Appalachian Trail in NC: Standing Indian – Beech Gap Trail
to AT to Betty Gap – 3/30/18 – 10.7 Miles
Hiking plans are just wishes that sometimes work out, and sometimes
they get usurped by circumstances beyond hiker control. Eventually another opportunity rolls
around. Last September I had to leave a
19-mile gap in my Appalachian Trail quest at Standing Indian, impeded by the
wreckage of Tropical Storm Irma. Five
months later, I got another chance at it.
While visiting NC for a while, my friend Marta put the word out looking
for hiking friends for a short trip and I immediately raised my hand – pick me,
pick me!! An overnight trip should do
the trick to close my gap and Marta was happy to hike at Standing Indian, a
particular favorite of hers. Perfect.
Early on a Friday morning we left Charlotte, bound for
Nantahala National Forest west of Franklin, NC. At Winding Stair Gap on Highway
64 we met our shuttle driver to take us to our starting point. I was worried that I wouldn’t recognize the
trailhead for Beech Gap Trail, but it was not a problem. We repeated my climb
to intersect the AT at Beech Gap, where I had turned southbound last
autumn. This time we’re heading
northbound.
Blue blue skies, white white clouds, chillin’ comfy
temperatures, and big smiles on our faces – seven mild miles rolled by in a
twinkle. No hint of spring flowers yet, so our attention was turned to
interesting mosses and barks and blowdowns.
Marta’s bright colors leading the way made a strong contrast to the
grays and browns of the winter woods, like a bird flitting through the
trees.
Someone placed a helpful leaf to direct the water flow
Lots of northbound AT thru-hikers on the move, about two
weeks into their journey north to Maine. Many had started out solo, made friends and
formed loose groups, some walking together and some just meeting up at the end
of the day. We chatted with a Latina
(named Judith?) hiking solo back home to Maine. There was a mix of ages but
skewed towards the younger end. Marta has
thru-hiked solo southbound, completing the trail in 2007. I could feel her intense interest in the AT
and the energy of the thru-hikers today.
We passed Carter Gap Shelter, a handful of thru’s sitting
around on a mid-day break. It seemed
that they might not move again. They were not making high mileage; they started
the days late and ended them early, enjoying the social aspects of the hike.
We reached Betty Creek Gap before 6:00 p.m. Seemed plenty early, but camp chores take time
and the sun sets before you know it. The
gap had several large open areas for tenting, but a little reconnaissance
revealed small spaces tucked away for more privacy and hopefully peace and
quiet. A few hundred yards down the blue blazed side trail, a nice stream
flowed. Marta and I pitched our tents, collected water, put on another layer of
clothing, and prepared a meal as the thru-hikers came straggling in. I was surprised at how many stopped,
apparently averse to the shelters and preferring tent camping. Judith popped up her tent and immediately
crawled inside for the night, but most everyone else enjoyed hanging out at day's end.
Nine thru-hikers gathered together to cook their meals and built
a campfire (again a surprise to me, I didn’t think thru-hikers bothered with
fires). I don’t build fires anymore
either, but I love to sit by one that someone else is tending, so Marta and I put
on yet another layer and joined in for a while.
Lively conversation, a lot of talk about food, origins of trail names,
did y’all see that bear today? Hearing
about Marta’s solo southbound hike as Five-Leafed Clover, eyes widened, questions
popcorned, and more stories flowed. I enjoyed sitting back and watching the
admiration.
I didn’t catch all the names, but three of the young’uns were
especially friendly:
Wet Sticks was a young guy with a distinct Tennessee twang,
a skinny fellow with scraggly hair and a beard (typical trail look). He had a reputation for building a fire every
single night no matter what the conditions.
Wet Sticks loved everything about his hike experience (peace out) and
expressed gratitude for every day.
Nerp, a young nurse from Connecticut, got burned out from
with her nursing job, decided – why not? Now was the time for following her
dream of hiking the trail.
Bruiser was from New York, had planned this thru-hike with
his dad, but he passed away in December 2017. So Bruiser was living that dream
for his dad.
Nerp, Wet Sticks
and Bruiser
Camaraderie around a backcountry campfire transcends ages, genders,
backgrounds, worries, responsibilities, powers and prejudices. Cold night, warm
sleeping bag, deep sleep. Peace out.
“Light a campfire and everyone’s a storyteller.” ~John
Geddes
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