My 18 day April backpacking trip starts in Unicoi Gap on the BMT as I'm to meet my friend Amy Willow who is thruhiking the BMT from Springer thru the Smokies. I join her for a week from Unicoi Gap to Tapoco Lodge, a distance of around 60 miles, and we use the two new reroutes---Cold Spring Gap to Bob Bald/Hangover Mt to Big Fat Gap and Windy Gap to Nichols Cove and Yellowhammer to the Gap and the brand new Tapoco Lodge trail. And she does the new Yellow Creek Mt reroute into Fontana.
I go "ultralight" because I use a 3 lb tent instead of my usual 9 lb behemoth, and I go stove-less with no-cook foods, and also use a lighter pack. I still have my 18 day food load which is in no way UL.
Trip 164
April 11 - April 28 2015
HIGHLIGHTS
** 18 DAYS ON THE BMT WITH AMY WILLOW
** FIRST TIME DROP-OFF AT UNICOI GAP
** 18 DAYS WITH THE HILLEBERG AKTO TENT
** A STOVE-LESS NO-COOK TRIP
** UNCLE FUNGUS GOES ULTRALIGHT
** AMY SHOWS UP IN UNICOI GAP
** OFF THE BMT ON THE KIRKLAND/BROOKSHIRE LOOP
** OVER SUGAT MT TO THE WHIGG
** ALL DAY RAIN TO COLD SPRING GAP
** ALL DAY RAIN FROM COLD GAP TO NICHOLS COVE
** I HIKE AMY OUT TO THE TAPOCO LODGE ON A BRAND NEW TRAIL
** AMY DOES YCMT AND I RETURN INTO SLICKROCK WILDERNESS
** BACK TO A SOLO TRIP
** 60 MILES IN 6 DAYS A RECORD
** THE SUCKING VACUUM OF ME ALONE
** A HARD RAIN AND A LEAKING HILLEBERG TENT
** 160 HOURS OF RAIN
** FULL SPRING CAMP ON THE WINDY GAP TRAIL
** TRAILWORKING THE DEEP CREEK TRAIL
** A COLD SNAP IN THE WILDERNESS
** DEEP CREEK TRAIL COMPLETELY WORKED
** MOST OF HAOE LEAD TRAIL COMPLETELY WORKED
** MEETING BMT BACKPACKER HIKERBOY ON HAOE PEAK
** TRAILWORKING SOUTH FORK CITICO TRAIL
** OVER FLATS MOUNTAIN AND OUT
TRAILS
Entrance in Unicoi Gap
BMT North
**Unicoi Gap Camp**
BMT North
**Tate Gap**
BMT North
Six Mile Gap
Sandy Gap
Kirkland Creek
Holly Flats roadwalk
Brookshire Creek
**Horse Camp on Brookshire Creek**
Brookshire Creek
Sugar Mt
Fish Hatchery
Sycamore Creek
**Rainbow Trail Camp aka Will's Camp**
Sycamore Creek
Whiggs Meadow
Mud Gap
Skyway BMT
Beech Gap
Fodderstack Ridge
**Cold Spring Gap**
54A South
Bob Bald
Four Mile Ridge
Hangover Mt
Hangover Lead South
Big Fat Gap
Windy Gap Trail
Nichols Cove
**Dog Hat Camp on Nichols Cove**
Yellowhammer Trail to Gap
New Tapoco Lodge Trail
Tapoco Lodge
Tapoco Lodge Trail Backtrack
Yellowhammer Gap
Ike Branch
Slickrock Creek
**Slisgah Camp aka Sgt Rock Camp**
Slickrock Creek
Ike Branch
**Wild Bird Camp**
Ike Branch
Yellowhammer
Nichols Cove
**Gravesite Camp**
Nichols Cove
Windy Gap Trail
**Windy Gap Spring Camp**
Windy Gap
Hangover Lead South
**Clearcut Camp Hangover Mt**
Deep Creek
**Footbridge Camp on Deep Creek**
Deep Creek
Haoe Lead
**Toad Camp on Haoe Lead**
Haoe Lead
Haoe Peak
Four Mile Ridge
Naked Ground
Bob Bald
54A South
South Fork
**Iron Camp**
South Fork
**SF Detour Camp**
South Fork
Beehouse roadwalk
Flats Mt
**Flathead Camp**
Flats Mt
**Camp Hope on top of Flats**
Flats Mt
Skyway roadwalk and OUT
Here are all of my pics from the trip---
http://tipiwalter.smugmug.com/Backpa...Days-with-Amy/
Here is Amy's trail journal when we meet up---
http://www.trailjournals.com/entry.cfm?id=489514
I get dropped off in Unicoi Gap on the Joe Brown "highway" in Coker Creek.
On Day 2 of my trip I wait for Amy Willow to pop in on her trip heading north on the BMT. She's an old backpacking friend who I first met in 1985. She thruhiked the AT in 2006.
We leave Unicoi Gap and get to Tate Gap where she sets up her new Big Agnes tent next to a little creek and off the BMt 2/10ths of a mile.
On Day 3 we leave Tate Gap and take a pic break in Six Mile Gap above Sandy Gap.
We get to Sandy Gap and notice a big thunderstorm on State Line Ridge so we do a BMT reroute from Sandy down the Kirkland Creek trail with its 11 crossings and loop up the Brookshire trail to rejoin the BMT at the Brookshire crossing. Here is Amy crossing the first Kirkland Creek ford.
After we pull all 11 Kirkland crossings we head up the Brookshire trail and have this Upper Bald River crossing before reaching out camp in the rain near the BMT jct.