Shinning Rock Trip Report

“13 TTers showed up enjoy Friendship, Wind, Cold Temperatures, & Beautiful Mountains!

Pictures in a few days”

“I recon yall want details so I'll give ya more.

People showed up in this order:

Jerbear
Walkindude
Baume66
bpbaby
Hiker.tom
Spam
Skiracer
Txwoodswoman
Rolex
Swiss Miss
Gojo
Sarabelle
I-am-OM”

“Thawed out yet?”

“Brrr! My Platypus was still frozen when I got off the plane!!!”

“I have just gotten home. OM, Jer, Belle and I had a GREAT time yesterday and today. We did Deep Gap - on Cold Mt. - from Don and Caroline's (bar-b-que hosts) house. Their house is up a hollow, and faces across the valley directly toward Cold Mt. - lovely place! We hiked a trail from adjacent to their property all the way to the gap. Got back to their place at about dusk.

Sue had franks and cabbage, creamed corn, green beans, cornbread, and blackberry cobbler on the stove (and ice cream in the freezer) when we got home (errr, back to the shelter) last night.

We left The Shelter around midday. OM and Jer were heading up to the Lost Cove area.

We had a blast!”

“I dropped film off this afternoon. I'll get 'em back on Wednesday. Hopfully I can get some scanned and on the Photo Point page by Thursday afternoon.”

“I got off work early on Friday and picked up Tex at the airport. We drive to the trailhead and met up with SwissMiss and Rolex at the trailhead about 7:30 PM. The elevation was about 5,800 feet. It?s about 30 degrees and the wind is blowing pretty strong. After putting on some warmer clothing and doing some last minute pack arrangement, we?re off. The moon is so bright that we do not need our headlamps in anything but the shadows on the trail. The trail was easy, but rocky and there was a lot of frozen water in the big puddles. Rolex and I were chatting away walking up the trail without our headlamps on. Tex and SwissMiss were a very short distance behind. We heard this deep grunting in the bushes just off the trail. We both backpedaled a few steps and started yelling trying to startle the ?bear? just off the trail as we are fumbling to turn on our headlamps. Out from the bushes jump Spam and Walkindude laughing. After gathering ourselves and checking underwear and saying hello, we head a short distance to camp.

In camp, we find Jerbear, Baume66, bpbaby, and hiker.tom. It?s pretty darn cold and the wind is blowing through the trees. The four of us set up tents and arrange our gear and then join the rest of the crew by the fire. I was pretty amazed there was a fire because of the wind, but the trees gave some protection. We stayed up for awhile and then boiled water to put into Nalgene bottles for hot water bottles. The temperature seemed to be dropping pretty quickly.

Gojo and Sarabelle came into camp shortly after everyone was snuggled into their sleeping bags. I-am-Om rolled in somewhere around midnight.

We got up and the wind was still blowing. It was cloudy and the clouds that passed over the mountains coated the trees with white. It snowed some during the night and a little that morning. It was just enough for a dusting on everything. Someone made a fire and we fired up stoves to make hot drinks. The people that brought their Pocket Rockets and canisters found that the iso/butane canisters do not do very well in below freezing temps. Luckily, a few of us had our white gas stoves. It was 22 degrees out after we stood around the fire for awhile. Spam cooked up a great breakfast of Spam, eggs, cheese and salsa burritos. Gojo learned that it?s not a good thing to place a plastic, frozen Nalgene bottle too close to the fire. I hope someone got a picture of the bubble on the side of that bottle. Several played some Frisbee in a field for awhile.

After some soul searching, Hiker.tom and Spam decided that they would head home. We all packed up and headed to the cars. The plan for some was to dayhike to Shining Rocks. Others would go to the nearby Pisgah Inn on the Blue Ridge Parkway and have coffee to warm up. Walkindude, SwissMiss, Rolex, Tex and I went on to Shining Rocks from the trailhead and agreed to meet to rest of the crew at a nearby campground that was at a lower elevation and protected from the wind.

We headed onto the Ivestor Gap trail past our camp on Friday night and caught a connecting trail to the Art Leob trail. It would lead us up and over Tennent Mountain. The peak was at 6,040 feet. The wind was still strong and there were light flurries. It was still overcast and we could see Looking Glass Rock several miles away. We rejoined the Ivestor Gap Trail and headed on. We made it to Shining Rocks a few hours later and spent a short time there. Snacks, water and hot spot fix for Tex and we were on our way back. Walkindude took the Art Leob trail back to Ivestor Gap and we met up with him right at Ivestor Gap as the Art Leob trail joined in. Talk about perfect timing! Walkindude and I arrived at the intersection of the two trails at almost exactly the same time. After an easy hike back to the trailhead and vehicles, I found the a note from Sarabelle on my truck. Baume66 had also decided to head home to a warm bed and running girl.

We headed to the Cold Mountain Approach Shelter. Sue, the shelter caretaker, told us about a church barbeque just down the road. Sue could not have been any nicer! She even loaded the fridge with cold drinks and food. Read the note she left us. We all headed down and enjoyed the NC style BBQ. We headed back to the shelter well fed and enjoyed the hot shower! The shelter slept 6 comfortably, but 10 in a pile.

We woke up to sunshine, warmer temps and no wind. We headed back to the Pisgah Inn and enjoyed breakfast. After lingering for awhile we all parted our separate ways. Jerbear, I-am-Om, Gojo and Sarabelle were going to spend another night in the ?shelter.? Rolex, SwissMiss, Tex and I headed to Linville Falls and did a short hike to the 3 viewing points for the falls. We headed to Valle Crucis to hit Mast General Store and then headed home. I brought Tex home to meet Karen before Tex?s flight the next morning. We headed to the airport around 4:45 AM on Monday morning.

Our original plan went by the wayside, as did our secondary plan. Even with the cold temps and strong winds, I think a good time was had by all. As Sarabelle might say, ?Good Times with Good Peepls!?

I?ll post a link to my pictures after they?re developed and put on my PhotoPoint page.”

“Good job on the report Ski!”

“Sounds like a gooood cool time.

Didn't Baume66 tarp it? He do OK in temps?”

“Great Job Ski!!
I'll have my pics posted in a couple of days.

Yeah, Baume66 Tarped out. He said he slept warm.
Saturday morning, I unzipped my bivy and looked out. Ski's tent was about 20 feet away. He asked me if I had a thermometer handy. I (still in my sleeping bag) felt around to find a string that held my Photon light, Thermometer, compass, watch, ect. Pulled it out and it read 80 degrees. I tossed it on the ground and about 2 mins. later it read 19 degrees.”

“Yeah, I was checkin' the Weather Channel and thinkin' how you folks Just Might be catchin' a chill...

So you were in (or near) Ivestor Gap the first night?”

“We weren't at Ivestor Gap. The wind was blowing through there about 30 to 40 MPH. We were camped in a clump of trees back towards the TH from there.”

“thought you were back up on Adams huh?”

“Pretty close! About the only difference was we still had visibility.”

“Great trip report. I am looking forward to seeing the pictures”

“Thanks for the report....since I missed a weekend, I enjoyed your trip. Yes, looking forward to pics.”

“Hey Ski -

Great job on the trip report, especially scanning in those notes! I can't wait to hear 'Belle's version of the trip, too. (And maybe Gojo's?)

Dropped my film off, should have 'em scanned later this week. The best part about this trip was that so many different events happened simultaneously and there was a TT-er there to capture it on film!

I wish I could have gotten a picture of our "waiter" Gojo during the breakfast rush..LOL

Best part was the "group-OM-hug" outside Mt Pisgah Inn. You could feel the positive energy flowing big time. Even 'Belle came into the circle! I didn't want it to end!! :-(”

“Hotel hiking? Who woulda thunk it?”

“It wasn't a Hotel.”

“It wasn't camping.”

“DOOOOOD!”

“Option 1. Freeze, tough it out.
Option 2. Snuggle up with TX. Option 3. Find a warm hotel.

It seems cooler heads prevailed.”

“Sounds like you all had a great time. I'm a little jealous, wishing that I could go to all the group trips. Thanks for the trip report, including the story of the "bear". I had a good laugh!”

“bacpac sounds a little disgruntled that he missed a fun trip.”

“Well me and my daddy went walkin in the woods with ever buddy the nother days.

We got on our pakpaks at dark and my daddy sayed go over ther that way and we started walkin. We walked waaaaay up on the mountin and my daddy sayed this is not the rite mountin but ther is ther fire waaaaaay over ther so we walked bak to the truk and went the nother way to the tents wher ever buddy was sleepy.

I sneeked byside walkin mans tent and sayed "woooooooooooo I am the skeery Woooooof Baaaare!" and he was skeerd and peed on his sleepy bag.

Me and my daddy made a tent and got on the sleepy bag and closed our ey lips and waked up and it was code.

Ther was little snews on the dert and leafs. We ate supper with ever buddy and peed and got the roma ferra pee and played gimmedat frisby.

Then ever buddy walked bak to the truks with our pakpaks. Some peeple went home and nother peeple went walkin in the woods and me and some nothers went for the nother supper at the resront. I sleeped in the truk tho.

Then me and my daddy and Ant OM and barebare and pakpak baybe went to by a hous for eleventy sixes dollers. It was a perty hous that was Aint Bees. She is a happy nice lady.

Ever buddy sleeped good and we ate good suppers.

We waked up and some buddys went home and me and my daddy and Ant OM and barebare went walkin in the woods at the Code Mountin. It was jus a little bit code tho.

When we got bak to the hous Aint Bee gived us a good supper of corn bred. It was a good supper.

At the nother day, Aint Bee sayed "get them meen ol mole rats out of my dert" so I digged a little hole and got out the mole rat and it got ded FAST! She sayed "you are welcome verry much for gettin that ol mole rat ded!" I gived it to her for a prize cuz she is the happy nice lady but I did not eat his ded guts.

Then me and my daddy got in the truk and got to my hous and that is what we did.
(o:3”

“steve hiker, i used a nylon tarp and ground sheet. 15 degree, polarguard 3d bag (mountain hardwear 2nd demension). i stayed as warm as ever but i had a depresion that i set my tarp up over this provided great windbreak. tarp set up was one corner tied to the tree ~3 ft. of the ground, the opposing diagonal corner staked to the ground and both sides going away from this corner staked to the ground. worked great.”

“I hate it when everyone bails just, because the weather turns.”

“I guess it's a good thing you weren't there.”

“Sounds like great fun!”

“I gess I for got to say somethin els cuz I was tramma by the eppinsode.

Kno what?
that Texican Woman HATES ME! o-8=
She sayed "I hate you Sarabelle!" and throwed a pillo at my ey balls and nocked off my EY BALLS! for a minit. It hert a lot but I did not cry like a baybe cuz I am a BIG GIRL! I was layin on the flore mindin my own bissness and gettin scratches and pets and rubs then the pillo thing happend. Ever buddy sayed "you are a meen Texican and you better pologize and say you are sawry to Sarabelle or we will call PETER (Peeple for Ever Thing Even Rats) and TAKE YOU TO THE POLEESE! So the Texican Woman sayed "I am sawry" and gave me good rubs and pets and scratches and I was good then and ever thing was ok.

Mister pakpak -
o... never mind.”

“As always, Sarabelle told it exactly the way it happened.”

“Thanks for sharing the Aromatherapy idea with Baume, Gojo.”

“HAHAHA!!!!!!
Did he give you Aromatherapy?!?!
LOL!!!!
You poor girl.”

“No Comment”

“skiracer, You are correct Sir. If I had driven 600+ miles to go backpacking and half the group split the first day and everyone else bailed into a hotel the second night I would be pissed.”

“Just for the record, I was willing to stay out the other night but It was fun to hang out with everybody in the house.......er... I mean Cold Mountain Approach shelter. I did what I came to do.
*Got to hike in an area I'd never done before.
*Made it to Shinning Rock.
*Met some TTers for the first time.
*Got to camp & hike with other TTers I already knew.
*Tried out my new Down bag in real cold weather. (worked great)
*Had a damn good time!”

“A hotel? I don't think anyone said anything about a hotel...

I had a great time. I just didn't stay out in the cold and the wind the second night, but enjoyed the company of other TTers. I was willing to stay out the second night...even planned on it. Plans change and you've just got to be flexible.

I still got to go hiking in an area I had never been to before.”

“Woulda, Coulda, Shoulda.”

“bacpac- Maybe you'd find out how much fun the trips are if you were to ever go on one.”

“But that would ruin his image.”

“I have an image?

I just know what I like. I also know what I don't like.

It is not that I haven't been on a group trip that turns out exactly like the one you described. It is that every group trip turns out exactly like the one you described.

I don't like that.”

“Pac is signed up for the January Ozarks trip.”

“Women go backpacking for three reasons.

1. They want to show their man they are tough.

2. They are looking for a tough man.

3. They just want to f*ck things up.”

“** Disclaimer **

bacpac recently returned from a group hike in which he narrowly avoided serious injury.

As he was exiting the trailhead he was overheard mumbling, "Damn dees bitches be fo real..."”

“Give it up guys, bacpac is just baiting you. Don't try to explain the concepts of friendship, fun, and good times to him. He'll never understand why the trip turned out just as good no matter where we stayed...it's the people, not seeing who is willing to be the most uncomfortable for the sake of some crazy idea that it makes one look stronger or better than anyone else.

So, the solution is simple. Bacpac, you stay home and the rest of us will try not to cry too hard. LOL”

“It may sound crazy, but my dick gets hardest when the weather turns shiznits to the bizbomb and I still stay cozy as a bug in a rug.”

“Bacpac
You are da shiznit & da bizbomb.

LOL!!!!

Hell, I'll hike wit ya bro.”

“Well, not that I care for the way you worded that, but that's cool. You just can't expect everyone to be that way. Some are new to cold weather camping, and some to camping all together. It takes a little while to learn how to stay comfy in those conditions. Some folks never like the cold. Everyone has a right to his or her own opinion. "hike you own hike". Right?”

“Sorry baby, I should have used another word for 'shiznits'.”

“I'z speakin his language. LOL”