View Full Version : fontana dam?
is Fontana dam closed to car and foot traffic?
Tennessee Viking
04-08-2008, 23:58
The Asheville Citizen Times list as closed again to foot and car traffic due to hard hat maintenance. All traffic is being routed along NC 28. Hiker route will be well marked.
Foot travel is allowed, I know I walked across the Dam on the 21st of March. Vehicle travel is not allowed though.
Kirby
SGT Rock
04-09-2008, 13:01
Fromthe GSMNP Website:
• TVA anticipates closing the road over Fontana Dam to both vehicle and foot traffic for a period of approximately 6 weeks on March 31. Hikers should plan to use the blue blazed by-pass trail that originates at the TVA police station beside Fontana Dam and terminates at the park road on the north side of the dam. A map is posted at the Fontana Visitor Center and at the AT trail head in the park.
This is a good resource I keep bookmarked: http://www.nps.gov/grsm/planyourvisit/temproadclose.htm
Man, that blue blaze is long, I saw a map of it. I think it is about 2 miles, where as the dam is maybe 3/4 of a mile.
Kirby
The dam was closed Monday and today to hikers. I hiked that blue blaze all the way down to Hwy 28 bridge and back up both days.
warren doyle
04-09-2008, 20:45
Nice night walk.
Two Speed
04-09-2008, 20:49
I was going to respond to that, and then realized I was going to be guilty of feeding a troll.
Lone Wolf
04-09-2008, 20:58
I was going to respond to that, and then realized I was going to be guilty of feeding a troll.
he made a statement. it ain't trolling. you're guilty of sheepleism is all
Two Speed
04-09-2008, 22:03
How so?
Chicken Feathers
04-09-2008, 22:31
Dam or Damn. Are we allowed to swim across if so that would be much shorter than the Blue Blaze.:-?
cavscout
04-10-2008, 00:24
My guess is someone with a boat could do a nice little business right now :-?
Lone Wolf, please explain this. You're all for someone breaking the law by crossing the dam at a time that it is closed to hikers. However, if someone breaks the rules at The Place, you're all over them. Please explain how you reconcile these statements?
Suppose I'm a thru-hiker and pick and choose which rules to follow. Suppose you catch me at The Place with a 6 pack of beer. Suppose I call you a sheeple by you enforcing the rules.
You can't have it both ways. You rail at hiker behavior at the same time you encourage people to break the law.
Lone Wolf
04-10-2008, 04:31
Lone Wolf, please explain this. You're all for someone breaking the law by crossing the dam at a time that it is closed to hikers. However, if someone breaks the rules at The Place, you're all over them. Please explain how you reconcile these statements?
Suppose I'm a thru-hiker and pick and choose which rules to follow. Suppose you catch me at The Place with a 6 pack of beer. Suppose I call you a sheeple by you enforcing the rules.
You can't have it both ways. You rail at hiker behavior at the same time you encourage people to break the law.
nowhere in this thread is anyone encouraging anyone to break rules/laws. if someone chooses to walk across the dam then they should be willing to pay the fine or be jailed. same if you sneak beer or a dog into the Place. if you get caught it's one more nail in the coffin for the death of the Place fo r EVERYBODY. apples and oranges kid
warren doyle
04-10-2008, 08:04
It still is a nice night walk and I do believe it was taxpayers who paid for the dam. Because the dam is 'officially' closed to foot traffic just means that they don't want to be sued if a hiker gets hurt during repair work.
4eyedbuzzard
04-10-2008, 08:10
Can something owned by The People be unofficially closed?
Just wondering :confused:
SGT Rock
04-10-2008, 08:18
Sure, they closed the Washington Monument to fix it up...
That said, I don't think that if a few hikers walk across the dam it will get shut down and taken away forever - not like could happen to a hostel.
Wolf, I appreciate your response. There was another thread about this and you replied to me in a rather flip fashion, thus my question above.
Although the chances of getting caught are low, being charged with trespassing on federal land usually means an appearance if federal court. I know people who have been charged with trespassing in the Chattahoochee River recreation area in Atlanta, and their experience was not fun.
A through hiker who gets caught going across the dam and charged with trespassing would most likely have to appear in federal court. Could cause some logistical problems with a through hike.
warren doyle
04-10-2008, 11:50
Reminds me of the time in 1980-81 when I transformed $75 worth of GSNP citations into a $300 donation to help fund transpostation costs for thirty college students to do volunteer work in Appalachia during their Spring Break.
Lone Wolf
04-10-2008, 12:51
Wolf, I appreciate your response. There was another thread about this and you replied to me in a rather flip fashion, thus my question above.
Although the chances of getting caught are low, being charged with trespassing on federal land usually means an appearance if federal court. I know people who have been charged with trespassing in the Chattahoochee River recreation area in Atlanta, and their experience was not fun.
A through hiker who gets caught going across the dam and charged with trespassing would most likely have to appear in federal court. Could cause some logistical problems with a through hike.
but it only affects the hiker not all other hikers. you drink in a hostel that forbids it, you may cause it to shut down for everybody
Bare Bear
04-11-2008, 15:58
Fact.......I am at Hike Inn at Fontana now.
Fact: The dam route is closed.
Fact: There is a reasonable blue blaze.
Fact: You stand a very good chance of being arrested, not just a ticket for crossing illegally. The fines begin at $125.
SGT Rock
04-11-2008, 16:56
Go BMT!
Darwin again
04-11-2008, 20:49
he made a statement. it ain't trolling. you're guilty of sheepleism is all
Homeland Security might have an opinion in the matter.:sun
Lone Wolf
04-11-2008, 21:51
Fact.......I am at Hike Inn at Fontana now.
Fact: The dam route is closed.
Fact: There is a reasonable blue blaze.
Fact: You stand a very good chance of being arrested, not just a ticket for crossing illegally. The fines begin at $125.
i'd risk it.
Nearly Normal
04-12-2008, 01:42
Hows the water level these days?
nowhere in this thread is anyone encouraging anyone to break rules/laws.
Originally Posted by Bare Bear http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/wb_style/buttons/viewpost.gif (http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/showthread.php?p=592557#post592557)
Fact.......I am at Hike Inn at Fontana now.
Fact: The dam route is closed.
Fact: There is a reasonable blue blaze.
Fact: You stand a very good chance of being arrested, not just a ticket for crossing illegally. The fines begin at $125.
i'd risk it.
Well, if you would "risk it" then would it be fair to say that you were encouraging others to break rules. I hope I'm not being too harsh here.
Panzer
Lone Wolf
04-12-2008, 06:19
Well, if you would "risk it" then would it be fair to say that you were encouraging others to break rules. I hope I'm not being too harsh here.
Panzer
it would be fair to to say say you're FOS. i ain't encouraging anyone to do anything. you dweeb. :rolleyes:
I'd have to see a map but rather than doing the "official" blue blaze I'd probably just find my way from Fontana Village, connected steps or not.
SGT Rock
04-12-2008, 11:16
From Fontanna village do the yellow blaze down the hill on NC 28 to the bridge and walk across it. The bridge is part of the blueblaze, so once you are on the bridge you are back on the AT.
timcar86
04-13-2008, 11:45
I just finished hiking from Clingman's to Fontana Friday. We stayed at Mollies on Thursday night and spoke with a ridge runner there. He was told that a number of long metal rods were weakening and needed to be repaired. The rods were under tension and if they broke, had the potential to come shooting up out of the dam through the manhole covers. That's why the dam is closed. However, one of our group had heard this conversation and was unaware of the by-pass. She was the last one off the trail and simply walked across the dam at around 5:00PM. She was never even looked at. Go figure.
timcar86
04-13-2008, 11:46
Edit - The lady in our group did not hear the conversation about the rods.
warren doyle
04-14-2008, 07:49
Avoid manholes. They are usually made of metal and round and are easy to see to be able to walk around them (even at night).
the fontana dam reroute sucks. i would recommend getting up early and crossing it then. the blue blaze trail is at least 3 miles, NOT the one mile they say it is. it took me an hour and a half at a fast pace to do.
we talked to the workers on the dam and they said it was ok for us to cross, but the police officer would not let us go.
this info is good to know. We will be getting to fontana sometime monday. I need to drop off a package their saturday?? Does anyone know where this would be possible??
SGT Rock
04-18-2008, 10:44
FWIW, I was down there on Tuesday and whenever the TVA police would see it, they were ticketing hikers. $125 fines. Be advised it is a very real possibility.
Another thing to consider that I saw: If you get to the bathrooms and get a shuttle to the village or the Inn, either will shuttle you to the bottom of the dam when you want back on the trail. This gets you on the north end of the relo so all you have to do is climb the trail up from the bottom. That only adds about 800 feet of climb to your climb to Shuckstack (there is that nice level part between the top of the re-lo and the end of the road walk to recover) while avoiding all the extra exertion in getting down and across. In the end you skip about 1.something of AT between the bathroom and the start of the re-lo (plus the extra for the re-lo) so the exertion equals out.
If you think about it - the re-lo is a part of the AT for now. Walking across the top is actually skipping the official AT. So if you were already planning to cross, you aren't really a purist and may not have any 'guilty' feelings about doing what I propose.
If you claim to hike every mile but also want to cross the dam under cover of night - well you are a big silly. I can think of at least one person this describes...
If you are lucky the dam workers will give you a ride up to the top of the dam as well. I did that just the other day and have no guilt or shame about the matter :)
You can also just ask the guards. Several hikers got through simply because there was no construction going on and the guards were cool..
That is my plan, going to ask first thing in the morning and if the answer is no ill take the re-lo
-Blackberry