One step at a time in the Smokies!

So, after completing the Appalachian Trail and being inspired by hikers I met in New England who were attempting to hike all 48 of the 4000 foot mountains in New Hampshire, I set myself a local goal of hiking all the trails in the Great Smoky Mountain National Park. There are approximately 800 miles of trail, though hikers attempting this feat will have some repetition and will end up hiking at least 900 or more miles. I have purchased Elizabeth Etnier’s book, Day Hiker’s Guide To All the Trails In The Smoky Mountains. This excellent guide is organized so that a hiker can hike all the trails as day hikes with as little duplication as possible. I have, of course, hiked the Appalachian Trail through the park and done some other day hiking while visiting my daughter, Klaire who conveniently lives near Gatlinburg TN.  I decided it was time to spend a week with Klaire and Patrick and get started on joining the 900 Miler Club.

I had a couple of hours of driving to get to the start of today’s hike at Cosby Campground, so started about 9:30 AM from the hiker parking lot. The first part of the hike was 7.5 miles up the Lower Mount Cammerer Trail to its intersection with the Appalachian Trail. I had expected the trail to be quite the slog but it was a lovely gentle uphill climb and with cool temperatures, gorgeous blue skies and puffy white clouds I thoroughly enjoyed every step.

At one point I spotted the cutest doe and fawn ahead of me and they led the way along the trail for about 1/2 mile before bounding off into the forest. The only other signs of wildlife were many piles of bear scat though no bear encounters. I hiked the 200 yards up to the Sutton Ridge Overlook which, though nice was not particularly outstanding. I reached my beloved Appalachian Trail a little after 1 and kissed my first AT white blaze of the year.

I sat on a log and enjoyed half of my lunch before the 2.3 mile hike up to the Mt. Cammerer trail head. This was in the opposite direction than when I hiked this trail in 2017 and a lung busting uphill. It was another .6 miles up to the Mount Cammerer Lookout Tower which had spectacular 360 views.

I had not climbed up here in 2017 because it had been so cold and foggy but today was absolutely perfect. I sat and finished the rest of my lunch then started to hear distant thunder, typical of this time of year. After backtracking to the AT, a heavy fog rolled into the valley below and no views were to be had from the ridgeline for the next mile though I did enjoy seeing loads of wild Beebalm.

As I started to descend it began raining and the trail soon became a sloppy, flowing stream though I didn’t pull out my rain gear since it wasn’t cold. I was soon at Low Gap and began the pretty sharp descent down Low Gap II Trail back to the campground. The last four miles of hiking were tough as the rain set in and I became tired and got soaked to the bone. It was a big relief to see my waiting truck and crank up the heat as I drove the few miles down the road to Smoky Bear Campground, a hot shower and a delicious dinner prepared by Klaire and Patrick. 16.4 miles today! I think I’m really going to enjoy this challenge! The Smokies are amazing!