Everybody was AT Hiking...and Hiking the Smokies: Newfound Gap to Clingmans Dome 6/20/20

When the ATC didn't want people on the Appalachian Trail due to COVID (they still don't, but we're there anyway now that trailhead access has reopened along most of the AT), I decide to add the 900 miles of trails in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park to my goal list.  The GSMNP reopened prior to AT access points in the Nantahala and Cherokee National Forests, among other places, so I needed a place to hike and to be able to check off miles toward a goal (because that's just how I'm wired - I have to be working toward something).  Before I got started on the GSMNP trails, though, AT access points reopened, so I went back to my original goal.  This weekend, I got to check off miles toward BOTH goals.  

A couple of weeks ago, my friend Lynette called me and said her Dad, Clay, wanted to hike to Clingmans Dome and wanted to know if I'd do it with him.  Okay, twist my arm.  :-)  Clay is the caregiver for his wife, Marta, who had a massive stroke a couple of years ago and by the grace of God is actually doing better than I ever imagined she'd be doing after such an event but who still needs quite a bit of round-the-clock care.  As such, Clay hasn't had the chance to hike in the past two years, and I was pretty excited about joining him as he got back out on the trail.  Clay and Marta were our neighbors growing up, and they were almost like a second set of parents for us.  We spent so much time in the pool at their house, and Marta often kept an eye on us after school when we were little.  So I was happy to borrow Lynette's Dad on Father's Day weekend, especially since she couldn't be in town and I don't have my own Dad here to hang out with this weekend.  I really hoped it would be as good for Clay's mental health as it always is for mine to get away from the craziness of everyday life (especially the last few months).

I figured heading into Clingmans Dome on the AT from Newfound Gap would be a long enough hike to give Clay a really nice day on the trail but not so long or strenuous that it would be torture for him, not having hiked in a couple of years.  Ambitious for a normal upper-70s person who hadn't hiked in that long, yes; however, if you know Clay, you know that he's always been in great shape and is very much up to the challenge. I certainly didn't want to bore him.  Fun fact: Clingmans Dome, at 6,643 feet, is the highest point on the entire AT!  So you know we're going to do some climbing.  

Anyway, I knew that the Park would be crazy busy, because people seem to be traveling nowhere right now except Florida and the GSMNP.  I also knew that Clingmans Dome and Newfound Gap themselves would be busy because they're both really popular spots, but I was hoping the AT wouldn't be crowded between the two points.  I picked Clay up at 6AM and we had a GREAT drive up to the Park with very little traffic.  The Newfound Gap parking area had several cars in it when we got there, but it was by no means packed.  The sun had just come up over the mountains about 15 minutes earlier (unfortunately we missed that), and it was shaping up to be a beautiful day for hiking.

The weather was perfect.  In the 50s starting out and eventually rose to the lower 70s, with a good breeze all day.  Even though there were pretty stellar views at both the beginning and ending points of this hike, there weren't a lot of good views in between.  We did manage to snag a couple along the way:

                                               

                                       

In spite of the lack of views, it was still a great hike.  There was a good bit of climbing, but it wasn't one of those "kick your butt" climbs (at least not until the end).  There were some steep areas and quite a bit of stairsteps (kudos to the trail maintenance folks!):

                                                        

                                                    

                                                                

                                                            

But there were also several areas where the trail was flat, or downhill (not a ton of downhill, but a good amount), or just a gentle uphill grade:

                                                      

                                            

                                                        

There also was a lot that was pretty or eye-catching about the hike other than the views.  The sun was streaming through the trees; everything was bright green; it was just a really enjoyable hike.

Crazy sideways tree growth

We saw several of these huge, upended root systems.

Glad to see there are some new baby trees that appear to be healthy and will hopefully replace the ones killed by the woolly adelgid.

This was an exclosure that was designed to keep wild hogs out but let hikers in.  🐖

It always amazes me when trees grow on rocks.

The last climb was definitely the most strenuous part of the hike.  It was steep and rocky and really got the heart pumping, but at least it wasn't a prolonged climb.  It was about a mile and a half long, and by that time Clay was ready to take a couple of breaks as we climbed, but we still passed three other people, so I'll call it a success.

When we got to Clingmans Dome, we were very rudely brought back to reality by the fact that there were throngs of people there.  Random people trickling down from the tower to the AT asking, "Where does this trail go?"  Umm, how far do you want to walk?  

SO many people on the tower that we didn't even want to go to the top because we didn't want to get in the middle of such a big crowd.  We did get some decent views, but as is common at Clingmans Dome, the 360-degree view was largely obscured by fog (there's a reason they're called the Smoky Mountains).

View from the bottom of the tower ramp

View from close to the top of the tower.  This was the point where we decided we'd just turn around to avoid the crowds at the top. 

I masked up around all the people.  Definitely would not want to hike far like this.

View from the paved path from the tower to the Clingmans Dome parking area, where Mom and Pat picked us up and shuttled us to our car.

From the activity at Clingmans Dome, you'd have no idea a global pandemic was going on.  As I mentioned, TONS of people, and very few of them were wearing masks.  Well over half of the people were running their hands along the hand rail on the ramp up to the tower.  Gross.  

After we got back to our car and headed home, I couldn't believe the number of cars parked along the side of the road at popular trailheads.  Alum Cave was the worst.  There were cars parked along the road for at least 3/4 of a mile in both directions (on both sides of the road).  All I could imagine was a line of people moving up toward Mt. LeConte like a bunch of ants.  Chimney Tops parking area wasn't quite that bad but was close.  No, thank you.  Why in the world would you want to "escape to nature" with thousands of other people?  Just...find a different trail.  There are 900 miles of them.  For real.  

Anyway, aside from the frustration with the traffic and tons of people when we came off the trail, we had a great day on the trail.  At least I did.  I hope Clay did as well and that he's not too sore tomorrow.  😬 

193.7 down; 1996.3 (under 2,000!) to go.