Every bit of advice I got leading up to this hike boiled down to 4 things
check the map often
fill up on water every chance you get
prepare for some brutal climbs
and whatever you do DON'T GO NORTHBOUND!
Well, I heeded 3 of those warning. Can't say I didn't know what I was getting myself into...
Music featured in this video: "Bonaparte's Retreat" by Walker Winn, "Plantation" by Jason Shaw, and "Misty Mountain Rendezvous" by Squire Tuck
Trail Journal
I've been listening to a lot of Bluegrass lately. If you hadn't picked up on it translating over into the videos. Guess that's the theme for this series. So I figured I'd include a Top 10 list with each trail journal post. Not saying these are the best of the genre, just my personal favorites to listen to.
Bluegrass on the Blue Ridge Vol. 1
10. "Wagon Wheel" by Old Crow Medicine Show
9. "Tennessee Stud" by Nitty Gritty Dirt Band
8. "Wildflower Perfume" by The Dead Tongues
7. "Jerusalem Ridge" by Tony Rice Unit
6. "Banjo Odysee" by The Dead South
5. "Wild Horses" by Old & In The Way
4. "Old Number Seven" by The Devil Makes Three
3. "Choctaw Hayride" by Alison Krauss & Union Station
2. "Out With The Crow" by The Haunted Windchimes
1. "Carolina in the Pines" by Special Consensus
April 19th 2021
Camp Daniel Boone to Davidson River Campground
0 miles
I hopped out of the car and walked a little ways down the gravel road. I stepped into an opening in the trees to get a good look at the river. Appreciating the view quickly turned into staring off into space. A voice calling down the road snapped me back to reality.
"Hi! Are you Jessica? I'm your driver, Daniel."
"Nice to meet you. Let me just grab my pack"
"Take your time. I'm parked just down here."
He pointed to an old SUV parked down towards the camp.
As the shuttle made its way back towards the parkway I noticed a bundle of dogwood branches sitting up on the dash.
"Those are really pretty flowers." I said
"Yeah, I saw them just sitting there on the roadside and had to stop and pick them up."
Part of that Old Crow Medicine Show song played in my head...
"I made it down the coast in seventeen hours
Picking me a bouquet of dogwood flowers
And I'm a-hopin' for Raleigh, I can see my baby tonight"
The trip was about an hour. In that time we talked about everything from local attractions, to family, to gardening and chickens. Somewhere along the way we started talking about Shining Rock. I told the driver about an awkward conversation I had my last time out there.
"I think it's so cool. Just a big field of white quartz boulders hidden in the mountains. But for whatever reason the other hikers saw out there didn't think so. They stopped to tell me it was really lame and not worth seeing. I don't get it..."
"Guess it's all in what you focus on." he said "Or might be that's just what they felt like expressing at the time."
I tried to think about that, but my brain was too occupied by all the details of the long hike I had ahead of me. Next thing I remember he dropped me off at the gatehouse and wished me luck.
The man at the check-in booth looked me over and asked
"You doing the whole thing?"
"Yes sir!"
He shook his head "Better you than me. And in a skirt?! More power to you."
It always makes me laugh when folks mention the skirt. I know it must look a little odd, but I've actually found it way more conducive to hiking than shorts or yoga pants. I noticed the difference switching to a skirt halfway through the Foothills Trail last year. I guess now it's just my thing.
That wasn't my last conversation with the check-in booth man. Later that evening, he came by on a golf cart to check on me.
"If I don't ask now it'll bother me, but - HOW do you have the will power to go through with this!? I mean being alone out there? Doesn't it bother you?"
I don't exactly remember what I said. But I do remember thinking later it was kind of stupid and didn't answer the question very well.
Picking up sticks to toss on the fire I got to thinking "Why am I doing this?"
I went over the typical responses people give when asked the motivation behind taking on a difficult challenge:
Because I have something to prove?
No. I'm not a particularly tough person, but I know can push through tough circumstances when need be.
Because I have a troubled past to overcome?
No. Life's had it's ups and downs, but overall it's been pretty darn good.
Because I'm an adrenaline junkie?
No. I don't even like rides at the amusement park.
Nothing seemed to fit. So, I settled on:
I guess I don't know why I'm doing this...
April 20th 2021
Davidson River Campground to Deep Gap Shelter
15 miles
I didn't get to finish my coffee.
I told myself I would get going as soon as it was gone. But I knew better. It was just a stalling tactic. I went over all the advice from other Art Loeb thru-hikers in between tiny sips. I finally walked over to the bushes and dumped it out. That's enough of that. Time to go!
Usually the pre-trip jitters go away by the time I reach the trailhead, but this time for whatever reason they were sticking with me. I think all the talk about how hard it is, along with my own bad experiences in Pisgah NF shot my confidence a bit.
To my surprise the first few miles were pleasant and over all uneventful. I met a fuzzy little dog. All black except for a few white speckles on her face. I thought she looked a little like a bear cub. Her owner said she looks more like a werewolf when she hasn't had a proper grooming.
As I got further down the trail, I started to notice areas that looked like water used to run through, but had since dried up. I finally came to a reliable stream about a mile before Butter Gap Shelter. Everything I read said Butter Gap was one of the main sure sources and a good place to fill up. They also said it'd be the last one for a while. I wasn't too far from the shelter, but I went ahead and filled up at the stream anyway.
When I got to Butter Gap, I was greeted by a waggy tail dog in a blue backpack. I noticed his name and owner's contact info written on the harness in sharpie. Such a smart idea! This was the fourth four legged hiker I met today and it was starting to make me miss my own dogs back home. I was under the impression this trail would be way too hard for Nora to handle. So, I left her behind. This dog seems to be doing alright out here though. Then again... I hadn't hit the really tough parts yet. The couple he belonged to had flown all the way from Massachusetts for this trip! I never thought of WNC as a hot travel destination before, but I guess it is.
I'm so glad I filled up on water at that stream because most of my lunch break was spent just waiting on the measly trickle from the pipe to top the bottle off.
The three peaks that followed were brutal, Pilot Mountain being the worst. After passing the shelter it became an entirely different trail! Thankfully some of the struggle was broken up by finding an abandoned blue bandana. I decided if someone along the way asked about it I would gladly return it. But if no one came looking for it I'd consider it a trail magic souvenir. Halfway up Pilot, I came across another abandoned article. A bright green shirt hanging on a tree limb... Either someone was signaling for help or there was a half naked man is roaming these mountains. It turned out to be the latter. Along came a shirtless guy jogging down the trail.
"You must be owner of a green shirt" I called
"Yeah, I am" he laughed.
"Well it's still back there. I kept it safe for you."
We parted ways and the dread of tackling steep rocky switchbacks kicked back in. I'm pretty sure I spouted off every obscenity in the sailor's vocabulary under my breath in hopes it would some how propel me up the never ending mountain.
After what felt like an eternity, I finally made it up Pilot. This probably won't make much sense, but seeing the 360 views at the top didn't fill me with joy or a sense of accomplishment. It actually made me mad. I guess with how difficult the climb was, I expected an overgrown elevation marker at the summit and nothing else to show for it. Not a breathtaking expanse. I threw down my pack and kicked it as hard as I could with wobbly legs. Then I plopped down and had a good cry. I eventually pulled myself together long enough to enjoy the scenery and laugh at the hell I had to go through to get up here.
I don't know if getting up Pilot is actually easier going the other way, but in my mind it seemed like it would be judging by the climb down. I set up camp at Deep Gap shelter and completed all the usual chores. Refill water. Collect firewood. Cook dinner.
Strange how sitting in your cozy camp clothes, eating a hot meal, and enjoying a toasty fire makes you forget how crappy everything was before...
