It was great to be back in Grayson Highland State Park because it’s a beautiful place. And this trip was well anticipated because it was my first backpack trip with my new Solo Stove and my new Snow Peak Trek 900 Titanium Cookset. I had already fired the stove up for a trial run but this would be a true test in the field.
We knew this trip was going to be a challenge because the forecast was bleak from the very beginning. They were predicting lots of rain which caused several people to drop out and left us with five in the end. But, there were a few of us that hadn’t been out backpacking in a while and I can’t speak for them but I was getting a bad case of cabin fever. Plus, I wanted to test out the performance of my new Solo Stove because I had yet to test it on an actual backpack trip. This was originally going to be a Panthertown Valley trip but with the forecast calling for rain, rain and more rain we went with our best option which was Grayson Highland State park. There are three shelters in the Grayson Highlands area so we figured we would have that going for us if all else failed. We arrived Massie Gap parking lot around 2:30 on Friday and began our journey. The hike in was fairly uneventful because we were in a hurry so we wasted no time in sightseeing. We took the AT to the Thomas Knob shelter at around dusk on Friday evening and were relieved to find that there was just enough room for the five of us. We were thankful because it was blowing light rain by this time; we were tired and we left our tents at the vehicle at Massie Gap which means we would have had to hike the 3-4 miles back to retrieve them in the dark. We weren’t very keen on doing that because that section of AT has some sketchy sections that are very rocky.
We wasted no time setting up our spots in the shelter and it’s a good thing because about twenty minutes after we got there another group of hikers came through looking for shelter. They saw that it was full so they continued South on the AT to god knows where. Once we got our places set up in the shelter we made the short journey to the spring for our water. Normally, it’s just a small hike to the spring at the Thomas Knob shelter but this time was a little more fun because of the weather. At this time the spring was nothing more than a trickle so filling our water bottles in the dark, on the unprotected side of the mountain where we were getting pelted with 25-30 mph wind gusts blowing light rain was comical and cold. That night it got down in the 30’s which wasn’t bad, but with the wind was gusting light rain at 25-30 mph we were thankful to be in that shelter.
Thomas Knob shelter is one of the nicest shelters I’ve visited on the AT and I like it almost as much as Overmountain shelter over on Roan Mountain. 
When we got up Saturday it was still gusting light rain so we ate and made our way to the Mt. Rogers summit, which is about a mile from the Thomas Knob shelter. It’s probably one of the easiest summits out there and although there isn’t much of a view from the summit, it’s very cool in its own right. The actual summit is atop a nice sized boulder that sits in a damp and dark pine forest not unlike that of Mt. Leconte. To me, it has a medieval kind of dark forest feel to it so I can’t resist the opportunity to visit either of them anytime I have the opportunity.
Our goal on Saturday hike was to hike North on the AT to the Wise Shelter(where we would stop for lunch) and then hike the Crest Trail back to our temporary home at the Thomas Knob shelter. It started off halfway decent for us on Saturday but quickly turned wet with a constant pouring rain and 30-40 mph wind gusts that didn’t stop until we were down in the valley by Wise shelter. The first three miles we were pretty much exposed to the wind gusts and an alternating light rain to mist precipitation. By about the fifth mile we were down in the valley and somewhat protected from the gusts but the rain just kept coming. I’d say it was about 2:30 that we arrived at Wise shelter and stopped for fifteen or twenty minutes to get a bite for lunch. It was nice to rest for a bit under the dry porch of the shelter.
The Wise shelter is located in a beautiful wooded valley surrounded by rhododendrons and hardwoods. There is a good portion of flat area interspersed with blueberry and rhododendron bushes that would make a fantastic area to camp. There are several campsites in the vicinity that surrounds the shelter. Just down the trail from the shelter is a bridge that crosses Wilson Creek that’s an ideal water source if you’re staying at the shelter. Wilson Creek is absolutely gorgeous and I’m betting would make a good soaking hole on a hot day. The hole just under the bridge looked to be about three or four feet deep and beautiful! Just on the other side of the bridge you climb up a thirty foot hill and there is a clearing directly in front of you that looks almost like a bog you might see in the Dolly Sods. In fact, various areas of Grayson Highlands bears a resemblance to the Dolly Sods area. Whether it’s the intense gray rocky outcroppings and boulders that look as if someone just painted them because they’re just too gray to believe. Or it could be the yellow grassy bog-like areas that just look way out-of-place. But, most likely it’s a combination of those and the red blueberry stalks that make you feel like you’re in a painting. In that grassy bog-like area just up the hill from the Wilson Creek Bridge there was a herd of ponies grazing just a couple of hundred yards away. This entire valley is gorgeous and really gives the Old Orchard shelter area a run for its money as far as being my favorite. I just can’t decide which is my favorite so I guess I’ll just keep going back until I come to a decision. We watched the ponies for a few minutes but we were running out of daylight so we continued on the AT until it intersected with Wilson Creek Trail after a couple hundred yards.
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We took the Wilson Creek Trail up to the Scales then crossed over onto the Crest Trail which was a shorter route back to the shelter. The Crest Trail, although shorter, was pretty tough because it’s a shared use trail not only is it fairly rough but it’s also exposed with no tree cover. We were drenched by the time we linked back up with the AT for the last mile to our shelter. In hindsight I think I’d probably stick to the AT for the tree cover the next time I’m in this position. We arrived at the shelter just after dusk and were very happy to see that there was only one other group of hikers there who were occupying the upstairs of the shelter. Saturday night it was even warmer and I’d say it didn’t dip below 38 degrees which was great because after our twelve mile hike in the rain we all wanted to stay warm the rest of the night. My Solo Stove didn’t fail to impress on this trip and I will definitely be taking it on the next trip later this month to Max Patch. I took a small nylon ditty sack full of dry wood scraps from home because I knew that everything would be wet or soon to be wet with the impending rain. On both nights it only took about a minute to two minutes for the stove to take a small flame and feed it into a mini-inferno. It was simply incredible. And considering this shelter is in a no fire area, this stove was brought a much welcome fire and heat. Although I brought the alcohol insert for the Solo Stove I didn’t bother with it because the wood fuel worked just fine. This was also the maiden trip for my new Snow Peak Trek 900 Titanium Cookset. I purchased this cook set specifically to house my Solo Stove because my Snow Peak Solo Mini is too small of a diameter. The Solo Stove nests perfectly down into the Trek 900 pot like it was made to go together. It also comes with a small pan that doubles as the lid for the pot. I also wanted the pan in case I wanted to take an egg while the weather is cold. This is a pretty nice set and I really like the large size of the pot but the fit of the pan isn’t nearly as precise as my Snow Peak Solo Mini. The next morning we headed took the AT back to our vehicle at Massie Gap where we changed into our dry clothes then headed home. Of course, no journey to Grayson Highlands is complete without a stop at Mi Puerto Mexican restaurant for lunch.
Here are a few links to information on this general area:
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FORECAST TROUTDALE, VA
| FOOTWEAR/BACKPACKS/CONTENTS | WEIGHT OUNCES |
| SHOES/BOOTS | |
| VASQUE CATALYST LOW HIKING SHOES W/SUPERFEET GREEN INSOLES | 42 |
| BACKPACK | |
MOUNTAINSMITH FALCON 55 BACKPACK |
76.00 |
| SLEEPING BAGS | |
| COLUMBIA OMNIHEAT LINER BAG | 10.20 |
| QUILTS | |
| ENLIGHTENED EQUIPMENT REVELATION PRO QUILT WITH SEA TO SUMMIT ULTRA-SIL EVENT COMPRESSION SACK | 29.00 |
| SLEEPING PADS | |
| BIG AGNES AIR CORE INSULATED SLEEPING PAD LONG WIDE | 31.00 |
| THERMAREST RIDGEREST SOLITE REGULAR CUT DOWN TO 20X60 | 12.00 |
| TREKKING POLES | |
| EASTON TREKKING POLES | 20.00 |
| TARPS | |
GRABBER OUTDOORS SPACE BLANKET |
12.80 |
| FOOD | |
| WINE IN PLATYPUS PLATYPRESERVE WINE PRESERVATION SYSTEM | 27.00 |
FOOD IN LOKSAK OPSAK ODOR PROOF BAG /ZPACKS BLAST CUBEN FIBER BAG |
75.00 |
| BASICS | |
| BEAR BAG KIT – CORDAGE/BLACK DIAMOND NEUTRINO WIREGATE CARABINER | 4.50 |
| ROPE BAG | 3.60 |
| MINI COMPASS AND TEMP GAUGE | 0.70 |
| ZPACKS CUBEN FIBER ZIP WALLET | 2.00 |
| SAWYER FILTER MINI(2OZ), ONE SAWYER SQUEEZE POUCH(1.5OZ), SCOOP CUP(2OZ) MESH BAG | 5.50 |
SAFETY LANYARD WITH BEAR GRYLLS COMPACT SCOUT KNIFE /ADVENTUE MEDICAL SLIM RESCUE HOWLER /COAST G10 FLASHLIGHT |
2.80 |
| TOILETRY KIT – MEDICINE/TOOTHBRUSH/TOOTHPASTE ETC IN OUTDOOR RESEARCH SMALL DRY DITTY SACK | 10.40 |
| FIRE KIT: DRYER LINT/LIGHTER/LIGHT MY FIRE FIRESTEEL | 2.80 |
| POTTY KIT – DEUCE OF SPADES, TOILET PAPER, NYLON SACK, PURELL HAND CLEANER | 4.30 |
| CLOTHING | |
| WINTER CLOTHING BAG 2 NIGHT QUILT: WOOL SOCKS/MIDWEIGHT WOOL THERMAL BOTTOMS/LIGHTWEIGHT WOOL THERMAL BOTTOMS IN LARGE OUTDOOR RESEARCH WATERPROOF DITTY SACK | 20.80 |
| NIKE RAIN PANTS | 12.40 |
| EDDIE BAUER FIRST ASCENT IGNITER JACKET | 23.40 |
| SEIRUS HOODZ | 3.00 |
| RAVEN RAIN COAT | 23.00 |
| SEIRUS ALL WEATHER GLOVES | 3.60 |
RAB LATOK MID GAITER |
5.50 |
| COLUMBIA TITANIUM RAIN JACKET | 18.60 |
| COOKING | |
SOLO STOVE W/ALCOHOL BURNER/ALCOHOL IN MSR 11OZ FUEL BOTTLE/SNOW PEAK TREK 900 TITANIUM COOK SET/OPTIMUS TITANIUM LONG HANDLED SPOON /LIGHT MY FIRE PLASTIC SPORK XM/GSI INSULATED MUG |
33.50 |
| WATER BOTTLES – BLADDERS | |
| CAMELBAK PODIUM BOTTLE 24 OZ WITH BITE VALVE FULL | 29.00 |
| SMARTWATER 33.8 OZ LARGE BOTTLE FULL | 37.40 |
| PLATYPUS PLUS BOTTLE 1 LITER EMPTY | 1.50 |
| LIGHTING | |
| PRINCETON TECH REMIX HEADLAMP IN HMG NANO CF8 CUBEN STUFF SACK | 3.50 |
| TOOLS | |
| LEATHERMAN TOOL | 5.30 |
| ADVENTURE MEDICAL RESCUE MIRROR / SILVA POLARIS 177 COMPASS / MOUNTAIN LAUREL DESIGNS CUBEN FIBER DITTY BAG | 1.50 |
| EXTRAS | |
| SUNGLASSES | 1.40 |
| MP3 PLAYER; EARPHONES; BATTERY IN HMG NANO CF11 CUBEN STUFF SACK | 5.30 |
| TOTAL SUM OF WEIGHT OUNCES | 558.30 |
| TOTAL SUM OF WEIGHT POUNDS | 34.89 |
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