Today, I share a post from that trip originally published on January 22, 2011. I share it in part as a reminder that I have some unfinished business. Read to the end to find out.  

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Back in the old days – meaning before I got a GPS – I knew I’d been on a good hike when I couldn’t wait to get home and perform a topopsy. That would be a postmortem in which I would get out a topo map and try to figure out why, instead of going from Point A to Point B, I’d wound up at Q. Nothing quite like that post-hike thrill of figuring out that you should have gone left at the junction just past the beech cove rather than right, which, it turns out, dumps you in the backyard of a rustic type with a fondness for easily-angered dogs and cinderblocked pickups bearing bumper stickers of a laissez-faire theme.

I still get that thrill, only now I get it after plugging the Garmin Coloradointo the Mac, downloading my tracks and waypoints, then basking in the laptop glow of failure. I mean adventure.

Last weekend I headed up to the mountains. The initial plan was to backpack. When my hiking partner backed out and the winter weather turned out to be more wintery than someone with my backcountry skill set should attempt solo, I modified the plan: use the Davidson River campground, under about eight inches of snow, as basecamp for testing some winter gear, doing some cross-country skiing and a hike. (I wrote about the skiing end of the trip earlier in the week). I was indecisive about the hike until I noticed that the Carolina Mountain Club was doing a Sunday hike in the Shining Rock Wilderness.

I’ve hiked and backpacked a fair amount in Shining Rock, a 18,500-acre wild area that has some of the best views in the state. But I’d never done this 10-mile loop because I didn’t know it existed. In fact, it doesn’t exist, at least on any map I have of the area. Alas, by the time I tried to sign up, the hike was full (groups are limited to 10 people in a wilderness). “I’ll let you know if we have a cancellation,” hike leader Charlie Peterson emailed me.

Turns out they did, but I didn’t find out about it until the hike was about ready to start. I quickly packed and made the 45-minute drive from my Davidson River base camp to the trailhead. I said the hike didn’t exist on paper: That’s not entire correct. The main legs of the hike – the ridgeline out on Fork Mountain Trail, the return along the Little East Fork of the Pigeon River, do exist. It’s the climb from the Daniel Boone Scout Camp up to Fork Mountain Trail, and the descent down to Little East Fork that you won’t find on a map. And, I discovered, unless you’re a CMC hike leader, you’ll be very hard pressed to find the trailhead.

The trip map on the CMC Web site (OK, the loop does exist on one map) shows the trailhead just past the dam as you enter the Daniel Boone complex. The accompanying trail description simply says: “Climb to High Top tower site, follow the Fork Mtn. ridge, then descend to Little East Fork of Pigeon River.:-)” It’s the smiley that gets me.

The problem wasn’t that I couldn’t find a trail, the problem was I found too many trails: The wilderness borders Forest Service land criss-crossed with logging roads. Did the trail follow an old logging road? I started following a likely suspect, likely because it appeared maintained, likely because it seemed to follow the route on the CMC map, likely because there were bootprints in the foot-deep snow. At least for a mile or so. Then the footsteps abruptly retreated back down the mountain, all except a set of deer tracks that soldiered on. To heck with people, I thought. I’ll go with the deer. Onward and upward I continued.

Periodically, I stopped to try and reconnoiter my position with the CMC map. As the logging roads forked I chose the one that seemed the most likely to take me up to the ridgeline and the Fork Mountain Trail. But none of these roads seemed interested in reaching the ridge. I’d follow a spur line for 15 minutes, but at some point, usually tantalizingly close to the top, the trail would peter out. At one point I was within 200 vertical feet of the ridge, but with no easy way to get there. I should have been frustrated. And yet … .

And yet, I was hiking in a North Carolina forest with a foot of snow on the ground. The sky was cloudless much of the day, the temperature in the low 40s. Because of the snow, it was remarkably quiet. And I had zero chance of getting lost, since my lone set of bootprints followed me whereever I went. I hiked for about four hours, covered about nine miles, returned to the car exhausted and elated. And befuddled.

I was even moreso after getting home and downloading my GPS. I had assumed that I was hiking well north of where I should have been. In fact, I was a little south. But at some point, according to my GPS and the CMC map, I should have crossed paths with the actual trail. Multiple times, in fact. At my zenith, 200 feet from the ridge, the electronic topo gives the impression of a ridiculously easy scamper to the ridge. I close my eyes, picture the reality and sigh. I’m baffled, then elated. There’s only one way to solve this mystery, I realize.

A return trip.

The post The joy of figuring out what went wrong appeared first on GetGoing NC!.

• Before setting foot on the trail
  * Take a map. This is mandatory every time you strap on a pack, even if you’re hiking a trail you know well. (What if there’s a blowdown or a landslide and you need to take evasive action?) A good topo map is preferred; a park-issued map, which often lacks topo lines and isn’t to scale is better than nothing.
  * Take a compass. A map is of minimal help if you don’t know which way is up. Or north. Together, a map and compass are invaluable hiking companions.
  * Check sunset. Venturing off trail isn’t something you want to do if you’re running out of daylight. An especially important step this time of year.
• On the trail
  * Know your blazes. Likely, you’ll start out on an established trail. Familiarize yourself with the blaze for that trail and for adjoining trails. Odds are you’ll eventually want to return to the trail you departed from.
  * Landmarks. When you reach the point where you plan to head off trail take careful note of what’s around you: an especially identifiable tree, a creek, a rock outcrop, whatever. Sighting a familiar object could be key for your return.
• Leaving the trail
  * Take a bearing on where you’re headed. Get out your map, get out your compass. Get your orientation (where’s north?) set. Pick an object in the distance, in the direction you want to explore. Take a compass reading, follow that compass reading.
  * Confirm your bearing. Stop periodically, every 30 yards or so, to confirm your bearing. Are you still headed in the direction you set off in? If not, correct and continue.
  * Landmarks. Again, keep an eye out for familiar landmarks that can help you navigate upon your return.
• Objective reached! Now what?

  

  * Reverse course. Once you reach what it was you wanted to check out, return to the point where you left the trail by simply following your compass in the opposite direction. For instance, if you reached your objective by heading due north, return by heading due south.
  * Shinny thing. Or maybe you see something else in the distance you want to investigate. Take specific note of where you are, get out your map, get your compass and set a new bearing to your new objective. Continue in the manner described above, stopping every 30 yards or so to make sure you remain on course.
  * Reverse course (again). To return after reaching your second objective, simply head in the opposite compass direction you followed to your second objective until you get back to your first objective. From there, continue in the direction opposite you used when you left the trail.

Oops! Get off course?

A few tips for finding your way back to civilization:

• First, don’t panic. If you’re in a state park, for instance, you’re dealing with a limited amount of space. The largest state park in North Carolina (South Mountains) is just 18,400 acres; by comparison, Umstead in Raleigh is about 5,600 acres, Crowders Mountain east of Charlotte is 5,100 acres and Hanging Rock is less than 7,900 acres. You won’t be lost for long.

  

  * Scout for an irregularity in the terrain. Most trails are distinguishable as a consistent disruption in the distance, appearing as a flowing, though sometimes barely discernible, line.
  * Look for running water. Find a stream? Follow it downhill; that’s generally where you’re more likely to encounter civilization.
  * Look for an old roadbed. Much of our public land — state parks, national forests, etc. — was once farmed or forested. Old roadbeds weave throughout much of this land. Some of these old roadbeds appear on maps. If you can find an old roadbed — typically marked by parallel dashed lines — it may give you a sense of how to regain the trail (it may actually be, or become at some point, a trail).
  * Still flummoxed? If you feel you are hopelessly lost and perhaps in danger, call the land manager for where you are hiking: the map you have should have a contact number. I’ve heard more than one tale of confused paddlers lost amid the bald cypress and water tupelo on Merchants Millpond who called the park office and were guided in over the phone.
  * Last resort. If you can’t raise anyone in the park office, as a last resort, call 911. They can get ahold of park/forest officials after hours and, best case, guide you in over the phone, worst case send a team out after you.

Basic navigation: GetHiking! Wayfinding 101

If you’re still trying to get comfortable following marked trail and want to become more confident in your backcountry navigation, our GetHiking! program is launching a monthly wayfinding skills clinic in January. “Stay the course — and what to do if you lose it,” will start with a half-hour session familiarizing you with how to read a map and use a compass. Then, we’ll head down the trail and talk about how to make sure you stick to it — and what to do if you don’t. We’ll also do a little off-trail exploring to further hone your navigation skills and build your confidence.
For more information and to sign up for this fee course, either email joe@getgoingnc.com or keep an eye on the GetHiking! Triangle Meetup page; details will be posted soon.

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The post Leave the trail behind appeared first on GetGoing NC!.