Mid July AT-BMT Loop

[fishing]

Just got my reservations today for a bit over 2 weeks to hike 165mi of the AT-BMT loop. Hitting:

Fontana
Mollies
Derrick
Collins
Icewater
Tricorner
Cosby
Davenport
38
44
50
52
61
74
76
86
91

Just posting this info in case anyone else wanted info or sample itinerary for this loop. I searched for a while but couldn't find anything like this so hopefully it helps someone one day. Hope to see some of you out there!

Alex
aka Blue Moon

[royalusa]

Just got my reservations today for a bit over 2 weeks to hike 165mi of the AT-BMT loop.

Have fun! We did the BMT-AT loop last year. Let me know if you have any questions. If you wish, here's the link to our journal:

http://trailjournals.com/entry.cfm?trailname=10946

Enjoy your hike.

[fishing]

Have fun! We did the BMT-AT loop last year. Let me know if you have any questions. If you wish, here's the link to our journal:

http://trailjournals.com/entry.cfm?trailname=10946

Enjoy your hike.

The journal looks great, we will only have time for the north loop but I would like to eventually hike the south loop also.

[liteweight]

have a great trip fishing. They have recently posted that Mollie Ridge shelter water source is dry. Plan accordingly.

[gollwoods]

looks like a nice itinerary, you are going to have alot of daylight left after cosby to davenport. are you planning to resupply then? you could go on to the campground along big creek at the parking area if you chose. or even go up to standing bear for a shower.

[shoe]

I was told the other day by the backcountry office that all the AT on the southern portion is dry. Of course we just got pummeled by rain in the last couple of days so don't know how that changes anything. Have a great trip.

[ednotmilkman]

Have a nice trip Fishing !

Will you pack a fly rod? should be some good spots for it on the BMK sections.

I personally enjoyed hiking with loops down and back to the AT every other day to enjoy the sounds of the water and so I could take a full, bare naked, cold rinse in the streams at the last crossing of the afternoon. Not a soul interrupted me either as I dripped dry eating late lunch on warm rocks ! This was with one partner, except he wanted to do the shortest route possible, so he only did the Tremont loop with me even though we met at the same camp every night.

I'd love to do another Smokies loop in Sept or Oct too if I find a buddy for it.

This was on my hike of June1-7 where we went from Fontana to Standing Bear Hostel, but I had time for loops to :

Twenty Mile creek and up Wolf Ridge trl to #13 at Sheeppen gap,

south down AT to Lost Cove trl and up Eagle Crk to Spence Field Shelter,

down Bote Mtn to Tremont (for lunch with the staff) camping @ #20 along creek,

then up Little River, Rough Crk, and Sugarland Mtn trls next day to Mt Collins shelter,

full day on AT from Mt. Collins to Tri-Corner Knob,

last loop from Tri-Corner Knob Shelter along AT then down Camel gap then along Big Creek and back up Low Gap trl to Cosby Knob,

last day Cosby out to Standing Bear with time to get back to Atlanta by 10pm.

[shoe]

Forgot to add that CS 50 is usually pretty nasty, might be nicer to get a site at Smokemont. You could mooch some food off the car tourists

[fishing]

Have a nice trip Fishing !

Will you pack a fly rod? should be some good spots for it on the BMK sections....

I would love to do some fishing while I am there. I do have a 4 piece travel rod that I could bring, my only question will be whether or not my hiking buddy (not a fisherman) will be patient enough to let me wet a line every once in a while.

We certainly have some short days where it might be possible

[Ox97GaMe]

there is summer water at Mollies and Russell if you know where to look. there are orange flaggings to secondary water sources. you need to go past the primary springs and look for the flagging. lots of water this week, but it may be dry again in 7-10 days.

[shoe]

there is summer water at Mollies and Russell if you know where to look. there are orange flaggings to secondary water sources. you need to go past the primary springs and look for the flagging. lots of water this week, but it may be dry again in 7-10 days.

Thanks, I didn't know about the flags. If I see an orange flag I should just look around for water?

[HooKooDooKu]

During periods of low water, I've been able to find water by simply walking down the drainage from a primary watering source until you find water. While I've never stayed at Mollies or Russle, I've have been at Brich Spring (Site #113) when the piped water source was bone dry. I simply walked down the drainage for less than 100 yards and found plenty of water still flowing. However, for these kinds of seeps, it really helpful silt prefilter (I use the SweetWater filter with the Silt Stopper prefilter).

[Ox97GaMe]

the flags at Mollies are visible from the piped spring. Just walk from flag to flag. it crosses the main drainage a couple of times. Each place it crosses, there are small pools that have been dug out to create a resevoir. the drier the summer, the further you will need to follow the flagging. Last summer, I had to extend the flagging another 50 yards downhill.

At Russell, you will need to continue down Russell Field Trail another 50-70 yards. You will find a rock carne on the left and the flagging will go from there over to the drainage where a secondary spring exists.

these shelters are on my section. I will be up there next week and will also make sure that the shelter registers have this information in them and that the flagging is still there from this spring. (some people practice LNT and decide to remove them).

[shoe]

Thanks Ox for the explanation and the work. I am taking a group up the eagle Creek trail in a month and will be staying at Spence and Birch Spring so this is very helpful info