Top 5 Special: Best Hikes Of Each Month Of 2016

Well, 2016 is in the rearview mirror. For the most part, I don't know if it will be missed. We elected a narcissist as president, the Pittsburgh Penguins won the Stanley Cup and the Chimney Tops and Gatlinburg went up in flames. However, it wasn't all bad as my Chicago Cubs won the World Series for the first time in 108 years and there were some great hikes in 2016. For this list, I am just doing the straight up best hikes of each month. That means there are no caveats like only solo hikes or no backpacks. This is the best of the best of each month. So, here are some stats from 2016 and the

Top 5 Hikes of Each Month.

Total Miles:438.75

Hiking Miles: 387

Month With Most Miles: June (62.8)

Month With Fewest Miles: November (12.5)

Longest Hike: 15.2  Miles - Hike to Mt. LeConte via the Alum Caves Trail, GSMNP

Shortest Hike: .25 Miles - Blue Hole, Cherokee National Forest

Coldest Hike: 10 Degrees - Buffalo Mountain Park, Johnson City, TN.

Warmest Hike: 103 Degrees - Mulberry Cove Nature Trail, NAS JAX, FL

Highest Mountain Peak: 6,643 ft. - Clingmans Dome, GSMNP

Lowest Elevation: 0 ft. - Atlantic Ocean, Jacksonville Beach, FL.

Tallest Waterfall: 800 ft. - Glassmine Falls, Blue Ridge Parkway, NC.

Shortest Waterfall: 8 ft. - Ramsey Prong Falls, GSMNP.

Highest Gap: 6,087 ft. - Toll House Gap, Pisgah National Forest

Lowest Gap: 1,266 ft. - Moccasin Gap, Gate City, VA

Highest Trailhead: 6,311 ft. - Forney Ridge Trail, GSMNP

Lowest Trailhead: 10 ft. - Mulberry Cove Nature Trail, NAS JAX, FL

Now with the stats out of the way here are the Top Hikes of Each Month of 2016:

January 2016: It Is A New Year & What Better Way To Start Than At Meadow Creek Tower - This was pretty easy one because there was only two in January and the Buffalo Mountain one was comme comme ca (so so in English). Don't get me wrong this was a great hike a well deserved to be in the top for January. This hike was a six miler with the Johnson City Hiking Club to the refurbished Meadow Creek Tower. The tower has great views and I this hike gave me a chance to try out (at the time) my new camera. Overall a great start to 2016.

February 2016: GSMNP Hike On The AT To Charlies Bunion & A Lost Hiker Tunnel - This maybe my favorite hike in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park (GSMNP) and how do you make it better...do it in the winter with snow! There was some snow when I started out from Newfound Gap, but as I headed up the Appalachian Trail (AT) it got so icy that I had to put on my YakTrak to continue on. With the ice and snow, the trail was beautiful and with the clear skies the view at the Bunion was fabulous. When I got back to Newfound Gap I headed up the closed Clingmans Dome Road to the lost Hiker Tunnel, just two-tenths a mile up the road. After enjoying it I returned via the snowy AT. This was truly a great hike!

March 2016: Second Annual St. Patty's Day Hike This Year To The Humps - Any trip to the Roan Highlands is great but when it is a first-time hike it is extra special and that was the case on my trip to the Humps. This hike starts from the Roaring Creek Road Trailhead up past the iconic Overmountain Shelter before joining the AT. From here the hike first goes over Little Hump Mountain before descending to Bradley Gap. Then it is, up, the bigger brother...Hump Mountain. Both mountains provide incredible views including the other major peaks of the Roan Highlands. What can I say this was another great hike.

April 2016: Hiking The Smokies High Country In Thru-Hiking Season - April had a number of great hikes, but none was better than this 10.5-mile outing from Clingmans Dome to Silers Bald. The great weather gave way to the best views I have every had at Clingmans Dome Tower. The hike up Mt. Buckley was full of great views Then I got to eat lunch at Double Springs Shelter and talk with some AT Thru-Hikers. I finally reached the partially grown up summit of Silers Bald. Before heading back I made a quick stop at nearby Silers Bald Shelter. I couldn't resist one more trip to the tower with the clear skies. Another trip to the Smokies High Country and another great hike.

May 2016: Taming The Dragon To Fontana Dam For Some Shuckstack Hiking - This was the last tower hike I hadn't done in the GSMNP, but it was more than just that. I drove "the Dragon" twice, hiked across the dam and finished the open park of the Foothills Parkway. The main event, however, was the hike on the AT to the old Shuckstack Fire Tower and the massive views from it. I added another tower by finishing the day at Look Rock Tower.

June 2016: My Day With The Rhododendrons On The Roan Highlands - It a summer of great hiking this gem was at the top of the list. Hiking the Roan Highlands is one of my favorite hikes, but add to it that the Catawba Rhododendrons were in full bloom. It just seemed that everything on the hike went right and with the beauty of the flowers elevated this hike from great to off the scale. I would be hard-pressed to think of any hike that was any better, this is an all-timer.

July 2016: Backpacking Two-Day With The Sierra Club On Grayson Highlands - This outing had everything. Hiking one of the most beautiful spots in the Southern Appalachians, the Grayson Highlands, for the first time, I got to backpack but most of all I got to go out with a super group of people and made some new friends. Oh, and I even got to see the Wild Ponies this area is famous for. There no question this backpack with the Harvey Broome Group was one of THE highlights of summer.

August 2016: Adventures In Backpacking At The Shining Rock Wilderness - As great as the backpack in July was the one in August was just as good if not better. As much as I love the Shining Rock Wilderness (and Black Balsam Knob) I wouldn't say it was better than the Grayson Highlands and my backpack bothered me far more than in July. No, the reason this hike was so great was the people I hiked with. Once again I was out with the Harvey Broome Group and I guess I was a little more comfortable this time which helped make this one so enjoyable. Oh, I also didn't forget the Glenlivet Single Malt Scotch this time.

September 2016: Mile-High Wonders On Grandfather Mountain - It was a place I had always wanted to hike at and it didn't disappoint. There was no question that the Grandfather Trail was one of the hardest (if not the hardest) Trail I ever hiked but the payoff at MacRae Peak and Attic Window Peak. Oh, and I got to cross the famous Mile-High Swinging Bridge and the incredible views from it. This was a great day....period.

October 2016: Old Business & New From Newfound Gap To The Chimneys - This was close, but for a hike in the Smokies to beat at one to Charlies Bunion it had to be a great one. This shuttle hike, with friends of mine from the Harvey Broome Group, from Newfound Gap to the Chimney Tops was special for a number of reasons. First, the hike itself was excellent and add to that the fall colors, especially from the top of the Chimneys were wonderful. I also got to complete part of the AT that I missed in September, Margaret got to finish the Road Prong Trail and Hike Leader Denise finally made it to the top of the Chimneys. The final reason was not even evident at the time. After the Chimney 2 Fire that ravaged this peak, the Park, and Gatlinburg it was extra special to have enjoyed this beautiful spot before the tragedy.

November 2016: Icy Day At Camp Creek Bald For The Annual Thanksgiving Weekend Outing - This was one of those hikes that were great by accident. When I decided to head to Jones Meadow I had no idea that it would be covered in Rime Ice and make for one of the most beautiful outing...ever! I love this area anyway, it is my backyard, but this was extra special. Even though it was still autumn it looked like a winter wonderland. This was a day when the setting made all the difference.

December 2016: From Cades Cove To Tremont Some Hidden Gems - Shelton Graves, Laurel Run Falls & Views of Vandeventer could have taken the top spot because they were all excellent outings. But I have to widdle it down to one, so I am going with the last hike of 2016 and that was my trip to hidden spots in Cades Cove and to Spruce Flat Falls at Tremont. Since I just put a blog up about this I don't really need to go into too much detail. One of the main reason I chose this one was because it was my first hike in the GSMNP since the fires in November that made it a special day. Oh, and it also bookends well since January's top hike was the first of the year.
Of The Smokies - Any of the hikes of December (

From Cades Cove To Tremont Some Hidden Gems Of The Smokies

Well, the first blog of 2017 covers the last hike of 2016. This outing, with some of my good friends from the Harvey Broome Group, was a two-parter and feature some off the beaten path spots in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Some known and some almost forgotten.

The first half was some off trail hiking in Cades Cove. First, we head up by the John Oliver Cabin and off the Rich Mountain Trail to two homesteads the first just had some old washtubs. The second still had the old chimney still standing and nearby was the remains of an old vehicle (I think a truck), but has been crushed by a fallen tree. 

First time in the park since the fires.

When we entered the cove caught a couple of bucks battling...

...I think he lost!

These turkeys were about 10 feet away at John Oliver Cabin parking.

The first homesite.

Deja vu again.

John Oliver Cabin.

X marks the way...

...to this second homestead.

Like my "new" truck.

Ran to those turkeys...again.

Next, up we hiked to Gregory's Cave. From what I gather this use to be an attraction back in the 1920's, it is said that the Gregory family charged 50 cents to enter the cave up until 1935. During the Cold War in the 1950's, it was used as a fallout shelter and I also read that the Missionary Baptist Church once held services here. The entrance to the cave is 10 feet wide and four feet high and the main passage going back 435 feet with a second, off the main shaft, being 100 feet in. However, we could go no further than the entrance as it is now gated and accessible by permit only and usually just for scientific research. On our way, we passed a set of old tables which is the most visible remains of an old picnic area that was part of an old amphitheater used by the Park Service until the 1950's (from what I found on the Interwebs). 

While they were driving we were hiking.

Some kind of cypress tree, but it is not native to the Park.

Some of the remnants of old amphitheater site...

...with old picnic tables.

A lost Smokies site...Gregory's Cave...

...inside you could see the air moving...

...there was some cool formations inside.

Headed out.

Cool sycamore tree.

After stopping to solve a mystery at the Missionary Baptist Church (a light at the end of the cemetery was a solar lamp) it was on to a spot in Cades Cove I have wanted to visit the site of the Pearl Harbor Tree since I heard about it. The story goes that after hearing the news of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor Gollman Myers knew bad times were on the horizion, especially with two draft-age sons. To mark the somber occasion he transplanted a Sweetgum sapling near the family home. He put an old tire rim around the sapling to protect it from being mowed over. Seventy-five years later the tree long ago had outgrown the tire rim (breaking it) and now stands at 60 feet.  Then back in the 70's Myers son Bernard placed the marker now on the tree so his grandchildren could find it. It has gradually gained fame and even has a song about the tree.  Because of this fame, the tree is not too hard to find as it also sports American Flags today.To find it the small pull-off (two cars) on the right it is just past the large area of parking for the Cades Cove Valley View about four miles into Cades Cove.

Snow on the mountain.

Deer heard.

Cades Cove Valley View.

Headed to...

...the Pearl Harbor Tree...

...how has it grown!

The old Myers homesite.

Dan Lawson Place.

Famous Cades Cove Tree.

Tipton Cabin.

The tree was the last place we visited in "the Cove" it was suggested we make a side trip to the Tremont section of the park to view a waterfall, and since the Wood Booger had never been to either I was on board. The hike to Spruce Flat Falls starts at the parking area for the Great Smoky Mountains Institute at Tremont. The institute runs programs in the summer for kids and adults a like. It is here were the trailhead for the Falls Trail which is surprisingly a little steep and narrow in spots. Oh, and also rocky, but the one-mile trail has a great payoff...a 40-foot cascade that is as good as some of its more famous cousins in the Park. It was definitely the way to close a great day of hiking in the Smokies.

Starting point....

...for the hike...

...to Spruce Flat Falls.

Start on the Lumber Ridge Trail...

...to the falls trail.

I think this little guy is confused it is a long time until spring!

There was some vista on the trail...

...but the main event was the falls!

The whole falls.

Typical Smokies one-rail footbridge.

Trail snakes back.

Well, Yule is at an end.