A Hiking and Cycling Adventure Blog
Uphill's 2018 Pacific Crest Trail Thru-Hike - Uphillhike
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These two trails are similar in that they are short easy walks and very accessible. The Tow String trail is near the North Carolina park entrance at Hwy 441 and the Twin Creeks trail only a few miles from the Tennessee park entrance at Hwy 441. Both trails are a couple of miles long. If attempting to hike the "map" of the Smokies, both trails are easily overlooked. So was the case with me. I ran these last 2 trails to finish up my 900 miler qualification. Well, once...

21 November, 2015 /

The Bartram Trail intersects the Appalachian Trail in 2 places, on the north end near the top of Cheoah Bald and on the south end near the top of Wayah Bald. The loop is about 58 miles long. The Bartram trail portion includes several road walks and requires care to avoid getting off the trail. The good news is that the Bartram trail is blazed with yellow blazes and you should usually be okay if you look out for blazes. There are a few places where the blazes...

27 October, 2015 /

Trailside Camp to Winding Stair Gap Road parking on Hwy 19 / 129 - 8 miles It was a short day. I was back to my car by noon. It had rained some during the night, but it was not blowing so I left one side of my tarp open and stayed dry. This lean-to tarp arrangement is comfortable and makes it easy to move around and cook and just open up to the outdoors. It was so muggy again that it made it hard to sleep with the down...

26 October, 2015 /

Wayah Shelter to trail side camp - 17.5 miles I was up at 6:30 am and after oatmeal and nuts I was on the trail in the dark. Nice views from Wayah with a guide to show horizon with named mountains, distances, and compass bearings. Standing Indian was the easiest to pick out.   [caption id="" align="alignnone" width="640"] View from Wayah Bald before sunrise[/caption] It had been a warm and muggy night and the day was hot and humid.   [caption id="" align="alignnone" width="640"] After short ascent on old logging road, It was very...

25 October, 2015 /

Appalachian Trail Rufus Morgan Shelter to Wayah Shelter - 16 miles Had great camp mates from Atlanta (Reynoldstown). Ben, Mike, and Rusty. Ben had to help a hiker with a sprained ankle down to the NOC, then climb the 0.8 miles back to the shelter. Thanks for the campfire. They tented so I had the shelter to myself. It quickly became overcast, but I still had nice views from the jump up. I stopped for a long lunch at Wesser Fire Tower. I must have seen 50 people between Wesser Shelter and...

24 October, 2015 /

Started on Hwy 19 at Winding Stair road. 5 miles on Bartram to AT And Cheoah Bald. Another 8 miles to the Nantahala Outdoor Center on Hwy 19. Another 0.8 miles to Rufus Morgan Shelter on AT. Didn't see anyone on the Bartram trail. It follows Ledbetter Creek with beautiful cascades and falls. After climbing 3000 ft in 5 miles, the rest of the day added to the exhaustion. Now I am sitting at the Rivers End Restaurant at the NOC before hiking the last bit to the shelter. I...

23 October, 2015 /