juxtaposition

Since Uwharrie's passing I've been jonesing for a springtime adventure in the Southern Appalachians: part celebration of past memories, part enjoyment of friendly faces and new places. I settled on attempting a 100 kilometer circuit in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park over two days starting and finishing at Smokemont Campground.

route: https://caltopo.com/m/8060

Enticed by the unexplored trails and manways along this route, Adam and Carl quickly hopped on board. Mom and dad also wished to join us for the experience of staying overnight at the lodge atop Mount LeConte. Finally, Elliott and Rachel were up for camping with us at Smokemont the night before our start. It was a good crew.

At shortly after 7 am on Sunday March 31, Adam and I started the loop from Smokemont in a tapering drizzle. We ran in a clockwise direction, first along the Benton Mackaye Trail, which brought back fond memories from a decade ago. Sunshine mixed with flurries higher up. Soon we descended back to spring along Deep Creek.

Winter returned as we ascended Noland Divide to meet Carl along the AT near Clingmans Dome. The snow deepened as we descended Sugarland Mountain into the TN side of the park. Nevertheless, we connected to Chimney Tops via the first manway along the loop with little difficulty. At this point, we took joy in the beauty of nature's juxtaposition.

We ascended Alum Cave to end this 35 mile day shortly after 5 pm at 6,500' on Mount LeConte. We were joined at the lodge by mom and dad who had hiked up Alum earlier in the day and were now bundled up against the cold. After a hot dinner, all of us took a 1/4 mile hike up Cliff Tops to watch the sunset. Back at the lodge, Adam regaled us with guitar and song before bed.

On April Fool's, we awoke to a 10 degree morning. After a hearty breakfast, we bid farewell to my folks and started down Trillium Gap. We soon crossed paths with a llama train headed up to resupply the lodge. As we continued to lose elevation, the ice and snow disappeared, replaced by a vernal ocean of flowers and tender greens along Porters Creek.

Relishing this sunny paradise, we strolled confidently past the official trail's end and into a relatively open forest and well-cairned manway toward Charlies Bunion. All was going well until we committed to climbing a terrible spur to rejoin the mile-high boreal crest of the Smokies. The terrain got steeper, more rhodo-choked and desperate by the minute. 

Up became our only way out. Precariously perched blowdowns threatened to tumble onto us as we scrambled over, under and through them. We clung to whatever we could. With or without gloves, our fingers froze in the wet snow. We had to stop multiple times and endure the pain of thawing them before resuming our escape at a glacial pace.

It took us nearly two hours to go half a mile. By the time we reached the AT, Adam bent over to kiss the trail. The three of us were ready to throw in the towel and retreat to Carl's car at Newfound Gap some 10+ miles shy of our planned distance for the day. As the adventure wound down, I found myself struck most by the juxtaposition...

Spring and winter, warmth and cold, joy and desperation, life and death... and through it all, the perseverance of friendship.