GSMNP Winter trip (dayhikes, touring and 3-day backpack)

Well we had a great week in the Smokies. We arrived at the cabin Saturday afternoon, got settled and then DW and MIL went to get groceries. Sunday we awoke to 2 inches of snow. We went out and played in it  around the cabin then went to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and did a hike on the Fighting Creek Nature Trail behind the Sugarlands Visitor Center. We used a guide titled Scavenger Hike Adventures: Great Smoky Mountains National Park (http://www.falcon.com/978-0-7627-4466-4). We found it to add alot of interest to our hike by adding in features ahead to look for and giving lessons in botany, geography and history as we hiked. The kids also liked looking at the placards that told the species of the various trees along the trail. The snow was still falling as we started our 1 mile hike but it wasn't terribly cold. And the stillness was quiet invigorating itself. We even were able to get quiet close to a white-tail deer (another thing that's rare for us Alabama folks).

Monday was pretty much absorbed w/ my SIL's wedding and then walking around in Gatlinburg Monday evening (hint: this time of year practically everything closes early (~5pm)).

Tuesday, DW and I set off on our backpacking trip in the Big Creek area of the NP. (http://bp2.trimbleoutdoors.com/ViewTrip.aspx?tripId=10742) There were still some snow left from Sunday's flurries in the shady areas and lots of icicles wherever water was dripping on the rock walls. We made the 5.2 mile hike in a leisurly 4 hours and found a nice campsite creekside in Lower Walnut Bottoms  backcountry camping area (reservations req'd).  I brought in a fishing rod and had gotten a liscense online for NC. However, I hadn't packed in a full tackle box and the light weight lures I'd brought weren't castable w/out some split shot weights. So my dreams of fresh trout roasted over the campfire would have to wait till my dinner at Old Mill a couple of days later. Dinner was still pretty good using a recipe from Sarbar's freezerbagcooking.com (cranberry rice) (hint: pack in some salt packets, Sarah's recipe are all low sodium). We also (read: me) forgot the gatorade, green tea (for DW) and Hot Chocolate mixes. Also I learned that you should keep the butane canister in your pocket to heat it up prior to cooking, lest your stove gets finicky and repeatedly goes out. We then hung up the food bag, hung out around the camp fire for a while then went to bed. Where we wore a little more clothes than we would normally wear to sleep, but we kept pretty warm in our 3-season bags and double-walled tent.

Wednesday, the brutal climb. We got up kida late and had breakfast. We had something peck/gnaw a nickle-sized hole in the side of our foodbag (that was on a bear cable) and eat atleast a handful of gorp. After packing up we left and began ascending up the Swallow Fork Trail and then Mt Sterling Ridge Trail up to the peak of (you guessed it) Mt Sterling. The climb was pretty tough esp for DW who is a lil' out of shape for multi-1000 elevation ascents. So we arrived in just enough time to find a campsite and get water 0.4 miles down the other side before dark. We were very tired and since the wind was starting to kick up and some snow falling we went to bed immediately after dinner on Al-fredo masked potatoes w/ pouch chicken.

Thursday, the even more brutal descent. The next morning we got up and climbed the nearby fire tower for the payoff of spectacular views all 360 degrees around. We breifly stopped after debating whether to get water or not. This was a very wise move because it was a long way until we crossed any water again, even though we were on the Baxter CREEK Trail. We were already sore from the 5.8 mile ascent the day before, now we were going down nearly 4000 ft. OWW! I felt like I'd ran a marathon the day before, before we'd finished. We did enjoy the views thru the bare trees and the beautiful streams we crossed and followed. Winter is definately a great time to visit the Smokies.

Pics to come soon.