Gregory Bald Trip Report

“Friday, June 10th
Drove into the Twentymile ranger station about 10:30 or so, with a slow drizzle. Filled out a backcountry permit, grabbed up what I thought I needed, and started hoofing it to the campsite. There is a good trout stream to your right for the first 0.5 mile, and it was making plenty of noise from the rains over the last few days. As I crossed the bridge, it had been an easy night hike on a wide trail – complicated only by the constant wiping of my glasses, and the fog making it hard to see.

I turned right at the signpost, and I was on my way to campsite #93. I wasn’t quite sure where it was, but I remembered my trail book said something about it being just as you cross the stream the third time or so. Fortunately, all of the stream crossings on this trail were on high bridges, as I would have hated to negotiate all the water in the dark. After crossing the stream about six or seven times, I got the uncomfortable feeling that the campsite was a lot farther than I originally thought.

It wasn’t until I came upon another set of signposts signaling where the twentymile loop crossed my path that I realized that I had walked three miles in the dark, and somehow walked right past the campsite. Surprised to see the twenty mile loop was part of the Benton McKaye trail, I could turn left, and in three miles I would intersect the Wolf Ridge trail. Turn right, and in two miles I would intersect the Appalachian Trail. Go straight and in just under five miles, I would intersect the Gregory Ridge trail. After three miles of negotiating the foggy darkness five feet in front of me at a time, I elected to break the rules and make camp right beside the signposts.

Saturday, June 11th
Woke up after a restful sound sleep to a light drizzle, and elected to skip breakfast in favor of getting a good head start on the 3000 foot climb in front of me. It didn’t seem any time at all, and here I was at campsite #92. A hot cup of coffee, a left turn at the signpost, and I was on my way, and confident that I would reach Moore Springs in time for lunch.

The trail favors the straight up approach to climbing the mountain, which is a stark contrast to the miles of endless switchbacks one seems to see lately. I’m sure some would say it makes it a lot harder this way, but there are also some who appreciate the direct route in favor of the shorter mileage. At any rate, I was nearly to Rye Patch before I had seen anyone on the trail whatsoever.

The signpost here gets my award for “sign in most need of repair”, as it is virtually unreadable. To complicate matters, instinct tells you to turn left to go to Gregory Bald, but the trail turns right. I could tell by the false paths leading to the left that I was not the only one who started second guessing themselves after strolling nearly downhill for a mile. I was convinced I was headed down to Cades Cove, but just as I was sure of it, again a signpost to clear things up. Finally the Gregory Ridge trail, which meant that the intersection with Gregory Bald trail was less than a mile to my left, which meant my break for lunch was only 30 minutes away.


This path used to be part of the Appalachian Trail, and Moore Springs was the site of a shelter, before it was removed several years ago. The site is not even shown on maps any more, but someone had clearly marked H2O on the signposts which confirmed its location along a path to my left, although no longer maintained by the park service. The location would make a great place to stealth camp if you wanted to break the law, but for now the large flat rock marking the piped spring made even a better place to enjoy my lunch of crabmeat, soft bread, and some crystal light. I happen to love crystal light on the trail, but it is incredible when made with fresh water out of a cold spring.

Supposedly the path to Moore Springs makes a loop back to the Gregory Bald trail, but it was not clear to me from where I ate lunch to where it led out, so I chose to retrace my original path to the signpost, and make the steep 0.5 mile climb up to the bald. I’m sure some folks whine and complain, but it’s been my experience that the trail can be literally straight up if it’s under a mile.

Being an exposed bald, the winds swirled around, but the view on top was pretty spectacular. I took several pictures, and then headed down to campsite #13. If you happen to backpack in this area, do not wait until you get to campsite #13 to get your water, for I promise you that it is nearly a half mile down a muddy path to the water source. I had set up my tent, strung a clothes line to let some things air out, and rested up for nearly an hour before my friend Eddy showed up.

We spent a few minutes catching up on the events of the day and last night, and then looked around at our nearly empty campsite. Bryan called me late Friday and had to cancel. Christopher and Andrew were considering a side trip to the Appalachian Trail, and should be with us shortly. Kelly was a no show, and James had to work. That left Laura and her friend who were going to come up from the Cades Cove side, as well as Paul who we had expected who have been here when we got here. All in all, if everyone had shown up we would have completely filled up the campsite by nightfall.

Pencil in the Gregory family reunion, which added another eight to ten folks whom we assumed were exempt from having to make backcountry reservations since they used to own all this land. Pencil in also a nice group of four from Ohio, and once Christopher and Andrew showed up -- our campsite was at capacity. We wondered how we would hang all the food from the bears, since the steel cables would be maxed out. We spent some quality time enjoying good food, good conversation, a few good brews, and an incredible campfire – thanks to the Starkville God of all fire making being in our presence. Kids just tell your parents that spending four years at a party school in Mississippi is good for something.

We called it a night just as Tropical Storm Arlene pushed a weather front in for the night that brought along some of the strongest swirling winds I believe I’ve camped under in a long time. It didn’t rain, but I’m sure anyone sleeping in a hammock that night was definitely concerned for their safety. I woke up once or twice to the sound of a huge tree and/or limb falling to the ground really close, wondering if I would hear someone scream out in pain a few seconds later. As daylight broke the next day I was glad to see that no one was squished under a tree or large limb, but the winds continued to swirl, and the rain was about to commence.

Sunday, June 12th
It really wasn’t a morning for a leisurely breakfast, and a few of us had fairly long drives to get home, so we were on our way again. Christopher and Andrew had the longest drive and just wanted to get home before too late, and broke camp first. I was hoping to get down the mountain before the stream crossings that waited in front of us got so ridiculous, and Eddy joined me as I got ready to go. My thighs were a little chafed from all the water the day before, and before long I was all by myself again. The rain gradually picked up as I made my way down the mountain, and was at campsite #95 by 10 o’clock.

I heard two versions of the five stream crossings the last part of Wolf Ridge, so I wondered which one would turn out to be the truth. Did I have to wade across, or would it be easy rock hopping? Maybe someone was more talented than me, but the last four crossings were knee to mid-thigh deep. No matter though, because when you start getting this close to your car you stop being concerned about such things. 12 noon and I was out. Eddy and I went and ate Mexican in Maryville, and both headed west toward Nashville. A really good trip. Sorry that some of you missed it! I will try to post a link to all the pictures in a few days.

===================================

The Letter by The Box Tops
(also covered in a *great* version by Joe Cocker with Leon Russell and the Shelter People)

Gimme a ticket for an aeroplane,
I ain't got time to take a fast train.
Lonely days are gone, I'm a-goin' home,
'Cause my baby wrote me a letter.
I don't care how much money I gotta spend,
Got to get back to my baby,
Lonely days are gone, I'm a-goin' home,
'Cause my baby wrote me a letter.
Well, she wrote me a letter,
Said she couldn't live without me no more.
Listen, mister, can't you see I got to get back
To my baby once more--anyway...
Gimme a ticket for an aeroplane,
I ain't got time to take a fast train.
Lonely days are gone, I'm a-goin' home,
'Cause my baby wrote me a letter.
last edited: 6/13/05 12:50:45 PM”

“Thanks for the TR! I wish I could have joined yall....

I got really really sunburnt instead.”

“I thought this was a trip to see the flame azaleas blooming!

It appears that the Benton McKaye Trail is now marked throughout it's route in the Park.

Nice report, TownDawg.”

“I would have loved to see the flame azaleas in full bloom (like we did when we were out at Roan) -- but it was about 7-10 days early.”

“This does not sound quite right with regard to the campsite's capacity. I hope I find an opportunity to check on it.

"Pencil in the Gregory family reunion, which added another eight to ten folks whom we assumed were exempt from having to make backcountry reservations since they used to own all this land."

”

“cool

I seem to remember that those stream crossings were just over mid-shin at the deepest.
last edited: 6/13/05 3:04:42 PM”

“Yeah, we thought it was odd also, Paul. My understanding is that the stated capacity of CS #13 is 15. There were that many there, and that was without the permits we had already gotten approved. As far as I know, no one cancelled -- so unless the park service automatically releases campsite space within 24hr when someone does not get their permit turned in?

Naw, they were exempt, or just plain didn't care to fill one out. No biggie, just found it interesting.

I was looking back through my trip report, and I forgot to mention all the deer running through the campsite -- and we also saw plenty of bear track and wild boar sign.”

““I would have loved to see the flame azaleas in full bloom (like we did when we were out at Roan) -- but it was about 7-10 days early.”
TownDawg
3:56:51 PM
6/13/05

I hate to say it, but I told you so.

I hate I missed this trip. I hope I can get up there in two weeks.”

“but pardon me as I must offer a couple of corrections:

1. backyaker is Anthony, not Andrew

2. Although I did my fair share of it during my '4 years', I didn't go to the party school in Mississippi. That honor goes to the 'juco on the hill' as we like to call it: Ole Miss. I went to Mississippi State where people of all backgrounds and classes are accepted, not just those who were born with a silver spoon in their mouth and belong to a frat. As you can probably tell, I'm rather sensitive about being confused with the elitists 90 miles to the north of God's Country :)

Anyways, thanks again for organizing this trip. I had a great time and look forward to hiking with you and Ewker again.

Link to my trip pics


-toph
Starkville God of All Fire
last edited: 6/13/05 7:21:06 PM”

“here is the link to my pics. I will try to get my trip report on this evening.

toph, it was nice meeting you and backyaker. I heard yall leaving Sunday morning but couldn't get awake enough to get up and say have a safe trip home

http://community.webshots.com/album/368773062fzVsfP
last edited: 6/13/05 7:26:12 PM”

“same to you Ewker...we'll see you again soon I'm sure. Glad to see you and TD made it down safe. backyaker and I made the descent and were in the car by 9:00 am CST...hauling arse!”

“wow, I just missed you guys. I was at my car by 10:30 eastern/9:30 central time”

“That's incredible considering you were still in your tent when we hit the trail. Nice work.”

“I will say I was glad I was going down the trail instead of going up it. It is a lot worse that Long Hungry Ridge IMO”

“Good trip report and photos, guys! The Bald looks a little greener than when I went at the end of April.”

“Nice pictures guys! Ewker, I always love looking at your wildflower pics. :)”

“Thanks for the corrections, Toph.. I did my best to remember all the facts, places, and names -- but you know how it is once you get home, and trying desparately to piece all the sights, sounds and images in your mind.

I am putting together an update to my webpage too, so I will get all those into the content somehow. In the meanwhile, I really enjoyed hanging with you guys... hope we manage to do it again, soon! You are the god of all firemaking though -- amazing how you made it look so easy when eight other people in two different fire rings could not hardly keep one going in the drizzle and wind.


I never heard the final report -- how WAS Backyaker's night in the hammock? Did the wind pretty much throw you nearly upside down??
last edited: 6/14/05 1:55:42 AM”

“The map that appears ealier in this thread shows the Calderwood Reservoir area just SW of the GSMNP.

Check out this good breaking news on the lower left of page one:

http://www.tcwn.org/pdf/The%20Current%20Summer2004.pdf#search='alcoa%20tellico%20conservation%20easement'
last edited: 6/14/05 7:29:16 AM”

“lonesurveyor: I don't see it on the page.. but still good to hear..”

“ok finally my trip report.

I arrived at Twentymile Ranger station at 4:00 PM EDT. It had rained off and on the whole trip but was nice when I got there. I talked to a local volunteer for about 20 minutes then went to filter water when the bottom fell out. I made it back to the car but I was soaked. I sat in the car for an hour before the rain let up. Finally I was on my way. The humidity shot sky high after the rain and I was soaked again.
The creeks were flowing and were muddy. The hike up to the camp site is an easy one. I got to the campsite and looked around for a spot that didn't have much water standing.
About an hour later toph and backyaker showed up. Toph finally found a spot for his tent and backyaker strung his hammock.
We chatted and told bear stories for a while then tried to get a fire going. I had brought in a small fire starter log but as much as we tried we never got one going. The wood was just to wet. Toph did break out his canister lantern. The lantern was so bright we had to sit it far away from us to get from being blinded. We all turned in around 10:00 wondering where Towndawg was.
The next morning no sign of Towndawg. Backyaker said he heard the clicking of trekking poles in the night but didn't think it passed us.
Around 9:00 I took off knowing those two would catch up with me. I got to the junction and took off on the Long Hungry trail. I made campsite 92 in no time. I filtered water there as it was a lot clearer than the day before. While I was filtering a deer stopped to watch me.
About a half mile or more from camp something caught my eye on the trail. Was I finally going to see my first bear in the Smokies. I didn't have time to get my camera ready before it bolted into the woods. It wasn't a bear but a boar so I was happy knowing I had seen one of them. I was hoping to get a picture of it as I got to the spot where it was but no sign of it.
The Long Hungry trail is a good climb as it keeps going up and up with very few switchbacks. I ran into a group of hikers and asked if they had seen anyone else on this trail. Yes they had met a guy carrying a hugh pack who said it was loaded with food. I knew then it was Towndawg. I made it to Rye Patch where the sigh needs to be replaced as it was hard to read. The stroll from Rye Patch to Gregory Bald Trail was like a walk in the park. Once I got to Gregory Bald Trail I knew I was close. I did make a detour to see where Moore Spring Shelter use to be. It is a really nice area and the water was cold and so refreshing. I loaded up with water for the hike over to the campsite. The views from the Bald were outstanding. I just wish the Azaleas had been in bloom
I got to the CS 13 and saw Towndawg. No sign of toph or Backyaker. I remembered they had talked about taking a longer route to get there.
Towndawg fixed a good dinner of a salad, spag and french bread which he shared. TD is right toph got us a good fire going using cottonballs and vaseline plus finding some dry wood.
Deer were everywhere. They would come up behind you, walk around the tents and sniff the area.
That night the winds picked up and blew strong all night.
The next morning I heard toph and backyaker leaving as they had a long drive home. I was up a few minutes after they left. Towndawg and I tore down our tents and packed up. The walk over to Parson Bald was a wet one as the high grass soaked my pant legs. Once you start down Wolf Ridge Trail there is no looking back. It drops quickly. Just glad I was going down it instead of up.
The last 1.5 miles to the trail head is where you have 4 stream crossings. The depth ranged from ankle to just above the knee. I didn't even bother taking off my boots I just walked on thru.
I got to camp and waited on TD. About an hour later he showed up and we headed to Maryville to eat.

TD, thanks for getting this trip together. It was a good one even with the weather not totally cooperating.”

“but I really didn't do all that much. The wood should get alot of the credit ;)
last edited: 6/14/05 9:32:41 AM”

“Everyone needs a permit. I counted 20+ people going to CS#13 or having a reservation.
Towndawg 8
myself 1
group of 7+
group of 4
I doubt that they all had reservations.

At least I got some of mud rinsed off my lower legs and knees.

Thanks for the reports and pictures.
last edited: 6/14/05 9:45:52 AM”

“"they had met a guy carrying a hugh pack who said it was loaded with food. I knew then it was Towndawg." - Ewker

There can be only one.”

“salad, spag and french bread: It was awesome, even if I do say so myself. Romaine lettuce, Roma tomatoes, Fresh mushrooms, Sea-salt pita croutons, Bleu cheese dressing, smoked oysters.. Yum. I'll try to get my pictures developed so you can see the "buffet table."

cottonballs and vaseline: Right on. A really good trick. I learned something cool to do!

We really do need the backyaker hammock report though!!.. ;)
last edited: 6/14/05 9:49:01 AM”

“Dang TD, will you fix me some sgetti on the trail next time? Sounds yummy...”

“hehe.. I tried to get you to go, Embear -- but oh no.. you had to be wiff your REAL friends!..

;)”

“Ewker: Yeah, my favorite line still is the guy who told us, "Waded through the stream crossings? No way. Ankle deep at best. They just didn't know where to cross apparently."”

“I just emailed him to get over here and report...we'll see.”

“oK, I guess I will never live that comment down, huh? Yall know I luv you. :)”

“A REAL friend! Enemies I can trust. It's friends I distrust.”

“TD, He might have boulder hopped it downstream some place but no way was it ankle deep at every crossing.

embear, you were missed.

Hey TD, did you ever hear from the person who was on their way...lol”

“Every backpacking trip I've ever been on I dread turning in for the night. Sleep is always accompanied by a sore hip on this side... roll over... and a sore shoulder and knee on this side... roll over... yep, there's the sore hip again... so I ususally wake up equally exhausted as when I went to bed. This makes for a LONG next day of hiking...

Enter the hammock: Hennessy's Explorer Deluxe Asym Hammock (rated up to 300 lbs).

I had HIGH hopes for the Hammock after reading all the reviews and even higher hopes after having set it up in the back yard to test it out. After only a couple of times attempting to lash and tighten it, setup and take down becomes VERY quick and easy.

Lying in the hammock, even for only a few short seconds, I was already fighting the urge to drift off into a deep sleep...

Lastly, the entire hammock is about the same weight as my 2 man/3 season tent that I was used to carrying, BUT I could subtract the weight of the poles, footprint, and the thermarest (SCORE!). SO, needless to say, I was excited about trying this thing out on the trail.

On the first night, setup was still relatively easy, although I did require toph's hands to hold the tree huggers while I threaded the rope through them. The trees I had chosen were rather large and I could not hold everything together myself (probably just need to determine a better method). After that, hammock went up fine. Set the rain fly up and I was done. When it finally came time to go to bed, I climbed in, hung my sandals up on the convienent ridgecord, slid myself around to lay across the diagnal of the hammock (this allows you to lay relatively flat due to the assymetrical design of the hammock), climbed into my 50 degree summer bag, and "Ahhh, comfy..." for about 5 minutes. Then I felt a rather large cold spot where my better side settled into the hammock. I had read about this effect in several of the reviews. Some have complained, some have improvised, and some said "Ehh, not a big deal", so I sided with the "Ehh's" and didn't come prepared.

Some have suggested using your thermarest (which I purposely left at home) to act as insulation from the free flowing air that moves directly below your bum to rob your body of it's natural heat. After fumbling around in the dark, I managed to find my rainjacket, fold it, and stuff it under my rear which did manage to fix the problem... until I moved a little and came off of it... readjust and problem solved... until I moved again... this cycle would continue all night until I was finally able to shirk the bear stories Ewker told, stop hearing mystery hikers with trekking poles, and slept til daylight.

During the night, the fly kept me dry and kept the wind out of the hammock. My only real issue was the cold spot that drove me insane...

The following night, I knew would be interesting thanks to the prevailing winds and their frequent gusts. The cold spot was back and this was after swapping toph for his 20 degree bag. Odd thing here... I climbed down into that bag, zipped it up around my face and was warm. My whole body was warm EXCEPT for that damn cold spot under my ass! So I fumbled around again for my rainjacket, folded it, slid it under me and vwalla!

This night though, thanks to the winds and the anticipated rains, I had the fly drawn down tight over the hammock which did not allow me to tie out the shock corded stabilizer strings which help hold the hammock out maximizing its volume. So, the hammock and I made a wierd backcountry burrito and I did get a gentle swaying of the hammock which I'm sure I would have actually enjoyed had I not been fighting that damn cold spot.

Also, because of the ferocity of those winds, the considerably smaller trees that I had lashed to on this night swayed which left an uneasy feeling in my stomach. The sway from the wind itself was gentle and soothing... the sway being transferred to the hammock from the trees was less soothing and a little unnerving at first...

Ok, ok, this is getting far too long...

To sum it all up:

Pros:
1)Lightweight (compared to my previous tent/accessories)
2)quick/easy setup and takedown
3)decidely more comfortable as I did not awaken with my sore shoulder, hip, knee
4)MINIMAL impact to the surrounding grass/leaves/etc

Cons:
1)No insulation, bum gets cold
2)Even after re-tightening the ropes, when they get wet, they manage to stretch even further which causes the hammock to sag a little and before you know it, you and any gear that is not secured is sliding toward the middle/bottom of the hammock and bunching up right around the velcro closure
3)Almost requires 3 hands to get started on larger trees

Regrets:
Leaving the thermarest...
I missed it around the campfire (thanks to Ewker and Toph for allowing me to borrow theirs for a short time) and i missed it in the hammock as I think that may have remedied the cold spot

Overall Grade:
Even though i think a lot of my problems were expectations that were set too high, and possible user-error/unpreparedness, I am only willing to give the hammock a C+ for this first outing. I WILL try it again with the thermarest and reevaluate after that trip.”

“backyaker, good to know you can make the hammock work for you. Just to let you know toph and I were eyeing your gear just in case you were frozen in the morning ;)”

“dang double post
last edited: 6/14/05 11:55:48 AM”

“The biggest thing that scared me was the sound of a HUGE tree that fell with a loud crash sometime in the night. Woke me up out of a sound sleep. Pitch black outside. Way too much wind.

For a brief moment I was sure that someone in our camp was squished.
last edited: 6/14/05 12:04:09 PM”

“Damn, sounds like I missed out on one hell of a trip. I'd have been there but duty called.
Next time I’m there man!”