MtLeconte.com Hike

Sturgeon Family Vacation in the Smokies 4/29 – 5/4/7

We had been planning this trip since last October when we made our reservations for an overnight stay at LeConte Lodge on May 2^nd. Nora, Shawn, Stephen and I had been doing our conditioning hikes in Indiana’s Brown County State Park and Morgan Monroe State Forest since February. It may be surprising to some that there are hills in Indiana , but these two parks certainly have a lot of them and provide a good opportunity to train for mountain hiking. No sustained 3,000 foot climbs of course, but enough ups and downs to get the legs and lungs ready for the adventure.

After picking up my sister, Barbara, we were on our way to the Smokies by 7 AM on the morning of April 29^th. We arrived in Gatlinburg at 2:45 PM, ate a late lunch at Damon’s and then settled in to our home for the week, a rented chalet with a mountain view .

Monday morning Shawn and Barbara opted to hang out at the Chalet and take some short walks on the roads above Gatlinburg, enjoying the scenery and mountain air. Nora, Stephen and I drove to Cades Cove and took a short hike to Abram’s Falls. The DNR had conducted a prescribed burn of this area in early April, which had cleared out the understory. Arriving at the falls we relaxed, ate a picnic lunch and enjoyed the beauty of the surroundings. For anyone planning to hike the ACB to Mount LeConte , this is a wonderful warm up hike. The return from the falls and up to Arbutus Ridge is very reminiscent of the climb from the saddle to the upper steps on the ACB trail. On our return hike, Stephen reached the parking area about ten minutes before Nora and I arrived. He had turned on the air conditioning in the truck and the cool air was a welcome change from the 80-degree plus temperatures on the trail.

On Tuesday we all took a short ride to Elkmont. Nora, Barbara and Shawn started walking up the Little River Trail while Stephen and I headed up Jakes Creek Trail to Cucumber Gap and then to the junction with Little River. We met up with the others at the log benches where we ate lunch before returning to the parking area.

The weather forecast for Wednesday and Thursday called for showers and thunderstorms, but God does answer prayers and He trumps the weather man every time. The weather for both days turned out wonderful and for that we were very thankful.

Our plans for Wednesday and Thursday were for Stephen and I to hike up Mount LeConte while the others stayed in the low lands and explored the nooks and crannies of Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge. As we left our chalet on Wednesday morning we saw our first bear (Really?). He was sitting on the driveway of the chalet above ours, about 75 feet away. He made no moves toward us, but seemed content to just watch from a distance. That was just fine with us.

We dropped off the truck at the Trillium Gap trailhead for our return trip. The llamas were there being prepared for their trip up to the lodge. After saying goodbye to the llamas, Nora drove us to the Alum Cave Trailhead. As we passed back through Gatlinburg we picked up my brother-in-law, Jim, who was making the trip to the lodge with Stephen and me.

We posed for the obligatory trailhead picture, headed across the bridge and were on the trail by 8:35 AM. By the half mile mark Glen Weatherly overtook us. He was on his way to the lodge to do some trail maintenance. We walked together to the first log bridge where we slowed our pace a bit and bid farewell to Glen. We would meet up with him again further up the trail. We paused at the log bridge where I took this picture of Jim and Stephen and then we continued to Arch Rock.

At the site of the 1993 wash out, part of the trail had collapsed. This picture was taken on March 12^th when Ed Wright and seven of his trail friends hiked to the lodge to see the spring airlift.

We arrived at Inspiration Point after just an hour of hiking; a good pace for us. Our pace would slow considerably from here on. Ron Valentine arrived at Inspiration Point shortly after we did. I had met Ron on Thanksgiving Day last year at about the half-mile mark on the trail. I introduced him to Stephen and Jim, and we had a very pleasant conversation with him before he headed on down the trail. We took some pictures of Little Duck Hawk Ridge including this one of the seldom-photographed “second” eye of the needle. It is several hundred feet to the left of the obvious Eye of the Needle and is rectangle in shape. It is difficult to see in the morning lighting, but can be seen very easily when backlit by the afternoon Sun. Naturally we took several pictures of “THE” Eye of the Needle.

At the bluff steps Stephen took this picture of Jim and me climbing the steps. We stopped at the bluff for a short rest and then it was on up the trail to above Little Duck Hawk Ridge. As we continued to climb towards Gracie’s Pulpit I got this first shot at Clingmans Dome just peeking into view in the distance. At Gracie’s Pulpit we rested, ate a snack and took pictures of Cliff Top and Grassy Slide, under and to the left of High Top. I pointed out the route of the trail along the face of Mount LeConte to Jim who was already rested and ready to get back on the trail.

As we passed over the saddle and up the Forever's, we passed several overnight guests of the lodge making their trek down the mountain. They said the weather was really good on top and the food at the lodge was great.

At Rocky Slide, just a little beyond Grassy Slide, Stephen took this picture. This place will get your attention real fast. Just a little further on we met up with Glen once again at West Point View. He was on his way down having finished his trail maintenance work. Glen and Stephen posed for this picture and then Glen headed on down the trail. We continued on to Margaret’s Place where I took another picture of Clingmans Dome.

We arrived at the lodge at 2:00 PM where the weather was partly cloudy with a temperature of 62 degrees. We checked into our lodge room where we dropped off our gear. Then we walked over to the dining hall where Jim, Stephen and I posed for our documentary pictures. We then got some hot chocolate and coffee, and went out onto the dining hall porch to watch the llamas being loaded up for their return down the mountain.

After a short rest we headed up the Boulevard Trail passing the shelter where Stephen and I spent the night last year on June 14^th. Our bunks at the lodge were much more comfortable than where we slept last year.

Just below High Top we stopped at an overlook where we had a great view of the mountains to the south of us. In this picture you can see the Newfound Gap parking lot in the distance. From here Myrtle Point could be seen to the east. At High Top, Stephen stood on top of the rock cairn. You would have to climb a tree to be any higher on Mt. LeConte .

We took LOTS of pictures at Myrtle Point including this one of Stephen on the edge with Mount Kephart and Anakeesta Ridge in the background. Jim and I did not get so close to the edge. In this picture taken by Stephen, you can see Sand Myrtle that the location was named for, Peregrine Peak, Mount Mingus, Sugarland Mountain, Mount Collins and Clingmans Dome.

After returning to the lodge we rested for a while and then had an excellent meal of potato soup, corn bread, roast beef and gravy, mashed potatoes, green beans, baked apples and chocolate chip cookies in the dining hall.

After dinner about 25 to 30 people went up to Cliff Top for the sunset. Others stayed at the lodge to enjoy the rocking chairs and conversation with other guests. Those who stayed at the lodge did not miss a spectacular sunset. What sunset there was certainly was lovely as all sunsets are, but spectacular will have to wait for another day.

After a semi-restful night (I know that at the lodge office it was 48 degrees at 2:30 AM), we had a wonderful breakfast and then prepared to head down the mountain. We took the Trillium Gap Trail down, and other than the llama droppings, there wasn’t much to see until we got to Grotto Falls. We reached the parking lot thoroughly exhausted and completely exhilarated. While those two terms may seem contradictory, anyone who has experienced this adventure knows exactly what I’m talking about.

As I sit here in my office 380 miles from Gatlinburg, I look at the pictures and anticipate the next time I can stand on top of the mountain and look out upon the smoky peaks that we call The Great Smoky Mountains.

Gerry Sturgeon