I’m beginning to feel like I should move to Gatlinburg.  This was my fifth hiking trip to the Smoky Mountains this year.  My son Stephen accompanied me for his second trip of the year.  Those mountains really do get in your blood and the trails truly do beckon you to return time and again.

We left Indianapolis early on Friday morning, 10/5/07, and arrived at the Smokemont Campground at about 2:30 pm. We had our campsite set up by 3:30.  When we camped here last year in mid-June, the rain started just as we were driving the last tent peg into the ground.  This time the rain held off for a full half hour after we finished setting up.  It was a light rain though and the area is certainly in need of much more.  All of the streams are very low and some have even gone dry.

After eating a hearty camp breakfast on Saturday morning, we threw some food and water into our daypacks and drove up to Newfound Gap.  We arrived at about 10:15 am and the parking lot was already full with park visitors enjoying a nearly perfect day.  The sky was mostly clear with just a few high thin clouds, and the view of Mt. LeConte rising behind Anakeesta Ridge was magnificent.  The temperature was in the mid-sixties and the humidity was at least that high if not higher.  By 10:30 we were on the AT headed east toward Charlies Bunion.

The first 2 miles of the trail were a steady uphill climb, but the frequent vistas provided a good opportunity to stop, rest and take in the views.  Before reaching the junction with Sweat Heifer Creek Trail, there was an excellent view of Mt. LeConte.  In this close up picture you can see the ACB trail crossing Grassy Slide. As the AT continued along the ridge, there were vistas to the north and south. The trail began a downhill trek shortly after the Boulevard Trail junction and at 2.75 miles we passed the Icewater Spring Shelter on the right.  Just around a turn and down a hill we found the Icewater Spring.  There wasn’t much more than a trickle of water due to the lack of rain.

At Icewater Spring the trail became very rocky and much more difficult for an overweight guy with bad knees, but there were a lot of young people on the trail who didn’t seem to have a bit of trouble with the terrain.

After another mile and a quarter we reached Charlies Bunion, along with about twenty-five others.  We found a good place to perch on the rocks, eat lunch, take pictures and soak in the beautiful surroundings. The Bunion provided a view of Mt. LeConte with a very different perspective from what I was accustomed to.  This mountain is grand from any angle.

The return hike was pleasant enough with only one section that gave me any trouble.  Remember those rocks?  They made for a tough climb back to Icewater Spring.  However, from the shelter to the gap the hike was very nice and was filled with the same awesome views we saw on the hike out.

We took it easy on Sunday letting our bones and muscles recoup before climbing Alum Cave Trail to the LeConte Lodge on Monday.  We took a Sunday stroll on the Gatlinburg Trail from the Sugarlands Visitors Center into town and back.  Before making the return trip, however, we stopped into several shops; The Happy Hiker, TGI Friday’s, China Bazaar and The Day Hiker, all very fine establishments.  All together we walked about 6 miles on Sunday.  As I said, we were taking it easy and letting the bones and muscles recoup.

On Monday morning we were up at 6:00 and had a breakfast of PB&J sandwiches.  A ranger at the Sugarlands Visitors Center told us that the water at the lodge was in short supply so we should carry all the water we would need.  On this advice we both packed 6 pounds of water (3 liters) along with our food and raingear.  We drove to the ACB trailhead, walked across the bridge and were on the trail by 7:30. The water levels in Walker Camp Prong and Alum Cave Creek were very low.  The air temperature was cool but the humidity was quite high, so we were sweating profusely.  At times I thought there was more water on me than in the streams.

I did take a few pictures of landmarks along the way; the bent tree and three rock steps at the half mile mark, the rock wall that signals the one mile mark is just ahead, the first foot log at the one mile mark, the mini-waterfall on Styx Branch, the second foot log with its resting stump, the approach to Arch Rock, the third foot log, up through Arch Rock, the fourth foot log, a look into Huggins Hell, two pictures of the washout, and a collapsed section of trail.

We passed or were passed by very few people on this hike.  Very strange for Alum Cave Trail, as it is one of the busiest trails in the park.  On the trek up we did meet a number of overnight lodge guests coming down and on the trek down we met more lodge guests going up, but there were very few day hikers on this particular day.

The sky was very clear all the way up and was mostly clear on top.  Stephen and I posed for our commemorative pictures and went to the dining hall porch to see the llamas.  After eating some lunch we prepared for the return down the mountain.  It was at this point that we discovered that indeed there was water available at the lodge.  We both had carried an extra 3 pounds of water up the mountain for nothing.  Oh well, better to have it than not.

The trip down the mountain went pretty fast.  At the upper steps I took some Tylenol.  At Shirley’s Rock I realized that I had failed to register my seventh hike to the lodge in the lodge log book.  At Gracie’s Pulpit we had a snack.  At the Alum Cave Bluff we heard the falcons and kept on walking.  At Inspiration Point we looked at both eyes of the needle, and from there we just kept walking until we reached the parking lot.  We made it down in 3.5 hours which was a record for us.  We checked our cell phones to see if we could get a signal to call my wife and let her know we were off the mountain.  No signal!

Tuesday morning we were up at 8:00 am, broke camp and were on the road by 9:30 am.  We headed north and when we reached the Gatlinburg Bypass both of our cell phones came to life.  We both had multiple voice mails from my wife.  She wanted to know if we were still alive.  She had called the ranger station and asked them to look for us.  I called Nora knowing that I deserved any and all derision that was sure to ensue.  My darling wife was very understanding and was just relieved to know we were alright.  Not one word of reproach.  I sure love that woman.

We were back in Indianapolis by 6:00 pm, glad to have had a great four days in the mountains but also thankful that we would be sleeping in real beds with real mattresses.  Camping was fun but it was good to be home.