The Mountains to Sea Trail spans the width of North Carolina, running from the Great Smoky Mountains in the west, to the Outer Banks of Coastal Carolina. Much of the trail in the mountainous part of the state is near or parallels the Blue Ridge Parkway. This section of the MST along the parkway has been designated a National Recreation Trail. With elevations well above 5000 feet, there are segments in Haywood County that make nice day hikes in the high country. One of those is Rough Butt Bald at milepost 427. This hike occurred on Thursday, March 15, 2012 from 10:15am to 1:30pm. Our plan was to take the Mountains to Sea Trail from the Rough Butt Bald Overlook on the Blue Ridge Parkway around and over Rough Butt Bald for a view of South Carolina, then return the way we came.

We haven’t been up in the high country since winter set in, so it was with great delight that we turned onto the Blue Ridge Parkway to head for Middle Prong Wilderness. It was so wonderful to be back up in black balsam spruce country — to see the long distance views of the Blue Ridge. Nothing against hiking at 4000 feet, but it’s an entirely different world at 6000 feet.

The Rough Butt Bald Overlook on the parkway has a beautiful view south toward Lake Toxaway and the South Carolina upstate. Directly across the parkway from the overlook, on the north side, is the trailhead for the Mountains to Sea Trail (MST). As we plunged into the shadows of the old growth forest we knew immediately that we were back home. The forest and the terrain are so unlike what we had been hiking in all winter. The smells from the spruce, fir and pine are invigorating. The forest floor is a bed of ground cedar, fern and moss. The trail is covered with evergreen needles rather than leaves. The deciduous trees are mostly birch rather than oak and poplar.

The forest is damp and murky, though there was hardly any snow this winter. We never saw any pockets of un-melted snow hidden in the shade. The moss on downed trees seems as though it has been growing for centuries. Lichens and other fungus have been inhabiting this wilderness undisturbed for a long, long time. There may not have been snow, but there was obviously a lot of wind as there was considerable downed timber across the trail. We tried to move what we could.

After nearly a mile we reached Buckeye Creek and the intersection with Buckeye Gap Trail. We took a hard left to stay on the MTS. The forest changed as we went through stands of new birch that still clung to their dried, crumbling leaves. Like the birch leaves, the trail clung to the butt in spots, with the edge tumbling off to the north. Occasionally the trees would clear enough to catch a glimpse of the mountains of the Great Balsam Range in that same direction.

As the trail winds northwesterly paralleling the parkway, we would get an intermittent peek at the road. The trail is far enough away, however, so you don’t get any of the road noise. All we were hearing was the sound of songbirds and breeze in the treetops, and then suddenly despite a forecast for clear skies until late in the afternoon, we heard the rumble of far-away thunder. It definitely grabbed our attention as it’s not advisable to get caught atop a mountain in a thunderstorm. So we kept our eyes and ears peeled for the slightest sense that the weather was moving any closer.

About a mile and a half in, the trail takes a northerly turn toward Haywood Gap, the other end of the Buckeye Gap loop mentioned above. At Haywood Gap, the MTS turns to the left directly toward the parkway, and the Haywood Gap Trail turns right down the hollow. It’s just a couple hundred yards to the parkway crossing from the gap. The trail crosses the parkway at about milepost 426.5 heading due west. Horsebone Gap is to the south and Rough Butt Bald to the west.

Oddly enough, the forest isn’t quite as dense on this southwesterly side of the parkway. The ground also has more leaves and less needles. There is more sun exposure as the trail begins to skirt the southern side of Rough Butt Bald. Curiosity got the best of me since so many of the mountains around here are named “butt this” and “butt that.” So I looked it up. Butt is a term describing how a mountain breaks off or “butts” off sharply. You can thank me later.

The only real climbing on this hike begins here. The elevation gains almost 500 feet in the next mile, not steep by any means. The higher the trail gets, the more laurel and rhododendron begin to appear. Some of these rhodies are extremely mature with gnarly trunks about four inches in diameter. They’ve been here for awhile. After reaching the plateau of the butt, the vegetation changes again.

We entered a thick blackberry patch that spanned the trail on both sides. It is obviously a trail maintenance nightmare for the volunteers as we noticed trail markers about every 50 feet so they could keep their bearings when whacking the brush. Occasionally we would hear the tell-tale thump, thump, thump of a grouse warning us that we were invading its territory. Despite the stark nature of the late winter season, we were beginning to see just a hint of color in the foliage as evidenced by the picture at the top of this post.

About a mile after crossing the parkway the trail reaches a ledge on the south side of Rough Butt Bald with a semi-clear view of the valleys and ridges far away to the south. We could see Balsam Lake, a small recreation area, and even further in the distance, Lake Toxaway. To our left (southeast) was Wolf Mountain, and to our right the vast expanse of Nantahala National Forest. Way, way off in the distance was upstate South Carolina. This looked like a nice spot for lunch. We couldn’t find any outcroppings so we just pulled up a little piece of trail and took a seat.

We could see more overcast and hear more thunder far to the east, but so far all was well in our neck of the woods. Last week we had lunch under a tree in the rain and wind, but not this time. After lunch, we continued on the trail with a plan to turn around if the trail began a steep descent or if the bad weather got closer. Well, it was only another two-tenths mile before the trail began a steep zig-zag down the south side of the mountain. So this was our cue to turn and head back to our origin.

As we went back around Rough Butt Bald, we found a spot where we could climb farther up off-trail to a small clearing. Turns out we couldn’t see more of the surrounding vistas, but there was a beautiful black balsam stand at the top of the bald. When we got back to the parkway crossing, we could see the sky was beginning to clear considerably. The grey overcast was being replaced with the cerulean blue you get at high elevations, and white puffy clouds.

The return on the north side of the parkway was uneventful, simply a repeat of the awe found within the old growth forest. When we popped back out on the parkway at the overlook, the sun was out in full grandeur. I stopped to take several pictures of the Blue Ridge Mountains from the overlook while my hiking buddy talked with a group of long-distance bicycle riders who were taking a break. The Blue Ridge Parkway is enjoyable recreation for hikers, bikers, and motorists of all sorts. It’s not a destination. Just being there is the adventure and the lure.

As we drove back to our parkway exit, we began to see wet ground, and then white ground. Heh? As we turned off the parkway and onto Hwy 276 for our drive down off the mountain, the white stuff got thicker and deeper. Apparently all that thunder we heard before was a localized hail storm that had dumped enough to completely cover the road about an inch deep. Amazing! I sure am glad the storm wasn’t 10-15 miles further west as we would have been really scrambling to get out of the woods and off the mountain. As it was, it made the drive on the very curvy, very steep Hwy 276 somewhat tenuous.

There aren’t many trails in Middle Prong Wilderness as there are in the adjacent Shining Rock Wilderness. I wish there were more because I love the beauty of the area. This is a very nice three hour hike that is easy to do. You needn’t be in superb physical condition, nor have all the latest hiking gadgets and gizmos. Take some water and a snack and give it a go. Just beware the elevation. If you aren’t used to it, mind your pace, and take time to assimilate.

Update January 19, 2017 – It has been unusual for the Blue Ridge Parkway to be open in winter. For the past several years that has not been the case. So why not take a trip to the high country when the opportunity is available. Much of the forest along the Mountains to Sea Trail near Rough Butt Bald is evergreen, so it doesn’t look much different in mid-January than it did on my previous March visit. See for yourself with the new photos below.

This post was created by Jeff Clark. Please feel free to use the sharing icons below, or add your thoughts to the comments. Pack it in, pack it out. Preserve the past. Respect other hikers. Let nature prevail. Leave no trace.

One of the enduring pleasures in the Tennessee portion of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park is scaling the 6,593 feet of beauty that is Mt. LeConte. It isn’t quite the highest mountain in the park, but it is by far the tallest hike from its base. The summit is so popular, there are five distinct trails to the top, varying in distance and difficulty. My favorite is the Alum Cave Trail. It is the shortest, at five miles to the summit, but as a result it is also the steepest and most difficult. At the top are cabins known as LeConte Lodge where hikers can spend the night and get a hot meal, for a price. There are three distinct overlooks, all spectacular, to enable long distance views in all directions. This hike occurred on September 9, 2010 beginning at 7:00AM and ending about 4:00PM. Making a day hike of Mt. LeConte requires planning, and stamina. I always plan to arrive at the trailhead at dawn, because getting up and back in the same day usually takes a full nine hours if you allow time for enjoying the great views of The Smokies along the way. It’s a three section hike. First, is the long, laborious climb to the top. Then plan to check out the Myrtle Point and Cliff Top overlooks at the summit. Finally, grind it out on the relentless descent.

It’s a two hour drive from our homes in western North Carolina to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, so we got a very early start on this day. Four of us arrived at the Alum Cave trailhead just before 7:00AM. The trail starts right off the bat with a couple of bridges over the Walker Camp Prong and then the Alum Cave Creek. The first mile and a quarter is relatively flat, a good thing because it still wasn’t quite completely light yet. There are some roots in the trail to stumble on, but mostly it’s in very good condition at the bottom. One of these days I’m going to invest in one of those head lamps. Two species of trees dominate the forest. Eastern hemlock are the tall evergreens with short needles, and the yellow birch with its peeling golden bark. More about the hemlock later. The first real landmark we came upon is Arch Rock.

Arch Rock is indeed an arch formed by water erosion. The trail climbs a couple dozen stairs straight up through the arch. This is the signal that it’s all uphill from here. The easy part is over. The next mile and a quarter is a steep climb to the Alum Cave Bluffs. Two miles into the hike we reached Inspiration Point where we could see the Eye of the Needle along the ridge formed by the bluffs, and one of our destinations, Myrtle Point. Here the forest begins to change to red spruce and fir, and treeless areas known as heath balds, or laurel slicks. There are also very dense rhododendron thickets. One of these in particular is known as Huggins Hell… appropriately. Two tenths of a mile further we reached Alum Cave. This isn’t really a cave, but instead just a large overhang in the bluffs that would provide reasonable shelter from the frequent storms. Many recreational hikers will turn back at this point, approximately half way to the LeConte summit. Meanderthals as we are, we forge on.

The first time I climbed Mt. LeConte I got caught on one of those foggy days where the air is full of mountain mist, and the views are only as long as your arm in spots. This time, we were considerably more fortunate. As we began climbing above the bluffs we could see the landslide scars. In 1951 a ferocious rain storm caused a flash flood to push trees and mountainside all the way down to Newfound Gap Road.

At this elevation the spruce gives way to more fir, and the appearance of mountain ash. The next section of trail is known as the Alum Cave Saddle. From here to the top, the mountains all around began to come into view as we got somewhat above treeline. To the southeast we could see the mountains and the low-lying valley fog along the Blue Ridge Parkway in North Carolina. The trail along the Saddle continued to be quite steep, and was mostly rock, hanging along the southern face of the mountain. Landmarks on the Saddle include Old Man’s Stump and Shirley’s Rock.

I mentioned the Eastern hemlocks above. They are some of the largest and most common trees in the Great Smoky Mountains. Unfortunately, they have been under attack from a non-native insect called the hemlock woolly adelgid. This tiny Asian bug is causing a significant blight and tree kill throughout the national park and surrounding mountains of Tennessee and North Carolina, and all up the Appalachian chain. The National Park Service has been using multiple treatment strategies to save trees in targeted areas, but the grey, dead hemlock are very noticable on the mountainsides once you climb above treeline. You can learn more at Save Our Hemlocks or make a donation at Friends of the Smokies.

There was one more significant viewpoint before we reached the summit; West Point View. There are excellent sights of the Tennessee side of the national park and of the LeConte summit above. At 4.5 miles the trail finally flattens out. This is the last of the climbing, whew! The next 1/2 mile is flat, wooded trench trail that leads to LeConte Lodge. It took us 3 hours 10 minutes to get here. The lodge has a recreation building with an awesome porch with rocking chairs and a spectacular view of the Wear Valley and Douglas Lake below. It is a great spot to have lunch and rest for awhile.

After catching our breath and getting some nourishment, we headed to the first overlook, Cliff Top. It is only a quarter mile from the lodge to this lush area with about 270 degree panorama viewing. This is the best place on Mt. LeConte for sunset viewing. We then returned to the lodge to hike the half mile to Myrtle Point, to me the best reason for climbing Mt. LeConte. The photo at the top of this post is from Myrtle Point. Along the way we passed a park service shelter that can be used for cover in storms, or reserved for sleeping overnight. Myrtle Point has splendid views in every direction. You can even see Dolly Parton’s hometown, Sevierville, if you care. I could stay there for an hour, and have. Myrtle Point is the best location for sunrise views.

Best HikeWhen you’re standing on Myrtle Point looking at the gorgeous scenery all around, it’s easy to forget there’s at least two and a half hours of serious downhill hiking ahead. It is steep, and just waiting for carelessness. Much of the trail through the Saddle area is rock ledges that are slippery when wet, which is much of the time. But it’s a second chance to take in some of the scenery that may have been missed on the way up. I like to stop at Inspiration Point again on the way down for a short break. Remember, it is just as important to rest going downhill as it is going up. That last flat mile through the hemlock forest seems to go on forever, but we eventually heard the sounds of Alum Cave Creek meaning we were almost done. I have climbed Mt. LeConte four times now. Each time I thoroughly enjoyed it. I could see making it an annual thing. I rate the Alum Cave Trail to Mt. LeConte as a best hike.

Meanderthals took another hike on the Alum Cave Trail to Mt. LeConte on October 3, 2012. Here is the photo gallery from that adventure. Contrast the seasonal differences.

This post was created by Jeff Clark. Please feel free to use the sharing icons below, or add your thoughts to the comments. Pack it in, pack it out. Preserve the past. Respect other hikers. Let nature prevail. Leave no trace.