Three Forks -- GSMNP

“I've updated the trip information.

Featured is a reconnaissance that will preview some of the wildest country in the Southeast US. We will meet Friday afternoon/evening at CS #44. There are two trails leading to it, and both begin on the Straight Fork Road.

We will bushwhack Saturday to Three Forks. There are two trails leading to it, and both begin at the McGee Springs campsite (#44).

My plan is to go into Three Forks using the manway and then come out by going up Right Fork and McGee Prong.”

“We are still a good ways off on this one.. but I will be calling GSMNP in a few weeks. If you have an opportunity to update your yes/maybe/no status it will give me a chance to be accurate when I make reservations.”

“Iam starting the process with the station for the allotted time frame. Will keep in touch.”

“Mileages?”

“low mileages, but off trail bushwhacking.”

“Is there an "on trail busnwhacking" or would that be trail maintenance?

LOL.”

“LOLz.. that would be a yes, NS.

but seriously.. mileage from 44 down to TF is prolly less than 5 miles.. maybe less than 3.. but it will take a good 3-4 hrs to make that distance over breakneck ridge..

and then coming back up the creek to the springs.. another good 4 hrs for sure.. maybe more depending on several factors.

this one is not a race -- its an historical adventure, and exploratory fishing trip and reconnaissance mission.”

“When is the spring hike to Tri-Corner?”

“Give me a nearby town that I can map-search for?”

“MarkO --Get you a GSMNP map, or I can email you one.

edoc -- Dont know. You got any idea for a good weekend to try it?”

“April”

“yeah.. third week of april sounds good.. let me check my calendar.”

“Maybe start on Thursday, 4/17?

That would give us two complete days to get up the mountain, and another (easier) two to get back down.”

“Sure is good to hear someone talk about going up a mountain. I get tired of hearing from so many great hikers talking about hiking down various trails in GSMNP.

In order to join the 900-mile club, I feel they should have to hike each trail in each directiion!”

“To all who have signed up as a yes/maybe -- just wondering.. did you take Friday off work?.. and if so could we start Friday morning?.. did you take Monday off work, and if so, could we add the extra day.. ?

Just curious. With all the DROUGHT, it might be tempting if we got down to three forks pretty early that first day.. well ... .. ... you know EXACTLY what I'm thinking.
last edited: 8/16/07 9:20:25 AM”

“Heaven help us if anyone knows what you are thinking!!! hehehehe
last edited: 8/16/07 9:35:13 AM”

“If I begin to think like Towndawg, I will shoot myself.

;-)”

“

“Maybe start on Thursday, 4/17?
That would give us two complete days to get up the mountain, and another (easier) two to get back down.”
TownDawg
6:50:19 AM
8/13/07

I'm thinking he's lost count of his marbles!”

“Don't ya feel the love TD...if you would show up more often we wouldn't have to her-ass you all at once!”

“hehe... ya ya.. whatever.. but most of you can read my mind by now..

no rain.. low streams.. easy passage.. very tempting to do the spring 08 now.. if we had enuff days.”

“So.. no one interesting in starting Friday morning.. and seeing if we can do the complete bushwhack?”

“I wouldn't be able to take Friday off from work, but I may not get to go anyway. I am going to be testing out the ankle on some easer stuff over Labor Day. If for some reason I miss it, I should definitely be ready for the spring trip assuming surgery is not required.

If you do complete the bushwhack, be sure to take some pics to go along with the TR!”

“Towndawg - Where are all the pictures for the "x's" that show up from the link in the trip planning page?

I'm trying to get my defibrillator tuned up, but I don't think it will be ready for the trip. The trip would be a good test for it. The cardiologist said that if go down on a backcountry trail, it should get me up and moving again.”

“I saw where some of you are going to be unable to go.. and I also saw where none of you so far thinks you have the extra day to spare that i mentioned about a week ago.

Just so I know.. who /IS/ coming.. so I can plan accordingly?”

“I had not planned on doing the complete bushwack this time, so had not thought of taking off more days.”

“I plan to go, count me in”

“Hi trapper. fridge is supposed to call me today or tomorrow. thinking about hitting the trail at first light friday, and attempting the bushwhack up to tricorner. if we could get there by saturday night, we could hoof it out the next day back to our cars.”

“Reservations are made.

Hitting trailhead first light Friday (28Sep) morning.”

“Please note changes to main itinerary. We will make final decision as the timeframe approaches.”

“anyone,got,there,lil,brown,trail,book,with,them

reason,check,this

ow,well,my,keyboard,is,messed,up

the,comparison,to,the,two,ways,in,seems,backwards”

“I ended up working this past weekend. They will trade me a few days back, so I might get to leave Wednesday afternoon.. and start at CS#44 on Thursday.”

“I must bow out from the trip. I have a medical appointment on Friday, with a possible torn rotator cuff. MRI is this coming Monday. Bummer!!”

“

:D

my research suggests the best descent to the 3 forks is from McGee springs not the end of the ridge. at mcgee you have to descent 300-400 feet instead of the 1200 or so at the end of the ridge.”

“Good job sir. If you happened to read the trip report, you know that we decided to take the “Breakneck Ridge” manway route.

For those of you who don’t know, the manway route can be divided into two parts: 1) The part from McGee Springs that goes west to the top of Bearwallow Top, and 2) The part that goes northwest down the mountain from Bearwallow Top to Three Forks.

On the first part there is fairly good correspondence between the manway and the deviations where we took a more open way through the woods. The whole idea is just to get there, and the trickiest part was figuring out which was Bearwallow Top. It's the highest point on Breakneck ridge but you will go over a couple of prominent points before you get to it. Once you make it to Bearwallow Summit, and the mapped portion of the manway fell out of use about twenty years ago, so when you leave Bearwallow summit you should go straight and then begin to veer right as you drop. At first the woods are open, but soon the trail enters the rhododendron and most of you already know from our previous discussions that Hell is Green.

offtrack -- I got one project request. I need to supply you with a path to create the same sort of elevation profile so I can review the route I hope to take this spring.”

“as long as i'm invited on that adventure, you got it. :)
i just did what you had marked on the other maps except i skipped the ridge manway and drew in the mcgee descent.


and yeah, i read most of the related threads.. i can't believe i never did see them before. hmm.. good stuff though.
last edited: 7/22/09 2:35:46 PM”

“

We can assume deadfall and all sorts of obstacles. We can assume that the rhodo will be too thick to go any other way but the bed of the stream.

What I want to see is the elevation profile so I can get a better feel of how absolutely ridiculous this trip would be.

I know it can be done though, because I have talked to several who have actually done it.
last edited: 7/22/09 2:49:13 PM”

“LOLz.. the one guy I talked to.. said "whatever you do, don't shortcut that little dogleg that looks so obvious to just scramble over the hill."

(hehe.. obviously the voice of experience)

There is a marvelous sand bar in that bend though, that would be excellent for an overnight camping spot.
last edited: 7/22/09 2:51:25 PM”

“lol... i think if you want really, really crazy you may want to go up any of the prongs of the Bradley Fork to the AT.. i'm thinking that may be some of the steepest soil i have ever seen.. that's also packed with old growth.”

“clicky 3 forks

click the globe to minimize that toolbar, zoom and pan around. there seems to be a discrepancy between the topo in my link and the map you just posted above in relation to the Breakneck Ridge manway.

can you mark the route you think you actually did?

and i'll post up your other plan in a bit.”

“

from about the red dot to about the dotted line it sure looks like a real narrow valley on topos.. very much canyon like.. it ends a bit past that knife ridge of mt. hardison. it looks like it's about 400-500 ft of elevation gain in a mile that may be tricky.

when you're panning on acme (topo), zoom in closely to little NIAGARA cr.. i think i would at least want to see it. it gains a 1000ft in about a mile. ~20% grade :D (it's the one that slashes the words "raven ridge" on my map.)
last edited: 7/22/09 4:23:57 PM”

“hehe.. (looking at the elevation profile).. water runs uphill?

;)

-- to answer your question I have serious doubts I could mark the route.. you would have just had to have been there, and seen/experienced everything I did.”

“where do you get that?”

“the little rise and falls on the elevation profile..”

“how do you think the big pool looks under water?.. any pool for that matter”

“Ooooooo. doh.”

“besides.. this is a map and it is also a computer program.. all it really gives us is an idea.. real good satellite photos would do us some good too but i have not found high quality ones taken in the winter of the gsmnp yet. :(”