CATALOOCHEE DIVIDE TRAIL 1-6-2007

I was at the trailhead at 6:00 a.m. on Cove Creek Road. The temperature was a crisp 42 degrees. I had originally planned to wait until daybreak, but I was too excited and impatient. The light was so good with the almost full moon that I decided to start my hike. I put on my headlamp and was on the trail at 6:25 a.m. I traveled the Cataloochee Divide Trail to Hemphill Bald Trail at Double Gap-then back to McKee Branch – taking it down to Caldwell Fork Trail in Cataloochee –then back up McKee Branch and back to the Trail Head. This was about eighteen miles.

I turned off my headlamp at 7:00 a.m. I noticed with the first light the wind was picking up and the temperature was dropping. I was only wearing a base layer and a shirt. I believe this was the least amount of clothes I had worn on a January hike in the Smokies.

I arrived at the McKee Branch Junction at 8:05 a.m. The temperature was down to 35 degrees. This is where I would head down on my return. It was 1.8 miles to the Hemphill Bald Trail. This section had heavy horse use with a lot of muddy sections. The park had recently placed foot walks for hikers. They sure made a big difference. After I had passed a few buildings I arrived at Double Gap Trail.

I turned around and headed back stopping at an area called the Swag for a break at 9:10a.m. This was a privately owned area joining the park boundary. I took a thirty- minute break, shot some pictures, and called home. I could see the Cataloochee Ski-lodge. There were a lot of skiers on the slopes. I was on my way at 9:40 a.m. and was at the McKee Branch Trail at 10:05 a.m. McKee is 2.3 miles with a 1,800-foot drop in elevation. Horses also use it heavily. This trail was almost straight down, just a couple of switchbacks. I was already thinking about the climb back up. It was wet and muddy. I was at the Caldwell Fork Trail at 10:55 a.m. At 11:00 a.m. I was heading back and noticed an old home site that I had missed coming down. After shooting this picture I went nonstop to the top and arrived at 12:00 a.m. I was beginning to feel the climb.

McKee Branch Trail begins in Purchase Gap, which is very close to Purchase Knob. This is where the camera is located that gives the views from Purchase Knob. This is also the camera that shoots the pictures that Ed sends us of the weather in the park. The Appalachian Highlands Science Learning Center is also located there. I found the weather station when I started back on the Cataloochee Divide Trail when I came to a faint trail on my right. There was a no horse sign posted. I thought that this was maybe it. About 200 yards on the trail I could see the weather station. The view there was much more dramatic in real life. All of the times I have looked at the picture on the Internet, I have never seen a person in the picture. I thought I would take a chance. I called my daughter Jodee who lives in Houston, Texas and asked her to check the web cam picture. It was about 12:30 and as soon as she clicked on it she asked if I was wearing an orange jacket and green cap. It was my 15 minutes of fame. Well, more like 25 minutes, it took that long for the picture to update. I was back on the trail at 1:15.

The last two miles were different from the morning. Sounds of heavy equipment cutting a road for development followed me the rest of the way. I stopped and shot one last picture looking into Cataloochee while a bulldozer was working away directly behind me, knowing that this area would never be the same. I was back at the trailhead at 2:40.