Backpacking Trip (Yes, in December!)

Phil and some friends embarked on a 3 day/2 night adventure into the wilderness of The Great Smoky Mountain National Park to celebrate the 30th birthday of one of the guys. The hiking portion was much more grueling than any of the guys knew they'd be tackling, but each came home safe, mostly uninjured, and appreciative of the time spent with each other.

The National Park Service recently reintroduced elk back into the mountains of North Carolina. The guys were fortunate to see the entire herd bedded down the afternoon they arrived in the park. This bull elk was unalarmed by the vehicle traffic as he grazed in the field.

The backpacking trip followed old trading paths that the Park Service has used for horses throughout the last several decades since the GSM National Park was established. The trails led the guys from the Cataloochee Valley, to the left of the picture above, up and down the mountains to the pinnacle of the ridge in the center of the picture. A total of 22 miles hiked, the second day was the most grueling, at 12 miles on the day, with a final ascent of 2000 ft. over a 2 mile distance.


Group shot of the guys as they set out on the morning of Day 2. With light snow and moderate rain during the night, the guys faced wet and slippery trails.

This picture shows a common sight throughout the excursion: very rugged "trails" that were often little more than seasonal streams. Most of the trails were horse paths, with leaves hiding the rocks underneath.

Campsite #2: on the pinnacle of the highest ridge in the area, 5850 ft. above sea level, at the base of an abandoned Forest Service fire watch tower.


The grueling hike the evening before ended after sunset, with the guys hiking into camp with the aid of headlamps. Since camp was on the pinnacle of a mountain, they knew the view would be amazing from the top of the tower.
Sunrise over the Smokies. Simply incredible! Proof that God loves us, and wants us to enjoy his creation.


Setting out on the morning of Day 3. Rested, fed, and encouraged by the all-down-hill-from-here day of hiking that lay ahead.


One of many stream crossings with no bridge or stepping stones. Phil was thankful for the new Gore-tex lined boots he had purchased for this trip.


This stream was simply too deep to walk across. Fortunately, there was a bridge over troubled water.

All of the guys came home with sore muscles, but with rest and IcyHot the pain was temporary. And the memories of the grueling Day 2 climb mean each guy can now use this adventure as the benchmark for the most difficult hike they've ever completed.

White Christmas!!

I know this post is REALLY late, but Phil and I have both been slammed at work since the new year started. So I apologize for just now getting around to Christmas!

We spent a week in NY with Phil's family for Christmas, and made a quick stop in the NC mountians on our way home to do a Christmas meal with Erin's family. To our excitement, there was snow in both locations! Below is a picture from West Jefferson, NC, and a picture of the sunset as we were getting there after our drive down from NY.


One of the most entertaining parts of the trip was watching Nash play with Lucy, Phil's parents' boxer. Lucy is a complete spaz, and unbelievably, I think she had more energy than Nash!! They wrestled and chased each other every single second they were together, so we had to seperate them quite often, just to let them rest. The only other time they would stop was if you offered food:

Can you tell how wet Nash's whole head is, from Lucy slobber:

We had a wonderful Christmas with Phil's parents, and are so glad we got to spend the holiday with them. We got to visit with lots of his extended family, too, which was really nice. It's hard living so far away!

Phil and I tried to spend as much time as we could outside in the snow. We went to the nearby park, and I laughed at the sign near the front entrance. You don't see this at NC parks:
We went to the sledding hill (yes a designated sledding hill... again, not in NC) and had a blast. The picture below doesn't do it justice- it was SO steep!! I got to the top and wondered what I had gotten myself into! Once I got up my nerve, it was fun going down :) Phil, of course, is a pro. But a bit crazy... I can see how he broke his back sledding in college!


Nash seemed to enjoy the snow, once he got used to it. It was pretty funny watching him try to figure out that he could pee on it... the first few times we took him out, he just wouldn't go because there wasn't any grass! But he eventually understood :) We tried to take him sledding on a small hill at the house, but he wanted none of that. He seemed to love playing and running in the snow, and sticking his nose way down into it and tossing it up in the air. See pics below, of all the white on his face :)

Cute little pupper, jumping at the camera (we're working on better manners...)

It was a great trip, and we were so excited to see Phil's family and see some snow at the same time :) And of course, we are continuously thankful for the real reason we celebrate Christmas- the birth of Jesus, our Savior! We hope that you all had a wonderful, blessed Christmas, too. And hopefully 2010 is going well :)