Liz and I started out on this cold March morning with every intention of hiking to the Lodge for a two night stay, something we had been planning on for about two years. Our schedules finally fell in sync so there we were with loaded packs, lots of good food and warm clothing at the Noah Bud Ogle Cabin where we would start our climbing. The Motor Nature Road is closed beginning at the cabin due to road construction. Who would have ever guessed LeConte would have twice as much snow at this time of year than it has had in years, 44 inches, more with the snow drifts. Having said that and just for the record, Liz and I did put a lot of thought and planning into this hike. We made the final decision to continue with our plans just the day before, when we found out that several had hiked up that weekend meaning, the trail would be cut. The cables on Alum Cave were covered in snow and ice so we thought Rainbow would be safer...longer but safer. We agreed that, at anytime if either of us felt it was unsafe to continue we would stop the hike and head back down.

At 7:35 a.m. we were on the Motor Nature Road headed toward the Rainbow Falls Trailhead. There was just a skip of snow here and there until we actually started on the trail. A new bathroom had been built at the Falls parking area, but unfortunately they were locked. Two of the work men were sitting in their truck with the motor running. They probably wondered what those two crazy women were doing! We were on the trail at 7:50 a.m. having to stop several times to make adjustments on my pack with the extra weight in it. We immediately put on the yaktraks because the trail was covered with packed snow. The walk along side of LeConte Creek was quite picturesque with the snow topping the rocks. The snow on the forest floor was undisturbed with no signs of humans. We felt such a serene and peaceful feeling....it was so quiet.

A little mouse or chipmunk (it was moving so fast I couldn’t tell for sure which it was) squeaked at us as it ran across the trail in front of us. It left tiny little footprints in the snow and a solid line where its little tail was dragging behind. Definitely not a day to see wildlife...they must have all been in their cozy and warm dens. Tree limbs hung low over the trail weighted down from the heavy snow. We were constantly knocking the snow off of one another.  Liz being the taller one had a bigger problem with this than me. If only I had thought and had her to walk in front of me she would have knocked the most of it off for me. I will try to remember this the next time. (Just kidding, I wouldn’t really do that to her.) So instead, I knocked a lot of it off with my hiking stick before walking under the limbs. It really didn’t matter much though because there was so much snow falling off of the trees that it actually looked like it was snowing at times. At 1.9 miles the first foot log was covered but easily crossed. I took pictures of LeConte Creek but all you could see was snow and ice. Another .8 miles and we came to the 2nd foot log which was another easy crossing with snow cover instead of ice.

We reached the Falls at 10:25 a.m. and up to this point the trail was in good walking condition. The Falls were amazing! The large ice formation at the base had an aqua blue color. I can’t seem to find the reason for this. If anyone out there knows the answer to this I wish you would email me: coonie56@hotmail.com It gave an almost mystical look to the area as we stood there gazing at it. I will definitely be hiking this trail again in the winter time. Pictures just don’t do it justice! The snow accumulation here was a few inches deeper and after crossing the 3rd foot log at the base of the falls there was not many signs of anyone being on the trail prior to today. The falling snow from the trees had covered up the previous prints. We decided to have a snack of cheese and crackers while standing since the snow would only get deeper and no where to sit.

The farther we hiked the deeper the snow and the lower the limbs hung across the trail, but with this the more beautiful it became. Liz’s red hair stayed dotted with blobs of white snow. About ½ mile above the falls I had to put my Gore-Tex pants on because the snow was starting to go into my boots.....not a good thing. If you’ve never tried changing pants without sitting down or holding on to anything, you should try it sometime. It is pretty comical. Liz even held my pack for me so I didn’t have to lay it in the snow.

About a mile pass the falls and with about 2 ½ - 3 miles to the Lodge I started feeling sick. I ate half of a power bar but had trouble getting it down. After resting awhile we hiked on for about 5 to 10 minutes but it wasn’t getting any better. The decision was made to head back down. The time was 12:00 noon. Liz was such a good sport about the whole situation.....she is an exceptional person and special friend. I knew I could make it back down but not sure about the hike up with the deep snow and the extra weight. At this point in the hike the snow was about 10 to 12 inches but really hard to tell for sure with the snow drifts. We took our time going back down and took lots of pictures (snow, snow trees) of the snow covered forest. On some of the small limbs the snow hung down 3 - 4 inches like a blanket. The falling snow from the trees had already covered our prints on the way back down to the falls. This tells us how much weight these trees have to withstand and why some of them can not hold up under the weight. The only other wildlife we saw was one squirrel that ran across the trail in front of us.

When we arrived at the falls we took more pictures and I tried to capture the beauty of the surrounding trees laden down with snow. It was truly a winter wonderland (frozen creek at falls footlog, snow blanket, small falls). A fresh spot of red blood stood out boldly on the white snow. It was not there on our way up. We followed it down the trail for awhile before the wounded animal veered off the path and out into the woods. Arriving back at the trailhead we could hear a few of the road crew and hope they soon have the road opened back up. We were almost at the car and I noticed this pile of snow on Liz’s backpack. I told her she could not pack anything out of the park including snow! We had a great time as we always do! Back at the car at 3:00 and feeling good about the decision we had made about turning back. At first I did feel bad for knocking Liz out of the 2 night stay but quickly felt different since I still did not feel well. I could only feel grateful that we had the opportunity to go hiking in this winter wonderland and blessed to be back at the car safe and sound instead of a mile or two from the Lodge and unable to continue. Liz and I have a heavenly Father that was looking out for us today. We had a great hike, took some great pictures, and I got to spend time with Liz. Our other hiking buddy Alden Douglass was not able to hike for health reasons and we sure did miss her.

Another snow storm hit the Smokies the next day and before it was over with the Lodge had a whopping 52 inches of snow. That is almost as tall as me! I couldn’t imagine hiking back out in those conditions. Doug McFalls, LeConte Lodge’s winter caretaker, has posted some great pictures of the snow on his website: www.LifeOnLeconte.com. Check it out when you have time. We are now planning for our next trip....stay tuned.

It was another great day to take a hike!!