Mt. LeConte--Second Time Around--Up, Up in the Clouds!

Cloud cover began to clear as we were coming down Alum Cave Bluff Trail

Early on Saturday morning, my hiking group began our second trip up to Mt. LeConte.  This time we began at Newfound Gap, stepping out on the Appalachian Trail, walking literally along the Tennessee/North Carolina border under low cloud cover.  Some of my companions had never been on the AT before, so they learned first-hand the mystique of the white blazes.  They also learned that the AT is a little different than most of the trails we have been on in the Smoky Mountains--a little more challenging. The thing I love the most about the AT is that much of the part that I've covered tracks along the ridges.  I love to be walking along those ridges with nothing but "down" on either side!  Even though we were only on the AT for 2.7 miles, there was enough ridge-walking to give my hiking buddies a little bit of the feel that I cherish.


The views from those ridges on Saturday, though, were severely limited due to the low cloud cover.  In fact, once we reached the Boulevard Trail and quickly covered the next .3 miles, we found ourselves at the turning point to go to the Jump Off but decided to save that side trip for another day.  There just wasn't going to be anything to see.  It made me sad, but it was probably a good thing after all.

Loose rocks "pave" much of the Boulevard Trail

The Boulevard Trail was deceptively mild at the beginning, except for the loose rocks that lined much of the trail.  The trail began as primarily a descent, but soon began a fairly mild climb toward the back side of Mt. LeConte.  We were passed by a couple of older men who had apparently hiked LeConte numerous times.  One of them told us Boulevard was his favorite way to the top; we were appropriately encouraged.


We continued to make our way up and around the mountain and the clouds continued to restrict our view.  There were many places along the way where I would step over to what should have been exquisite views of the valleys below only to see nothing but clouds and fog.  I think that's part of what made the hike begin to be more difficult as we began to tire.  I remember on our previous trip, the views were so spectacular that they were energizing in and of themselves!  We got no such encouragement as we made our way higher and higher up on the slopes of LeConte on this day. 


I simply wasn't prepared for the difficulty of the last mile or mile and a half of this trail.  The guidebooks that I use gave no warning, so I'm thinking it must have been the combination of the loose rocky footing, the additional length of the trail compared to Alum Cave Bluffs trail we traveled last year, and my lack of serious conditioning.  I remember thinking we were probably getting very close to the top as we were seeing many skeletons of hemlock trees on the nearby slopes.  It just seemed like we were almost to the top.  Then, suddenly we rounded one bend in the trail, looked ahead and saw a tremendous incline above us--a slope we knew we still had to climb.  My spirits tumbled and from there as the footing deteriorated, so did my spirits.  I'm thankful that I knew it was a shorter distance to the bottom if I just kept going than it would have been if I had turned around.  I don't think I would have given up and turned around, but I might have been tempted.  From there on, it was an act of sheer will to keep going.  We were more than tired.  We joked about putting one foot in front of the other and don't look up!

Part of that last, grueling mile.  Doesn't seem very steep, but we were really tired!

This picture shows the area of the mountain where one face of the slope simply slid down into the valley after a deluge many years ago.  It left more loose rock and unsure footing for us with what should have been an excellent view opportunity had it not been for the clouds.  We pressed on.  Finally, we reached the turn off to Myrtle Point.  The mountain was still shrouded in dense clouds, and tired as we were, we decided not to even go the .2 miles it would have taken for us to experience Myrtle Point.  Had we not been socked in, we would have gone no matter how tired we were.  Somewhat discouraged, we continued on after a short rest.

We made it to High Top!

Our first point of rejuvenation occurred when we made it to High Top.  We knew that this little pile of rocks was the attempt by hikers to make Mt. LeConte higher than Clingman's Dome. It shows the love that hikers have for Mt. LeConte--the determination that this difficult to reach summit should outshine the slightly higher summit of Clingman's Dome with its paved path that presents no challenge for the typical hiking enthusiast.  We began to smile again in appreciation of that fact and because, honestly, the trail could ONLY go down from here--something we were ready for!  With renewed spirits and a burst of energy, we began the short trek to LeConte Lodge from High Top.

Soon, we encountered the trail intersection where the Rainbow Falls Trail, the Boulevard Trail, and Trillium Gap trail come together.  A solo hiker we had befriended at High Top told us that this is one of only 13 places in the park where three trails come together.  I'm not sure how accurate his information was, but it sounded pretty cool at the time.

Within just a few short minutes now, we finally saw the cabins that populate the area around Mt. LeConte Lodge, a welcome sight to say the least.  We had done it!  We had made what had proven to be a more difficult journey than had been expected and had beaten back discouragement and disappointment to press on until we had achieved our goal.  Exhausted, but encouraged, we made our way into the dining room where we had reservations for lunch.  Lunch consisted of vegetable soup and a chicken salad sandwich on homemade bread.  The best part, according to my hiking buddies who inhaled theirs, was the cow paddy cookie!  I don't know--I was really too tired to eat.  To me, though, I'd have paid the $9.00 for just the hot chocolate!  It was fabulous and helped beat back some of the cold that had chilled my hands on the way up.


Again, we decided not to hike out to Cliff Tops where I had taken such awe-inspiring pictures last year.  We rested for our hike down.  We had taken longer than expected to climb LeConte--a solid 5 hours, so we were feeling a little rushed to get off the mountain by dark.  However, we did take time to purchase our "I HIKED IT" shirts in the office before we left.  Thankfully, though, just as we were preparing to leave, the clouds began to part and I was able to get a few nice shots.

The beginning of clearing skies--better late than never!

Our descent was via Alum Cave Bluffs Trail.  Even with a companion who had hurt her knee near the top, we made the hike down in less than four hours and about an hour before dark.  We will hike Mt. LeConte again, but I'm going to really work on conditioning between now and then.  Even hiking 10-12 miles every other weekend had not prepared me for this hike.  We are tentatively planning on doing it again in the fall, hopefully on a day where the colors are vibrant and the skies are clear.  There's just something about that mountain!  As much as I felt it had beaten me on Saturday, I am drawn to ascend it once again.

Planning for Mt. LeConte

View from Mt. LeConte Summit Store

In less than two weeks a group of friends and co-workers is going to hike to the top of Mt. LeConte in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.  Three of us went last year and you can find a blog about that hike earlier in the entries on this site.  This year, we want a little more challenge so we are taking a longer route.  Last year's hike was 10 miles round trip.  This year we will begin on the Appalachian Trail at Newfound Gap and hike up to the Boulevard Trail and take it to the summit of LeConte.  That is about 8.1 miles on the first leg of our journey.  A few of us will also add another 1.4 miles by taking two spurs--the first is the Jumpoff that leaves Boulevard trail to go to a rock outcropping that overlooks Charlie's Bunion, and the second is the short jaunt off the trail to Myrtle's Point on Mt. LeConte.  This is one of the popular overlooks from near the summit.

While at the top of LeConte, we plan on eating lunch at LeConte Lodge.  If you pre-order you can get lunch here for $9.00 which includes soup, sandwich, cookies, and hot chocolate.  We didn't do this last year, but wished we had, so some of us plan on ordering the lunch this time.  I will wait to closer to hike date to order it and will definitely check the predicted weather conditions first.  Other neat opportunities await you at the summit of LeConte too.  Mail is carried down the mountain by llama (the same llamas that bring food to the folks that work up there all summer and to provide meals for the hikers that make reservations the year in advance that it takes to get to stay in the cabins at the top).  Last year, I sent a postcard to my parents from the top of this mountain, and they still have it on their refrigerator!  They loved it!  Also, there are t-shirts available for sale at the top, verifying that you made it all the way to the top.  They change the design each year, and it always give the year in which you made the trek to the top.  I will definitely buy one of those again this year!

2011 "I hiked Mt. LeConte" T-shirt

After spending some time resting and visiting the overlooks at the top of LeConte, we plan on coming down the Alum Cave Bluff trail which will lead us back to a vehicle we will leave at that parking area on our way to Newfound Gap that morning.  The hike down is 5.0 miles, which will give us total mileage of from 13.1 to 14.6 depending on which spurs each of us chooses to do.

I'm so excited about this hike.  The views were spectacular last year, so I am hoping for clear weather again.  Several of my hiking group have never been to LeConte even though they are more experienced than I am.  I really hope they get the experience of those spectacular views on that day!