My Great Smokey Mountains trip!

fuzzybabybunny

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EDIT: This trip was last last spring break, during a time when the road up to Clingman's Dome was still closed due to snow. There was absolutely no one else on the mountain.

So I went to Great Smokey Mountains to go backpacking and hike up Clingman's Dome, the second highest peak east of the Mississippi. It's a pretty tough, slow going hike up to the peak because of all the deep snow that one has to trudge through during Spring. At around 2PM I was halfway to the top, and I had a choice between hiking to a designated campground to spend the night, and then in the morning hike to the top, or hike all the way to the top all in one go, get some sunset pictures, make an inpromptu shelter somewhere, and wake up early the next morning and get some sunrise pictures, all with the lovely vistas that only Clingman's Dome could afford. I couldn't pass up the photo opportunity. Besides, I had heard that there was an observation tower at the top and I figured I could just walk in, close the door behind me, and have a nice shelter.

I made it to the top about an hour before sunset, only to discover that the observation tower was an open-air design, and was actually the LEAST protected from the elements anywhere. I made a quick dinner and took sunset pictures with frigid hands. The wind was blowing strong over the snow capped mountain, strong and cold enough to make the electronics in my camera malfunction here and there. When the sun finally set, I realized that I was on top of a snowy mountain all by myself, with the temperature well below freezing and with no natural cover over than the skinny, needle-less evergreens. I realized that pitching a tent would be suicide because there was no way in hell that my tent and sleeping bag would keep me warm out in the wind.

Luckily, at the base of the observation tower I found a room in which I could spend the night:

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Needless to say, it was really, really creepy. The long hall-like room led off into darkness, made only darker by the dark stones used to construct it. The rusted iron door would creak as it was being opened, and there was no lock to ward off intruders.

That night was horrible. The cold stone ground sapped most of my body heat through my bag and pad, and the temperature was so cold that the inside of my bag just couldn't trap my body heat. I had full body shivers. Teeth chattering for hours straight. At around 2AM and with me still awake, I heard the snow outside crunching underneath something... or someone's.... footsteps.


Then I heard the iron door squeak open.

Then I felt a presence beside me.

Keep in mind that this is in a narrow hallway-like room, about 5 feet across. I was next to one of the walls, completely encased, face and all, in my sleeping bag. SOMETHING was moving right next to me, making little patter sounds on the concrete.

As far as I was concerned that something could be one of three things:\

1. Bear. Bad. I might be able to scare it away, but why the heck would it be wandering on top of a freezing mountain at 2AM?

2. Random animal. Not so bad, depending on the animal. The fact that whatever it was was literally a foot away from the face of my sleeping bag was REALLY worrying me.

3. A person. THE WORST POSSIBLE CASE. Anyone who is wandering around in this weather in pitch darkness at 2AM on top of a lonely mountain peak CANNOT be sane.

Keep in mind that I was running these options through my head as I continued to hear shuffling sounds a foot away from my face in complete darkness, miles away from the nearest form of help. All alone. About to get mauled, chopped up, stabbed, or eaten.

Then I heard the tiny sound of fabric being chewed up. Ok, so a person can be ruled out. I hope. An animal. Great. Then I realized that if my backpack got chewed up too bad I wouldn't be able to make it off of this mountain.

I flicked open the knife blade in my Leatherman multi-tool and wrapped my other hand around my little can of mace. My finger was at the ready to flick on my headlamp. I couldn't let my backpack get destroyed. I couldn't stop shivering.

On three.

One.

Two.

Three.

With a grunt, I bolted up in my sleeping bag, flicked on my light, and held out my knife and mace...











It was a mouse. It squeaked in fear and crawled up a rusted iron bar and into a hole in the wall. It was only an inch long and very cute. I glanced at the door. It was closed. There was nothing else, only the mouse and I.

The next morning I found no extra footsteps outside in the snow. I guess you start to hear things when you're camped out alone on top of a mountain with hypothermia and death as a reality. The mouse had been chewing on the tips of my gloves and made a little hole in one of the finger compartments. I had made food a few hours ago in those gloves. There had been no food in that room with me
 

AgaBoogaBoo

Lifer
Feb 16, 2003
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Didn't you already post these pics before? I remember seeing these or maybe something similar from someone else's trip somewhere...
 

fuzzybabybunny

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Originally posted by: AgaBoogaBoo
Didn't you already post these pics before? I remember seeing these or maybe something similar from someone else's trip somewhere...

Yup, I did. It was in a thread a looong time ago, with the same story actually. The only problem was that I never finished the story and when I went back to try to edit it, it had been archived and uneditable, so I had to repost it here to finish the story.
 

lokiju

Lifer
May 29, 2003
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You're crazy going on your own!


No way in hell I'd do a hike like on my own at least. :p


 

dug777

Lifer
Oct 13, 2004
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:beer:


You crazy little b*stard, i'd never go walking on my own in those circumstances tho...

CReepy doesn't even begin to describe that ;)
 

buck

Lifer
Dec 11, 2000
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Im getting excited myself, next year my dad and i will be hiking for 3 weeks on the appalachian trail through clingmans dome. So nice in those parts.
 

fuzzybabybunny

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Originally posted by: Feldenak
Have you had a chance to check out those Ohio spots I told you about? :)

Nope, I haven't had time :(

Heck, I haven't had time for photography even...


Originally posted by: lokiju
You're crazy going on your own!

No way in hell I'd do a hike like on my own at least. :p

I do all my hikes and backpacking trips by myself because I like having my own pace, both hiking and taking pictures. It does get pretty creepy at night though out in the woods by yourself.

One night I pitched my tent "fast pack" style, meaning I pitched it just with the rainfly and groundsheet, with no tent wall. In the middle of the night while I was fast asleep I suddenly heard this really loud "SNIFF SNIFF SNIFF" right in my ear. I bolted up immediately and *something* ran out of my tent and into the woods.

Another night I was doing the same fast-packing setup and in the middle of the night I heard rustling five feet away from my tent... and angry sounding growls for about an hour.

At night things start to rustle, and you have no idea what they are. It's also creepy camping out in historical districts, because you never know what people died around your sleeping spot... and if you're superstitious...
 

IronWing

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Jul 20, 2001
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LOL! I spent a February night back in 1990 in the room at the base of the observation deck on top of Clingman's Dome! There were mice then too. I'll have to dig into my photos (film) to see if I have any pictures. There was a dusting of snow at the time. Damn mice kept scurrying all night. I was worried they'd chew up my pack.
 

SonnyDaze

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Jul 31, 2004
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Originally posted by: lokiju
You're crazy going on your own!

No way in hell I'd do a hike like on my own at least. :p

Yeah, no sh*t. Fuzzy's story reminded me of Aron Ralston's ordeal.

 

fuzzybabybunny

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Originally posted by: ironwing
LOL! I spent a February night back in 1990 in the room at the base of the observation deck on top of Clingman's Dome! There were mice then too. I'll have to dig into my photos (film) to see if I have any pictures. There was a dusting of snow at the time. Damn mice kept scurrying all night. I was worried they'd chew up my pack.

Nice :)

I figured that other people have camped there because there were the remains of what looked like a fire outside of the door. I'm thinking that room was even specifically made for people travelling around the area (like AT hikers) who get trapped on the mountain at night.

That night was just so cold for me. The concrete floor sapped all the heat from my body through the sleeping pad, and my sleeping bag was ill-fitting (too spacious inside). I remember swearing during the middle of the night, thinking that I was on the virge of death, that if I survived the first thing I would do is get a sleeping bag that hugged me very well.