The Plan
This year I have been aggressively accumulating and making gear, but for one reason or another I have only done one overnight trip way back in April. I finally cashed in some PTO, invited a few friends up from Florida, and hit the Foothills Trail for what was planned to be a 4-day trip. We started at Table Rock SP and planned to hike to the Canebrake area on Lake Joccassee, then hike out on the Canebrake Trail through Gorges SP.
trip_plan.jpg
The New Gear
- Warbonnet Eldorado
- Wooki 20-Degree Underquilt
- DIY 50-Degree Topquilt
- Warbonnet Minifly
- Dutchware Nylon Straps Becket-Hitched
- DIY G4 Backpack
- Helinox Chair Zero
- Nitecore NU25
- Teva Hikers
- Yuoto Hydration Fanny Pack
- Garmin Fenix 5 Pro
- Costco "32 Degree Heat" thermal shirt and leggings
- REI 650FP Fleece Jacket
In total with food and water I was at around 22lbs. I'm no ultralight fanatic but I am making a conscious effort to minimize the weight I carry. What happened on this trip has convinced me this effort is entirely worthwhile.
PXL_20211015_181638866.jpg
That's me with the very svelte-looking homemade red pack along with my exceptionally overloaded companion.
The Trip
Day 1:
We hit the trail around 11am on Friday planning to camp at the Cantrell site about 8.7 miles in. We made it exactly 1 mile before the trouble started. I knew the terrain would be difficult for a couple Florida boys, but I had no idea it would destroy them in less than an hour. We ended up having to stop every 1,000 ft or so to take a break. My original plan was for us to reach camp around 5 or 6 including time for breaks, lunch, sightseeing, photographs, etc. By 6pm we had only gone 5 miles, and my friend was suffering badly from ankle pain, muscle cramps, and general exhaustion. We made the decision that one of us would hike ahead to camp, drop their pack, then come back to carry the pack of the struggler, while we would continue to push on as able.
We finally made it to camp at 8pm after 9 hours of misery. We decided right then and there to eat our heaviest meals first, at which point The Struggler produced a 1lb tin of Spam. It was delicious, but this prompted some questions about what else he had in his pack. We discovered among other things:
- A 3lb shovel
- A 3lb chair
- 2lbs of climbing rope
In total his pack weighed close to 50lbs. I'm a reasonably experienced hiker and I don't think I could have carried that much weight for almost 9 miles.
This was my first night in the Warbonnet, and only the second time even hanging it up. Prior to this trip I've been using a 9' Etrol hammock. In the dark I put the underquilt on wrong and hung the hammock "backwards", meaning I was climbing in and out of the side that is staked out which works but isn't ideal. Nevertheless, holy cow is this thing comfortable! I managed to tug the underquilt into some kind of full coverage and my homemade topquilt was just the right size for tucking around me a bit. The temp got down into the low 40s but I was completely warm the whole night. Having an extra 2' of hammock to work with was an absolute game changer! In the Etrol I felt like I had to fight with it a bit to get a good lay, but the Eldorado was completely effortless. I slept on both sides, my stomach, my back, and every other which way. It was all comfortable. I love this hammock! I did find myself wishing I had the gear shelf that distinguishes the Blackbird from the Eldorado, but I believe changing the bugnet gets me the shelf if I decide I really need it for future trips. I had a bit more stuff (battery pack, phone, watch, headlamp, book, various cables, glasses) than the ridgeline stuffsack could contain without being awkward and bumping into me a bit. Not a huge deal just something worth noting. This was also my first time using a becket hitch to hang the hammock. I had to reference Derek's illustration a few times to get my head around it, but it was quite simple in practice. I had my whoopies and marlin spike toggles but I don't think I'll use them in the future unless I have a longer distance to hang from.
PXL_20211016_122732725.MP.jpg
Day 2:
Neither of my companions slept very well due to their aches from the day before. We agreed to hike the 1.1 miles to Sassafras Mountain which would be the nearest bailout point, and then evaluate whether or not to continue from there. Spirits improved quite a bit after some breakfast and we made good time from camp to the summit.
PXL_20211016_150006891.PHOTOSPHERE.jpg
Everyone was still feeling good so we agreed to push on to the Laurel Valley access point and evaluate again. We made great time and got there around 3pm, but after discussion the consensus was we did not feel confident we could complete the remaining 15 miles of the trip given everyone's condition and energy level. I was still feeling really good at this point, but was not about to push my friends beyond their physical and/or mental limits. We caught a ride back to the car from some friendly ATVers hanging out at the access point and headed back into town tired and disappointed but knowing we had made the right decision. All told we ended up completing 14.2 of the 32.7 miles we had planned.
PXL_20211016_191340899.jpg
What Went Well
- Weight: Having such a lighter load made an enormous difference for me this trip. I'm used to getting to camp completely exhausted with an aching back, sore shoulders, and feet on fire with multiple blisters. Despite the fact that we were in the harness for twice as many hours as I had planned, when I got to camp I felt like I could easily have done 5-10 more miles. I was completely pain free, though my calves were a little tight. Having a roller for my feet/calves would probably be a good idea in the future.
- Sandals: I met a few people on trail who wondered if I was getting rocks in my Tevas all the time, and the truth is that only once or twice did anything get under my feet. I got one blister on day two, but considering I usually get multiple blisters from a 5-mile walk in the park with my other hiking shoes this was a significant improvement. My feet did get dirty, but they didn't get all sweaty and "corpsey" as the saying goes.
- Camp Clothes: I've never bothered to bring a spare set of clothes for sleeping in, but having a dry set of duds to change into was amazing. I'll be doing this from now on.
- Meal Plan: I covered my meal plan in this post. There's not much else to say other than for the first time ever I didn't feel like I was starving at any point.
- Hip Pack: Oh my goodness. Having my water, snacks, hand sanitizer, mio drops, phone, and bug spray all right there was amazing. There were a few times where I had to leave my pack on the trail and climb up or down to a water source, and being able to fit my filter kit into the fanny pack and have my hands free for scrambling was really nice.
The Trail
A lot has already been written about the Foothills Trail, and the Hickery Brothers did a fantastic exposition a few years ago which is actually what inspired me to try hammock camping. What I will say is if this trail isn't on your bucket list it most definitely should be. It is deceptively tough. It will challenge you physically and mentally. It's maybe not quite Linville Gorge tough, but it's **** close in my opinion. Furthermore every inch of this trail is simply beautiful, and the variety of landscapes, trail surfaces, geology, water features, etc, etc, makes it impossible to get bored out there. I was so disappointed to have to cut our trip short, and I can't wait to get back out there again.
PXL_20211015_184536008.jpg
Bookmarks