Gregory Bald Hike 2014

I had planned the family camping trip this summer to coincide with the annual "azalea swarm" on Gregory Bald, so that Black Betty could accompany me on the hike. She had never been and was worried somewhat about the 11 mile hike, but I kept reassuring her that it was well worth it.

Cades Cove.

Of course, the lead up to the hike was a beautiful jaunt to the back side of Cade's Cove to the trail head. The Cove was just waking up, in its magical way, sun greeting earth, and the animals were out in force. We saw many deer and turkey on our way out and also spotted a bear finding breakfast in the weeds on Forge Creek road.

Trail head.

Black Betty crossing Forge Creek.

Rosebay Rhododendron

The trail ambles pretty gently for the first 2 miles, through stands of rosebay rhododendrons, giant old-growth hemlocks, and mighty tulip poplars. It stays right alongside of pretty Forge Creek,  crossing back and forth a few times on foot logs. After the easy 2 mile introduction to the trail, we arrived at back country campsite 12, where the climb really begins. From here, the trail makes a 2400' elevation gain (in 3 miles) up Gregory Ridge to reach Rich Gap. It works out to about 800 feet per mile, a pretty steady climb. We took our time, rested frequently, and joked with the hikers that we met along the way.
At Rich Gap, we joined the Gregory Bald Trail for a quick and easy 6/10 of a mile jaunt to the top.

So really, all this fuss is about a beautiful 10 acre, open, grassy bald sitting on the border of North Carolina and Tennessee in the Great Smoky Mountain National Park. It is covered in a world famous stand of wild native azaleas, which were in prime bloom while we were there on June 19th. The fragrant display was in various shades of bright reds, oranges, creams, yellows, whites, and pinks. It is pure nature in all of its beauty, and no, you can't drive a car up there. You have to put the effort in to see it and reap the reward.
Black Betty was impressed, to say the least.

The obligatory "selfie"

View from the top, looking down into Cade's Cove.

Flat Creek and Spruce Mountain Trail

Black Betty tagged along today for a little Smokies adventure which involved hiking two separate trails and working in a bicycle shuttle to boot.

To start with, we drove to the Heintooga picnic area and left our bikes at the trail head for the Flat Creek trail. Then we drove back down Heintooga Ridge Road to the southern trail head and hiked north on the beautiful and moderate Flat Creek Trail.

This trail was actually built in 1934 by the C.C.C. and still seems to receive regular maintenance. And if you can believe it, the lush grass which borders the trail for most of its 2.6 miles seemed to have been very recently weed whacked! We certainly enjoyed the beauty of the pristine creek and surroundings and the rather gentle grade of the trail in general. This would be a great one to take kids hiking on.

When we reached the picnic area, we hopped on our bikes and rode downhill 3 1/2 miles to the car.

Next, we drove the one-way Balsam Mountain Road about 6 miles to the Spruce Mountain Trail. Interestingly enough, we saw a turkey hen with about a dozen little chicks and then a ruffed grouse hen with several chicks while driving between the hikes. 

Spruce mountain trail is a short and sweet 1 miler which runs up to the junction of the now closed Polls Gap Trail. It featured a pretty little stream crossing and several large beeches, yellow birches, and red spruce trees. I hiked the 2/10 mile to campsite #42 to check it out. Distant thunder and threatening skies prevented us from hanging out too long so we headed back down hill to the car.

Gregory Bald Hike

I hiked up to Gregory Bald in the Great Smoky Mountain National Park yesterday via the Gregory Ridge Trail. I drove through a persistent rain the entire way to the trail head on Forge Creek Road in Cades Cove, but the rain let up just as I was starting my hike.

The trail provided a pretty and pleasant hike. It ambled gently for the first two miles along Forge Creek eventually crossing it three times on foot logs. The walk through beautiful stands of in-bloom rosebay rhododendrons, old-growth hemlocks, and tuliptrees was magnificent to say the least.

The climb really starts at campsite 12, where you begin the 2400' climb (over 3 miles) up Gregory Ridge to Rich Gap. Although this works out to about 800' gain each mile, the climb really didn't seem too bad to me on this particular day. I guess I must have remembered to eat my Wheaties for breakfast. The thrill of the hike came about 1/2 mile below Rich Gap when I encountered a LARGE BLACK BEAR heading downhill on the same trail that I was heading uphill on. The bear behaved exactly like I wanted it to and promptly exited the trail with a loud crashing lope through the woods as soon as it saw me.

At Rich Gap, I joined the Gregory Bald trail for a short and easy 6/10 mile hike to the Bald. At this point, the mountain was enshrouded in heavy cloud with very limited visibility which was a bit of a disappointment. It made it difficult to fully appreciate this 10 acre open grassy bald situated on the Tennessee / North Carolina border for what it really is.  The famous Gregory Bald display of azaleas were a bit beyond their prime but the colors were still brilliant and beautiful. In spite of the heavy fog and mist, I was able to spot azaleas blooming in oranges, reds, pinks, yellows, whites, creams, and various combinations  The fragrance in the air was magnificent. I must say I don't remember ever encountering anything like it in all my years of hiking.

I think that I will have to return later this summer to enjoy some of the many blueberries scattered about the bald. Maybe I'll luck out and get a view next time.

Overall, I will have to rate this 11 mile round trip as a must do!

As an Appalachian Trail through hiker, I feel that I must also mention that the Appalachian Trail originially crossed Gregory Bald on its route through the Smokies. The relocation to the current route took place in 1948.

                                                   

 1940 Great Smoky Mountain map showing the Appalachian Trail crossing Gregory Bald.

Ramsey Cascades Trail - Big Trees and Waterfalls

We hiked to Ramsey Cascades in the Greenbriar section of the GSMNP yesterday. The trail is 4.0 miles long resulting in an even 8 mile round trip. We had rain showers on and off for the entire day but fortunately it was seasonably warm for the end of February with temps in the 60's.

The first 1-1/2 miles of the trail follows a gentle climb and smooth foot path along side the Middle Prong of the Little Pigeon River. The remaining 2-1/2 miles of trail climbs along the Ramsey Prong. Here is where the slippery roots and rocks join with a more aggressive elevation gain making the hike a little more challenging.
Several old growth giants line the trail, including some massive tulip poplars and eastern hemlocks. The trail is in good shape with lots of stone steps and a couple of  long creek crossing foot bridges. It's evident that a lot of work has been done on this trail over the years.

At the top of the trail is the beautiful Ramsey Cascades. It is a 90 foot cascading waterfall and according to the little brown guidebook, Hiking Trails Of The Smokies Ramsey Cascades is the highest waterfall in the park accessible by trail. It really is a spectacular sight and I'm sure that it gets crowded in the summer. There is a huge flat rock in front of the falls positioned perfectly for viewing. We didn't eat lunch there because of the cool spray and wind coming off the falls but I'll bet in sunnier weather that would be the spot.

This trail gains around 2200' in 4 miles. Black Betty rated it difficult. I would give it 2-3 Snickers bars using Nimblewill Nomad's  rating system. The rain did make the roots slippery and Black Betty fell on the way down spraining her knee. She was able to walk out so lucky for her I didn't have to tote her like a sack of potatoes.

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