Southern Sixers = COMPLETE!

“Completed the Southern Sixers yesterday, finishing on Mt. Hallback, just south of Mt. Mitchell. I started on Craggy Dome earlier in the day and hiked around about 10 miles up Craggy and then took the MST north over Blackstock Knob, took a shortcut to the Old Boundary trail which heads up Potato Knob (Buncome NC county high point) and over Clingman's Peak (radio towers) to Mt. Gibbes, down to Stepps Gap and then the Old Mitchell trail and a short buswhack up and down Mt. Hallback, finishing at the Mt. Mitchell restaurant. Had in mind a celebratory dinner feast there when doen, but it doesn't open until Saturday. Oh well.

Finished the 40 sixers in under a year, starting almost last year with an AT hike through the Smokies with Clingmans, Collins, & Sequoyah last May, not for the purpose of "South Beyond 6000". Coincidentally, it was my first backpacking trip (and hike longer than 5 miles) ever, and I was hooked on the mountains and the trail.

I have pictures of the summits of all but Mt. Chapman (ran out of film, before I went digital), though many are rather obscure as they're offtrail and densely wooded.

Luftee Knob in the Smokies and Reinhart Knob in the Great Balsams were my hardest, though difficulty all depends on the route you take to get there. My favorites were probably Guyot, Yonaguska, Chapman, Sam Knob, and Cold Mountain. Richland Balsam and Grassy Cove stick out as not being particuarly memorable.”

“congratulations dude!!! that is awesome. Now you should come up north and start working on the Adirondack 46ers, Catskills 35ers, White Mountain 48ers. Way to go! I have 18 so far.”

“Awesome!”

“Hey PJ, are you the trailtalker formally known as PhantomMD and from wildcountry as well?”

“Congratulations! Great accomplishment.

Richland Balsam and Grassy Cove stick out as not being particuarly memorable.

Wow. They were so un-memorable that you remember them for that. ;-)”

“Congratulations”

“Southern Sixers? Has somebody stolen our basketball team?”

“Congratulations.

Doug”

“ENS,

yes I used to be "phantomd" on wild country (and on here actually until I lost my password). I now just post under my name on wild country. In my lifetime, I'm rather sure I'll complete all of those in New England, but since I live in (and love) the South, it might take me multiple years/decades of trips up there. I'll also get in the 50 state high points, 100 NC county HPs, and the Colorado 14ers before it's said and done, but not anytime soon. ;)

I suppose the 900 miles of Smokies trails (150+ so far) and Pisgah 400, as well as the NC county high points (~20 so far) will come next, but I've promised my girlfriend several trips with less "ups" next, as I've hiked her up at least half of the sixers when she wasn't 100% willing. Will head back to the Blacks to visit the Mt. Mitchell summit tower before they tear it down, find the Mt. Craig plane crash, revisit Balsam Cone to find the BM, see the view from Mt. Craig not in clouds, revisit the Potato Knob Buncome County high point (it apparently has two summits, not just one), climb The Pinnacle, and go to the Green Knob firetower, and then maybe a trip to the Smokies to Cataloochee to see the elk and the soon to be gone virgin old growth hemlocks.


The Sixers sure were a lot of fun.”

“congrats there partner...”

“thanks, i appreciate it :)”