A Couple Of Interesting Pics From GSMNP

<p style=”text-align: left;”>Very cool! What a treat to run into Nomad. Was Soldier in a wool uniform? I’ve paddled into Eagle Creek in summer when the lake was high. An odd thing was in the water along the bluff near the campground we saw thousands of little blue jellyfish the size of a nickel. The TVA biologist told me they likely came from a boat from the Great Lakes originally. Lake Fontana never gets warm other than the top few inches, allowing the little jellies to multiply.</p>

We found out right before heading to the park that Eb was making another attempt at a Thru.  I’ve followed his journals for years and was over-the-top excited to finally have a chance to meet him.
<p style=”text-align: left;”>As for Soldier Boy, he said the jacket, pants and blanket were indeed wool.  He said he started at Springer with vintage boots but had to change to the shoes shown due to blisters.  Not sure if the pack was vintage but it certainly looked like it could be.  I didn’t think to ask him what, if anything, he carried for shelter.  I did notice that he was using pace beads which I thought was interesting.</p>
Other than as a part of hiking the AT through the park on a section hike, I had never explored the SE quadrant of the park.  One hike was up Twenty Mile to the AT and site 113.  Then back down the AT, past Shuckstack to Fontana.  Then did the Lakeshore Trail from the tunnel back to Fontana.  Very cool trip.  So much to see and very few people…unlike the other side of the park.

Interesting to see the trees leafing out near the lake but still bare up on the AT.

We had a loop hike planned for 4/18 to 4/23, with campsites all reserved, from the tunnel up Fourney Creek Tr and then Jonas Creek Tr, to the top of the Hazel Creek Tr, and then all the way down the Hazel Creek Tr and back to the tunnel on the Lakeshore Tr. We would have been at site 86 on April 20. Unfortunately my hiking partner got the COVID so we had to cancel.

We were at 86 on the 21st.  While I said we had it all to ourselves, actually the 4 X-Mid’ers were there but way off in another area and we never heard or saw them until hiking in and then back out.  That’s a HUGE site.  So, our camp was off all to it’s own.  It’s my understanding that it and 90 are heavily used so we were very fortunate at both.  We also did a short overnight hike up Noland Creek to site 63.  Also a beautiful area and easy walk to that point.  I would love to do the rest of it as well as the Eagle Creek and Forney Creek trails but the way we did all three hikes, we were spared of any crazy water crossings.  Another day maybe.