COSBY
SWEATER
After
a fairly relaxing day at Whiteoak Sinks on Tuesday, I
was ready for another challenging hike.
Early on Wednesday morning I drove over to the Cosby section of Great
Smoky Mountains National Park. Although
Cosby is easily accessible from I-40, this area is often overlooked. That’s a shame, because there is some great
hiking in the northeastern portion of the Smokies.
I
arrived shortly after first light, and parked just before the gate leading into
the (closed) campground. It was
absolutely frigid. The fancy thermometer
in my car claimed that it was 29 degrees.
Perfect for a spring day! I wish
I’d brought a sweater. I started out the
hike under-dressed, but eventually I warmed up a little.
There
is a bathroom at the parking area, and the sign on the door said that it would
be closed until the end of March. The
door was locked. Apparently, according
to the official Park Service calendar, it was March 34th. There weren’t any other options, so I
improvised.
My
plan for the day was a long loop hike combining the Lower Cammerer
Trail, Appalachian Trail, and Low Gap Trail.
The highlight of the 16-mile loop would be a visit to Mount Cammerer. Aside from
being the only mountain I know of with a stutter, it offers one of the best
views in the park.
I
didn’t see any signs for the Lower Cammerer Trail at
the parking area. I took a leap of faith
and followed the signs for the Low Gap Trail.
Before long I crossed Cosby Creek on a footlog. After several junctions with the nature trail
I finally reached the turn off for the Lower Cammerer
Trail.
The
Lower Cammerer Trail contours around the north and
west sides of Mount Cammerer, crossing a series of
ridges and coves. The trail proved to be
an easy, pleasant hike. Early on I
passed an impressive spring. A bit later
I took a short side trip up to Sutton Ridge.
From there I was treated to a nice view of the surrounding ridges and
valleys. A bit farther was an appealing
backcountry campsite. There was a tent
there, but I didn’t see anyone. In fact,
I didn’t run into anyone until I reached the Appalachian Trail, nearly 8 miles
into my hike.
Somewhere
along the way I passed through a cove that had something of a waterfall. It was really just a high cascade on a small
stream, which probably dries up in the summer.
But it was a nice little diversion along the way.
I
reached the junction with the A.T. by late morning. I took a little break, and was actually
startled when a thru-hiker wandered by.
I got used to that quickly though, as I passed many of them during the
next few miles. After going 8 miles
without seeing anyone, the A.T. was a completely different experience.
The
hike up the A.T. to Mount Cammerer was a bit of a
challenge. It wasn’t steep, but it was
uphill the whole way. Fortunately there
were some nice distractions, including two impressive viewpoints. At the second was a huge rock, which I
couldn’t resist climbing. From there,
one final climb brought me to the wooded summit, and the junction with the side
trail out to the restored fire tower.
The side trip is 0.6 miles each way, which is kind of significant when
the hike is more than 15 miles to begin with.
But a hike to Cammerer without visiting the
overlook is pointless. The view is just
that good.
That’s
not to say that some people don’t miss it.
On my first visit to Cammerer, in May, 2003,
Bob J and I had raced a thunderstorm to the tower. We’d huddled inside while the storm raged,
seemingly for hours. Eventually the
storm abated, leaving us with a spectacular view. Late that afternoon we hiked on to the Cosby
Knob Shelter, where we had reservations.
Everyone else at the shelter was a thru-hiker. It was a sad group of thru hikers
though.
We
listened in to the conversations of the thru-hikers, and found them
discouraging. They all seemed to revolve around one of two things. Either it
was an obsession with mileage, with how far they had come, and how far they had
to go the next day, or week or month. Or, it was an obsession with reaching Mountain
Mommas. Mountain Mommas is a convenience store down on Big Creek which offers
groceries, showers, and most importantly, hot cheeseburgers. There was much
talk that night of cheeseburgers. As the veteran of numerous weeklong
backpacking trips, I can understand this fascination with cheeseburgers. My
thoughts on the final day of a long trip often revolve around junk food and
cold beverages. This conversation seemed unhealthy though. I pictured six
months of fantasizing about cheeseburgers. Through the entire evening, exactly
one thru-hiker said anything that suggested that he was enjoying the actual
hike. Many of them limped about the shelter like elderly old men. How many
would make it to Maine? My money is on the one guy that seemed to be enjoying
himself. His head seemed to be in the right place.
At
one point Bob J made a little speech about the wonders of Mount Cammerer. He
emphasized that everyone there really had to make the short side trip out to
the tower for the view. The thru-hikers
just glared at him. I don’t think any of
them intended to take any side trips more involved than watering the bushes
alongside the trail.
This
trip was different. I hiked the spur
trail, out through the heath tunnels and across the open rock faces. Eventually the tower appeared ahead. I scrambled up the rocks to it, and found it
much the same as I’d remembered it from 10 years earlier. I sprawled in the sun, enjoying the minimal
warmth (the temperature was all the way up into the 40’s by this point). I had lunch there and enjoyed the fantastic
views. The vista stretched in every
direction, from Max Patch and Snowbird Mountain to the east, to the ridges and
valleys of the Tennessee foothills to the west.
To the south, I gazed over the Big Creek valley, which is enclosed by a
horseshoe ridge comprising Mount Sterling, Balsam Mountain, and Mount Guyot.
Several
thru-hikers took time out of their busy schedule to visit the tower. This group seemed to be much more
enthusiastic about their quest. For
them, it wasn’t just about getting to Maine, it was
about enjoying the trip there.
I
loitered for an hour or so before continuing on. I returned to the A.T. and climbed briefly,
which was odd, since I was leaving the official summit. After that bump it was all downhill on a very
enjoyable trail. I reached Low Gap, and
followed the Low Gap Trail down from there.
The upper portion of the Low Gap Trail follows an old road and isn’t
very exciting. Farther down though, the
trail follows rollicking Cosby Creek.
The stream was beautiful, and the wildflowers and large trees were
plentiful. I made it back to the car
around about 10 hours after departing. That got me back to Gatlinburg in plenty of
time for dinner.
I
planned to return to Tremont to hike to Indian Flats Falls the next day. However, when I woke on Thursday morning the
temperature was in the 30’s and it was pouring.
Conditions failed to improve throughout the day. I usually won’t let a little rain stop me,
but I have my limits. The rain
eventually let up late that afternoon.
That allowed me to get out for a brief leg stretcher up Roaring Fork
Road. Just past the condos I found a
wooded lot that had dozens of Yellow Wakerobin
Trillium in bloom. I stopped there for
photos before returning to the condo.
That
evening we had a great meal at the Smoky Mountain Brewing Company. It was easily the best restaurant meal of the
week. The next morning we bid Marsha, Ian,
and the kids farewell and headed for home. It had been a great trip!
We
made one quick side trip on the way home.
From I-40, we ventured into the Harmon Den area of North Carolina’s
Pisgah National Forest. We drove up Cold
Springs Creek Road and parked near a horse camp. It was a cold, damp morning, but the hike to
the waterfall on Little Fall Branch is short and easy. We walked down the road just beyond the gate
and then followed a faint path upstream along the creek. This area looks promising for wildflowers,
but there wasn’t anything blooming yet.
After a few minutes the waterfall appeared just ahead.
The
waterfall on Little Fall Branch is a nice one.
As an added bonus, a similar waterfall on a smaller tributary was
visible from the same vantage point. I
took a few photos there before we headed back.
On
the drive out Christy spotted a waterfall on a tributary on the far side of
Cold Springs Creek. This waterfall is on
Grassy Branch, and is mentioned briefly in the Kevin Adams guide. I was proud of Christy for noticing it, as I
would’ve driven right by unaware. I
attempted to get photos, but couldn’t get a clear vantage of it without wading
Cold Springs Creek. Maybe next time!
Little
Fall Branch was a nice ending to a great week in the mountains. I’m already looking forward to our next visit
to the Smokies!
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