left one car at the Lewis Fork trailhead, and started our hike a mile farther down the road at the Mt. Rogers trailhead.
We began our hike on the Mt. Rogers trail, climbing a well-graded route through a cool, dark northern hardwood forest. We covered the first 4 miles in less than 2 hours, despite climbing the entire time. We reached the AT, and continued up through spruce and fir to Briar Ridge. Here we reached a vast meadow, with a great view south toward the high peaks of northwest NC. We lunched here and tried to name the various peaks in view.
After lunch we continued on the AT to the shelter at Thomas Knob. We debated making the side trip to the summit of Mt. Rogers, but decided that our 11 mile route was enough already. We pressed on, through the meadows and woods above Rhododendron Gap. Here we encountered a small herd of ponies. There were two young in the group, and it was fun to watch them try to gallop around. They were so awkward, but cute.
We hiked on, descending into Rhododendron Gap. The blooms were very colorful, though perhaps slightly past their peak. We climbed a huge rock at the bottom of the gap, and look out towards Pine Mountain. The forest below us was pink from all of the blooms. It made the peak of fall color look boring by comparison.
We hiked towards Pine Mountain, through a never-ending tunnel of blooms. I was taking lots of photos, and quickly fell behind the others. Then the rain came. Until then, it had been a nice day. However, temperatures were only in the 50’s, and it was very breezy. I knew that Christy had forgotten her rain jacket. Somewhere I’m sure it is written that there is no better way to guarantee rain than to forget your gore tex. I put mine on, and hurried to catch up. By the time I reached them at the Lewis Fork trail junction, the rain had stopped. Christy looked like the poster child for hypothermia though, so I gave her my emergency long underwear. This seemed to help, but we decided to get moving to create some heat.
We hiked down the Lewis Fork and Cliffside trails, and the day began to warm immediately. We descended along a pretty mountain stream, and passed a couple of nice campsites along the way. We reached Christy’s car quicker than expected, and retired to a sheltered parking area for a post-hike adult beverage. From there it was on to Sparta for a hot meal before the drive home. It had been an excellent hike, with wonderful views, blooming rhododendron, and wild ponies. Next year we’ll probably plan a backpacking trip around this time to see it all again.
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