PDA

View Full Version : Shining Rock Wilderness



Earl Grey
01-02-2007, 20:11
Ok so I froze my ass off, that is all.


More detail you say? Ok well before leaving I checked the low temp forecast and it was around 25 or so but this isnt for elevation just the towns around the area. I was around 5600 feet. Last night it got to about 10 and I got rather cold. My bag is rated for 15. I didnt see ANY wildlife at all, so much that I didnt even put my food in a tree I just kept it in the tent with me. When I say I didnt see anything I didnt see birds, squirrels, deer or anything. On top of this it iced during the night too and I could hear the ice pellets hitting the top of the tent from the front coming through. So during the night I said to myself what the hell am I doing out here? Theres probaly no animals out here for a reason!

Since its a wilderness you are not allowed to make a campfire and I did not break this rule but I am sure it would have been 10 times better if you could make one and I would have stayed out there a couple more days. Tonights low for Asheville (2nd) is 20 so it will probaly get to 5 or 10 since I planned to camp at Cold Mountain.

Tipi Walter
01-02-2007, 20:22
At least you got out in it. Sounds like you had an exciting experience in a godawfully beautiful and pristine wilderness.

Jan LiteShoe
01-02-2007, 20:22
Ok so I froze my ass off, that is all...
...
Since its a wilderness you are not allowed to make a campfire and I did not break this rule but I am sure it would have been 10 times better if you could make one and I would have stayed out there a couple more days. Tonights low for Asheville (2nd) is 20 so it will probaly get to 5 or 10 since I planned to camp at Cold Mountain.

Dang, I'll bet it was cold.
Did you go in via Black Balsalm?
I'm guessing the Parkway is open there then. It's been closed by Thanksgiving some years in that section, not sure why.

Bloodroot
01-02-2007, 20:27
Ok so I froze my ass off, that is all.


More detail you say? Ok well before leaving I checked the low temp forecast and it was around 25 or so but this isnt for elevation just the towns around the area. I was around 5600 feet. Last night it got to about 10 and I got rather cold. My bag is rated for 15. I didnt see ANY wildlife at all, so much that I didnt even put my food in a tree I just kept it in the tent with me. When I say I didnt see anything I didnt see birds, squirrels, deer or anything. On top of this it iced during the night too and I could hear the ice pellets hitting the top of the tent from the front coming through. So during the night I said to myself what the hell am I doing out here? Theres probaly no animals out here for a reason!

Since its a wilderness you are not allowed to make a campfire and I did not break this rule but I am sure it would have been 10 times better if you could make one and I would have stayed out there a couple more days. Tonights low for Asheville (2nd) is 20 so it will probaly get to 5 or 10 since I planned to camp at Cold Mountain.

Lol...last time I stayed there it was freezing and the wind was howling!

Ramble~On
01-02-2007, 21:36
It may have been cold but I'll bet there's a lot of us out here that wish we could have been out there freezing right along side you.
I can picture it and with Rhine ice it looks even better.
Where'd you start from ?

ed bell
01-02-2007, 22:04
Dang, I'll bet it was cold.
Did you go in via Black Balsalm?
I'm guessing the Parkway is open there then. It's been closed by Thanksgiving some years in that section, not sure why.I think it's closed. Usually the Park Rangers are quick to close it, and real slow to open it back up. The Park Service saves a lot of money when the don't have to patrol the closed sections. Many North facing curves stay dangerous long after fair weather returns. I believe the Park Rangers do not use snow removal equipment on the Parkway. Might be wrong on that, but I don't remember ever seeing any evidence of it.

ed bell
01-02-2007, 22:18
blackmath, I hope you give it another try. I really don't remember you asking about weather conditions and such in your previous posts. A good rule of thumb is to subtract 4deg F for every 1000ft elevation gain relative to the available forecast. Wildlife viewing is mostly bird-watching in cold conditions.

Ramble~On
01-02-2007, 22:19
I live really close to the parkway and the last time I saw it open was Dec 5 for the full moon which was incredilble..anyway unless there is some massive period of spring like weather the parkway in this area will be closed.
The easiest way to access Black Balsam when the BuRP is closed is to hike in on the Flat Laurel Creek Trail from the trailhead on 215.

OldStormcrow
01-02-2007, 22:43
I'm heading up there in a couple of weeks via the Shining Creek Trail for a liesurely 3 night trip to Cold Mountain. I used to hitch-hike up there back "in the day" so I wouldn't be constrained by other people's schedules, gas costs, etc. I did that once and began my hike in the afternoon when it was 10 degrees and windy down at the parking lot. That night I had the entire area up there to myself and the low was somewhere around 20 below....a record low for the area. No snow, just rock-hard frozen ground. After a long night of hallucinations and severe hypothermia and a very near-death experience I managed to get down to the road. A group of women from a Presbyterian outdoor skills camp picked me up and took me to their campground in Cedar Mountain where they revived me with cake and coffee....I thought I had died and they were just some kind southern Valkyries, come to carry me home to Valhalla.....or is it Walhalla? Still, I love the place and plan to have my ashes slung out there one day.

rainmaker
01-02-2007, 23:45
A few years ago when I was still gainfully employed, Madame and I decided to spend a couple of nights in the Middleprong Wilderness Area, just across the road from Sams Knob and the parking lot for Shining Rock. After an A.M. meeting in Columbia, Madame and I picked up lunch and an extra sandwich for supper and headed North. We arrived at the NC 215 trailhead around 4:00 PM and hit the trail. Temperatures were around 45 degrees with a light mist falling. We got to our campsite and as soon as the tent was set up it began to rain , nawh, it began to downpour. We retreated to the tent , ate the sanwiches, and drifted off to sleep. Around 9:30 I woke up with a need to check out nature and discovered that while we napped, the ground had frozen under a gorgeous clear and star filled sky. We ate dessert and drank hot chocolate, while enjoying the Milky Way and trying to identify constellations. We got back in the tent for the remainder of the night or at least until I needed to check on nature again. By that time it was sleeting and snowing and continued to do so until around 11:00 A.M. the following morning. We met a hunter who said the temperature in Rosman that morning was 15. It was a glorious weekend and we behaved as children . Temperature extremes, howling winds, and the unpredictable; thats why that area is a favorite. Gotta go.

The Solemates
01-03-2007, 00:00
this area is my favorite place to go for winter hiking. several years ago we spent new years atop cold mtn and it was below 0F out. i also did a solo trip up black mtn from the headquarters when even 276 was closed through the national forest area due to snow. there was over 2 feet at the tops of the mountains. it was wonderful, but i froze my but off that night. good times..

Tipi Walter
01-03-2007, 00:11
I'm heading up there in a couple of weeks via the Shining Creek Trail for a liesurely 3 night trip to Cold Mountain. I used to hitch-hike up there back "in the day" so I wouldn't be constrained by other people's schedules, gas costs, etc. I did that once and began my hike in the afternoon when it was 10 degrees and windy down at the parking lot. That night I had the entire area up there to myself and the low was somewhere around 20 below....a record low for the area. No snow, just rock-hard frozen ground. After a long night of hallucinations and severe hypothermia and a very near-death experience I managed to get down to the road. A group of women from a Presbyterian outdoor skills camp picked me up and took me to their campground in Cedar Mountain where they revived me with cake and coffee....I thought I had died and they were just some kind southern Valkyries, come to carry me home to Valhalla.....or is it Walhalla? Still, I love the place and plan to have my ashes slung out there one day.

"After a long night of hallucinations" about says it all. It was good to hear your story, it brought into sharp focus the bittersweet romps I've had with Momma Nature when she sits me down on the snow to tell me one of her funny jokes and then howls with laughter at the punch line. While she's howling I'm squirming and being flung about but in the end it's all one big fantastic journey. Or addiction.

20 below is pretty rough in the mountains of North Carolina and it always seems to come with high whipping winds. Who carries a minus 20 degree sleeping bag anyway? I won't ask about your near-death experience cuz I know there's really no words that can do it justice. I've tried to record on paper rough events or near-epics even while they are happening but it's hopeless.

Earl Grey
01-03-2007, 01:03
I started at the Camp Daniel Boone and went south along the Little East Fork river. Since it had been raining alot the past few days the creeks were high. I had to cross the river once and I about fell in it but I made it across twice. I got very close to Shining Rock Gap before puttin up camp. The place where I stopped looked like an old loggin road turnaround of some sort because there was alot space on the side of the mountain. I could have went to the gap itself but with the wind that probaly wouldnt have been to fun so I chose the north side of the mountain and was shielded for the most part.

There were some very loud gusts, you could hear the wind and trees before the gust actually got there. Once or twice I peeked out to see the moon and there were these clouds RACING across the sky it was rather odd site. There were these random streams on the side of the mountain that was actually the trail which all fed into Little East Fork. Its pretty cool to just see water coming from the side of a mountain like that.

Tipi Walter
01-03-2007, 09:39
I started at the Camp Daniel Boone and went south along the Little East Fork river. Since it had been raining alot the past few days the creeks were high. I had to cross the river once and I about fell in it but I made it across twice. I got very close to Shining Rock Gap before puttin up camp. The place where I stopped looked like an old loggin road turnaround of some sort because there was alot space on the side of the mountain. I could have went to the gap itself but with the wind that probaly wouldnt have been to fun so I chose the north side of the mountain and was shielded for the most part.

There were some very loud gusts, you could hear the wind and trees before the gust actually got there. Once or twice I peeked out to see the moon and there were these clouds RACING across the sky it was rather odd site. There were these random streams on the side of the mountain that was actually the trail which all fed into Little East Fork. Its pretty cool to just see water coming from the side of a mountain like that.

What kind of footgear did you wear when you crossed the creek? How high was the water?

Crossing a swollen and raging creek(especially in the winter)is about like setting up a tent on a mountain top under a lone tree during a lightning storm. I've done both and both left a strange terrible taste in my mouth afterwards. Close calls always leave their lingering afterglow. It's funny to talk about now but when I was trying to cross the Upper Bald River in flood stage(with my dog in tow)it wasn't so funny. The usual calf high water reached my belly button and a heavy pack added to the fun. Was your creek raging?

That's what got to me, the swirling, deep, fast-moving maelstrom that once was a quiet brook. It was a churning muddy hellhole crapshoot with me in the middle trying to get across without slipping and ending up gone. (The lightning incident was solved by throwing everything in my tent and dragging the whole wad down the mountain several hundred yards).

Winter winds, though not as rough as deep water fords, can twist a person's medulla if they stay out in them long enough. The Shining Rock area can get some flesh-flaying locomotive-style windstorms and that's what they are, Storms. The Innuit people have about 25 words for wind and they say a long windstorm can drive a person insane. I've only got two words for wind: "wind" and "damn wind."

Some people go to the highest place they can find in a winter windstorm just to test their tents and I applaud their bravery. It sounds like you got to ride Miss Nature's Pony in the Winter Rodeo so thanks for sharing it.

Earl Grey
01-03-2007, 12:12
What kind of footgear did you wear when you crossed the creek? How high was the water?

Crossing a swollen and raging creek(especially in the winter)is about like setting up a tent on a mountain top under a lone tree during a lightning storm. I've done both and both left a strange terrible taste in my mouth afterwards. Close calls always leave their lingering afterglow. It's funny to talk about now but when I was trying to cross the Upper Bald River in flood stage(with my dog in tow)it wasn't so funny. The usual calf high water reached my belly button and a heavy pack added to the fun. Was your creek raging?

That's what got to me, the swirling, deep, fast-moving maelstrom that once was a quiet brook. It was a churning muddy hellhole crapshoot with me in the middle trying to get across without slipping and ending up gone. (The lightning incident was solved by throwing everything in my tent and dragging the whole wad down the mountain several hundred yards).

Winter winds, though not as rough as deep water fords, can twist a person's medulla if they stay out in them long enough. The Shining Rock area can get some flesh-flaying locomotive-style windstorms and that's what they are, Storms. The Innuit people have about 25 words for wind and they say a long windstorm can drive a person insane. I've only got two words for wind: "wind" and "damn wind."

Some people go to the highest place they can find in a winter windstorm just to test their tents and I applaud their bravery. It sounds like you got to ride Miss Nature's Pony in the Winter Rodeo so thanks for sharing it.

Haha I like that riding Miss Nature's Pony in the Winter Rodeo, mind if I use it? :p

They say a picture is worth a thousand words so how about a video of the creek?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DoQsG_QfbWg

It doesnt look very big but its fast and deep and every rock slippery. I crossed downstream a bit and there is a 6 foot waterfall right below where I did so if I would have fell I probaly would have went over. This was the second time I crossed it coming back. The first time was a little bit easier because of rock locations that hadnt changed.

The winds were strong and howling but its something to listen to while going to sleep. This would be ok as long as the wind wasnt hitting the tent directly and thats why I didnt camp on the ridge itself.

SteveJ
01-03-2007, 22:38
Thanks for posting, Blackmath! I'm taking a group of Boy Scouts up the Little East Fork trail on Jan 13th. Hopefully, we won't have rain before - it's a tricky enough water crossing in the cold without high water.... Last year, we hiked up with about 4" of snow falling - a repeat this year would be great!

Steve



Haha I like that riding Miss Nature's Pony in the Winter Rodeo, mind if I use it? :p

They say a picture is worth a thousand words so how about a video of the creek?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DoQsG_QfbWg

It doesnt look very big but its fast and deep and every rock slippery. I crossed downstream a bit and there is a 6 foot waterfall right below where I did so if I would have fell I probaly would have went over. This was the second time I crossed it coming back. The first time was a little bit easier because of rock locations that hadnt changed.

The winds were strong and howling but its something to listen to while going to sleep. This would be ok as long as the wind wasnt hitting the tent directly and thats why I didnt camp on the ridge itself.

ed bell
01-03-2007, 22:45
Hey SteveJ, I remember you asking about the area last year, glad you are leading another trip up there.:) If you leave yourself an extra hour or two upon arriving at Shining Rock Gap, there are some campsites real close that are way better than the Gap. Not an hours walk away, just gotta poke around up there a bit and have some time to choose.

SteveJ
01-04-2007, 11:31
Hey SteveJ, I remember you asking about the area last year, glad you are leading another trip up there.:) If you leave yourself an extra hour or two upon arriving at Shining Rock Gap, there are some campsites real close that are way better than the Gap. Not an hours walk away, just gotta poke around up there a bit and have some time to choose.

Thanks, Ed. I'm familiar w/ a couple of them - one of my favorites is a field at the top of a ridge looking due north at Cold Mtn - great views if it's not too cold / windy.... The challenge we have is taking a group of boys that range in age from 11 - 18. I usually hang back with my 11 y.o., who obviously can't hike as fast as the young stud 17 y.o. who's #3 in the state at cross country! Last year, by the time we got there, they already had camp set up - I'll try again this year!

ed bell
01-04-2007, 22:07
Thanks, Ed. I'm familiar w/ a couple of them - one of my favorites is a field at the top of a ridge looking due north at Cold Mtn - great views if it's not too cold / windy.... The challenge we have is taking a group of boys that range in age from 11 - 18. I usually hang back with my 11 y.o., who obviously can't hike as fast as the young stud 17 y.o. who's #3 in the state at cross country! Last year, by the time we got there, they already had camp set up - I'll try again this year!I just saw your picture from the other thread. That was one of the ones I was talking about.:) I have never stayed there, but it's on the list. For small groups, I love the North face of Flower Knob. The spring is still close, and the views are very nice.