The weather looked favorable for the flights and for hiking the trail. I took my normal solo route through Walterboro, SC and spent the night at the Ramada Inn and ate at Shoney's Next door. On the way to Walterboro, I tried to connect with a young football friend, Revel Coffey, who was visiting Saint Augustine, FL. He came down with other members of the Carson/Newman College football Team for spring break. Somehow we did not connect although I waited an hour and half at the rest area near Jacksonville, FL where we were supposed to meet. On the drive back through Jacksonville, I was too tired to try to connect with Revel and his friends. Those of you in East Tennessee follow Revel's career at Carson Newman. If you see him, give him my regards. I have known him since his birth and I am his best non family fan.
The next morning, the motel got the time change correct and had breakfast at 6:00 a.m., as scheduled. After breakfast and finishing my morning chores, I headed out to Shoney's at Waynesville, NC to buy lunch for anyone who shows up and has hiked Mt. LeConte more times than I have. That probably only included Ron Valentine. I decided to buy a hooded flannel shirt at Wal*mart's next door because there was a chill in the air. When I arrived at Shoney's Lynda Platone, from the Manatee Community College in Venice, FL was there waiting for me. After we ate the breakfast and lunch buffets before we headed to condo where Lynda was staying. She asked me if I would like to stay there also. It didn't take much to convince me in as much as she volunteered to drive to and from the mountain. After parking my bag and baggage Lynda drove over to Newfound Gap and we were stunned at how nice the weather was on the North Carolina side of the mountain and how lousy it was on the Tennessee side of the gap. We took a few pictures of the sign marking the state boundary and some of the rime on the trees. It must have been 3/4" thick. I was certainly glad that I bought a hooded long sleeved shirt for tomorrow's hike. On our way back toward Cherokee we visited with Alan Householder, the llama driver for the lodge and with Ron Metcalfe from Greeneville, TN. We took a few pictures before heading back toward Cherokee, NC.
We drove up Big Cove Road past Tillroe's camper to the Mingus Falls. The hike to the falls was strenuous for two Floridians but we made it. So did many other folks with or carrying children. The falls are beautiful and worth the hundreds of steps required to reach the bridge facing the falls. We stayed there for about a half hour and took lots of pictures. A short distance beyond The Big Stony Campground, where Tillroe Smith's camper is, a huge campus is under construction for the new Cherokee High School. It would take several pictures to capture the entire campus from the valley floor. We ate dinner at a nice Mexican Restaurant in Waynesville, NC. I cleaned my plate and Lynda had enough to take home in a doggie bag. We then shopped at a nearby grocery store for food and snacks for tomorrow's hike. We spent some time watching tomorrow's weather forecast and it looked OK except it was to be colder than I would like. I was concerned about the water dripping from Alum Cave Bluff freezing on the trail below.
The temperature was in the upper 20's and the sky was partially overcast as we drove toward Newfound Gap. We arrived at the trailhead at about 7:10 A.M. It was too dark to hike safely with the potential for ice on the trail. Shortly after we arrived, Cindy Wisnieski, from Columbus, Ohio. Ron Metcalfe, Glen Weatherly, Tom Grubbs arrived shortly there after as did Ron Valentine and his crew plus Knoxville Chanel 8 TV Anchor Alan Williams and three cameramen. It was a nippy 28 degrees and mostly clear as we departed at about 7:30 A.M. We saw the helicopter make several trips as we were walking. I think that I heard that it ferried 30 workers to the heliport near the lodge. That sure beats walking!
The trail was clear of ice at the lower elevations but the wind was cold which made me happy that I had worn gloves and a long sleeved hooded shirt. Other members of the hike took lots of pictures but I did not take any because the gloves interfered with my manipulating the controls. I did not take any pictures until we reached Inspiration Point. I took my gloves and hood off there. We were passed by lots of hikers going to the lodge to see the helicopter and staff load in the supplies for this season. The change in elevation bothered this flatlander's legs and lungs. I made frequent stop to rest and catch my breath. Eventually we did arrive at Inspiration Point. I took a picture of our small but friendly band of hikers. We paused at this point before continuing past the Eye of the Needle. Ron reminds me that this is the Round Eye of the Needle. A square Eye is also located on Little Duck Hawk Ridge but I was too tired to get in location to photograph it. I have seen it many times in my prior and younger hiking days.
The hike into the rocks in the bluff area is very strenuous and tiring for these old bones but I made it. Yes the drippings from above the bluff had frozen on the trail below but it was doable with caution. Folks were kind enough to save my favorite rock as a resting spot for me. While I was resting, I made a picture of Ron, Cindy and Tom leaning at a 15- degree angle (I actually made them lean with my photo software by leveling the slanted ground.) I also took one of Tom and Cindy without any monkey business. A late storm blew a large tree over at the upper exit from the bluff and took most of the trail with it. Glen, some volunteer needs to repair this section of the trail! Hint Hint! I took my first picture of the helicopter working shortly after leaving the bluff.
I took pictures above Little Duck Hawk and the Chimneys on our journey to Gracie's Pulpit. Before we reached the pulpit, we encountered another downed tree almost blocking the trail. We stopped at Gracie's Pulpit for a rest and some refreshments. Joe Steele had hiked down from the lodge and visited with us for a while. While we were resting, Alan Williams from Knoxville Chanel 8 TV and his camera crew, Daniel, Brian and Peter, overtook us. He did a short interview with me and filmed me as we walked on toward the saddle. Glad that he filmed me going down hill and Glen was carrying my pack. He filmed me again later when I was hiking uphill carrying my pack.
Linda Platone had brought a special Green Hat in honor of St Patrick's Day. It was very appropriate and added joy to the hike. We continued our hike along the rim of Huggins Hell. This provided a good view of the helicopter's flight path from near Newfound Gap to the lodge and back. We were overtaken by Larry Wright from Cherryville, NC. Larry has posted a couple of his hikes on my web page. We took a short break at Lou's Pulpit. I got Linda, Cindy, Tom and Glen to pose for me. Three Auburn students from the Mobile area overtook and passed us before we reached Trout Branch. We would meet four more Auburn folks before the day was over.
I took a picture of Clingmans Dome from Grassy Slide. I then tried out my new camera to photograph the tower on top of the dome. The tower is eight or ten miles away as the Raven flies. I do think that it is better than the picture that I took with my other camera. Thanks Bob and Lisa. Lisa liked my old camera so much after taking it to Alaska that she and Bob bought me this new and improved model if Lisa could have my old one. Looks pretty amateurish compared to Appalachian Trail Hiker Ant's sunrise shot from there. His trailjournal has a good description of how he took the shot. I took still another photo of the ranges of mountains as seen from Grassy Slide. We were encountering more ice on and near the trail but nothing dangerous. Water was running in some spots but ice was still present.
We continued our climb and stopped occasionally for a rest and photo opt. We met Dr. Kip Miller and his wife Jean Ann below Cliff Top. We started encountering more snow and ice on the trail but nothing that we could not step around. We met Ron Valentine and his hiking Group descending from the lodge. Some of the names in his group were Pam, Janice and George. George to me that Ron may finally announce his total hikes to LeConte in May of this year. I am certain that Ron has two or three times as many hikes to LeConte as I have. He is a great guy. I took another photo of our remaining group before forging on.
Cindy said a prayer for Betty Jane Barnett as we reached the Stairways to Heaven, named in her honor. Betty Jane recently passed on. Our thoughts and prayers are with her soul and family. Cindy also remembered Tillroe Smith and his wife Jo Ann in their battles with health problems. Her prayer was shorter than last year's and someone remarked that we might have to attend church because her prayer was so short that it would not count as attending service. That remark hit a funny bone with Cindy.
I took a few pictures of the icicle formation on the face of Cliff Top. These icicles have survived many hours of direct sunshine this morning. I also took a picture Cindy at Margaret's Place, just below Paul's Face. We had to pick our steps carefully through the Frazer Fir tunnel because of the icy conditions on the trail. When we arrived at the lodge, the crew was busy passing supplies into the storage shed. I visited with Chris and Alyson Virden, Tim Line, Marty Cizek, I also visited with, Marsh Wilkes from Perry, FL, Tim Webb and dozens of other folks. I introduced Alan Williams to Allyson and Chris Virden, the manager's wife and cook. I met Marty and his friend Beth back in the late 1980's. They later married. Marty graduated from the University of Tennessee Law School and is an attorney and practices law in Clinton, TN. Marty and Beth have three Children. Tim Line said that their son Nathan is getting married in May and that their daughter Gracie was graduating from the University of Tennessee school of Nursing.
The helicopter was making round trips about every 15 minutes. The incoming cargo was usually contained in nets and encased in plastic wraps. The outgoing cargo, while we were there, consisted mainly of empty propane tanks. I noticed that the cable from the winch on the helicopter showed some fraying. That is a good reason for the workers to wear hard hats however if the helicopter dropped one of these loads, that would not do any good at all. After I returned home, I found that I was so busy visiting and taking pictures of the helicopter that I did not take any pictures of the folks at the lodge. You will have to view them on other folks write-up.
The Knoxville TV Chanel 8 folks were busy interviewing and filming the activities. Alan Williams and one other guy went back down today. Two cameramen stayed to photograph the entire day. The Pictures and commentary are to be aired in May 2008. I will post a link to the pictures when I get one.
Going down the mountain was much easier on these old bones than hiking up. On our way down, we met a couple of young guys from Knoxville. I think that their names were Crom and Ryan. They had not even worked up a sweat. Jeff Cinnamon and his friend Skyler overtook us at Grassy Slide and hiked with us for a while. Jeff has a web site, my leghurts. I asked him if he got the domain after hiking Mt. LeConte. He said no that he had had that site for a number of years. I stopped at Gracie's Pulpit for a snack break. Dave Scanlon came breezing by without stopping. He must have been in a hurry. I took a picture of the Alum Cave Parking lot from above Big Duck Hawk Ridge. Yep, I think that this camera has SOME superior features to my old one. I did pause for one more shot from above Little Duck Hawk Ridge before reaching the bluff. There were several folks at the bluff. There were three young couples from Peru, IL. One of the guys had a startling Tee Shirt on. It reminded me of the one about "Sleep on a Virgin Tonight." ON the front it said that you should visit St. Croix and St. Thomas Virgin Islands. So I knew that before jumping at conclusions, I should see what the front said. Tom and Glen were un phased. One of the young ladies had another Tee Shirt on with writing. I asked her what her Tee Shirt said. I told her that it was NOT as racy as her friends' was but that she was much better looking than he was.
We cruised on past the bluff but stopped across from the Eye of the Needle to take another picture. I had to take a shot of Tom beneath the Dolly Parton Peaks just for old time's sake. The helicopter was still busy flying supplies back and forth to and from the lodge as we continued down the mountain. As we approached the trailhead, we met several Park Rangers. They had a report of an armed man dressed in camouflage on Cliff Top. Glen told them that we had not seen the suspect. One ranger turned back but the other two took up hiding positions behind trees. We later met more rangers.
Tom Grubbs was kind enough to give us ice cold orange Sunkist sodas before we said our good byes and head for home. It was an almost perfect day. It could have only been better with more friends and family. I was tired so I spent the night at Lynda's Condo before driving the 750 miles home on Tuesday. Thank Lynda, Cindy, Tom, Ron and Glen for a nice day.
My hiking companions took hundreds of photographs of me during the hike. I challenged them all to send me their best picture that they took of me. Only Lynda sent pictures. The rest apparently didn't take a good looking photo. It is difficult to take a good picture of an 82 year-Old-White Man. Thanks Lynda. the hair color matches the rime.
