Happy Campers Pt. 1

For the second year in a row Josh and I have taken a little trip to the mountains to hike new trails and spend quality time with each other. The Smokies have become one of our favorite places as we love the outdoors, being active, and a great view. While we had a good trip last year, we had an even better trip a couple months ago as we learned how to plan and prepare for our trip properly. Here are the first couple of days of the trip.

Day 1

Our day started early in the morning with the Explorer full of snacks, hiking gear, two people ready to see some mountains and a whole lot of excitement. The night before I compiled a list of songs that we could listen to on our drive and only included the best sing-a-long songs. We woke up early enough to bypass any Nashville morning traffic which set a smooth tone over the beginning of our day. Before we hit the road, we filled up with gas and were on our way.

The drive could not have been any more perfect than it was:  clear blue skies, warm bright sun, and a couple of lovers singing at the top of their lungs. We shortly arrived in Knoxville where we ran into a bit of traffic. The slow down didn’t ruin our ride as we rolled windows down and blasted some upbeat music. While listening loudly to one rap song, a truck with two camo-wearing passengers yelled out their windows agreeing with our choice of music and began to dance in their seats. Josh and I busted out in laughter and could not believe what just happened. (Goes to show that you don’t have to let situations decide your happiness; which is easier said than done sometimes.) We continued onward admiring the beautiful day and taking time lapses of the winding roads. Not much longer we arrived at our final destination and home for the next few days, Campsite 15 at Camping in the Smokies.

After we set up camp and settled in, it was time for our first hike, Andrew’s Bald. We also decided to go to Clingman’s Dome observatory. Driving towards the trails, we commented on how green everything is during this time of year in the mountains and how the vibrant hue was pleasing to the eye. After driving approximately 20 miles to the end of Newfound Gap Road, we are welcomed with breathtaking views. Neither of us had been to the top before but we could immediately tell that it was a popular spot because of the number of cars we saw, but mainly due to the never ending sight of blue mountains in the distance. Immediately we fell in love and couldn’t believe we have been missing out on the great location. As soon as the car was parked, we hopped out to the see the mountains more closely. Of course we snapped a few pictures and then headed to the man made Dome. The trek was steep all the way up and we encountered snow on the path. It wasn’t long until we reached the observatory and witnessed amazing 360⁰ views of the mountains. There are also descriptions and labels of the mountains in the distance which is useful information if you are directionally challenged (aka me). The wind was blowing pretty hard, but nothing was able to take our attention off the distant peaks and valleys. Once we felt satisfied, we followed the path down to the parking lot where we met the Andrews Bald trailhead on our right.

We changed into our boots, grabbed some snacks and were ready for the next trail. Andrew’s Bald began with a rock staircase going down and continued being a steady downhill trail with brief interruptions of streams. Throughout our hike we kept a light-hearted conversation where we playfully picked on each other. I gave a couple of riddles for Josh to solve and spontaneously spoke in a Miranda Sings voice (A YouTube personality with a nasal-y voice – check her out for a good laugh). We laughed at each other and enjoyed each other’s companionship. A short while later we arrived at a partly open field with magnificent views of the Smoky Mountains. Because of the openness, the wind became stronger and we zipped our jackets up all the way. We sat down to take in the vastness and blueness that surrounded us while sucking on sweet clementines. I even threw the peels up into the air when the wind grew heavy and a made a game out of it. Josh enjoyed the views so much that he said the hike has become his new favorite. We took our time with leaving and soon we reached the car. Throwing off our mud-stained boots, we hopped into the car and began the drive down while munching on the snack that smiles back.

Our first night at the campsite started with Josh on fire-duty and I busied myself preparing our hotdog dinner. (Note: the Lincoln log formation approach to fire building does not work well and the teepee design is successful.) We huddled close to the warm fire and laughed at our silly selves and decided we should get some rest for the day ahead. Our first day was full of laughter, love, togetherness, God’s handiwork, and safe travels. We could not have asked for a better day and went to sleep with full bellies and hearts.

Sure hiking is about the views, but it is mainly about the company you share the views with.

 

Day 2

Day two of the trip was another early morning when we woke up before sunrise to get a good start on the trail. Today was the day for Rocky Top! We had some trouble finding the trail and when we passed where our GPS said to go, we didn’t see a distinguished path or sign. After being given a map by a nice couple with an extra one, we were still unsure of the right direction. We eventually found the most likely place the trail would be and had one last thing to figure out: which trail to take. Searching for Lead Cove, there were two options to choose from but only one was marked with a sign and the other had remnants of what looked like a sign post. We chose the trail with the sign although it didn’t read “Lead Cove” and after half a mile in, our intuitions kicked in and we turned around and took the other trail. (Lesson learned: don’t go hiking without a trusting map.) Off to a rocky start (pun intended) we felt confident in our decision and began the upward trek.

A little ways in we ran across three young men who were coming down the trail in the opposite direction of us. We made conversation and found out that we were not the only ones lost. They started hiking earlier than us and about halfway up, they couldn’t find their way. We were glad to know there were others going through the same thing, but we offered help as we were trying to figure out the right directions as well. Using the best of our reading map skills we explained to them the correct path.

Once we got a good steady pace going we estimated a total of three hours to the top. The trail was full of rocks to step over while climbing uphill and although it was hard, we made few stops. We were really looking forward to reaching the destination because we had intended to do it last year but were too exhausted from another trail to hike and because we have heard the hike is a classic in the Smokies. On our way up, we talked to a 72 year old man who was also hiking to Rocky Top. It was inspiring to see that hiking is not restricted to people of certain age and I hope to still be kicking when I reach that age. Soon Lead Cove trail came to an end with an intersection with Bote Mountain. We turned right onto the trail as the map showed and continued on our way. A few miles later we neared Spence Field shelter and we thought our next move was to pass it and then reach Rocky Top. So we turned right at the fork onto a trail that took us to the shelter instead of going to the left. Once we reached the shelter we saw no signs for our specific destination, and we decided to go down a different trail. But a few hundred meters in, like before, we figured we shouldn’t be hearing the sound of water and turned around. After looking at the map many times, we thought it was best to go back to the last trail change. Along the way, we passed a few knowledgeable people who informed us where to go. It turns out that we should have taken the left route instead of turning right.

Feeling a little irritated at ourselves and at the map we began hiking (finally!!) in the right direction. Little did we know that there was more trouble ahead, as this part of the hike was the hardest. Also, by this time it was mid-day with the sun beating down over us. We kept hiking up and up and with every step it felt like there was no end in sight. Turn after turn we were met with steeper rocks to climbs. At one point I couldn’t catch my breath and had to sit down for a couple minutes. I became so exhausted and basically collapsed on the ground and it grew to me having a breakdown. Josh let me have my short cry while comforting me with a few words of encouragement and said that “we started the trail together so we were going to finish the trail together.” After what seemed like forever, we had reached Rocky Top.

Honestly, I didn’t pay attention t the views at first but instead dramatically fell down on the grassy plains. I was so tired and frustrated at our misfortunes that I didn’t appreciate the sight that we had worked so hard to see. Reluctantly, I came to my senses with some encouragement from Josh. (He’s the best!!) The view from Rocky Top was truly amazing once I gave it a chance! We sat in a large open grassy field while gazing at one mountain after another. 

After we ate our lunch and enjoyed the views we decided to head back down. On our way we came across a man who was nine days in to hiking the Appalachian Trail and he predicted he had about 100 days left. He knew his estimated arrival time well because it was his second time around doing the multiple month-long commitment. While speaking to him, he came off a bit crazy, which you probably have to be to complete a journey like that, especially more than once. Later Josh and I agreed that hiking parts of the big trail would be fun but going for months is not something we are interested in. Continuing our hike down, we were amazed at how steep the trail really was and we were glad to be almost finished. We ended the trails by running to the car and throwing off our boots and gear.

Today I learned that no matter your age, weight, or experience that you can do whatever you set your mind to. There are no limitations in life no matter what the subject is.

Helpful hints for hiking:  Always think positively (negative thoughts slow you down and you don’t enjoy the hike as much), sometimes looking down is better than looking up (if you stare at the trail ahead you might become discouraged at how much you have left to hike especially if the trail is steep), a good backpack and proper shoes can change a not-so-good hike to a great experience.