View Full Version : Best month to hike at and avoid rain
henry g wilgo
03-24-2013, 15:43
Starting in georgia going to damascus
thanks henry
Rusty Nail
03-24-2013, 15:45
August maybe?
Lone Wolf
03-24-2013, 15:59
july.......
johnnybgood
03-24-2013, 16:41
In Virginia it's November.
Slo-go'en
03-24-2013, 18:15
That's at least a 6 week trip and it's gonna rain at some point. At the very least afternoon thunder storms in the summer.
Train Wreck
03-24-2013, 19:56
:welcome
Henry,
If you start in early May, you have the best odds of encountering nice weather plus greatest chance of the springs still running. We section hiked Virginia over a period of 2-3 years and in general, the springs seemed to be running best before June. If you go in full summer (July-August) you may have trouble finding water on the high ridges.
I noticed your age, thumbs up :)
Give me a shout when you get your plans firmed up and I might be able to help you with a slackpack in the area around Franklin, NC.
HooKooDooKu
03-25-2013, 14:52
Based on historical data for the Great Smoky Mountains National Park (http://www.nps.gov/grsm/planyourvisit/weather.htm) September and October are the months with the least rainfall (about 40% less than spring and summer).
I've been hiking to LeConte Lodge for 20 years now in September. Only twice have I encountered significant rain fall during the hike (and only about twice more have I encountered ANY rain during the hike, and perhaps twice more again has it rained at all during my stay at LeConte).
I can also attest to chilly temperatures in the mountains that time of year. I don't think I've ever been able to stop to eat lunch without putting on a jacket.
If you hike that section in the summer you'll probably end up praying for rain.
henry g wilgo
03-26-2013, 13:13
:welcome
Henry,
If you start in early May, you have the best odds of encountering nice weather plus greatest chance of the springs still running. We section hiked Virginia over a period of 2-3 years and in general, the springs seemed to be running best before June. If you go in full summer (July-August) you may have trouble finding water on the high ridges.
I noticed your age, thumbs up :)
Give me a shout when you get your plans firmed up and I might be able to help you with a slackpack in the area around Franklin, NC.
thanks,,,for the advise, best month to avoid lots of and still ...have a water supply******smart thinking....:o
henry g wilgo
03-26-2013, 13:18
also,,should have asked....are the ..BUGS>>>>worse in may or june????? or pehaps either month does not matter..just a thought....WHAT YOUR IDEA***
HooKooDooKu has the right answer according to climate data. The Climatic Atlas of the United States shows the three fall months -- September, October and November -- are the three months with the average least annual precipitation in the southern Appalachians where you will be hiking.
MuddyWaters
03-26-2013, 20:31
2 days of warm rain is better than 1 day of cold rain.
magic_game03
03-29-2013, 01:19
HooKooDooKu has the right answer according to climate data. The Climatic Atlas of the United States shows the three fall months -- September, October and November -- are the three months with the average least annual precipitation in the southern Appalachians where you will be hiking.
While there is less rain, it always seems like there is more dew on the ground in the colder months which means you wake up to a wet soggy mess. That brings us to the more important point...
2 days of warm rain is better than 1 day of cold rain.
Two days of rain in July and september is often a welcome site. Rain in November sucks nads.