Asheville, NC
Day 2
by
Kenny & Kristen
Posted on 2018-05-05
We hit the road by 6:30 AM on Saturday to make the drive into Tennessee and the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The hike had two options for distance – a shorter one that was ~5 miles out and back and a longer one which was about 12. We opted for the longer one.
The first mile and a half of the hike followed a strong running creek full of miniature waterfalls. The path wound its’ way back and forth over the water a few times aided by balance beam style bridges. One of the bridges ran straight into Alum Cave – or “the big black darkness” as we nicknamed it when we first saw it around the bend.
After the cave the trail led away from the creek for the first time, we began to hear some othe sounds of nature. After following the water for so long, the quiet seemed abrupt but also really peaceful. The incline increased for the next mile as we started to gain altitude. The trail also opened up some amazing views of the surrounding mountains (all misted with smoky clouds).
At about an hour and a half into our hike we made it to Alum Cave Bluffs. The bluffs themselves were huge overhangs – maybe 150 feet above our heads. This is where a lot of people choose to turn around for the shorter hike option. We took a quick break to have second breakfast (which is not just for hobbits). We tried to follow a side path to see if you could get up on top of the bluffs, but it was a no go.
The next 3 miles were largely up hill, but worth the effort. The landscape took a few drastic turns as we made our way up. When we started walking again we were surrounded by lush green trees and smooth rock outcroppings that led to panoramic mountain views. Then we crossed into a section of dense forest covered in thick moss that was dark even in the middle of the day. There was very little wildlife, although we did see a field mouse and quite a few squirrels.
At the top of Mount Leconte it was much cooler and the wind was coming on strong. Kenny’s favorite part of the hike was the lodge at the top of the mountain. It was a collection of 8-10 cabins with a main house where you could eat lunch and grab snacks between noon and 4. We ate another quick round of PB&J sandwiches while having a stare down with some bold squirrels who were over interested in our food.
We walked another .2 miles (felt more like .4) from the lodge up to the top of the cliffs. When we got to the top of the cliffs we were literally standing in the middle of the clouds. The mountains were just visible around us, but largely shrouded in smoky clouds.
The hike back down was much easier than the way up, although our legs were tired and our knees were aching (Does this mean I’m getting old?). We ditched our shoes in the car and decided to relax and dip our feet into the river. The first two seconds felt amazing and then that was immediately replaced with stabbing pain because the water was so cold. Our original goal was 5 minutes but I couldn’t even make it 30 seconds.
On our way out of the park we took one final stop at Newfound Gap Overlook for a quick panoramic picture and then headed out to our next stop, Hot Springs, NC. Which is where we were planning to do one more quick hike called Lovers Leap. On the way to Hot Springs the GPS took us down a section of 209 called “The Rattler” which was 24 miles of road with 290 turns. “I wish we were on the bike” - Kenny
The rattler ended right at the town of Hot Springs, which turned out to be one of the coolest parts of the day. It’s a small town that has multiple rivers feeding into it and is split in half by part of the Appalachian Trail.
We happened to be there on the same day as a huge festival called TrailFest. The whole place was packed with Thru hikers and the large campground by the river was jamming out. We jumped on to the AT and made our way across the French Broad River Bridge. Once across the bridge we followed the AT down under the bridge and found a cool section of the town with lots of little inns for people hiking the AT. Hot Springs is about 200 miles in so I expect it makes a nice stopping point for folks that have been hiking for a while. We spent the rest of the hike daydreaming about what it would be like to hike the full AT – stay tuned.
We followed the AT up for another mile until we reached a few rocky outcroppings, the second of which was Lovers Leap. It offered a really nice view of the river and the surrounding mountains. We then followed the Lovers Leap path down and back out to the parking area where we headed back to the cabin. Kenny cooked me a huge birthday dinner and then we hit the hot tub to rest up sore muscles. All in all it was a pretty great day. We will definitely be heading back to the Great Smoky Mountains.
