The Nantahalas - Land of the Noonday Sun

When we last heard from Sam and his faithful lab mix 6-year old Sallie, they had re-united at Fontana Dam on the Little Tennessee River where the Appalachian Trail exits the Great Smoky Mountain National Park. Warmer weather was in store for the hiking pair, but, unfortunately, so was more rain. Sam and Sallie did quite a bit of “slack-packing on this section of trail. The Nantahala Mountains are one of the many sub-groups of peaks that comprise the Appalachian chain. The word Nantahala, as legend has it, is an Anglicization of the Cherokee term for “land of the noonday sun.” Just a short hike in these mountains, brings that phrase to life. Not only are the Nantahalas some of most heavily forested from Georgia to Maine, but they are very steep. The combination of these factors makes sunlight in the valleys somewhat of a rare commodity, at least until midday.

Sam and Sallie are just over 160-trail miles from their goal of Springer Mountain, Georgia. The morning they took to the trail at Stecoah Gap was a perfect cool, clear day. The hamlet of Stecoah, North Carolina could be seen clearly far down in the valley below. Sam had visited a local market the evening before and picked up a bag of fresh fruit and Snickers bars. At the trailhead signpost a hundred yards or so into the woods, he hung the bag of goodies – “a bit of “trail magic” for the hikers that followed him. It wasn’t the first time he had provided “trail magic” for his fellow hikers. He really enjoys receiving such surprises while out in the woods and thus he receives great satisfaction in returning the favors. Sallie probably is oblivious to the act, but goes along with it. When Sam’s happy, Sallie’s happy.

Just a few miles down the trail lies the Cheoah Bald, another of those mysterious open meadows atop the tall mountains. Mysterious because, no one really knows why the balds are there. They are all below the tree line and should be forested. Some believe they were created when lightning strikes long ago started fires that cleared these areas. Native grasses and wildflowers took over and created views reminiscent of scenes from the movie The Sound of Music. Native American storytellers tell that the balds were created by a great bird god as a place to land. Nevertheless, the balds are places of serene beauty that allow the visitor opportunities to take in unlimited vistas of distant peaks and valleys.

Sam and Sallie arrived at Wesser, North Carolina, the headquarters of the Nantahala Outdoor Center. They crossed the footbridge over the river in a drenching rain to be greeted by Sam’s Dad and copious amounts of warm delicious food in the nearby restaurant. Sam has worked for the Outdoor Center at their Chatooga River Outpost in South Carolina as a river guide for several seasons so he sees several of his buddies while in Wesser.

From Wesser, our hiking pair start another long ascent as they head southward. This time they’re headed to Wesser Bald. It’s this section of the Nantahalas that gives them the well deserved reputation as the most rugged section of the entire AT. The trademark of the AT here is switchbacks and steep slopes. By now, after 2050-trail miles, Sam and Sallie are prime condition to handle anything the trail gives them. The AT here bobs from the 700-800-foot levels up to 5000-feet time and time again as each mountain is checked off. Sam and Sallie hike for a few days with other SOBO’s (south bounders). One, going by the trail name of “Natty Bumppo” is from Michigan by way of Florida. You may recognize the name coming from James Fenimore Cooper’s character in The Leather Stocking Tales. Natty, the hiker had started as a NOBO (north bounder) earlier this year when he suffered a leg injury in Georgia. After rehabbing at home for several weeks, he traveled to Maine to restart his hike as a SOBO. He had made it south to this point without further injury. There was also another young man and a couple of female thru-hikers headed south on this section of trail. They would sometimes hike together, but mostly saw each other when one would stop for a break and another would catch up and or pass them. They all shared resources as well as knowledge of the trail. This is what the Appalachian Trail is about – meeting new friends who share many of the same ideals as you. Of course, Sallie proved to be their best, favorite friend. She loved sharing their leftovers with them.

Standing Indian Mountain, from where Sam and Sallie could see the Tallulah River Gorge to the southeast and the mountains of northern Georgia, the Foxfire country, to the south is well worth the climb. By now it was late October and the leaves were at their peak in this area. Long distance views caught all of God’s glory in the forest colors. There were the golds of the Beeches and Poplars, The almost maroon colors of the Oaks, and then a splash of the reddest red you could ever imagine – that would be a Maple. There was a breathtaking view every time it came into sight. Now our duo, departs the Standing Indian, leaving the Nantahalas behind as they come up on the Blue Ridge of North Georgia, passing on the way Chunky Gal Trail (now there’s a name to be reckoned with).

Sam’s food intake has increased since he usually gets two of his meals at the courtesy of his Dad who has been leap-frogging down the trail following them in the RV. When asked as to what he had missed most while on the trail, Sam first replied, “Isabel.” (his wife) and then said the next thing he missed was meat. So Dad tried to remedy that situation. We explored practically every BBQ house and steak house in the area. There are some truly great food experiences in this area of the country. There are also some disappointments. Needless to say, no one in the party ever went to bed hungry.

Equipment wise, the shoes are probably taking the worst beating. Sam is now wearing his third pair of Keene shoes and they have begun to leak in a couple of the seams. This is only a problem if it rains or when he crosses streams. Let’s just say here that it has rained more days than it has not and the mountain streams are all flowing at their springtime rates. The poncho and hammock are holding up well as is the back pack with no major problems. Sam did have to replace a basket or foot on one of his Leki hiking poles at Wesser, but with a lifetime warranty, it cost him nothing but a few minutes in the outfitter’s shop.

As they cross the Georgia state line, Sam and Sallie have just a little over 76-miles left in their 2178-mile, five million step journey.