CMC Weekly Hike News
11/17/04
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Looking Ahead....
All Day Saturday & Sunday
ALL DAY No. A0404-224 Nov. 21 Table Rock – Pinnacle Loop 8:00 AM Hike 9.5, Drive 120, 2000’ ascent, Rated A-A Linda Beja 828-293-3849 lrbeja@earthlink.net This is a great hike with good views. We’ll start from the parking lot at Table Rock State Park on SC 11. Our first objective will be the Drawbar Cliffs near Pinnacle Mtn. with a spectacular view of SC. We will then hike to Table Rock and lunch before returning to our cars. $2 parking fee. Asheville group to form carpools at Westgate and meet the leader at Table Rock State Park at 9:15 AM. Topo: Table Rock, SC
All-day hikes submitted by Bruce Bente 692-0116, bbente@cytechusa.com . Driving distance is round-trip from Asheville. All Saturday and Sunday hikes assemble at Westgate Shopping Center near I-240 UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED.
Half Day Sunday
HALF-DAY No. H0404-325 Nov. 21 Rich Mtn. from Tanyard Gap 12:30 PM Hike 5.4, Drive 72, Rated C-A Elisabeth Feil 828-684-8719 hofeil@brinet.com Note earlier start time. This in-and-out hike on the AT near Hot Springs rewards us for our 1600-ft. climb with a superb view from the fire tower.
Half Day hikes submitted by Paula Robbins 828-687-1651 paularww@bellsouth.net and Pat Elias 828-281-3253 peliasy@aol.com . Leaders: Mail please mail your sign-up sheets. Meet at Westgate unless otherwise noted.
All Day Wednesday
No. W0404-270 Nov. 17 Cedar Rock Mtn.- John Rock Loop 8:00 AM Hike 8, Drive 80, Rated B-A Tom Sanders 828-252-6327 mel&tgs@main.nc.us P400 This trip features two of the spectacular rock summits in the Pisgah Forest, with great views from both. Starting at the Fish Hatchery we’ll have our major climb up to Cat Gap and then on to Cedar Rock for lunch. We’ll return via John Rock. Second meeting place: Pisgah Ranger Station on US 276 at 8:30 AM. Topo: Shining Rock.
WEDNESDAY No. W0404-407 Nov. 24 Dill Falls 8:30 AM Hike 5 miles, Drive 27, Rated C-C Larry Ballard 828-891-4318 leballard@cytechcis.net and Eileen McGill 828-891-4409 dolphins@ioa.com Hikers to form carpools at Westgate and meet leader at side parking area of the Pisgah Forest Bi-Lo at 9:00 AM. We will hike to Dill Falls, a magnificent 70’ water fall. We will hike up the west side of Tanasee Creek from the point where Charles Creek Rd crosses the creek. There will be two stream crossings that require wading.
Wednesday Hikes are submitted by Paula McNabb, 828- 274-0057 gcmcnabb@charter.net and Ann Gleason, 828-859-9387, cowbonetail@yahoo.com . The meeting place for each hike will be designated by the hike leader and will appear in the hike description. Driving mileage will be listed, round trip, from the first designated meeting place.
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Looking Back......
No hike is scheduled since the Wilderness First Aid Course is being held this weekend. Anyone wishing to hike should assemble at Westgate at 8:00 AM and select your own hike.
Half Day Sunday
HALF DAY No. H0404-391 Nov. 14 North Mills River Area 12:45 PM Hike 4-6, Drive 50, Rated B-B Greg Goodman, 828-684-9703 P400 A hike in the North Mills River area (or leader’s choice) along the old lumber road toward Fletcher Field Trail. Hikers to form carpools at Westgate and meet hike leader at the North Mills River Picnic Area at 1:30 PM.
All Day Wednesday
ALL DAY No. W0404-406 Nov. 10 Pink Beds to Clawhammer and Return 8:30 AM Hike 8, Drive 86, 2300 ft ascent., Rated B-A Ruth Hartzler 828-251-0886 ruthmtn@aol.com P400 We will climb from the Pink Beds (FS 477) to Club Gap. Then we take the Black Mt. Trail, climbing through Buckhorn Gap and along the ridge to the overlook at Clawhammer Mt. for lunch and 180° views. Second meeting place: Pisgah Ranger Station at 9:00 AM.
Post Hike Report: It was one of those great late fall days with clear blue skies, crisp air, and just a hint that the next few months would provide less enticing weather. So, sixteen hikers were waiting at the Pisgah Forest Ranger Station, plus five from Asheville bringing the total to twenty-one, including one new hiker. We piled into cars at the ranger station to keep the number of vehicles to a minimum, due to limited parking at the Club Gap trailhead. After several recounts, all were accounted for, and we noted that the leader's math degree was not an asset. We scrambled up to Club Gap. On the way up, one hiker turned back. Then, a second hiker graciously offered to accompany the first, and a third lent car keys. The remaining nineteen turned onto the Black Mountain Trail. Crunching leaves made conversation difficult and footsteps slippery. Mountain views along the ridgeline to the right and left offered shades of prussian blue, cobalt blue, and manganese blue not found in summer. After a snack at the Buckhorn Gap shelter, we were fortified for the climb out of Buckhorn Gap to the top of Clawhammer Mountain. The 180 degree views of Looking Glass Rock and mountain ridges beyond made the climb worthwhile. The leader was happy to share one of her favorite hikes with a great group of hikers. Ruth
HikingNews....
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Joe Cirvello’s trip to Nepal, etc. Revised 11/15/04
Joe Cirvello is on an extended trip around the Orient, and has been sending occasional e-mails describing his trip. The following items are from his e-mails.
10-12 Departure from GSP to Kathmandu, Nepal, via Atlanta, Los Angeles, Hong Kong and Bangkok.
e-mail of 11-5:
Hello everyone! Am now in hotel in Kathmandu. I finished my 15 day trek yesterday and took the world's most exciting plane ride to Kathmandu. It takes off downhill high in the mtns. on a short airstrip, and soars into space heading towards a mtn. like jumping off on a hang glider.
The trek in the Everest region (Khumbu) was much harder than I anticipated because of altitude. I wonder if Ray Sanow found it as difficult to hike at those altitudes as I did. I quickly learned that one must put one foot in front of the other in a very slow and deliberate manner. The body isn't getting adequate oxygen and you simply must go very slowly. And you don't get very far before you begin hearing and seeing the Rescue Helicopters taking away people with Acute Mtn. Sickness, which causes pulmonary or cerebral edema and can kill you if you don't descend . People were being affected at around 12000 ft. From then on, I was seeing the helicopters daily. It costs about $2000 for a rescue, and your normal health insurance doesn't cover it. I was lucky and had no altitude sickness, but I did get the common "Khumbu Cough" and still have it. Met trekkers from many countries, but not many from USA, and most are with groups.
The beauty of the mtns. and valleys takes your breath away, like the altitude, but everyone gets tired of going to sleep and waking up in a tiny, freezing cubicle; going to bathroom in a tiny freezing outhouse with a hole in the floor; wearing dirty, smelly clothes every day; and not having a shower for a couple of weeks (because of the cold). It gets old fast.
I'm glad I did it for the beauty, but there were many times when I could barely make my legs move up and up and up, and I kept wondering why I was doing it. But I made it up to 18,222 ft.!! And had spectacular views! And I must have seen a ton of Yak poop and pee along the trails. I should mention that the porters that most groups use are amazing in their ability to carry incredible loads, sometimes with only flip-flops on their feet, and they pass you with ease.........and they are just skinny little guys!
I was extremely fortunate to be in the mtns. during a major annual festival at a famous Buddhist monastery. I altered my plans in order to get there in time, and it was a lifetime experience.....hope my slides turn out!
Am now taking a few days to relax in Kathmandu..... among the hordes who want to sell me something. The hot shower was heavenly, I got my smelly clothes cleaned, and I am WARM! Next I will go to a different part of Nepal, where I hope I do not encounter the Maoists, and when I am ready, I will go to India and leave Bombay on Nov. 26 for Bangkok/Cambodia, then to Hong Kong, and will be back in NC Dec. 14.
e-mail of 11-6:
Yesterday i went to a famous place here in Kathmandu and watched human bodies being put on a funeral pyre and cremated along a sacred river that runs down into the Ganges. It is a strange experience that I cannot describe.
Tomorrow I am going to a city called Pokhara for a couple of days, then down into India where I expect to be hassled to death.
e-mail of 11-8:
Wednesday I am leaving Pokhara to go to India and my first stop will be the Taj Mahal....of course! Getting there from here is going to be a bit of an adventure, and am hoping all my connections work out. After that I’ll play it by ear.
e-mail of 11-14:
Hi........left Nepal a few days ago; two bumpy, crowded bus trips, a night in a mosquito-infested room (began taking Malaria med. prior to leaving Nepal) followed by the Train Ride From Hell, which lasted 15 hours. On the train you sleep on a plastic covered bench with no cover or pillow, and after dark it became surprisingly cold. Of course, locals brought blankets and pillows. So I had to wear everything I had left (mailed back most stuff after trekking) and try to improvise a pillow. Fortunately, I brought a padlock with me and there is a place under the bench to which you can lock your bag. The train was due to arrive in Agra, India at 5 a.m., and of course, it's up to you to wake up in time to get off the train.....and with all the noise, you cannot hear an alarm if you have one. If not for my earplugs, I would not have gotten ANY sleep. Met a nice guy from Nepal who offered to wake me in time to debark. Turned out that train didn't arrive until after 8a.m.
At station, Tourist Info Office closed. Outside, I was swamped by Rickshaw guys. Anyway, I got to a cheap hotel with a rooftop place to eat with terrific views of the Taj Mahal......my reason to be here. Spent a few hours there and it is exquisite!! Am learning the ropes here in India and enjoying it.....so far. Tomorrow I catch bus to Jaipur.
e-mail of 11-15:
Some things I wanted to mention but forgot........at the train station in India men are sleeping on the floor and cows are wandering around on the platform, since they are sacred they go where they want.....and plop where they want. Outside the station there was a place with open air urinals, no concealment at all. Here in Agra, in the old section where I am staying, cows are strolling on every street, with an occasional pig, and the streets are jammed with motorscooters, motorcycles, pedal rickshaws, motorized rickshaws, bicycles, you name it. They all drive like maniacs, and horns blow continuously.
I happen to be in Agra during a major festival called Diwali, which goes on for about 5 days, and the major purpose seems to be to explode as many kinds of fireworks as you can, every minute. And since there is apparently no law about fireworks, many of them sound like mortor shells exploding near your feet. Periodically, I check to see if my eardrums are bleeding. The people love it though, and last night when I got back to town after dark, the whole city was lit up just like an American town at Xmas (I mean with Xmas lights).
I have long ago learned the importance of always carrying toilet paper, and that the rolls with Chinese writing on them are nearly useless; also they have imitation perforations, which I didn't think possible, so they will NOT tear on the perforations. Also a good idea to carry a flashlight because the power is always going off.
One last thing, but a very nice one. Since the emperor built the Taj Mahal as a memorial to his love for his dead wife, someone described the Taj as: "A resplendent, immortal teardrop on the cheek of time."