Long report to tell the whole story. This was the first trip to the East Rim of Linville Gorge for everyone in my group. It was post-tropical storm, pre-first snow, with warm, cold, and wind. Failed tarp lines plus lost hikers with no maps. You gotta love the gorge in November!
Gear:
DIY 12ft symmetrical Hexon 1.6 wide hammock
DIY 2in venom tree straps, whoopie slings connects with MSH
SLD 13ft winter haven tarp in robin egg blue a.k.a. “Blue Beast” with 1.75mm ReflectIt tie pits on Dutchware Ringworms
SLD Trail Winder UQ with Climashield 6.0 oz
REI Magma 30 top quilt (sweet deal this summer when they had these 50% off)
ULA Catalyst pack - my newest purchase and so far a winner!
MSR pocket rocket (left the alcohol stove at home since I was with a larger group)
Base weight: 22.75 lbs (I’m not UL - I carry a camp chair).
Remnants of TS Nicole moved through on Friday Nov 11, and we decided to wait and not tackle high exposed elevations with tropical storm winds and 6-8 inches of rain. But by 7pm, rain has mostly stopped. So after dinner in Morganton (I highly recommend Las Salsas), we drove 1 hour up Hwy 181 to Table Rock parking lot. It was mostly empty, which is what one expects at night in the hours after a tropical storm. We were alone in all the camping spots south of the parking lot and asleep by 10pm.
It was a warm night - temperatures only dropped to 49F according to my Thermodrop and the winds breezy but not high enough to ruffle the Blue Beast. Sunrise was beautiful.
Saturday warmed up quickly and eventually got above 60F. As I squeezed through the slot in the The Chimneys, I wondered if maybe that Catalyst was too big and if I should have gotten a smaller pack. I’m 6’4” and 260lbs, and that slot is a tight squeeze even without a pack on!
We dropped packs and setup camp at Chimney Gap and ate an early lunch.
A couple of hikers came through and said they were doing the loop. But they had no map (only directions on some paper) and no phone. We showed them on the map, the turn off for Spence Ridge, and warned that the river was gonna be high - too high to cross. These guys were super chill and seemed confident. We saw them the next day coming back on the reverse path - they had made it down Spence Ridge, but wisely didn’t try to cross.
On Saturday afternoon we climbed Shortoff. I got lost and started down Cambric before realizing my mistake. The trail was covered with fallen leaves, and in watching my feet I missed the double blaze signaling a turn in the trail. I felt a little better after I learned that 2 more in my group made this same mistake coming back down.
As clouds rolled in and light showers formed, the views of the gorge left our mouths gaping. Most folks didn’t have words, but eventually everyone agreed it was “gorge-ous.” Ha! That one never gets old.
I few of us quickened the pace to make it down to Unbelievable Point with views of Lake James in the distance. We filled up at the Gully Pipe and headed back. We saw lots of hikers along this section - most came up that day from Wolf Pit. The trail was a river in spots, and Shortoff Pond was a pond again (it was dry a few weeks ago). Chimney Gap to the southern tip of Shortoff and back is 8 miles, and we did that in just under 4 hours. For the Gorge (and a middle age fat guy) that’s a decent pace. I hiked the western side of the Gorge 3 weeks prior and only managed 8.5 miles in 7.5 hours - but that was Rock Jock and Pinch-In. (Pinch-In is the worst trail I have ever hiked. Period.)
After sunset, the temps started dropping and the winds picked up. I had originally placed my big winter tarp parallel to the wind, but I couldn’t get the angle right and it flapped like it was about to take off. So I moved and placed it orthogonal to the wind, with one side low and tight. Temperatures dropped to 33F but the wind howled all night at 30mph with gusts of 40mph (according to NWS). Winds were strong enough to blow my hiking shoes underneath my hammock to the other side. Initially, I was pleased with my tarp placement - it seemed to block the worst of the wind and didn’t make too much noise other than when gusts flexed it. I was able to sleep with ear plugs.
Until about 1am when the tarp lines lost tension, the tarp was leaning into the hammock and lufting so loudly even ear plugs weren’t enough to block the sound. My stakes were holding, but the line wasn’t holding tight in the Ringworms. So I adjusted the lines, shivered for a few minutes, and went back to my insulated happy place. For at least an hour until the lines lost tension again. The outer sheath of the line had been severed. Perhaps it just failed, or maybe the pinch on the ringworms had slowly cut at the outer sheath. Either way, I dropped the Dutch Ringworms and tied off a taut-line hitch with a second taut-line hitch backup on each of the 3 windward tie outs. By the time I finished tying knots, my fingers were numb. This is exactly the reason why I want hardware: easy adjustment in cold or wet when I don’t want to have to mess with knots.
The knots and line held, but slowly slipped. By sunrise, the tarp was on me and flapping. So I need to find a better angle for next time. And figure out how to keep my tie outs tight. On the positive side, the tarp was undamaged and looks good as new. Maybe it’s that 1.1 oz silpoly. Maybe it’s Jared’s craftsmanship. Either way, I’m pleased with that tarp. Do I need new tie out lines?
It was a cold blustery morning, but the hike down to the spring at Chimney Gap gets the blood flowing. I heard a few weeks earlier that both Gully Pipe and Chimney Gap were dry, but after 4+ inches of rain all the water supplies were flowing. A hot breakfast and coffee, and we hiked back up to The Chimneys over 1 mile and 1000ft of elevation. Heavy rain had eroded stepper parts of of the trail and there are now sections where the tread is almost 3ft below grade. But it was still better than Pinch-In. Everything is better than Pinch-In. Skies were blue, and cold winds were blowing. But now that wind felt good on the strenuous climb. 8in icicles we’re hanging in the shade and it looked like Grandfather Mtn had a dusting of snow in the distance.
Everyone had a good experience with lots of different weather and the amazing views the Gorge provides. I look forward to my return to this special place.
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Originally Posted by SubaruWx
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