Big Creek NC...group hike?

“For anyone in the area or if you'd just like to come along check out the trail page for a hike I am planning for June 13 thru 15...
I will need to know the numbers at least a month in advance so if your interested please sign up...I have 5 to 6 going from my club so I wanted to open it to the TTers also since there are so many of you I'd like to meet.”

“well it took you long enough to post it on this site ;)”

“lol...yeah I was working on it... sorry... hope your in?”

“Y'all going to Bear Central! ;)”

“don't scare clem with bears or she will cancel... :D right clem?? ;)”

“Walnut Bottoms in the past has been listed as having "problem bears" quite often. If bear cables for hanging your food have been installed it will be ok.
Pretty area. Your 2nd night has a very cool fire tower.”

“Mt. Sterling?

cool.”

“Camped at Walnut Bottoms last weekend. No bears. :-(”

“I've camped at Walnut Bottoms(cs#37) about 8 or 9 times now and never seen the first bear. Definately my favorite area in the Smokies.”

“heh.. I could not go to Walnut Bottoms one year, because the BEARS had all the sites reserved.. :).. and the rangers reminded me that park policy is 'first come, first served'..

Dangit.. I know good and well 'dem bares called in after I did too!!..

Other than the quick 'hello bear, how are you?' encounter tho.. never really had any real trouble with bears in Walnut Bottoms.. the best bear story for me was up at Laurel Gap.. where the dang critter was bound determined to harrass us all night.”

“by the way, Clem35yeah?.. You do what you want.. but when I schedule a group thing in the Smokies.. I just reserve the maximum.. knowing it's easy to get that many to go.. and if they don't show up, I just let the rangers know.. but so far.. I have always had no problem filling up the maximum for GSMNP trips.”

“That's a low blow there Gemini...
Actually the bear aren't that bad a big creek I didn't want to go black mtn cause they are bad there.. oh well...”

“well town dawg how much would you say would be the max?”

“one of my favorite hikes, used to live in the area.
bear encountered many years ago...only once.
Did see some fresh bear scat three weeks ago on the low gap trail, near where it reaches the AT and the connection to walnut bottoms trail...so...ya never know!”

“sorry clem. you know I mess with ya!!”

“you don't have a choice on that clem35yeah.. the park sets that number for you.. it is listed for each campsite.. and each shelter.. some are 8.. some 12.. etc.. and group size is always limited.. to 8 or 10.. I forget.. but it is all on the maps.. and NPS guides.”

“I don't have a NPS guild, all I have is a Smokey mtn map..and past knowledge of hiking the area.”

“IMHO most of the hikers or shall I say people on this forum would not even have a CLUE if a bear was in an area, Skerrry! Mohaaaaa!”

“Hi Jerbear. (That's all I have to add to this thread.)”

“This is true jerbear.. I mean I would probably be right besides a bear and not know it unless he tapped on my sholder and said hey!”

“We did this same loop last year (late summer) and the mice at Walnut Bottoms were very acrobatic. I saw one jump over the large metal disk on the "bear cable" and onto someone's food bag. No bears, though. However there was a bare...hiker bathing in the creek though = 8 0 , that was a bit of a surprise.”

“Rox, you misnamed the hike. This is the First Annual Snackcake, "Duh, I'll Hike Anywhere You Say, Hyway" Invitational Backpacking Trip.

So Gemeni, you giving out low blows now? Where does one sign up for this?

Skullcap was this a male bare or a female bare?”

“It was a female bare.”

“Ya get any pics before her boyfriend showed up Binks?”

“nope, i turned around and went back to our camp.”

“LOL!”

“I remember the last time I went to Walnut bottoms I had chewed places on my food bag... now I know the mice did get up there.

Chipmunks love that area also I remember seeing alot of those running around.

oH yeah Hyway we could have a different name... But I dont' think I could type all of that into the intro bar..lol”

“I just wanted to make sure Snackcakes name was mentioned since this was originally his idea and he is coming all the way from Kansas. Short of carrying his pack for him he should be treated as the guest of honor LOL”

“I had a mouse chew through my pack, then a garbage bag and then a stuff sack and the through a plastic baggy and then through the potato packaging. I don't know how in the heck it found it's way out. But it must of been pretty hungry. This was at CS#37”

“Resourceful little buggers, ain't they? I was pretty impressed by them.”

“mice are amazing... I can even figure out how they fly yet!!!!”

“I am officially in for this trip. Looking forward to meeting those carolina hikers/TT folks”

“will be good to meet you and a few new carolina hikers members”

“2 weeks and counting.. Ok I am going to reserve room for 12... I think that will cover those interested from here and those from my group Carolina's hikers..”

“I think you can only reserve for a group of eight.”

“The trip page said this trip was June 13.”

“Clem, did you mean to post that to the Trail Days thread? And if so, where are you getting reservations for camping?”

“maybe she meant 2 weeks and counting before she can make the reservations for the June 13 trip”

“Yeah, that's probably it Ewker. I just remember someone mentioned a Carolinas Hikers group going to Trail Days and was too lazy to go look to see who it was.”

“I was told that I should reserve a month in advance for the trip to Big Creek. Looking at that course I think 2 weeks before we go is good also.

Well Skullcap.. now I feel important.. didn't even check us out? Many in Carolina's hikers going to trail days in 2 weeks.”

“LOL Clem, no it's not that I didn't check you out. It's that I didn't go searching for the Trail Days trip thread or looking back throudh posts on this thread to see who it was that I had seen mention it.”

“ah gotcha...
isnt' the internet grand it makes us closer yet leaves us confused...lol”

“Are you waiting to make the reservation because a Month sounds good or because you can't make the reservation until 2 weeks from now? If you can make it now, why not just make it now?”

“hyway, you can only make reservations one month before you want to go. So she should make the reservations on May 13.”

“That's what I was waiting for the one month thing. Looks like that is a good idea as the list is growing. I do plan to reserve 4 extra spaces just in case.”

“Still hoping to do this trip.. but unfortuntely can't say yes yet.. either way.. its a good trip.. y'all will have fun.. :)”

“I will hold you a spot just in case Towndawg. You just never know.”

“I just removed myself from the trip "maybes".
I'll be doing an AT ridge walk from Newfound to Davenport near that same time period. Maybe I'll run in to y'all at Mt Mama's Sunday.”

“Keep an eye out for us.. I will be the one with the double cheeseburger & a dr.pepper!!”

“Ok folks this is the deal. I called the park and we can't get Mt.Steriling on the 14th we can only get Walnut bottoms for 2 nights so I grabed that for us. WE can set up 8 tents.. so hopefully we can become very creative. I tried other alternatives but none worked.”