Third backpacking trip of 2024 ... April 13 - 19, 2024
Included ... Mom, Sally, and myself
Day 1 ... April 13, 2024
With much more nervous anxiety bursting at the seams than a normal backpacking trip ... we made our way from SC to Linville Gorge. The plan ... loop around Linville Gorge - the ENTIRE Linville Gorge! We left one car as a resupply in the gravel parking area off of Hwy 105 (it's one of the main Linville Falls access points) then made our way to Wolfpit trailhead. Along the way the early morning light started appearing and we stopped at the Brown Mountain Overlook which not only looks eastward but also westward towards Linville at the backside of Hawksbill, Sitting Bear, and Gingercake Mountains (two of those we'd cross or be on top of during the trip). After taking in the view ... we continued on to the trailhead. We found ourselves a spot and quickly got ourselves loaded up with our packs and was ready to get this adventure started! I'll preface this entire adventure by saying this is not for the faint of heart ... this is a very demanding loop with skills needed in navigating unblazed territory. For the most part the trails are apparent - but there were a couple times we ended up off trail and there were several downed trees to go over and under. This is NOT a normal 40+ mile backpacking trip ... this is a physically and mentally demanding adventure along exposed cliff lines and sheer drop offs. Please use caution…
For a full trip description - please visit my blog or Facebook page for trip photos and day descriptions.
Things to note, this is probably one of the easier sections of this loop. The trail is moderate at worst and very well maintained. Water can be scarce so grab it when you can. Also, sun exposure is pretty high here - just not a lot of leaf cover. Unfortunately, I left my sun shirt at home - so I paid the price on that one! Ihere's some great campsites all along this section ... a couple l've shown in previous videos - but the one before that final push up to the ridge past Chimney Gap looked worse than it did last year. And if you're familiar with it ... then there was a small campsite on the left side of the trail as you're going north ... that campsite had a fallen tree in it. So my biggest piece of advice is look around to make sure there's no widow makers. I highly recommend Olson but only if you're familiar with the gorge ... and watch your footing (don't follow my bad example). Overall, a great first day!