All Day Saturday & Sunday
SUNDAY NO. A1001-684 March 21
Mackey Mtn. and Sugar Cove Creek Trail *8:00 AM
Hike 12, Drive 70, 2700 ft. ascent, Rated A-AA+
Jim Reel, 828-738-0751, jimr57@yahoo.com
*Form carpools at Westgate, and meet leader at US 70/Curtis Creek Rd. intersection at 8:45 AM. A stop will be made at the Ingles parking lot at Exit 64 of I-40 for additional hikers. Mackey Mountain was part of the first purchase of national forest land under the Weeks Act of 1911 and is designated “Mountain Treasure” by the Wilderness Society. We will hike from the end of Sugar Cove Road up to the Mackey Mountain Trail. We’ll have great winter views and do a short bushwhack to the summit and then near bushwhack on a seldom used section of trail. This hike ends on private property with access permission for only this CMC hike. Topos: Marion West, Old Fort
Under threatening skies and a forecast for rain, thirteen adventurous hikers set out on a hike that had been altered in advance due to severe ice storm damage. The first two miles were clear with very little snow left from the winter storms. About a half mile from Curtis Creek Road the fun began. Even with the work that had been done to make the trail passable there were still a lot of downed trees and grapevines to work our way through.
We took a break at the trail junction at Curtis Creek Road and surveyed the ice damage along the road. Shortly up the Mackey Mountain Trail it began to drizzle and we put on our rain gear. The rain gear helped to hold off the rain a few more miles. Another half mile (or so) up the trail, as we were climbing over more downed trees blocking the trail, Carroll accused the hike leader of leading a torture hike! As we crossed the open ridge line of Narrows Knob, we enjoyed magnificent views of Woods Mountain, Betsy’s and Singecat Ridges to the east and FOG to the west where Green Knob and the Parkway should be.
We stopped for lunch about a half mile (or so) past Narrows Knob on a false summit where an unmaintained trail turns off the mountain toward NC 80 at Locust Cove. Surveying the damage here it was easy to understand why the hike had to be altered. As we began to eat, the rain set in for the day. We decided due to the rain, to turn around here and climb the summit of Mackey Mountain on a prettier day. The return trip was also exciting because all the limbs, rocks, and vines were now wet and slick! The group ended the hike with dinner at Little Sienna in Marion. Thanks to all the hikers for their good spirit and sense of humor on a tough hike. Special thanks to Darrell Stamey, Joanne Tulip and Suzy Canonico for their help in making the trail passable on two trips here, in the snow, in the weeks before the hike.--Jim Reel
SATURDAY NO. A1001-398 March 27
Sunburst – Green Knob – Haywood Gap Trail *8:30 AM
Hike 7, Drive 95, 2000 ft. ascent, Rated B-AA
Charlie Ferguson, 828-625-2677, ccf108@gmail.com
P400 This very strenuous and difficult hike will start with an initial very steep mile (up to 39 degree incline) to Green Knob and its spectacular views, then we’ll do a short bushwhack down to the Grassy Ridge Branch trail. We’ll return on the seldom-hiked lower Haywood Gap Trail returning to the Sunburst Campground. There are two wet crossings. *Wilderness area limited to ten people. Call leader for reservation. Topo: Sam Knob; also NatGeo map #780
SUNDAY NO. A1001-051 March 28
Hickey Fork / Whiteoaks Flats / Pounding Mill *9:00 AM
Hike 8, Drive 85, 1900 ft. ascent, Rated B-A
Tish Desjardins, 828-656-2191, desraylet@aol.com
Thanks to the Forest Service building a splendid new footbridge over Hickey Fork, CMC is able to schedule this hike which we have not done in 10 years. A nice loop hike using three different trails and finishing on the newly and heavily rebuilt Hickey Fork Rd. *Form carpools at Westgate, and meet leader at US25/NC208 intersection at 9:45 AM. After the hike there will be a potluck supper in the nearby Bear River Community Lodge. Hikers are requested to contribute food for the supper. Food will be taken to a refrigerator before the hike. Please phone the leader to coordinate what food to bring. Topos: White Rock, Greystone; also NatGeo map #782
Half Day Sunday
HALF-DAY NO. H1001-295 Feb. 14
Lover’s Leap/Pump Gap Loop 12:30 PM
Hike 4.6 miles, Drive 70, Rated C-B
Nonmembers, call leader, Marcia Bromberg, 828-505-0471, mwbromberg@yahoo.com
(If you are coming from Weaverville, call hike leader about possible second meeting place). Beginning at the NOC parking lot on the French Broad River, hike the Appalachian Trail to Lover’s Leap and views of the river and mountains beyond Hot Springs, then continue to intersection with Pump Gap Trail. Return to starting point via Pump Gap Trail and Silvermine Road.
Photo by Lucy Prim
We walked along Reasonover Trail, nicely cleaned up from the many branches that had fallen during the stormy winter, crossed the very full, splashy creek on the nice big rocks, then continued on to Lake Julia where we had our snacks and chatted in the drizzly rain. It was a very nice walk, and we enjoyed the lovely gray sky and the beautiful silvery reflection on the water at Lake Julia.--Lucy Prim
HALF-DAY No. H1001-009 Mar. 21
Ox Creek Road to Rattlesnake Lodge 1:00 PM
Hike 4.4, Drive 30, Rated C-C
Nonmembers, call leader, Bonnie Allen, 828-645-0357, bonnie@allencats.com
This loop hike will feature the historic Rattlesnake Lodge site. Second meeting place: Folk Art Center back parking lot at 1:10 PM.
There were 3 of us on a drizzly hike to Rattlesnake Lodge. The dampness brought out the early spring colors of the woods. It never rained enough to be unpleasant.--Bonnie Allen
HALF-DAY NO. H1001-688 Mar. 28
Camp High Rock *12:30 PM
Hike 4, Drive 85, 600 ft ascent, Rated C-C
Nonmembers, call leader, Tom Joyce, 828-885-2152, tominbrevard@webtv.net
*Form carpools at Westgate, and meet leader at Pisgah Forest Bi-Lo at 1:00 PM. This loop hike will explore the 1000 acre grounds of Camp High Rocks, beginning at 3200 ft. and climbing to the Rich Mtn. utility tower at 3782 ft. where we will enjoy 360 deg. views of the surrounding countryside.
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WEDNESDAY NO. W1001-676 Mar. 17
DuPont Forest: Hooker Falls P.L. #3 – Forest Circular Hike 8:30 AM
Hike 9.5, Drive 95, 1200 ft. ascent, Rated B-B
Danny Bernstein, 828-236-0192, danny@hikertohiker.com
WC100 This hikes takes in four waterfalls, three lakes, and two cemeteries in one wonderful place - Dupont Forest. Scenes from Last of the Mohicans were filmed here. If you haven’t hiked in Dupont lately, you’ll be pleasantly surprised at the improvements. Second meeting place: Pisgah Forest Bi-Lo at 9:00 AM. Topo: Standingstone Mountain; also Dupont State Forest map published by Friends of Dupont Forest
 
Photos by Danny Bernstein
It was a good day, attracting regular Wed. hikers, several people who came on my Sunday hike, one woman from Charlotte, and at least two new CMC hikers. This hike concentrated on Dupont Lakes - Lake Imaging, Lake Dense (shown with the group), Lake Alford (a tiny lake with some small fish, pictured above) and an unusual view of Lake Julia. But this is Dupont State Forest after all and you can't walk in Dupont without seeing waterfalls - three waterfalls and one cascade (Grassy Creek
Falls).
As a challenge, I wonder if I can design a reasonable length loop catching all the waterfalls.--Danny Bernstein
WEDNESDAY NO. W1001-352 Mar. 24
Jones Gap Trail/Coldspring Loop 8:30 AM
Hike 10, Drive 80, 1600 ft. ascent, Rated A-A
Keiko Merl, 828-628-2396, email Keiko
We’ll hike up Jones Gap and Tom Miller Trails past two waterfalls to US 276, then return via Coldspring Trail with several creek crossings. A hiking stick will be helpful. One short but steep climb. Second meeting place: NE corner of Cracker Barrel parking lot at Exit 53 of I-26 at 9:00 AM. Topo: Standingstone Mtn., Cleveland SC; also Mountain Bridge Wilderness map
WEDNESDAY NO. W1001-398 Mar. 31
Sunburst- Green Knob - Haywood Gap Trails *8:30 AM
Hike 7, Drive 95, 2000 ft. ascent, Rated B-AA
Charlie Ferguson, 828-625-2677, ccf108@gmail.com
P400 This very strenuous and difficult hike will start with an initial very steep mile (up to 39 degree incline) to Green Knob and its spectacular views, then we’ll do a short bushwhack down to the Grassy Ridge Branch trail. We’ll return on the seldom-hiked lower Haywood Gap Trail returning to the Sunburst Campground. There are two wet crossings. *Wilderness area limited to ten people. Call leader for reservation. Second meeting place: Trailhead at Sunburst at 9:30 AM, but call leader first. Topo: Sam Knob; also NatGeo map #780
Email your hike reports to Dave Wetmore. The deadline for reports is 9:00 p.m. on the Tuesdays before an eNews comes out. Reports for Wednesday hikes during the eNews publication week will appear in the following eNews--The Editor.
--Back to Top
All-day hikes submitted by Bruce Bente 692-0116, bbente@bellsouth.net . 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 hikes submitted by Lucy Prim 828-693-6580 lucette32@mchsi.com.
Wednesday Hikes are submitted by Charlie Ferguson, 828-398-0213 ccf108@gmail.com and Ann Gleason, 828-859-9387,
gleason.ann@gmail.com .
The meeting place for each hike will be designated by the hike leader and appears in the hike description.
Driving mileage is round trip, based on the first designated meeting place. Meet at Westgate unless otherwise noted.
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