McAfee Hikes

Date Written: 12/07/2024 | AT Mile 2100.0 | Day Total: 20.4 miles | Gain: 4055 ft

I was surprised when I woke up and saw that it was 32 degrees. It had warmed up throughout the night which makes my morning a bit easier. Slept really well last night only recall waking up once at 3:30.

Started my day a hair after 8 and hiked down to Wayah Gap. Going to be a nice day today, sunny and warm. Elevation doesn’t look too bad either.

After the Gap I had a 800ft climb up to Siler Bald. It wasn’t terribly steep which was nice. The bald with a view is a rather long steep side trail and I was satisfied with the bald down low. Wasn’t feeling like doing a side adventure today.

The later part of the morning I descended down to Winding Stair Gap. In the process I also passed Panther Gap and Swinging Lick Gap. Somebody carved some edits into one of the signs…

Although it was just after 11 I decided to eat in the sun at Winding Stair Gap. So far today I’ve seen a total of 3 day hikers. One of which popped out of nowhere and I didn’t see him till I was 5 paces away. Lots of traffic on this road, multiple trucks and cars pulled into the parking area to check breaks etc. One of which was a Rivian truck, haven’t seen many of those before.

I had a gradual 700 ft climb up and back down to Rock Gap. On my way up I passed a family on a day hike. They had two young daughters, one was being carried. They asked if I was out for a day hike or weekend hike. I explained that I’ve been hiking from Maine and the dad said “I was just telling them that this trail went all the way up there!”. They were shocked and asked how many days I’ve been hiking for. As they walked away I could hear the mom and dad reiterating “he’s been hiking for over 100 days. Longer than when you started school this year”.

There were no clear views along the bump but I could make them out through the trees. Right before I reached Rock Gap I stopped at a stream to filter some water. I walked 50 yards down the trail after filtering water and ran into a blowdown. This one seemed more recent than Helene and there was no evidence of people getting through. Still carrying my handsaw a spent a few minutes clearing a path through it.

When I made it to Rock Gap I dropped my pack and dumped out my trash in the bear cans. They were quite full but I managed to get my small baggie of garbage in. There was a jeep here that had a ton of those rubber ducks on the dash.

A few minutes later I walked by Rock Gap Shelter. It had been recently renovated and still has the fresh paint smell. Looking back at the FarOut comments it looks like it was rebuilt in early 2023.

Afterword I had another 800ft steady climb before descending a little. Not many views here just lots of rododendron tunnels.

I continued through the rododendron up 1200ft to Albert Mountain. There’s a large fire tower at the top! I climbed all the way up to the hatch and tried to open it. It budged but didn’t open. I tried a few more times with no luck. It was a bit odd because I couldn’t see any visible lock. I managed with the view from the uppermost staircase. Still wonderful!

The descent south of Albert Mountian was super steep and rocky. Lots of staircases etched into the boulders. I planned on camping 2.5 miles further down the trail at a campsite with a bearbox.

As I descended I exited the Nantahala Wilderness. About a quarter mile away from camp I could smell a campfire. I was excited of the thought of other people at the campsite. I’ve been spending a lot of nights alone lately. Sure enough there was a group of 4 guys out for the weekend. I talked with them briefly after collecting some water. I pitched my tent nearby and made some dinner.

It’s just supposed to dip down below freezing tonight, 29 degrees is the low. At this temperature I should be able to sleep like a rock and not feel chills on my back.