A stream with no bridge or obvious rock-hop crossing can be intimidating to the unprepared hiker. The mere thought of getting your feet wet and continuing on in soggy boots seems capable of raising blisters. Fortunately, most rivers can be easily forded. Here’s a look at the gear and technique for a successful crossing:

Gear

• Footwear. If you know you will be dealing with multiple crossings in a short span, slip into a water shoe. Keens (or anything that’s similarly constructed) are ideal, with their closed toe and firm fit. Old running shoes also work, though they don’t dry as quickly. So, it wouldn’t hurt looking for some good ones at shoe hero. If it’s just a crossing or two, walking across in hiking socks (preferably wool) provides a bit of protection to your feet and improves grip.
• Trekking poles (or at least a hiking stick). Your balance crossing water is greatly improved if you have trekking poles or a hiking stick: three or four points of contact beats two. Probe with your poles/stick, plant firmly, take a step. If you don’t have poles or a stick, you can often find one leaning against a tree or rock at the crossing.

Scout the crossing

Don’t be hasty, it’s a several step process:

• First, check the opposite bank and see where the trail resumes. Often, the direct line across is where you’ll find the logical crossing, though not always: water levels in particular can impact the best place to cross.
• Check to see if there is a viable rock-hop.
• Generally, the widest spot in the river — where the water is often shallower and the current not as strong, is the best place to cross.
• Look for a worn path headed either upstream or down on your side of the river. Odds are it leads to a preferred crossing.
• In general, slow moving water shouldn’t be above your thigh, fast moving above your knee. If it is, scout for another location.
• Look for large rocks or other obstacles in the stream; they create an eddy (slow moving water) behind them, making for a good spot to rest and catch your breath before continuing on.

Making the crossing

Again, take your time …

• As you wade in, face upstream, leaning slightly into the current. Cross slowly, taking a slight angle downstream.
• Don’t hurry. Make sure every pole and foot plant is secure before applying full weight.
• Always maintain at least two points of contact, ideally three (again, why you need poles or a stick).
• If you’re with another person, try linking arms and cross. Ideally, the heavier person is first and slightly upstream, lessening the flow’s impact for the second hiker.
• If you fall, try to fall forward, or upstream; if you’re in fast-moving water and are swept downstream, dump your pack and point your feet downstream: better your feet hit any downstream objects than your head.

Post crossing

• Dry your feet, regardless of whether you’re continuing on in river shoes or putting on socks and boots.

This is an abbreviated version of our Water Crossings tip sheet, which you can downtown here for free through the end of April.

The post Tips for taking the fear out of water crossings appeared first on GetGoing NC!.

* * *

Before we set out Saturday morning from our campsite at Yellow Mountain Gap on the Appalachian Trail, I outlined the morning plan. “We’ve got a long climb — 900 vertical feet in 1.7 miles — up to Little Hump Mountain. We’ll take a break there. Then head on to Hump Mountain for lunch.”

The afternoon before we’d started from Carver’s Gap around 1:30. “The first mile is one long great view,” I explained. “Sunset isn’t until 8:03, so we’ve got plenty of time.”

I’d made a variation of that speech on at least a dozen previous trips on this revered 14-mile run of the AT from Carver’s Gap to US 19E. The backpackers are always glad to hear there’s no rush — then proceed to rush after paying brief homage to the more deserving views. Maybe spend 5 minutes at Round Bald, taking in the 360-degree views of everything from Roan High Knob to Grassy Ridge to ridge after ridge fading west into Tennessee, a few minutes less at adjoining Jane Bald. The grass is always greener at the next bald, apparently.

But this group was different. We hung out at Round Bald for a good 15 minutes, stayed nearly as long at Jane Bald. Even after descending into the mountain ash forest at Roan Mountain, we stopped frequently, for the wildflowers (white snakeroot, yellow sneezeweed), to check out a briskly running spring, to enjoy more wildflowers.

To be clear, these three hikers weren’t stopping to catch their breath. I’d hiked with all three before: Marie had done one of the toughest trips we do, the four-day, 37-mile Virginia Triple Crown; Nick’s done several trips, including the rugged Joyce Kilmer Wilderness; and Sue has done most of our trips and had just gotten back from a 7-day trip with the Sierra Club in the White Mountains. They’re three of the strongest folks I hike with.

With all the stops we still made it to camp before 5 p.m. — three hours before sunset, with plenty of time to enjoy camp.

* * *

When we set out Saturday morning — sleeping in and leaving camp around 9 — I was prepared for another leisurely day on the trail. We stopped about 15 minutes in at a clearing overlooking where we’d camped. We stopped a short while later to check out an ancient barbed wire fence atop the razor-sharp ridge (“They had cattle up here?”). We stopped to check out a likewise perplexing ridgeline roadbed that had once, presumably, served a vital function. When we topped 5,453-foot Little Hump Mountain, we dropped our packs and settled in for the view. 

Fifteen minutes later we were back on the trail, descending off the bald into another mountain ash forest, then into Bradley Gap at the base of Hump Mountain, the entire mile-long climb visible before us.

“We’ll stop for lunch at the top,” I said.

I’ve done this trip in good weather in the past (I’ve also done it in blinding rain), but the conditions this past weekend were the best I’d ever seen. The temperature was in the upper 60s, early on there wasn’t a cloud in the sky. When we reached the top of Hump Mountain a few scattered and harmless white clouds were drifting in from the west. We stopped at a rock outcrop with a plaque honoring Stan Murray, founder of the Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy, the perfect place to stretch out for lunch. 

“We’ll hang out here a little longer than usual,” I said. “How does an hour sound?” Later, Sue said she was expecting me to say 20 minutes. “You rarely get a lunch break that long on a guided hike.”

After an hour had come and gone, I surveyed my fellow hikers. One appeared to be asleep; one, who’d set up her Helinox camp chair, appeared to be in a trance; one was gazing intently to the southeast. “It’s only a little over an hour to camp,” I said. “If we leave now, we’ll be there by 2:30. You good with staying here a while longer?” They were. So we stayed another hour.

I recall maybe 10 words being said that whole time. I drifted in and out of a light sleep, thoughts pingponging to unexpected places. At first, I smelled a hamburger, a specific hamburger, one from the grill at a pool where I grew up. That made me think of water and my Mike Nelson phase, which made me think of Gragg Prong in the Wilson Creek area, the best summer swimming hole in the Southeast. I thought about my first swimming hole, a mountain reservoir near where I went to school, where I spent a summer diving into its icy waters, then sunning on its exposed granite. I remembered that odd, orange glow on the insides of my closed eyelids, the same glow I was feeling now. It was the feeling of being young, without a care in the world. It was the holy grail of being in the wild.

* * *

As our shuttle driver was unloading us at Carver’s Gap Friday, one of our group said, “Well, maybe we’ll see you again on Sunday.”

“Sunday?” he huffed. “You’re taking two nights to do this? You’re gonna get bored.” 

It struck me as an odd thing to say for someone who makes a living based on hikers’ love affair with these mountains. It also struck me as flat out wrong. Later, recalling the exchange, I told the group, “You could do this trail every week for the rest of your life and not get bored.”

Especially when you take the time to enjoy.

* * *

Last chances

Eager for that feel-like-a-kid feeling on the trail? We have two that can’t miss.

GetBackpacking! Virginia’s Triple Crown. We have one more backpack trip on the schedule this year, one more opportunity this year to feel young! It’s a four-day, 35-mile trip in late October taking in Virginia’s Triple Crown: McAfee Knob, Tinker Cliffs and Dragon’s Tooth. Learn more and sign up to join us here. Two spots remain.

GetHiking! Weekend Classic Escape on the AT at Hot Springs. Not into camping but love hiking? We’ve got one other last chance just for you, our GetHiking! Fall Weekend Escape on the Appalachian Trail at Hot Springs. Stay in the Hot Springs Lodge/Cabins, enjoy two days of late fall (first weekend in November) hiking on the Appalachian Trail. Learn more and sign up to join us here.

The post The slower the better: a weekend on the AT appeared first on GetGoing NC!.

“We’re old school,” said the man. He was dressed in all camo, standing next to his wife, who was bent over a small trickle of water filtering water into a half-dozen empty soda bottles.

We were on the Appalachian Trail in the Standing Indian area of far southwestern North Carolina, heading into Beech Gap. As we talked, we gathered, we think, that the couple may have started at Springer Mountain, the AT’s southern terminus, but that they were not thru-hikers.

“We need to get back home to Virginia, to our cats,” said the woman. “How much farther to the road?” she asked.

There was a gravel access road about 7 miles ahead which lead to the Standing Indian Campground, but I assumed she meant U.S. 64. “If you mean the road into Franklin, it’s about 12 miles,” I said.

“Oh, we’ll never make that today,” said the woman. Added the man, “We call ourselves the Virginia Creepers, because we go so slow.” The couple appeared to be in their mid-70s.

Midway into Day 2 of our three-day hike we’d encountered a surprising number of northbound thru-hikers, maybe 20, 25? Surprising, because most thru-hikers start in mid-March and are well past this point, about 90 miles into the trek, by mid-April; it was nearly May. The folks we’d encountered had long-since worked out the kinks of distance hiking and seemed to be operating lean and efficient. These folks hadn’t reached that point.

I asked, “Are you looking for a shuttle into Franklin to resupply?”

Yes, said the man. “That last climb out of Georgia kicked our butts and we’re about out of food.” He said they had some oatmeal and a few snacks left.

They did not ask for food, only information. Despite being nearly out of food and apparently unaware of where they were, they were in remarkably good spirits, didn’t seem out of sorts in the least. 

“We’re running ahead of schedule,” I said. “In fact, we may hike out tonight,” which was true, and we ended up doing so. “I’ve got some food you can have.”

“Me, too,” said Carrie. With that we loaded the couple with tuna packets, fig bars, power bars. They were extremely grateful. We spoke for a few more minutes, then the three of us continued on to Beech Gap.

The encounter raised a myriad of questions. We had extra food, they needed some. Any backpacker would have done the same. But was there more we could have done?

I was worried about how prepared they were. They were nearly out of food with at least two days on the trail to go. Were they lacking other necessities — like a map? Allison had noted that they were using a syringe, usually used to clean a water filter by backflushing it, to draw water from the trickle — a trickle that fed into an accessible running stream just feet away. Later in the conversation, we got the impression that the couple needed to get to Franklin so they could get a ride home to their hungry cats in Virginia — at least 300 miles away by trail. Did the Virginia Creepers think they were going to make it from Springer Mountain to Virginia in two weeks? Should we have asked a few pointed questions, at the risk of offending them, to make sure they were safe?

That evening when we got back to our cars I thought about driving the forest service road to where the AT crosses at Mooney Gap and intercepting them, then taking them into Franklin. But finding them in the dark seemed futile. Besides, we had just done a 14-mile day in full packs, and I was beat. And I was low on food.

I trust the Virginia Creepers made it to Franklin and are perhaps back in Virginia with their cats by now. There were certainly enough helpful hikers on the trail who would lend a hand, if needed. Still, I wonder: Did we do enough? 

And perhaps more to the point, what exactly constitutes enough?

The post What’s our obligation to our fellow hikers? appeared first on GetGoing NC!.

There’s strength in numbers, and to me the sturdy number for backpacking is three.

I recalled this bit of advice I used to hand out when I was contemplating my to-do list for 2024 — and realized I’d only backpacked once last year.

Once!

It wasn’t long ago that I was getting out about once a month. Sure, it was part of my job as a guide, but still, it felt natural. Once? Once did not feel natural.

So this year, I’ve vowed to follow my own advice. I’m scheduling three backpack trips. And I’m hoping you’ll go with me.

Here are the three, selected because they’re my three favorite. Click on the link for more information and sign up.

Standing Indian AT loop

Thursday – Sunday, April 25-28

Standing Indian Basin, a portion of which is in the Southern Nantahala Wilderness, is one of the few places where you can create a loop hike incorporating a large (about 20 miles) stretch of the Appalachian Trail. The AT portion of this hike is along the basin’s rim, offering expansive views of one of the most undeveloped regions in the Southeast. We meet Thursday evening at the Standing Indian campground (camping and welcome beverage and snacks included), hit the trail Friday morning.

Learn more and sign up here.

Virginia’s Triple Crown

Thursday – Sunday, June 20-23

On this 4-day, 35-mile trip you’ll visit the three most iconic spots on the Virginia portion of the Appalachian Trail: Dragon’s Tooth, Tinker Cliffs and McAfee Knob. Views abound on this trip, and you’ll work for them. This trip includes a training program that should whip you into shape for the challenge ahead. Note: Only one spot remains for this trip.

Learn more and sign up here.

AT from Carver’s Gap to US 19E

Friday – Sunday (Aug. 23-25)

The 14-mile stretch of the Appalachian Trail between Carver’s Gap and US 19 E is perhaps the most scenic stretch of the AT in the Southeast. We take our time and savor this hike, over Round and Jane balds, over Hump and Little Hump mountains, and past all the scenic hardwood splendor along the way on this 3-day, 2-night backpack trip. Trip includes shuttle.

Learn more and sign up here.

The post Join us for 3 classic backpack trips in 2024 appeared first on GetGoing NC!.

Last week, we extolled the virtues of basecamp backpacking : that is, hiking in a short distance with your camping gear to establish a basecamp, then doing day hikes from there. You get the advantage of backcountry camping minus the burden of hauling 35 pounds with you wherever you go. 

This week, we take you to 5 of our favorite Basecamp Backpack destinations, including their location, distance you hike in in full pack, day hike options and recommended stay.

Doughton Park

Blue Ridge Parkway near Laurel Springs NC: Longbottom Road Access

Hike in full pack: 1.5 miles

Day-hike options: 2 (with three options on one hike)

Recommended stay: hike in Friday afternoon/evening, hike out Sunday afternoon.

After a flat 1.5-mile hike on on the Grassy Gap Fire Road (natural surface, closed to traffic) from the Longbottom Road Access, set up basecamp in the spacious primitive camping area along Basin Creek. From there you have two day-hike options. If you’re hiking the recommended two days, spend the first hiking up 4.4-mile Cedar Ridge Trail, which gains nearly 2,000 vertical feet (about 90 percent of the climbing on this hike). From there, hang a left and hike the Bluff Mountain Trail (which doubles as the Mountains-to-Sea Trail) for 6.4 miles through meadows and pasture before returning down Grassy Gap Fire Road to camp. (Note: there’s a water crossing just before Grassy Gap returns to camp; scout it beforehand to make sure it’s passable; if it isn’t, from the Bluff Mountain Trail take either the Bluff Mountain Primitive Trail [shorter, steeper], or the Flat Rock Ridge Trail. Total distance: 17.6 miles. Hike No. 2: From camp take the 3.3-mile Basin Creek Trail to the old Caudill Cabin at the base of the Blue Ridge Escarpment. 

Rock Castle Gorge

Blue Ridge Parkway near Woolwine, VA: VA 805 Access

Hike in in full pack: about a quarter mile

Day-hike option: 1

Recommended trip stay: Hike in Friday afternoon/evening, hike out Sunday morning

There’s only one day-hike option out of camp, but it’s a doozy. Hike the 10.8-mile Rock Castle Gorge Trail counterclockwise and you’ll start through a gorgeous old-growth forest; the hiking is mellow at first, then the climbing and a little rock scrambling begin. At the 3-mile mark reach the Blue Ridge Parkway and go southwest, through high meadows and pasture with some nice views. At Grassy Knoll, the trail descends back into the gorge, a rollicking, rocky drop that goes for about a mile and a half. You’re exhausted when you hit bottom — and you’re also rewarded with a downhill-trending 2.8-mile hike on gravel roadbed paralleling Rock Castle Creek. So why stay a second night if there’s not a second hike option? You’ll discover why when you finally drag into camp at the end of the day.

Wilson Creek/Hunt-fish Falls

Wilson Creek Wild and Scenic Area, Pisgah National Forest near Mortimer

Hike in in full pack: 1.2 miles

Day-hike options: 2

Recommended trip stay: Hike in Friday afternoon, hike out Sunday mid-day.

Wilson Creek is at the base of Grandfather Mountain, and as such serves as the drainage for the massive massif’s southeast flank: creeks, waterfalls and cooling pools abound here. In fact, head up early enough and after packing in the 1.2 miles to camp (pictured at top) and getting set up, you can hike 0.4 miles back to Hunt-fish Falls for some stellar ogling and swimming. The long hike — about 8 miles — takes you up (and in) Lost Cove Creek for a mile before a 0.6-mile climb that gains 900 vertical feet. That’s the big climb of the day, though: after topping out at Bee Mountain it’s a gentle descent along Timber Ridge down to Gragg Prong and the return to camp. On Day 2, don your water shorts and grab a towel for the mile-and-a-half hike up Gragg Prong and the series of waterfalls and pools where, on a hot summer day, you will find unparalleled mountain bliss.

Birkhead Mountain Wilderness

Uwharrie Mountains southwest of Asheboro

Hike in in full pack: 3 miles

Recommended trip stay: hike in Friday afternoon, hike out Sunday morning

The 3-mile hike in is a bit longer and a bit more challenging than most Basecamp Backpack trips, but worth the extra effort. From the Tot Hill Access to the Birkheads on the north end of the Uwharries, hike a mile and three quarters on the Birkhead Mountain Trail, to the Camp 5 Trail. Here, you can either take that trail for a mile and a quarter to Camp 5 (which has water) or continue straight on the BMT to Camp 3, which has decent views (in the winter). Your day hike is about 9 and a half miles, on a loop consisting of the BMT, Robbins Branch and Hannah’s Creek trails. The Uwharries may not be as grand as the Southern Appalachians, but they’re also not a 3- to 5-hour drive for folks in the state’s three major population centers. It’s a good spur-of-the-moment destination for people in Charlotte, the Triangle and the Triad, and a great option for testing new gear. It’s also more accessible and hospitable in winter than a mountain hike.

Panthertown Valley

Panthertown Valley, Cashiers

Hike in full pack: 1 mile

Day-hike options: multiple

Recommended trip stay: Whatever works for your schedule; there are enough trails here to sustain you for 3-5 days.

We hate to be vague about options for hiking Panthertown Valley, but when you see the trail map, you’ll understand why. First things first: from the Salt Rock Access off SR 1121, hike the Salt Rock Trail 0.6 miles to Panther Creek Trail and go left for 0.3 miles, then right on Mac’s Gap: in less than 0.2 miles you’ll begin seeing multiple camp sites near Panthertown Creek. You’re smack dab in the middle of things, with great hikes out the front of your tent. Some things you’ll definitely want to check out: Granny Burrell and Schoolhouse falls, the Great Wall, Big Green and Little Green mountains, Blackroot Mountain, Panthertown Valley itself. You’ll definitely need a map. The best for exploring the area’s 30-plus miles of trail: “Burt Kornegay’s A Guide’s Guide to Panthertown, Bonas Defeat and Big Pisgah.”

* * *

Details, details

For more information on each adventure, click the link:

• Doughton Park
• Rock Castle Gorge
• Birkhead Mountain Wilderness
• Wilson Creek
• Panthertown Valley

Be a backpacker

Like the idea of basecamp backpacking, but you’re not a backpacker?  We can take care of that, with our GetBackpacking! Intro to Backpacking class. And the next class begins March 16. Here’s how it works:

Session 1: Getting to know you, getting to know your gear. In this Zoom session we’ll spend a few minutes getting to know one another and learning why you’re interested in backpacking. Then, we’ll go over the different types of gear, focusing on good options for beginners. 1 hour. Wednesday, March 15, 6 p.m.

Session 2: Training Day. In full gear, we will meet at Morrow Mountain State Park for a 5-hour training session that will go over: Evaluating a campsite, setting up camp, breaking camp, meal preparation (including the various food and cooking options on the trail), and more. Expect to hike about 4 miles in full pack, during which we will work on hiking technique (including the use of trekking poles); ensuring a good pack fit by adjusting your pack during the hike to make sure it continues to fit; and more. Saturday, March 18, 10 a.m.-3 p.m.

* Graduation hike. Three-day, two-night trip to South Mountains State Park, a great place for your first trip. Friday, April 14, 2 p.m. thru Sunday, April 16, 1 p.m.

Learn more and register to join us here.

The post 5 of our Favorite Basecamp Backpack Trips appeared first on GetGoing NC!.