Since I moved to Tennessee from North Carolina in 2001 I've pulled 200 backpacking trips and this is number 200---but it turns out to be a difficult trip due to 8 days with walking pneumonia-influenza, blown out boots, fasting for a day, and a 3 day hellish 70mph windstorm/rainstorm at 5,000 feet. My tent barely survived.

And the trip started in our 70th+ day of drought with all wilderness creeks very low but we got sufficient rain in the 18 days I was out. Here's a link to all trip pics---

https://tipiwalter.smugmug.com/Backp...tbuster-Trail/

The trip occurred in the TN and NC mountains---of Citico Creek wilderness and Slickrock Creek wilderness---and I pulled my 47th backpack up the notorious Nutbuster trail---Upper Slickrock Trail #42---considered to be the hardest trail in the Southeast.


The trip starts at the Jeffrey Hell trailhead on October 12 2019 with a 90 lb McHale pack at around 8,000 cubic inches. North Face Reactor shorts, silk baselayer top, Mt Hardwear ochre t-shirt---smartwool mountaineer socks and Zamberlan full leather gtx boots---great winter boots except . . . see later pics.


After about 3 miles I reach South Fork Citico Creek and it is very low so I don't have to get into crocs for the crossing. My first night CS is on the South Fork trail not too far from this crossing.


On Day 2 I leave my high South Fork camp and descend thru "God's Anus", a terrible thicket section on an old SF logging cut. Somewhere in the middle I take a break---15 oz swig bottle, white grapes, pb sandwich, writing journal---fleco pruners on left.


I descend the South Fork trail several miles and reach Citico Creek which I cross and get set up on the other side. The back of our drought is broken here with the first rain of the trip. Tent of choice---8 lb 10oz Hilleberg Keron tent---a great solo backpacking tent.


I leave Citico Creek and the "southern" part of the Citico wilderness and enter the northern part on the Rocky Flats trail---where I encounter the usual blowdown but I have my corona folding saw to help me get through.


VOILA!! Small blowdown cleared.


I reach near the end of the Rocky Flats trail and set up camp by this old homestead chimney. At this time I have walking pneumonia/influenza and I'm sick as a dog so I pull a zero day here to recuperate. Coughing up my guts, burning lungs, blowing snot---the works.