Mid to late June means many things, but one is the blooming of the Catawba Rhododendrons on the Roans. So, this past weekend I headed up to one of my favorite places for hiking, camping, and a course flowers.
I have been up to the Roan Highlands and the Rhododendron Gardens several times before to enjoy the beautiful flowers. However, I haven't been since 2017 (I just missed them last year). So, even during the Age of Coronavirus, I decided I wanted to see the beautiful rhododendrons on the Roans...but I didn't have any idea what I would find at Carvers Gap.
Like I said I had been up here to see the rhododendrons in the past, and at a;; times of the year, so I know it is a popular place. I mean you will even see a lot of people in the dead of winter. however, I was even surprised when I reached Carvers Gap, it was a madhouse. I followed a line of cars up TN-143, so that was a bad sign. I got near the top around 10 am on Saturday and cars were already parked at what I call the overflow lot, which I had only seen cars at once before.
When I got to Carvers Gap people all the regular parking spots where full and cars were parked on the side of the road down pas the North Carolina Stateline sign. I had no idea how many until I started up Round Bald. Oh, they were also parked going up the road to the Rhododendron Gardens. This wasn't good for me because this wasn't just a day hike for me, I planned to backpack out to Grassy Ridge Bald. I will admit as I made a lap looking for a spot I dod think about going somewhere else, but one of my bad traits is I am stubborn. So, on my second lap, a couple of people came to their vehicle and I asked if they were leaving and they said yes. So, I turned on my Hazzard flashers and waited for about 10 minutes. But it was worth the wait as I was parked to the right of the Carvers Gap sign.
So, after taking some time to get ready it was time to head-up the Appalachian Trail (AT) to Round Bald. The trail, like the parking lot, was the busiest I had ever see it. I expected this going up to Round Bald. It is by far the most popular destination on the Roan Highlands as it is just 0.7 miles up to this picturesque bald. Like Pete, I had face coverings I could use and this area of the trail is easy to social distance on.
The hope that there would be fewer people heading to Jane Bald were dashed. What also became apparent was that, while I would cover my face and social distance, most others were not doing the same. As Pete would say the trail was full of "mouthbreathers."
I would like to say it got better, but there was still an amazing amount of people heading towards, and coming down, Grassy Ridge Bald. After passing the junction, where the AT goes left I headed up the Grassy Ridge Trail. It was here where people not doing any kind of preventive measures started to grat on my nerves. The first part of the Grassy Ridge Trail is best described as cramped. If you know about hiking people going uphill (like me) have them right away. Even though I was carrying a backpack, the person who moved aside 90% of the time was me! By this point, I just kept my mask on, because I got tired of pulling it on and off. When a thing that did make me feel better was a girl, wearing a mask flashed me the V (peace) sign and I did it back. The funny thing was, most of the people who did pull on a mask was young people.
Another thing about the day, it was really cool and windy. It was cloudy when I got up to Carvers Gap and every once in awhile the sun would pop out when it went back in it felt like the temperature would drop 5 to 10 degrees. Oh, it was also wind, so when I reached Grassy Ridge I decided to not camp in the open, but in a small set of trees just under the summit. The reason was my recent experience at Max Patch. While I had a great campsite it was windy and I got cold that night, I didn't want a repeat. Also, this spot was away from people, which was also a plus. I also had some rhododendron blooms around me.
Once I set up I decided to hike on out to Roan High Ridge, because this area has some of the best Catawba Rhododendrons on the Roans. I will say on the way up I saw plenty of blooms, but it was obvious they were past peak in a down year. There are more rhododendrons on the Roans, the Flame Azalea blooms might have been better. So, Roan High Ridge was nothing like 2016, but it was pretty all the same.
The clouds I spoke of earlier started to thicken up at sundown. While it sprinkled briefly on Grassy Ridge I am just glad that big cloud over Roan Mountain bypassed where I was. It was still damp from the rain on Friday, but I was able to get a fire going. While I enjoyed my fire, the clouds started to roll in and it did an odd thing the premature went up. So, when I went to bed I didn't even zip up the sleeping bag. However, later that night it cleared off and when it did it got cold and windy, so my choice of campsite worked out.
Because it cleared off that made getting up before dawn more than worth it. The Sun came up over the Humps and Beech Mountain for the first sunrise of astronomical summer. I will say this sunrise rivaled the one at Big Bald, it was just spectacular!
After packing up I headed back towards Carvers Gap and this day was totally different than Saturday. It was really clear to start, but clouds started rolling in. The other thing that was different to start, was that there weren't as many people as the day before. It was early, on a Sunday, so that made the journey back better. I mean I even had the rock on Jane Bald for a time to myself.
Well, that changed when I started up Round Knob. I will admit that the combination of having to stop and step off the trail going uphill, wearing a mask, and just being tired it weighed on my nerves. Once I got to the top I was happy because wearing a mask is easier downhill.
After I got back to Carvers Gap I had an easy decision to make. While Pete wanted to hike on up to the Rhododendron Gardens via the AT, I decided to drive up. I was glad I did because I was tired and there was no entrance fee. Also, at the Gardens it was really evident that it was a down year (I included a picture from the overlook from 2016 to show the difference). Pete was right, the Gardens were a disappointment.
After the Gardens I went on out to Roan High Bluffs. I will admit going out was nice because I didn't encounter near as many people. So, it was a good hike out. I even got the overlook at Roan High Bluff to myself, which was nice. When I got back to the parking area I headed up to the old Cloudland Hotel Site.
Overall, the Roans were beautiful, the campsite on Grassy Ridge was great and what a sunrise! It was a great outing, but in this time of COVID-19, my next overnight will be in a less-trafficked area.
Like I said I had been up here to see the rhododendrons in the past, and at a;; times of the year, so I know it is a popular place. I mean you will even see a lot of people in the dead of winter. however, I was even surprised when I reached Carvers Gap, it was a madhouse. I followed a line of cars up TN-143, so that was a bad sign. I got near the top around 10 am on Saturday and cars were already parked at what I call the overflow lot, which I had only seen cars at once before.
When I got to Carvers Gap people all the regular parking spots where full and cars were parked on the side of the road down pas the North Carolina Stateline sign. I had no idea how many until I started up Round Bald. Oh, they were also parked going up the road to the Rhododendron Gardens. This wasn't good for me because this wasn't just a day hike for me, I planned to backpack out to Grassy Ridge Bald. I will admit as I made a lap looking for a spot I dod think about going somewhere else, but one of my bad traits is I am stubborn. So, on my second lap, a couple of people came to their vehicle and I asked if they were leaving and they said yes. So, I turned on my Hazzard flashers and waited for about 10 minutes. But it was worth the wait as I was parked to the right of the Carvers Gap sign.
So, after taking some time to get ready it was time to head-up the Appalachian Trail (AT) to Round Bald. The trail, like the parking lot, was the busiest I had ever see it. I expected this going up to Round Bald. It is by far the most popular destination on the Roan Highlands as it is just 0.7 miles up to this picturesque bald. Like Pete, I had face coverings I could use and this area of the trail is easy to social distance on.
The hope that there would be fewer people heading to Jane Bald were dashed. What also became apparent was that, while I would cover my face and social distance, most others were not doing the same. As Pete would say the trail was full of "mouthbreathers."
I would like to say it got better, but there was still an amazing amount of people heading towards, and coming down, Grassy Ridge Bald. After passing the junction, where the AT goes left I headed up the Grassy Ridge Trail. It was here where people not doing any kind of preventive measures started to grat on my nerves. The first part of the Grassy Ridge Trail is best described as cramped. If you know about hiking people going uphill (like me) have them right away. Even though I was carrying a backpack, the person who moved aside 90% of the time was me! By this point, I just kept my mask on, because I got tired of pulling it on and off. When a thing that did make me feel better was a girl, wearing a mask flashed me the V (peace) sign and I did it back. The funny thing was, most of the people who did pull on a mask was young people.
Another thing about the day, it was really cool and windy. It was cloudy when I got up to Carvers Gap and every once in awhile the sun would pop out when it went back in it felt like the temperature would drop 5 to 10 degrees. Oh, it was also wind, so when I reached Grassy Ridge I decided to not camp in the open, but in a small set of trees just under the summit. The reason was my recent experience at Max Patch. While I had a great campsite it was windy and I got cold that night, I didn't want a repeat. Also, this spot was away from people, which was also a plus. I also had some rhododendron blooms around me.
Once I set up I decided to hike on out to Roan High Ridge, because this area has some of the best Catawba Rhododendrons on the Roans. I will say on the way up I saw plenty of blooms, but it was obvious they were past peak in a down year. There are more rhododendrons on the Roans, the Flame Azalea blooms might have been better. So, Roan High Ridge was nothing like 2016, but it was pretty all the same.
The clouds I spoke of earlier started to thicken up at sundown. While it sprinkled briefly on Grassy Ridge I am just glad that big cloud over Roan Mountain bypassed where I was. It was still damp from the rain on Friday, but I was able to get a fire going. While I enjoyed my fire, the clouds started to roll in and it did an odd thing the premature went up. So, when I went to bed I didn't even zip up the sleeping bag. However, later that night it cleared off and when it did it got cold and windy, so my choice of campsite worked out.
Because it cleared off that made getting up before dawn more than worth it. The Sun came up over the Humps and Beech Mountain for the first sunrise of astronomical summer. I will say this sunrise rivaled the one at Big Bald, it was just spectacular!
After packing up I headed back towards Carvers Gap and this day was totally different than Saturday. It was really clear to start, but clouds started rolling in. The other thing that was different to start, was that there weren't as many people as the day before. It was early, on a Sunday, so that made the journey back better. I mean I even had the rock on Jane Bald for a time to myself.
Well, that changed when I started up Round Knob. I will admit that the combination of having to stop and step off the trail going uphill, wearing a mask, and just being tired it weighed on my nerves. Once I got to the top I was happy because wearing a mask is easier downhill.
After I got back to Carvers Gap I had an easy decision to make. While Pete wanted to hike on up to the Rhododendron Gardens via the AT, I decided to drive up. I was glad I did because I was tired and there was no entrance fee. Also, at the Gardens it was really evident that it was a down year (I included a picture from the overlook from 2016 to show the difference). Pete was right, the Gardens were a disappointment.
After the Gardens I went on out to Roan High Bluffs. I will admit going out was nice because I didn't encounter near as many people. So, it was a good hike out. I even got the overlook at Roan High Bluff to myself, which was nice. When I got back to the parking area I headed up to the old Cloudland Hotel Site.
Overall, the Roans were beautiful, the campsite on Grassy Ridge was great and what a sunrise! It was a great outing, but in this time of COVID-19, my next overnight will be in a less-trafficked area.
Your photos are stunning!
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