So far I’ve done four or five different sections of the Appalachian Trail and still have many sections left that I’d like to visit.  I’d also like to hike the 100 Mile Wilderness up in Maine as well as parts of the Whites and okay well all of it to be honest!  I’ve already hiked on part of it in Tennessee, North Carolina and Virginia up to this point and I’m hooked.  It’s an awesome trail and I still dream of hiking the entire thing in one season but there is that work thing that always gets in the way.  So for now I’ll just have to be patient and hike various sections at a time.

This opportunity came when a friend of mine decided to hike the A.T. for a month starting somewhere just north of the Smoky Mountains and heading North.  So we finally planed it out and some friends and I decided to meet him on the trail in North Carolina near Roan Mountain.  We’d all hiked a stretch of the AT near Roan Mountain in early 2014 but this would be a totally different stretch of the trail that would total about 24 miles.  The plan was to meet our other friends near the Moreland Gap Shelter on the trail Friday and hike with them to the Mountain Harbor Hostel on 19E where their vehicle was parked.  We would then drive back to our vehicle and stage their vehicle in Virginia where he would pick it up in a week or two of hiking on the trail.

We staged our vehicle at the parking area on Dennis Cove Road just across the road from the Appalachian Trail trailhead and headed Southwest on the AT which immediately went uphill at a pretty good clip that had us all huffing pretty good.  The climb from our vehicle to the Moreland Gap Shelter ended up being about 2000 feet of gain and it never seemed like it was going to end.  But the day was beautiful and the trail was even better so it made the climb well worth it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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By the time we arrived at the shelter I was pretty beat so I wasted no time in setting up my tent and tarp.  I went with a little different set up this time instead of my standard MSR Hubba Tent system I left the fly and took my ENO Housefly tarp instead.  I did this because there was a possibility of a lot of rain and an extra tarp would be a welcome hangout for everyone if the rain did in fact come.

After we got our temporary homes up we headed down past the shelter and linked up with the trail that lead to the spring just down from the shelter.  It turned out to be quite a little hike down a fairly steep trail that wound down into a small valley.  Whew the hike back up to our camp was a but kicker since we were loaded down with water. Had a great night with a nice fire just off of and right up the AT from Moreland Gap Shelter.  It was so still and silent that night and not even the slightest breeze stirred.

The following morning was just as beautiful as the night before with a stillness that was amazing.  We finished breakfast, broke camp and headed on the AT past the Moreland Gap Shelter.  I’ve seen quite a few shelters along the AT up until now and this one is most definitely toward the top.  It sits in a saddle but it’s a protected saddle so I wouldn’t mind coming back to this one in the winter because it would be protected from the cold winter wind.

 

 

Hiking on Saturday was a mixture of hardwoods and dense Rhododendron forests.  We crossed numerous small beautiful creeks via these small bridges.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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We came across Hardcore Cascades tucked away in the middle of the Rhododendrons.  It’s a small, windy, concealed and sneaks up on you!  And once you see the lower section you have to maneuver to the opposite side of the trail to grasp just how far up the highest part of it reaches.  It keeps getting better and better.

 

 

 

 

It got a little warm Saturday so by the time we reached Laurel Fork I already made up my mind that I was getting in and cooling off.  Well we got lucky because there was a waterfall at the point where the trail follows the creek for a bit before it crosses it.  Needless to say we took a long lunch break and played in the waterfall for a good hour.  This lunch break playing in the waterfall turned out to be one of those times that are etched in my mind because everything worked out just right to make it a lot of fun.  The only problem is that I was ready for a nap by the time we were done.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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This sign was just before a park bench sitting right on the edge of the trail.  The area in front of the bench was clear and if you sat on the bench you had an awesome view of the mountains.  Plus it was a great place to rest for a bit.  Just after this bench the trail headed downhill and into some nice soupy mud wallows.

 

 

 

 

The Mountaineer Shelter is a really nice and appears to be a newer shelter located in a small valley that’s protected from harsh winds that might be encountered.  It’s set up very cool with three levels including a loft with a skylight.  In this shelter is also has a bear totem pole inside that stands about three feet tall.  The shelter had a porch that was great because you could cook there without getting wet.  We just stopped for a quick ten minute break before heading on to our destination for the night along the Elk River.

 

 

 

 

 

Saturday evening we finally arrived at the a nice halfway level field where we set up our tents for the night.  There was a nice fire pit near some large Hemlock trees where we got us a nice fire going.  Basically, the trail crosses a feeder creek to the Elk River and then climbs a small bank and opens up into a large field.  This made a great place to camp for the evening.  It drizzled on and off all night long and turned out to be a pretty nice night.

 

 

We got up Sunday morning and just about the time we hit the trail it started raining and didn’t stop.  It wavered from a drizzle to a light rain to a medium rain and then on occasion a hard rain but kept on coming down.

It turned out to be quite a climb out of the Elk River Valley and up to Jones Falls.  But it didn’t stop there!

It turned out to be a beautiful day to hike and the rain just made it that much better.  A lot of the trail we experienced on Sunday was in and out of national forest and skirting private lands and crossing roads.  It was great!  I can’t wait to tackle another section of the AT.

 

 

This was also the first trip in my new Vasque Scree shoes that I had recently purchased as a replacement for my Vasque Catalyst that I really liked.  The Catalysts’ are great shoes that I took on many hiking trips including the Wonderland Trail out around Mt. Rainier.  But the soles were wearing thin and really compromised my footing and made it dangerous in muddy areas.  These Scree shoes have Vibram soles that are harder and should last quite a bit longer.  Though I’ll give up a bit of traction on rocks because the Stealth soles on the Catalysts are unbelievable in that realm.

I can definitely attest to their waterproofness because we hiked in the rain all day on Sunday and yet not once did my feet get wet.  They have the proprietary Ultra-Dry waterproofing that is unique to Vasque and it worked flawlessly!  They breathed very well because my feet didn’t get wet from perspiration or precipitation although we hiked a good 6 or 7 miles and most of it was uphill.  That’s saying something because it got pretty warm on Saturday.

 

 

 

Simply put these shoes were outstanding and provided enough support and rock protection to easily get me through this 3 day trip so I’ll be taking them to Joyce-Kilmer Slickrock for another trip on the weekend of 5/1/15 thru 5/3/15.  I can’t wait to see if they keep up the same outstanding support and comfort.

 

 

 

 

 

 

FOOTWEAR/BACKPACKS/CONTENTS	WEIGHT OUNCES
SHOES/BOOTS
VASQUE SCREE LOW SHOES	36.00
BACKPACKS
Mountainsmith Lookout 50	66.00
PACK COVER
Kelty Rain Cover – Large	6.10
TENTS
MSR HUBBA NO FLY WITH FOOTPRINT AND POLES(NOW MSR HUBBA NX)	42.00
HAMMOCKS
ENO PRONEST HAMMOCK W/SLINGS	24.00
QUILTS
ENLIGHTENED EQUIPMENT REVELATION 40 DEGREE QUILT W/ STUFF SACK	17.78
SLEEPING PADS
THERMAREST RIDGEREST SOLITE REGULAR CUT DOWN TO 20X60	12.00
THERMAREST NEOAIR TREKKER LARGE	26.00
TREKKING POLES
BLACK DIAMOND FL ULTRA DISTANCE TREKKING POLES	16.00
TARPS
ENO HOUSEFLY	25.00
TYVEK	3.00
FOOD
MISCELLANEOUS FOOD	22.00
2 NIGHT FOOD – LOKSAK ODORPROOF BAG/ZPACKS BLAST FOOD BAG	53.00
BASICS
BODY GLIDE-BENS REPELLENT-SUNTAN LOTION IN ZPACKS CUBEN FIBER BAG	2.90
TARP STAKE KIT	2.80
MINI COMPASS AND TEMP GAUGE	0.70
ZPACKS CUBEN FIBER ZIP WALLET	2.00
SAWYER FILTER MINI(2OZ), ONE SQUEEZE POUCH(1.5OZ), SCOOP CUP(2OZ) MESH BAG	5.50
SAFETY LANYARD – BG COMPACT SCOUT KNIFE/ADVENTURE MEDICAL RESCUE HOWLER/NITE IZE STS	2.60
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, HAND CLEANER BOTTLE/HOLDER IN NYLON SACK	4.30
CLOTHING
EDDIE BAUER FLEECE PULLOVER	10.60
FALL/SPRING 2 NIGHT SLEEPING BAG: WOOL SOCKS/SHORTS/TSHIRT/MISCELLANEOUS IN ZPACKS CUBEN FIBER BAG	21.00
VIVOBAREFOOT ULTRA SHOES	6.00
EDDIE BAUER RIPPAC RAIN COAT	12.70
NIKE RAIN PANTS	12.40
RAB LATOK GAITERS LOW	5.50
COOKING
SOLO STOVE W/ALCOHOL BURNER/ALCOHOL/SNOW PEAK TREK 900 TITANIUM COOKSET/PRIMUS LONG HANDLED TITANIUM SPOON/GSI MUG	32.05
WATER BOTTLES – BLADDERS
CAMELBAK PODIUM BOTTLE 24 OZ WITH EDDY SIP LID FULL	29.00
SMARTWATER 33.8 OZ LARGE BOTTLE FULL	37.40
LIGHTING
PRINCETON TECH REMIX HEADLAMP IN HMG NANO CF8 CUBEN STUFF SACK	3.50
TOOLS
LEATHERMAN TOOL	5.30
MIRROR / COMPASS / MOUNTAIN LAUREL DESIGNS CUBEN FIBER 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 LESS FOOTWEAR	530.53
TOTAL SUM OF WEIGHT POUNDS LESS FOOTWEAR	33.16