PLANE CRASH
I got up the next morning
and made an egg and bagel sandwich for breakfast. After breaking camp, I headed out to go hiking. Since I’d done a couple of hikes in Linville
Gorge recently, I decided to venture elsewhere for a change. After Sunday’s easy hike, I wanted a good
workout. After some consideration, I
decided to drive over to Grandfather Mountain.
The weather looked nice, and I knew the climb up to Calloway Peak would
get me some exercise.
As I neared the peak, I
noticed that the day’s nice weather didn’t include Grandfather Mountain. The upper parts of the rugged peak were lost
in the clouds. I stopped at the
entrance station to get my permit, and checked the current weather
forecast. The outlook was iffy, with
lots of clouds and a chance of rain that afternoon. I was already there though, and I didn’t want to change
plans. I forked over $5 for my permit,
and drove a few miles down the Parkway to the Boone Fork trailhead.
It was windy and chilly in
the parking lot. I gathered my gear,
leashed the dog, and picked up the path leading to the Tanawha Trail. After a few minutes, we crossed an
impressive bridge over Boone Fork. It
was interesting that I was hiking along the same stream as the previous day,
but much farther upstream.
After another ½ mile or so,
I reached a junction with the Nuwati Trail.
From here, I usually take the Nuwati and Cragway Trails up to join the
Daniel Boone Scout Trail. From there, I
follow the Scout Trail to the summit of Calloway Peak, Grandfather’s highest
point. The Cragway Trail is
exceptionally scenic though, and I thought the clouds might clear off
later. So, I decided to reverse my
normal route. I continued ahead on the
Tanawha Trail, reaching the beginning of the Daniel Boone Scout Trail a few
minutes later.
I followed this trail
steadily uphill. It provided a good but
reasonably graded climb. After a mile
or so, I reached a junction with the Cragway Trail. There is an overlook here, but I was already just below the level
of the clouds. Because of the
conditions, there wasn’t much to look at.
Fortunately there were some nice wildflowers to add color to the
hike. The most notable flowers were
Trout Lilies, which I found in several areas along the ridge.
I continued the climb,
passing several campsites along the way.
I stopped at one to find water for Saucony. Despite the recent rains, it took quite a search to find water. I imagine this is a dry campsite in the
summer. A bit later, I encountered two
other hikers heading down. They warned
me that conditions at the summit were rather raw and damp. That wasn’t surprising, but I was determined
to push on.
Soon I found myself hiking
through a dark but lovely section of spruce fir forest. The forest was rather eerie, due to the
lingering fog. After crossing an
impressive rock face, I reached the side trail out to a shelter. I didn’t have to think long about making the
quick side trip. It was after noon, and
I knew the shelter would provide a dry place for lunch.
After eating, I resumed the
climb. I returned to the trail, but
spotted something white in the woods nearby.
I investigated, and found old wreckage from a plane crash. There wasn’t much left of the plane except
metal and plastic. After exploring the
wreckage, I rejoined the trail to push on for the summit.
Just before the peak, I
reached the base of a sizeable ladder.
In the past, Saucony has found her way up the cliffs nearby. She’s 11-years old now though, and I wasn’t
sure if she’d be able to make it. I was
afraid she might injure herself, and didn’t want to take a risk. Plus, the weather showed no signs of
clearing. I wouldn’t be able to see
much from the summit anyway. I was only
mildly disappointed when I turned and headed back down the mountain.
The hike down to the Cragway
junction went fast. From there, I took
the Cragway Trail for variety. At the
first overlook, I notice that the fog was finally beginning to lift. The summit of Calloway was just beginning to
peak out of the clouds. Below the
summit, I gazed over the Boone Bowl, which may be North Carolina’s only glacial
cirque. To the east, I enjoyed some
nice views out over Price Park towards Blowing Rock.
I continued the descent, and
passed a couple of hikers on their way up.
I ended up seeing several other groups on my hike, which was surprising,
considering it was a Monday with less than optimal weather. After the steep descent, I reached the rocky
Nuwati Trail, which runs parallel to Boone Fork. I followed it downstream, eventually rejoining the Tanawha
Trail. From there, it only took a few
minutes to hike back to the car.
Since my wife was spending
the week in Denmark, I didn’t have to hurry home. I decided to do one more short hike on my way back to
Charlotte. I took highway 181 towards
Morganton, and stopped at the trailhead for Upper Falls. I hadn’t been to Upper Falls in years, and
the 1.5 mile loop seemed like the perfect way to end the day.
I did the loop clockwise,
and descended to the creek just above the brink of the falls. I rock hopped the creek, and followed an
unofficial trail upstream. After a
short distance, I crossed the creek again, and found myself at the base of a
pretty cascade. I like to call this
drop “Upper Upper Falls”, to distinguish it from the main Upper Falls just
downstream.
I had a break and took some
photos before returning to the trail. I
followed the trail through one long switchback, arriving at the creek near the
base of the main falls. From here, I
scrambled up a steep, sloping rock to get a clear view of the falls. The waterfall is quite scenic, and it was
worth stopping to see.
From there, I followed the
trail downstream. Before long, I
arrived at “Lower Upper Falls”, a nice series of cascades and slides downstream
from the main falls. The trail crosses
the creek here, and I was able to leap across a narrow part of the creek,
despite wet, slippery rocks. On the far
side, I followed the trail up a lengthy series of switchbacks. Based on the staggering number of shortcut
trails here, I must’ve been one of the few people to actually hike this trail
without cutting a switchback!
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