{"id":2292,"date":"2013-09-11T20:26:33","date_gmt":"2013-09-12T01:26:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/zurekbrau.com\/blogs\/richsblog\/?p=2292"},"modified":"2013-09-11T20:26:33","modified_gmt":"2013-09-12T01:26:33","slug":"vacation-day-6-walking-the-width-of-the-appalachian-trail","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/zurekbrau.com\/blogs\/richsblog\/?p=2292","title":{"rendered":"Vacation Day 6 Walking the Width of the Appalachian Trail"},"content":{"rendered":"

I\u00a0actually slept in today!\u00a0 Rich got up first and I didn\u2019t even hear him.\u00a0 It must be that mountain air.\u00a0 I even missed Rich screaming like a little girl when he discovered our unexpected guest.Rich was drying his hands on the towel that was lying by the sink.\u00a0 A very large spider dropped out onto the sink.\u00a0 I don\u2019t blame him for screaming.\u00a0 It was like a small tarantula.\u00a0 Then I woke up and found it in the sink.\u00a0 Before I scream, Rich yells up from downstairs to look out for the spider.<\/p>\n

Poor guy was stuck in the sink.\u00a0 I laid out some toilet paper so he had something to grab onto and he scrambled right out of my way.\u00a0 He went over the side and took up residence in the corner behind the door.\u00a0 At least he was out of the way and I knew where he was.<\/p>\n

Today, we were heading straight to Clingman\u2019s Dome.\u00a0 This is an observation tower that is on a ridge in the middle of the mountains.\u00a0 It sits at about 6,600 feet.\u00a0 So the altitude change was going to be different for us.\u00a0 You don\u2019t think about that until start trying to breathe heavily.\u00a0 It\u2019s much harder than it looks.\u00a0 Also, we had to go early because the clouds start coming in and you can\u2019t see anything.\u00a0 By early evening, the tower itself becomes engulfed in clouds.\u00a0 That might be cool, but not at the moment.<\/p>\n

Luckily, there aren\u2019t too many tourists in the park.\u00a0 It\u2019s fairly easy to drive.\u00a0 The only problem is the construction going on.\u00a0 They are working on retaining walls, shoulders, and even building a new parking lot.\u00a0 Many of the pullouts or parking lots are filled with construction equipment or trucks from the workers.<\/p>\n

We get to Clingman\u2019s Dome around 10:00.\u00a0 That\u2019s a little later than planned, but I did sleep in.\u00a0 We are just barely beating the clouds.\u00a0 We can see them over on the next hills and they are starting to roll this way.\u00a0 We start up the ramp, which is a pretty steep and very consistent.\u00a0 You don\u2019t really get a break.\u00a0 Rich is doing pretty well, but I have to stop often to catch my breath and not be sick.\u00a0 Rich gets to the top before I do, but that\u2019s okay.\u00a0 I arrive intact and only breathing heavily.<\/p>\n

We get the 360 degree view of the surrounding ridges.\u00a0 We can\u2019t really see too far into North Carolina because of the incoming clouds.\u00a0 We can see east down the ridge of mountains that the Dome sits on, north out toward Gatlinburg, and west over the other side of the ridge.\u00a0 We can see Cove Mountain, where our cabin is located, at the end of a ridge of mountains perpendicular to the Dome.\u00a0 We must be on the back side of the mountain though.\u00a0 We definitely don\u2019t see the Dome from our porch.<\/p>\n

So it\u2019s time to go back down the ramp.\u00a0 This means that my legs will be burning from the exertion.\u00a0 We walk slowly and take our time.\u00a0 We first stop at the intersection of the Appalachian Trail so I can get Rich\u2019s picture.\u00a0 I\u2019m going to make a gif of him walking the width of the trail.\u00a0 This will match his new t-shirt.<\/p>\n

Going down, we take our time and stop to take photos.\u00a0 There are flowers blooming everywhere.\u00a0 I can\u2019t believe all the color here in September.\u00a0 That and the sound of all the bees that are busy doing their jobs.\u00a0 You can hear those bees over everyone talking around you.\u00a0 I\u2019m not sure why the bees aren\u2019t mad at us all there.<\/p>\n

It looks like blackberry season is just finishing up here in the park.\u00a0 Everywhere I look, I see bushes, but the berries are gone or dried up.\u00a0 Along the ramp, there are places where the bears have pushed into the patches so that they reach more berries.\u00a0 It\u2019s hard to see these indentations from the photos.\u00a0 Some are only a foot or so in and some are pushed at least 4 or 5 feet in.<\/p>\n

We get down to the bottom and the legs keep burning.\u00a0 We walk out to the end of the parking lot to try and get photos of the clouds lowering onto the overlook.\u00a0 I see a small dog with a couple on his and her motorcycles.\u00a0 Then I see a soft crate strapped to his motorcycle.\u00a0 I realize that poor dog is a passenger on this ride.\u00a0 I sure hope he doesn\u2019t mind.<\/p>\n

We get in the car and head out down the road.\u00a0 We stop at the Spruce-Fir Nature Walk.\u00a0 This is a trail through a spruce and fir forest.\u00a0 It was very beautiful, green, and quiet.\u00a0 The trail explained the live and decay process in this force.\u00a0 With this, we saw interesting examples of fungi, including something called Witch\u2019s Butter.\u00a0 Rich got some good pictures of this.\u00a0 I\u2019ll be to be sure and post them.<\/p>\n

From here, we go to the Newfound Gap Overlook.\u00a0 This overlook straddles the Tennessee and North Carolina state lines.\u00a0 There was a sign where the line is between the two states.\u00a0 I was able to get a picture with it.\u00a0 The original overlook was built in 1933 as part of the CCC program.\u00a0 The parking lot and extension you see today was built a little later.\u00a0 From this overlook, you can stand in one spot and look down into two states.<\/p>\n

Rich saw a description for one of the quiet walkways that included a swinging bridge.\u00a0 He wanted to go and check it.\u00a0 So we drove down the back side of the ridge to the pullout.\u00a0 We didn\u2019t see it at first.\u00a0 We double back and find it tucked in the corner of the lot.\u00a0 We started up the hill and got pretty well into the trail before it stopped and dropped down the hill at a 50 degree angle.\u00a0 There was no way I could that.\u00a0 We give up and head back to the car.<\/p>\n

On the road again, we head back toward Gatlinburg.\u00a0 Along the way, we stop in at the Chimneys picnic area.\u00a0 We grab a late lunch of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.\u00a0 After eating, we grab our camelbaks and head off to the Cove Hardwood Forest nature trail.\u00a0 We meet a couple coming down from the trail.\u00a0 They tell us how beautiful the trail is, but they forget to mention how steep the trail is. We head up the trail anyway.<\/p>\n

These nature trails explain parts of the mountain area along with the wildlife and environment around it.\u00a0 They are very educational besides providing you with a walk trail to hike.\u00a0 This area describes the hardwood forest of the area with its diverse tree and plant population.\u00a0 There are examples of what logging does to the older forest and how it changes the environment.<\/p>\n

The trail keeps going higher and higher up the mountain.\u00a0 When I think we might be getting lost, it starts to turn and go back down again.\u00a0 You see the forest from one angle on the lower trail and then get a bird\u2019s eye of the entire forest from the old growth above down through the logged areas.\u00a0 The trail is rock and packed earth.\u00a0 The angle makes it a little difficult, but it was very nice.\u00a0 After this, we are just hot, sweaty, and tired.<\/p>\n

We head back down the mountain to our cabin.\u00a0 To get to our cabin from the park, we have to down one side of the parkway, through a tunnel, make a U turn, cross over a bridge, and get back on the other side of the parkway.\u00a0 Our road is a very quick right turn up a hill.\u00a0 The hill twists very quickly and is at about a 45 degree angle.\u00a0 The road twists and turns in switchbacks.\u00a0 The cabin sits right on one of these corners.\u00a0 I have to shoot across the road very quickly and onto the concrete pad to park.\u00a0 I keep thinking someone will come around that corner and mow us down before we get to the concrete.\u00a0 So far so good.<\/p>\n

We clean up and head into Pigeon Forge for dinner.\u00a0 I picked out the Old Mill Restaurant for dinner.\u00a0 Mostly, this is for the pottery store that is next door.\u00a0 Turns out, they had really awesome food.\u00a0 Rich got a steak that was cooked perfectly.\u00a0 I got the chicken livers, which were cooked nicely.\u00a0 I was disappointed they didn\u2019t come with gravy because I just wasn\u2019t digging the come back sauce, which was more like Russian dressing.<\/p>\n

We finish dinner and I pull Rich into the pottery store.\u00a0 He could stay out in the garden and listen to the oboe player out there playing Kenny G type songs.\u00a0 He looked like Fabio though.\u00a0 I think he had an Italian name, but it wasn\u2019t anything like Kenny G.\u00a0 I look around the entire store.\u00a0 I\u2019m on a mission of sorts for a container.\u00a0 I find what I\u2019m looking for and a little more.\u00a0 There is a butter bell.\u00a0 You put a stick of butter into the bell and put water in the container.\u00a0 The bell fits into the container pushing the water up to make a seal.\u00a0 Then your butter stays cool and sealed against anything getting into it.\u00a0 Pretty cool.<\/p>\n

We head back to the cabin for the night.\u00a0 After writing up blogs, processing pictures, and picking out hikes for tomorrow.\u00a0 We get our IPAs and sit on the porch to watch the stars.\u00a0 The clouds are rolling by, but it eventually clears.\u00a0 No shooting stars tonight.\u00a0 Then it\u2019s off to bed.<\/p>\n

I realize we have a schedule now.\u00a0 We get up around 8:00 and have breakfast.\u00a0 We are in the park by 10:00 and hike around until 3:00 or 4:00.\u00a0 We then return to the cabin, clean up, and get out to dinner by 5:00.\u00a0 We are back by 7:00 and work on various projects.\u00a0 We check on the progress of the clouds rolling in over Mt. Leconte during the evening.\u00a0 After it is dark, we sit out on the porch with a beverage of choice and watch the stars.\u00a0 Around 9:00, we go to bed and read our book of choice until we are tired.\u00a0 Then the process starts again.\u00a0 Not a bad way to spend vacation.<\/p>\n

\"Tuesday<\/a>
Tuesday morning from our deck to check on clouds over Mt. Leconte.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Our<\/a>
Our unexpected guest in the bathroom. We looked it up and it seems to be a Wolf spider. He’s gone now.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Just<\/a>
Just starting up the ramp to Clingman’s Dome.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Looking<\/a>
Looking down at the ramp leading up to the tower at Clingman’s Dome.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Watching<\/a>
Watching the clouds coming in from North Carolina towards Clingman’s Dome.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Looking<\/a>
Looking out south toward Gatlinburg. Cove Mountain is almost in the center of the picture. Our cabin is on the backside of this.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Looking<\/a>
Looking out west from the tower at the Dome.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Rich<\/a>
Rich walking the width of the Appalachian Trail.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\"View<\/a><\/p>\n

\"Rich<\/a>
Rich is reading the description for an exhibit on the Spruce-Fir Nature Trail.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"I<\/a>
I found Rip Van Winkle’s bench on one of the nature trails.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Tree<\/a>
Tree that appeared to have started out on a nursery tree that disappeared.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Lovely<\/a>
Lovely ferns along the Spruce-Fir trail.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Standing<\/a>
Standing at Appalachian Trail with sign to Maine. We’d go, but we have to back by dinner time.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Standing<\/a>
Standing with one foot in each state. Just a little torn.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"I'm<\/a>
I’m standing on the old 1933 overlook at Newfound Gap looking into Tennessee.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Looking<\/a>
Looking out over North Carolina and one of the ridges running down from the Smoky Mts.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Most<\/a>
Most of the paths look like this with roots and rocks.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

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I\u00a0actually slept in today!\u00a0 Rich got up first and I didn\u2019t even hear him.\u00a0 It must be that mountain air.\u00a0 I even missed Rich screaming like a little girl when he discovered our unexpected guest.Rich was drying his hands on the towel that was lying by the sink.\u00a0 A very large spider dropped out onto […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[3,12,15],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/zurekbrau.com\/blogs\/richsblog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2292"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/zurekbrau.com\/blogs\/richsblog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/zurekbrau.com\/blogs\/richsblog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zurekbrau.com\/blogs\/richsblog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zurekbrau.com\/blogs\/richsblog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2292"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/zurekbrau.com\/blogs\/richsblog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2292\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2340,"href":"https:\/\/zurekbrau.com\/blogs\/richsblog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2292\/revisions\/2340"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/zurekbrau.com\/blogs\/richsblog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2292"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zurekbrau.com\/blogs\/richsblog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2292"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zurekbrau.com\/blogs\/richsblog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2292"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}