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  1. #1
    Registered User gollwoods's Avatar
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    Default backpack loop GSMNP

    4 days 11/9 4 days if leconte becomes available 3 days if not
    im 65 so it will not be over 11 miles a day im pulling permits next week but the shelters should be available for awhile. If leconte opens up i will try to get that for 11/11

  2. #2
    Registered User The Cleaner's Avatar
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    Permits have become problematic for many years now. I live only 60 miles away and my last visit was a dayhike 20 years ago. The traffic is terrible and now you'll need a parking pass. Good luck.
    Sleep on the ground, rise with the sun and hike with the wind....

  3. #3
    GSMNP 900 Miler
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    Are you a winter hiker?
    High elevations in mid-November are likely to be below freezing. When I go camping that time of year, I'm usually sticking to loops that stay below 3,000'. Even then, I've backed-out of a planned trip when temperatures were going to be unseasonably cold with lows in Cades Cove getting in the teens.

    A two night hike I've enjoyed that time of year:
    Park at Gregory Ridge trailhead.
    Hike Parsons Branch to Hannah Mtn.
    Camp the 1st night at #14.
    Continue to the end of Hannah Mtn (fording Abrams Creek)
    Camp the 2nd night at #17.
    Last day, hike to Abrams Creek trailhead and hike the road back to Gregory Ridge trailhead.

  4. #4
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    You mentioned using shelters. Sounds like you're planning a piece of the AT? There's a few other shelters not on the AT, LeConte is one of them. Kephart and Laurel Gap are the others.
    I think if I had 4 nights to spend, I'd plan a loop in the area that includes Forney Creek and Hazel Creek. Parking at Clingman's Dome is a problem unless you get there early/late. You could maybe park at NFG and hitch a ride to CD.

  5. #5
    Registered User Slugg's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by The Cleaner View Post
    Permits have become problematic for many years now. I live only 60 miles away and my last visit was a dayhike 20 years ago. The traffic is terrible and now you'll need a parking pass. Good luck.
    Are you just referring to LeConte permits?

  6. #6
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    Take Time to Watch the Trees Dance with The Wind........Then Join In........

  7. #7
    Registered User The Cleaner's Avatar
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    Shelter or the lodge? Its been so long that you could just walk in and get a permit for any shelter I couldn't really answer. Possible online permits might be easy to get if you're hiking solo. Here lately just getting to the Park from exit 407 involves waiting in traffic for quite a while sometimes. One reason I became a backpacker in the mid 70s was to avoid crowds.Several years ago I was camping near Jerry's Cabin shelter. ( I was a caretaker there several years) This was in April and many thru hikers were camped near the shelter too. I went down to fix my breakfast out of the wind. There were several hikers at the spring and a line of 5-6 hikers waiting to use the privy. Since Covid IMO there are more folks in the woods these days. Lots of great places to hike here near the Smokies without the crowds. I'm not waiting in a line to take a shi* anywhere.
    Sleep on the ground, rise with the sun and hike with the wind....

  8. #8
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    I hate to mention it, but The Big South Fork is the True Place for Solitude!!! I've been backpacking/exploring there since the mid 80's and rarely see any other backpackers, maybe a 1/2 dozen in my lifetime
    Take Time to Watch the Trees Dance with The Wind........Then Join In........

  9. #9
    Registered User The Cleaner's Avatar
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    I finally got up there a few years ago. Did several day hikes. Nice place. Most locals there go to the ORV parks there and avoid BSF as few trails open to those things.
    Sleep on the ground, rise with the sun and hike with the wind....

  10. #10
    GSMNP 900 Miler
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    Quote Originally Posted by The Cleaner View Post
    Shelter or the lodge? Its been so long that you could just walk in and get a permit for any shelter I couldn't really answer. Possible online permits might be easy to get if you're hiking solo. Here lately just getting to the Park from exit 407 involves waiting in traffic for quite a while sometimes. One reason I became a backpacker in the mid 70s was to avoid crowds.Several years ago I was camping near Jerry's Cabin shelter. ( I was a caretaker there several years) This was in April and many thru hikers were camped near the shelter too. I went down to fix my breakfast out of the wind. There were several hikers at the spring and a line of 5-6 hikers waiting to use the privy. Since Covid IMO there are more folks in the woods these days. Lots of great places to hike here near the Smokies without the crowds. I'm not waiting in a line to take a shi* anywhere.
    You get permits online. You can get them at the Back Country office, but they work of the same computer system you access from online.
    You can't get a permit more than 30 days before the start of your trip.
    At the moment, no one can get a reservation at LeConte shelter. The site is closed due to bear activity. It's been almost a month, so the closure could end at any time.

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