15 Days in February [Archive]

Tipi Walter

02-17-2015, 12:43

This trip goes into the Citico wilderness of Tennessee and it's main goal is to clear some problem trails with a couple simple trail tools, namely the Rocky Flats trail obliterated recently by tornado-like winds.

To see all the pics to here---

http://tipiwalter.smugmug.com/Backpack-2015-Trips-161/On-Rocky-Flats/i-wJHWw6W

15 DAYS
IN
FEBRUARY

Trip 162
January 31--February 14

HIGHLIGHTS
** 15 DAYS ON THE ROCKY FLATS TRAIL

** SEEING RANDY CADENZA IN WARDEN'S FIELD

** DOING TRAILWORK ON THE ROCKY FLATS TRAIL

** A LIGHT SNOW AT ED ABBEY CAMP

** CAMPING IN THE SNOW AT QUILLEN CAMP ON THE MILL BRANCH TRAIL

** A COLD 12F MORNING AT QUILLEN CAMP

** FOUR DAYS ON SLICKROCK CREEK

** 37TH CLIMB OF THE NUTBUSTER TRAIL

** LIGHT SNOW IN NUT GATE CAMP

** TRAILWORK HELLSLOG ON THE NUTBUSTER TRAIL

** PATMAN JOINS ME ON BOB MOUNTAIN

** EARLY BAIL WITH PATMAN TO TELLICO PLAINS AND OUT

TRAILS
Entrance Beehouse Gap
Beehouse Roadwalk
Warden's Field
Rocky Flats
**Conehead Flats Camp**
Rocky Flats
**Ed Abbey Camp**
Rocky Flats
**Johnny's Spur**
Rocky Flats
**Chimney Site**
Rocky Flats
Doublecamp Creek
Mill Branch
**Low Mill Camp**
Mill Branch
**Quillen Camp**
Mill Branch
Fodderstack Ridge North
**Crowder Camp**
Big Stack Gap Trail
Slickrock Creek
**Wildcat Crossing Camp**
Slickrock Creek
**Little West Camp**
Nutbuster Trail
**Nut Gate Camp**
Nutbuster Trail
**Burnthouse Camp**
37th Climb of the Nutbuster Trail
**Naked Ground Landon Camp (2)**
Four Mile Ridge
**Raven Camp Bob Mountain**
54A South
Fodderstack Ridge
Beech Gap and OUT

http://tipiwalter.smugmug.com/Backpack-2015-Trips-161/On-Rocky-Flats/i-FhZPjCc/0/O/Trip%20162%20185.jpg
My shuttle ride takes me along Highway 68 into the mountains of TN and NC.

http://tipiwalter.smugmug.com/Backpack-2015-Trips-161/On-Rocky-Flats/i-M4535k6/0/M/Trip%20162%20030-M.jpg
I get dropped off in Beehouse Gap and hike into Warden's Field in the Citico wilderness and start here at the Rocky Flats trailhead.

http://tipiwalter.smugmug.com/Backpack-2015-Trips-161/On-Rocky-Flats/i-t5Gb8pz/0/M/Trip%20162%20031-M.jpg
The Rocky Flats trail is/was bad with blowdowns and so at the first one I throw off the pack and start cutting with my Corona folding saw. All backpackers should carry minimum trail tools and work while they walk.

http://tipiwalter.smugmug.com/Backpack-2015-Trips-161/On-Rocky-Flats/i-M8X92Gs/0/M/Trip%20162%20053-M.jpg
I spend several days on Rocky Flats and catch a little snow along the way. This is on Ed Abbey Creek.

http://tipiwalter.smugmug.com/Backpack-2015-Trips-161/On-Rocky-Flats/i-Rm8x2sR/0/M/Trip%20162%20055-M.jpg
I had to replace my old green Hilleberg tent---faded and torn and patched and tired---with a new red Keron tent and decided to use a side loading stuff sack made by MSR, instead of the heavier beefier Hilleberg sack. Mistake. The MSR is like 20 denier tissue paper and rips twice in 2 weeks. But it's sure easier to load in a frozen icy tent---suitcase style.

http://tipiwalter.smugmug.com/Backpack-2015-Trips-161/On-Rocky-Flats/i-XFmtww2/0/M/Trip%20162%20065-M.jpg
I also decide to put my microspikes to use along with my Asolo 520 boots. Why carry the spikes and never use them?

Tipi Walter

02-17-2015, 13:02

http://tipiwalter.smugmug.com/Backpack-2015-Trips-161/On-Rocky-Flats/i-J7SC8mc/0/M/Trip%20162%20094-M.jpg
Rocky Flats trail takes me to Mill Branch which is a steep nutbusting trail with some vertical inclines but it takes me into some snow.

http://tipiwalter.smugmug.com/Backpack-2015-Trips-161/On-Rocky-Flats/i-bLcGJTc/0/M/Trip%20162%20088-M.jpg
I reach the top of Mill Branch and set up camp for a cold 12F night.

http://tipiwalter.smugmug.com/Backpack-2015-Trips-161/On-Rocky-Flats/i-BqrvF5Z/0/M/Trip%20162%20098-M.jpg
I got some backpacking friends behind me so I leave a stick arrow pointing out my route just in case they want to catch up.

http://tipiwalter.smugmug.com/Backpack-2015-Trips-161/On-Rocky-Flats/i-8FrjcBD/0/M/Trip%20162%20107-M.jpg
This is what a tough steep trail can do to you when carrying an 80 lb pack---cause your gonads to expand like a blowfish and possibly explode at the worst time. Newbies beware.

http://tipiwalter.smugmug.com/Backpack-2015-Trips-161/On-Rocky-Flats/i-HXRsKND/0/M/Trip%20162%20118-M.jpg
I make it to Crowder Camp which is a fave and it's on the Benton MacKaye trail too.

http://tipiwalter.smugmug.com/Backpack-2015-Trips-161/On-Rocky-Flats/i-SLZMPb3/0/M/Trip%20162%20132-M.jpg
From Crowders I drop 1,500 feet down the Big Stack trail to Slickrock Creek and set up at a new spot by the Wildcat Falls crossing.

Tipi Walter

02-17-2015, 13:09

http://tipiwalter.smugmug.com/Backpack-2015-Trips-161/On-Rocky-Flats/i-Jw9LHgS/0/M/Trip%20162%20174-M.jpg
I head up Slickrock Creek which has to be crossed and it's cold.

http://tipiwalter.smugmug.com/Backpack-2015-Trips-161/On-Rocky-Flats/i-xCqvVVS/0/M/Trip%20162%20182-M.jpg
I begin my journey on the Upper Slickrock Creek Trail #42 aka the Nutbuster Trail and it's my 37th climb of the beast, some say it's the hardest trail in the Southeast. Here I get a little spitting snow near the bottom of the Nut.

http://tipiwalter.smugmug.com/Backpack-2015-Trips-161/On-Rocky-Flats/i-CLPcrJM/0/M/Trip%20162%20197-M.jpg
The Nutbuster trail has 10 distinct sections or "legs" and here is leg 4 in the big rock area. It's a rugged and very steep trail with a gain of around 3,000 feet.

http://tipiwalter.smugmug.com/Backpack-2015-Trips-161/On-Rocky-Flats/i-3TxXPs9/0/M/Trip%20162%20215-M.jpg
The Nut Eater Trail pops me out in a high gap called Naked Ground at nearly 5,000 feet and it's cold so I put on my full geese with parka and pants.

http://tipiwalter.smugmug.com/Backpack-2015-Trips-161/On-Rocky-Flats/i-t2QCzhS/0/M/Trip%20162%20225-M.jpg
I leave Naked Ground and climb to Bob Bald where it stays cold despite the sun and keeps the ice on the Fir trees nearby.

http://tipiwalter.smugmug.com/Backpack-2015-Trips-161/On-Rocky-Flats/i-gB5fdpQ/0/M/Trip%20162%20237-M.jpg
My buddy Patman shows up to join me in the cold for a 10F night and he's testing a new MSR single wall tent for Trailspace.com which turns out to be a piece of crap as a tent peg loop rips completely off the thin denier tent floor.

Tipi Walter

02-17-2015, 13:13

http://tipiwalter.smugmug.com/Backpack-2015-Trips-161/On-Rocky-Flats/i-h53ZD2P/0/M/Trip%20162%20243-M.jpg
After Patman gets his lodge set up he comes into my giant Red Hilleberg for dinner.

http://tipiwalter.smugmug.com/Backpack-2015-Trips-161/On-Rocky-Flats/i-9SMJv4h/0/M/Trip%20162%20244-M.jpg
On Saturday February 14 we strike camp in a tremendously cold face-eating wind and bail off the mountain to Beech Gap.

http://tipiwalter.smugmug.com/Backpack-2015-Trips-161/On-Rocky-Flats/i-wKnXGSD/0/M/Trip%20162%20251-M.jpg
We hike off the mountain in full layers to avoid the biting wind and stop at a trail jct to take a quick pic. It's cold, boys!

http://tipiwalter.smugmug.com/Backpack-2015-Trips-161/On-Rocky-Flats/i-QFk5x8f/0/M/Trip%20162%20247-M.jpg
Just what I need---more ICE. I catch a ride with Patman as he drives down the mountain and into Tellico Plains where we say our goodbyes and I wait for my evac ride home. So ends a short Feb trip.

colorado_rob

02-17-2015, 13:34

Looks very peaceful and pleasant and inspiring, thanks for sharing Tipi!

Tipi Walter

02-17-2015, 13:49

Thanks for the post.

misterfloyd

02-17-2015, 15:24

T-Rx

02-17-2015, 15:25

Awesome pics Tipi. I always enjoy your trip reports and pics! Thanks.

Tipi Walter

02-17-2015, 15:42

Tipi,

Thank you for the post, I always enjoy reading it and looking at the pictures.

Double thanks for doing trail maintenance, I certainly need to do more.

Got many questions to ask you

In the Citico wilderness I saw a US Forestry trail marking. Are they marked throughout? I'm just trying to get a better feel for the area and your trips. I know you have been there a lot.

I realize they are wilderness areas which means no markings. In the two I have been in Linville Gorge, and shinning rock area they are not as well.

Like I said a lot of questions to ask you.

Any information is appreciated.

Floyd

Generally the Citico trails are moderately to poorly marked, although they used to be alot worse. Many have signs with numbers though not all, and even if you find the trailheads each individual trail has its challenges like the North Fork with its creek crossings or Brush Mt with its hellish route finding. You may find the trailhead in other words but that's no guarantee you'll finish the whole trail. It's helpfull therefore to learn to recognize the natural blaze mark on trail trees. See below pic.

Probably the best map is the Citico/Joyce Kilmer paper map---mark every trail with a red ink pen to see them easier. And as usual the first trip is always the hardest---the second is known and much better.

http://tipiwalter.smugmug.com/Backpacking2012/Tipi-Walter-with-Cranbrook/i-GJgWCFb/0/L/TRIP%20131%20109-L.jpg

Praha4

02-17-2015, 15:57

Tipi Walter

02-17-2015, 16:20

Another great trip report, always enjoy seeing your reports and pictures! That new MSR tent that Patman was testing looks like their new "FlyLite" tent. Advertised as weighing only 1-lb, 9-oz for a two person tent.

http://www.snewsnet.com/press-release/msr-debuts-minimalist-flylite-tent-for-weight-conscious-backpackers/

what kinds of defects did you guys see with that tent?

Patman will be writing up a review but he can be contacted here---

http://www.trailspace.com/people/patman/

He found it to be poor in regards to wind (never could keep the back low pole stake stable---tent collapsed on him several times), and I believe he complained about water leaking inside---plus the whole hassle of having a tent stake loop rip away from the tent floor. He also complained about the front "baker tent" style entrance to be bad in horizontal wind-whipped rain with water entering into the top mesh panel.

Thanks for your brand link. It reminds me that Weight is one of the least important facets for a good backpacking tent (within reason of course---we don't carry canvas wall tents). The MSR tent proves in part that when weight is a person's only consideration he may be confusing it with livability and/or survivability. Or comfort in the field.

TNhiker

02-17-2015, 17:10

In the Citico wilderness I saw a US Forestry trail marking. Are they marked throughout? I'm just trying to get a better feel for the area and your trips. I know you have been there a lot.

while i havent spent as much time in citico as tipi----ive done every trail....

brush mountain was the hardest to follow...........the bottom part down by south fork was easy then it became a beast...........and a real beast near the top...

i spent about 2 hours not going more than a half mile while trying to figure out where i needed to go...

but, that was before tipi and hooty cut it...........

most of the other trails are pretty easy to follow----mainly thanks to tipi, his saw and the cairns....

just keep an eye out------backtrack to a known point if need be...........

and look for the ax cuts and sometimes a faint white box blaze on trees..........

TNhiker

02-17-2015, 18:03

tipi-----wonder how many more blowdowns are in that area after yesterday's storm....

did you get alot of ice down where you're at?

Tipi Walter

02-17-2015, 21:11

tipi-----wonder how many more blowdowns are in that area after yesterday's storm....

did you get alot of ice down where you're at?

I don't know but I'll know soon enough to do some touch up work on Rocky Flats and then tackle the North Fork which has been cluttered with deadfall (hemlocks mostly) the last couple months.

As far as current ice conditions, well, I got home on Saturday Feb 14 and sorta didn't want to miss the big storm and set up in the backyard to spend some nights in the Akto tent which got a covering of ice for a couple nights, as below---

Minimal crap, really. Nothing like everywhere else.

http://tipiwalter.smugmug.com/Backpack-2015-Trips-161/On-Rocky-Flats/i-Gw7WMjF/0/L/Akto%20002-L.jpg

http://tipiwalter.smugmug.com/Backpack-2015-Trips-161/On-Rocky-Flats/i-rH7FkJT/0/L/Akto%20008-L.jpg

misterfloyd

02-19-2015, 22:37

Tipi,

What paper map are you referencing?

Thanks floyd

Tipi Walter

02-19-2015, 22:50

Tipi,

What paper map are you referencing?

Thanks floyd

Check it out---

http://www.nationalforestmapstore.com/product-p/nc-5.htm

http://cdn3.volusion.com/jmsrs.xorru/v/vspfiles/photos/NC-5-2.jpg?1418201148

double d

02-20-2015, 07:34

Tipi Walter, thanks for posting your trip report and pictures. I'm gonna miss pictures with your now "retired" green Hilleberg tent, gotta get used the red one now.

Tipi Walter

02-20-2015, 11:47

Tipi Walter, thanks for posting your trip report and pictures. I'm gonna miss pictures with your now "retired" green Hilleberg tent, gotta get used the red one now.

I know because at first I was reluctant to go Red due to visibility issues (too bright) but then decided a change O pace is always nice and I'm not pulling stealth camping anymore like behind a walmart or in a town cemetery so I don't have to hide. And red looks great in the snow. Plus, red makes the inside a little bit brighter too. My old green tunnel was worn out with patches and rips and UV degradation but it still works and lasted for many good years of heavy Back Packaging.

rocketsocks

02-20-2015, 15:08

Congrats on the new tent...so long Greenie. Checked out all the smugmug pics as well, very nice, as always thanks for postin'

Cadenza

02-20-2015, 20:29

Check it out---

http://www.nationalforestmapstore.com/product-p/nc-5.htm

http://cdn3.volusion.com/jmsrs.xorru/v/vspfiles/photos/NC-5-2.jpg?1418201148

EXCELLENT. I have worn out a few of these maps and have been searching for a new one for a few years now.
I thought they were long since out of print.

Glad to have found this link,....I just ordered my lifetime supply. :)

Tipi Walter

02-22-2015, 10:56

EXCELLENT. I have worn out a few of these maps and have been searching for a new one for a few years now.
I thought they were long since out of print.

Glad to have found this link,....I just ordered my lifetime supply. :)

I still have my original and worn out Citico paper map though I rarely carry it anymore.

http://tipiwalter.smugmug.com/Gear-TheSevenHolyNylons/Backpacks-Pumping-Nylon/i-jbDjb6N/0/L/AKTO%20WINTER%202015%20028-L.jpg
Here is the Magnificent Citico Map, well worn and worn out.

http://tipiwalter.smugmug.com/Gear-TheSevenHolyNylons/Backpacks-Pumping-Nylon/i-gkX87Bb/0/L/AKTO%20WINTER%202015%20027-L.jpg
Maps are gear, right? This is the back of the map.

http://tipiwalter.smugmug.com/Gear-TheSevenHolyNylons/Backpacks-Pumping-Nylon/i-JSwXsGP/0/L/AKTO%20WINTER%202015%20029-L.jpg
The only way to keep this fragile map from tearing apart is to tape each fold with clear packing tape.

http://tipiwalter.smugmug.com/Gear-TheSevenHolyNylons/Backpacks-Pumping-Nylon/i-9DmZrcc/0/L/AKTO%20WINTER%202015%20030-L.jpg
And the only way to see the dotted line trails on this map is to highlight each one with a red ink pen, and putting the creeks in blue ink doesn't hurt either.

BTW, the north red line on the left is the actual Upper Slickrock #42 trail---the Nutbuster---"hardest trail in the southeast". It starts on Slickrock Creek and climbs south to a high gap called Naked Ground.

Traffic Jam

02-22-2015, 11:07

Tipi, are these yours also? I saw them on 2/10 next to Crowder camp.

30039

Tipi Walter

02-22-2015, 11:11

Tipi, are these yours also? I saw them on 2/10 next to Crowder camp.

30039

Wowie zowie the stick arrows are still there! Yes, I camped at Crowders (the big grassy spot on the BMT) and left this stick arrow pointing my route down to Slickrock Creek on the Big Stack Gap trail---for my buddies behind me. Hard to believe a coyote or hiker didn't scatter them by now.

I was camping in Crowders on February 6 so you just missed me by 4 days.

Traffic Jam

02-22-2015, 11:28

Wowie zowie the stick arrows are still there! Yes, I camped at Crowders (the big grassy spot on the BMT) and left this stick arrow pointing my route down to Slickrock Creek on the Big Stack Gap trail---for my buddies behind me. Hard to believe a coyote or hiker didn't scatter them by now.

I was camping in Crowders on February 6 so you just missed me by 4 days.

Dang! One day we'll cross paths.

3_dogs

02-22-2015, 15:53

Thanks for sharing.

misterfloyd

02-24-2015, 09:38

Tipi,

Thanks for letting me know which map. I have used Nat Geo maps and I have not cared for them much. Wanted to make certain.

Man I really would like to pick your brain about your experience regarding winter backpacking and just backpacking in general. I could learn a lot.
Best,
Floyd

Tipi Walter

02-24-2015, 10:44

Tipi,

Man I really would like to pick your brain about your experience regarding winter backpacking and just backpacking in general. I could learn a lot.
Best,
Floyd

I posted this picture today on another thread but I gotta post it on this one too! It's titled Sleeping In the Backyard Every Night.

I feel winter backpackers can learn a lot about their gear and their mindset by sleeping outside every night in the winter and by using their yard or their porch or deck for the experience. I'm a firm believer in getting "bag nights" to keep their chops up. Yard camping tests their bags and pads and clothing and headgear and all else, most especially their attitude and acceptance of Nature's cold.

http://tipiwalter.smugmug.com/Backpack-2015-Trips-161/On-Rocky-Flats/i-zPHQvQV/0/L/AKTO%20WINTER%202015%20001-L.jpg
Waking up to snow in the backyard.

http://tipiwalter.smugmug.com/Backpack-2015-Trips-161/Trip-163-in-March/i-hDWrX5S/0/L/WALTER%20FEB%20SNOW%20002-L.jpg
A new snowfall in East Tennessee---