Nowhere. At least not in North Carolina and southwestern Virginia. For one, you’d be hard-pressed to find a trail that’s passable. More on that in a sec. 

The main reason you shouldn’t hike in the mountains this weekend: You’ll only be in the way. 

Most of the roads in western North Carolina remain closed, and of those that are passable, use is restricted to emergency vehicles and the recovery effort. Gas is still in short supply and what gas there is is desperately needed by locals. Same for food and water. Rule of thumb for North Carolina: avoid travel west of I-77.

Then there’s the matter of the trails themselves.

The Appalachian Trail Conservancy, which oversees the AT including its passage through four heavily affected states — Georgia, North Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia — reports the following as of Tuesday:

• The AT between Springer Mountain, Georgia, and Rockfish Gap, Virginia. Or the 846.6 southernmost miles of the trail, is closed.
• The Pisgah and Nantahala National Forests in North Carolina are closed. 
• The Blue Ridge Parkway and its associated trails in North Carolina, closed. 
• All North Carolina State Parks west of I-77 are closed.
• In Virginia, 5 state parks are completely closed, 4 state parks are partially closed. 
• Much of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park is closed or entry is discouraged.
• Some trails in Shenandoah National Park are closed, travel is discouraged on others.

What this means is, it will be a while before we will be able to hike in the mountains again. In fact, your best bet for a visit in the near future may well be as a volunteer to help clear trails. But that could also be a while. 

For the foreseeable future, focus on your favorite trails in the Piedmont. Fall is unfolding and the region is full of great hikes. As fall advances, head to the coast and coastal plain, an often overlooked fall hiking destination.

As for what you can do now to help your favorite mountain hiking destination? Think about the place you most love to hike in the high country, the place that has given you so much over the years. Then Google the various options for helping that community. You won’t have to look hard. 

For instance, every November our GetHiking! crew spends a weekend hiking the Appalachian Trail out of Hot Springs. We base camp out of the Hot Springs Resort & Spa, which is along the French Broad River and was hard hit. The town of Hot Springs, a two-minute walk away, was likewise hit extremely hard. When we checked the resort’s Facebook page, it said the best way to help the town is by donating to the Friends of Hot Springs Library. Which is what we’ve done. 

When the mountains reopen, we will return full force. But not until then.

About the photo: The photo above was taken on the AT at Lover’s Leap, just above the town of Hot Springs. We won’t be there this fall, but hopefully next.

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Trail status

Keep tabs on your favorite areas by checking in with the appropriate land manager.

National parks

• Great Smoky Mountains National Park 
• Shenandoah National Park
• Blue Ridge Parkway 
• Appalachian Trail Conservancy 

State parks

• North Carolina State Parks 
• Virginia State Parks

National forests

• Nantahala National Forest
• Pisgah National Forest 
• George Washington & Jefferson National Forests

The post Let the mountains recover appeared first on GetGoing NC!.

It’s not. 

I was marginally surprised, only because so many of the trails that had been closed in the Pisgah National Forest in April have since reopened. But not, according to the U.S. Forest Service, the Black Mountain Crest Trail from Cattail Peak north to the trail’s northern terminus, at Bolens Creek. The specific reason for the closure wasn’t given, simply for “public health and safety.”

I mention the latter because trails do close for reasons other than a virus run amuck. The Crest Trail has, in the past, been closed at Deep Gap due to bear activity. I’m guessing the rugged nature of the Black Mountain Crest trail, which runs 12 miles, from Mount Mitchell to Bolens Creek, and the difficulty of extracting injured hikers at a time when emergency medical services are already taxed, is likely the reason.

Now more than ever it’s important to check ahead, before heading out. The result could be avoiding a disappointing closed sign after driving two hours to the trailhead. It could also yield some surprising new opportunities.Two examples.

Eno River State Park, Durham. Two of five access areas in Eno River State Park remain closed, Cabelands and Pleasant Green. The reason: both have trails that serve the Eno Quarry, a popular swimming hole — and thus, gathering spot — in summer. The park website makes clear that even parking near this access points isn’t allowed: “You may not park on the road shoulder, block gates, or impede traffic and walk into the park from these accesses. Your vehicle will be subject to citation and or towing.” It’s also clear that swimming in the quarry is prohibited. But the trails, apparently, remain open. So if you’re looking for a long hike in solitude, you can park at the Pump Station Access and hike upstream along the Mountains-to-Sea Trail, all the way to Pleasant Green, a distance of more than 6 miles (12 out-and-back). 

Morrow Mountain State Park, Albemarle. Amid the various what’s open/what’s not notices on the park website, we found this buried midway through: “The road to the scenic overlook will remain CLOSED to all motor vehicle traffic.” The “scenic overlook” is the top of 936-foot Morrow Mountain, where the mountain-top parking area is typically jammed with folks who drove to the top for a peak peek. You can now earn that summit, a quiet summit, by taking a portion of the Sugarloaf Mountain Trail and the Morrow Mountain Trail, about a 7-mile or so roundtrip.

Other insights

Checking the individual State Park website beforehand can enlighten you in other helpful ways:

• No vacancy. If a park’s had problems with overcrowding, there will likely be a note indicating that it will close if capacity is reached. Some even offer tips on when to best avoid the crowds: Hanging Rock advises visitors to avoid the peak hours of 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on weekends. 
• Trails close for other reasons. Trails can close for reasons besides overcrowding. At Eno River, the Pea Creek Trail is closed because “recent storms” have “undercut steps, put deep holes into the trail, and significantly damaged the trail,” while at Pilot Mountain, “Portions of Ledge Spring Trail and top rope climbing adjacent to the summit parking lot will be closed at times through early July due to construction at the overlook.”
• Other restrictions may apply. At Crowders Mountain, “Rock climbing and bouldering will open by registration only.” And at Jordan Lake, campers used to slack check in and check out times are advised: “Due to changes to our operating procedures, strict implementation of the 3pm check out and 4pm check in times associated with campsites will begin on June 19, 2020.”

The adventure-lover in us loves spontaneity. But even with the most basic of adventures, some planning is required. And right now, that planning starts with simply making sure the place you want to explore is open.

Resources

Here are the websites for some of the biggest land managers in the region, where you can find out the latest on trails in their jurisdiction.

• Blue Ridge Parkway
• Great Smoky Mountains National Park
• North Carolina State Parks
• North Carolina National Forests (Croatan, Pisgah, Nantahala, Uwharrie)
• Shenandoah National Park
• Virginia National Forests (George Washington and Jefferson)
• Virginia State Parks 

The post Trail status: Check ahead (you may be pleasantly surprised) appeared first on GetGoing NC!.

Here’s a look at what I’ve found for our upcoming GetHiking! and GetBackpacking! adventures. Hopefully, my sleuthing can help you in figuring out your own upcoming adventure plans.

GetBackpacking! A Weekend on the Appalachian Trail between Carvers Gap and U.S. 19E

When: This weekend

What we learned: I wasn’t worried about the trail being flooded: it begins above 6,000 feet and stays high for much of its 13.7-mile run. Still, my first check was with the Appalachian Trail Conservancy website, whose Trail Updates page is a complete rundown of current closings, reroutings and other issues that may affect your hike. The North Carolina section (updates are broken down by state) listed no specific advisory for this stretch, though it did advise caution in general for downed trees and hanging limbs as a result of the storm. Of greater concern were the roads getting to the trailhead: Florence dropped some wet on the mountains, and landslides had been reported. But not on the roads we take, according to the N.C. Department of Transportation’s Travel Information page and its interactive map.

Status: It’s a go

GetHiking! Camping Weekend: Grayson Highlands and Mount Rogers

When: This weekend

What we learned: Virginia closed all of its State Parks in preparation for Florence, but all have now reopened, including Grayson Highlands. A look at the Grayson Highlands State Park page shows that only one park facility is closed, and it isn’t our group campsite. As for the Mount Rogers end of the trip, the USDA Forest Service site for both George Washington and Jefferson National Forests reported that all recreation areas were closed. That, though, from a post dated Sept. 12, before the storm. A call to the “customer service desk” for both forests indicated it might be faster to leave a message than to wait for a representative. It was also unclear whether the Virginia Creeper Trail, also part of the trip, was open.

Status: On hold, likely to postpone

GetHiking! Classic Escape to Curtis Creek and Graybeard Mountain

When: Weekend of Sept. 28-30

What we learned: Curtis Creek is in the Pisgah National Forest. (In fact, it was the first tract of land in the Pisgah, back in 1913). It’s in a particularly narrow valley that descends from the Black Mountains to the Piedmont, and thus seems especially vulnerable to flooding. And while it, along with the rest of the Pisgah, was closed prior to Florence, it has reopened. Graybeard Mountain is rather unique in that it is part of the Montreat Conference Center’s 2,500-acre Montreat Wilderness. It remains open to hiking as well, according to the website.

Status: It’s a go.

GetBackpacking! Intro to Backpacking Graduation Trip to South Mountains State Park

When: Weekend of Sept. 28-30

What we learned: One of the many reasons we love our North Carolina State Parks is that they do a great job of keeping us informed. All parks were closed last week; on Monday, the park website reported that some parks would reopen on Tuesday, and as Tuesday dawned, 24 parks had reopened, including South Mountains. A note atop the park’s page notes that debris cleanup may be occurring, so keep an eye out.

Status: It’s a go.

GetBackpacking! Overnight Sampler at Eno River State Park

When: Sept. 29-30

What we learned: The park is open. However, a bridge linking the Buckquarter Creek and Holden Mill trails is washed out, closing the Holden Mill Trail until the bridge can be fixed or replaced. We don’t necessarily cross the bridge, but it involves a creek that we will need to cross upstream. Probably worth scouting to make sure the rock-hop crossing we use is still in place.

Status: It’s a go

GetBackpacking! Intro to Linville Gorge

When: Oct. 5-7

What we learned: As far as we can tell from the Forest Service website, the gorge is open. However, we saw some video posted of Linville Falls running at 8,000 cubic feet per second: it’s typically flow is 100 to 200 cfs. Since the gorge is extremely steep and narrow, it’s a good bet the bottom of the gorge — and the campsites therein — have been hit. However, this trip base camps on the east rim, well above the fray. One of our favorite sources for the gorge — LinvilleGorge.Net — didn’t have information up just yet; we’re awaiting approval to become part of the Linville Gorge Facebook Group, which should have some up-to-date, hands-on information.

Status: It’s a go (though we may need to tweak the plan)

Beyond this two-week window, things look good, with one exception. The first weekend in December we have a backpack trip scheduled on the Neusiok Trail in the coastal Croatan National Forest. The forest is downstream from New Bern, which received 16.65 inches of rain from Florence. A saturated forest floor combined with hurricane-force winds and a largely pine forest (pines have shallow roots) means there could be a significant number of trees down. Since we doubt anyone’s been in yet to assess the damage, we’ll wait a week or two before checking on this one. Our source: the Carteret County Wildlife Club, which maintains the trail. Another good source: NeusiokTrail.org.

And if the Neusiok isn’t open by December? The 21-mile trail is one of our most popular backpack trips, but if it can’t happen, we’ve got a pretty exciting coastal alternative in mind just across the state line, False Cape State Park and the Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge in Virginia. 

Funny, because while I’ve known about Back Bay, it never occurred to me as a good backpacking destination until I needed to start snooping around. Amazing how a potential roadblock can expand your horizons.

Happy trails!

Joe

Resources

The sources we used to check on our trips (which may be helpful for checking on yours):

• Appalachian Trail Conservancy
• N.C. Department of Transportation’s Travel Information
• Virginia State Parks
• Grayson Highlands State Park
• George Washington and Jefferson National Forests  
• Montreat Conference Center / Wilderness
• South Mountains State Park
• Eno River State Park
• Nantahala National Forest
• Pisgah National Forest
• LinvilleGorge.net 
• Croatan National Forest
• Carteret County Wildlife Club
• NeusiokTrail.org 
• Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge
• False Cape State Park

For details on the trips mentioned above, visit GetHiking! Triangle.

The post Post Hurricane Florence: What’s open, what’s not? appeared first on GetGoing NC!.

Go to nearly every site for each of the parks. at ncparks.gov and, for the most part, you’ll be greeted by a message such as this one for Umstead State Park:

Simple, to the point. Others, such as Crowders Mountain, are a little more adamant in explaining what exactly they mean by “closed”:

The sites advise you to check back frequently for updates. And you should. Shortly before 9 a.m., the Carolina Beach site said the park was closed as staff dealt with tree limbs brought down by nearly .75-inch of ice. Shortly afternoon, the site was updated:

And then there’s Grandfather Mountain, a whole other animal unto itself. Its posting begins with the basics:

Then, it offers some general advice:

Finally, it gets down to it:

And if you’ve ever been atop Grandfather Mountain, you know these aren’t scare tactics. It’s one impressive landscape in good weather, one sphincter-tightening place when the weather turns.

So for today, stay inside, stay warm, and, again, curl up with a good tale of adventure.

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The post Most N.C. State Parks closed; message delivered appeared first on GetGoing NC!.