Favorite Nat'l Park

“North Cascades and Canyonlands”

“Karl Marx National Gulag & Park”

“Grand Teton, WY”

“Big Bend, TX”

“Big Bend is also my favorite.”

“Gojo's right. Grand Teton for me too.”

“Great Basin, ablolute solitude.”

“Yellowstone”

“gojo, so when you gonna move out west? Seems that that is your fav place to be, when hiking that is.

newgirl, did you go to Powell for haloween to get you free slice of Pizza at Pizza on the Run?”

“They had free pizza slices!? I can not believe I missed it!”

“And yeah, when you going to move out our way Gojo?”

“GSMNP”

“GSMNP”

“Guadalupe Mountains National Park”

“Nowslimmer: what part of the park do you frequent?”

“All of them! lOL”

“GSMNP”

“GSMNP”

“Zion NP... possibly Canyonlands.”

“Grand Canyon”

“Mtnman - You could find me almost anywhere in GSMNP. But I usually start with easy trails and work my way up to the strenuous ones during about two months, if I have the time. Once I climbed Mt. Le Conte on Christmas Eve so that I could enjoy a white Christmas.My longest hike was 19 days, about 100 miles, from Elkmont in a large circle way around Cades Cove. During Oct. I started at Cataloochee with 2 day hikes, then CS # 40, 39. From Elkmont CS # 20, 19, out. Abrams Creek - CS # 1, 2, 11, 1, out. Cades Cove CS # 10. Elkmont - CS # 27, 26, Derrick Knob Shelter, 28, 26, 27, out. At Deep Creek - a day hike. Then I cancelled a trip to shelters at Ice Water Spring, Mt. Le Conte, Ice Water Spring, out, because of a front moving in with winds forecase up to 50 to 60 mph for three days. Those winds could blow down a lot of trees.

The previous October I concluded with a 7 night hike to shelters at Icewater Spring, Peck's Corner, Tricorner Knob, Laurel Gap, and return.

My goal is to spend at least one night at each shelter and backcountry campsite. The goal is about 70% complete.”

“Capitol Reef, I thnk. The best features of a lot of Utah red rock parks..... and way less use!!

(OK, I love Zion, too... and Canyonlands... and Rocky Mountain... and Hovenweep... and -- near home -- Effigy Mounds N'tl Monument)”

“Zion, GSMNP, Death Valley.”

“Shenandoah”

“I've gotta start going to more National Parks!

Of those I've been to:

Isle Royale
Grand Canyon”

“Remember that contest Backpacker had a few years back where you had to figure out which National Parks fit in the blanks? I never realized there were soooo many before that! I didn't win but sure enjoyed researching and filling in the blanks.”

“Yellowstone (Winter)”

“nowslimmer: no wonder you are slimmer that's some serious walking. I've been to most of those places. I've been to all of the shelters except Silers Bald and Derrick knob, maybe 30% of the tent sites, those mostly in the Elkmont area and Fontana. I hope to nail more this winter, God willing. Maybe we'll cross paths.”

“Olympic.”

“Mtnman - Do you live close to GSMNP? I'm in Florida. Send me your email address at nowslimmer@cs.com and I'll try to remember to inform you of my next trip plan. It will probably be next summer.

You have a good name, short and descriptive. I have other names, but I worked hard to earn the current one. I'm writing an article about it, "Losing Myself in the Smokies." aka AdakHiker, BajaWanderer, PanamaPaul32.”

“Mtnman - Re: "The Llamas are legal"
You guide people "bushwacking" in GSMNP? That is a rough way to travel there. Wow!”

“nowslimmer -
Look for an ECT Florida (Ocala NF) hike coming up in Feburary...
or is it January?

Anyhoo, several of us TTers will be undertaking that hike - we'd be glad to meet you.”

“nowslimmer: Reply on e-mail done. I've bushwacked in the smokies a little but only responsible for not getting myself lost. They really frown on it in the park. Don't know anything about the Llamas thing above, wasn't me.”

“those of you who picked GSMNP, how many others have you been to?

i think that GSMNP is pretty damned run-down and crowded.”

“Radagast:
I go there mostly in winter, less idiots (other than our own group)and the views are better.I love the terrain, its familiar since I'm from the Appalachian mtns. It may be the only Nat. park I've hiked in., Several State ones mostly in the SE.”

“None of them.

Give me a wilderness area in a National Forest instead, where I get in free, can camp where I like and have a fire,.....AND DON'T HAVE TO RIDE NO FREAKIN' SHUTTLE!”

“mtnman. i agree with the winter thing. snow is great for chasing folks off AND for covering where they were, last summer!”

“Radagast - My list includes Rocky Mtn., Yosemite, Joshua Tree, Hawaii Volcanoes, Cumberland Gap, and Chickamanga & Chattanooga.

Horse traffic has taken a toll on the trails in GSMNP. But there are some nice ones on which horses are prohibited, like Baxter Creek Tr., Old Settlers Tr., and Sugarland Mtn. Tr.

I tend to agree with you, but maintenance has improved considerably during the last two years. And several of the shelters have been remodeled and are now real nice. (Icewater Spring, Pecks Corner, and Davenport Gap) Most of the lower trails will be less crowed, since most people want to be on the top.”

“gojo - I searched but have not located any details on that hike, yet. Please send me further information, when it is available and when you have an opportunity. Thanks.
nowslimmer@cs.com”

“nowslimmer: Man Davenport Gap neeeeeded some fixing, its too close to the road and gets less friendly treatment. I would like them to fix up Mt. Collins, same reason, last time I was there in a storm I thought the roof was comming off. I like Suggarland Mtn trail so I go through that way.”

“Baw Baw National Park, 2 hours east of Melbourne.”

“nowslimmer search for "Florida ECT hike". The hike is Feb. 1,2,3

Rad I've been to most of the national parks but I haven't been too deep into the backcountry of any of them. Some trails are battered but I like it just the same. It feels like home there.”

“The Abalama Walkin Woods”

“Glacier National Park - great trails , low crowds in september”

“Is the Davenport shelter already thrashed? When I passed by on my '98 thruhike a few folks were putting up a new one or so I thought.”

“Yosemite”

“and Sequoia/Kings Canyon National Park”

“Yosemite, Sequoia-Kings Canyon, and the Grand Canyon are tops for me.

However, I have visited about 10 National Parks and they all were awesome in their own way. Glacier and Yellowstone were pretty impressive.”

“Lassen Volcanic.

Because no one goes there.

Light traffic on the main Park Highway, empty in the backcountry.”

“Grand Canyon. Most of it has nobody but me .”