A cold-weather 23-mile backpacking adventure
This is a Smoky Mountains loop trail near Bryson City, North Carolina that I found the Monday of Thanksgiving Week 2019. Since it was a holiday, and because it had been over 3 months since my last backpacking adventure, it was time.
On Wednesday I drive the 2.5 hours to the parking lot of the trailhead, where I was greeted by an empty pickup truck with both front tires deflated and one that was actually coming off the rim - not a comforting sight at a place where I was going to be leaving my car unattended for days. Using my GPS I found the correct trail and started my 23.1-mile backpacking trip at approximately 10:00AM.
The hike starts on a road with light traffic, then a gated-off road with no traffic, then hiking trails. The actual hiking trails start a few miles from the car, and they were a welcome sight since I had no idea what to expect when I started.
The morning I started the hike it had been raining, but fortunately the rain ceased around the time I started. At 10:45, fog was visible as I started gaining elevation. The terrain was visible since it was late-November, and that was a welcome sight since visibility on trails in this climate is limited by foliage during the rest of the year.
Sources of drinking water were few, but fortunately there were enough to prevent me from dipping into my 36oz reserve Nalgene Bottle. My primary water source is a 100oz (3 liter) Camelbak water bladder, and I let the dogs find water on their own. They are good at doing that.
A second view of the water spring that was obscured by a tree.
Closeup view of the spring.
On Wednesday evening I set up camp at approximately 4:30 after having traveled just under half of the trip. I know it would become dark and cold rapidly, so I snarfed some quinoa in a bag, hoisted my backpack on the bear-bag structure that was conveniently awaiting at the campsite, and called it a night.
When I backpack, I tend to go to sleep when the sun sets since the limited light prevents any productivity, and I am usually tired from a long day of backpacking. As I retired for the evening, I turned on my old Icom IC-T90 2m/70cm amateur handheld radio to listen to the repeaters. Certainly this would provide some entertainment on a freezing night. And did it ever. As I am struggling to keep warm, I hear a guy complaining how warm it is (he is certainly not at my elevation!). Then I hear another guy talking about drinking some hot apple cider he had just made. Then I heard another guy talk about some problems with his domineering wife. It was all a great distraction from the cold temperature.
I let both of the dogs sleep in my tent, yet both of them were shivering. I tried to cover Millie with part of my unzipped sleeping bag, but then I was cold. Mabel was at my feet shivering too. Although I did manage to get a few hours of sleep, the night was no fun for any of us.
The next morning the dogs were surprisingly energetic and playful. I started breaking down camp when there was adequate light around 7:45, ate some more quinoa, fed the dogs, and started hiking. We hit the trail by 8:20 Thanksgiving morning.
While this trip was originally supposed to be a 2-night adventure, at this point I started to strongly consider finishing the remainder of the hike by the end of the day. I did not want for my dogs to have to endure the conditions of the previous night...at least that what I told myself to feel better about cutting the duration of the trip short.
Listening to the 4-repeater linked W4KEV repeater network on Thanksgiving morning. I pre-programmed the nearby repeaters before I started the hike using RepeaterBook.
My backpack hoisted in the trees to prevent bears from eating the food contained within.
The campsite before departing at 8:20 on Thanksgiving morning 2019.
One of the few views that was only lightly obscured by nearby trees. It is beautiful out here.
12:00 Noon, the Thanksgiving meal - some delectable pressure-cooker chili made with farm-fresh ground beef, apple pie, and quinoa that I did not eat. We were at the top of a mountain, and it was very beautiful. Eating good food, relaxing, listening to the amateur radio, and trying to take it all in before starting to hike again around 1:15.
A view of my Thanksgiving lunch spot.
A view of the south-side of the trail where it splits to form the loop-portion of the journey. It was a nice 2-day, 1-night adventure, and I finished it around 5:00PM on Thanksgiving.