Session 1: The Great Pack-In | First Trail Rehab of the Season

This year’s Rocky Top season in the Smokies began with a great set of volunteers, both on the trail work side and equestrians working to help us out on the horse pack-in side. On the day before the crew hiked in, members of the Backcountry Horsemen of Tennessee and North Carolina, including regional presidents Vetice Bates and Tom Thomas, brought over 300 lbs of trail tools and camping gear up to the crew’s campsite. The following day the crew hiked up Snake Den Ridge Trail, a six-mile hike gaining over 3,500 feet of elevation. More equestrian volunteers, this time from the Smoky Mountain Trail Riders, took up over 200 lbs of food and camp amenities for the crew’s first eight-day session.

The crew meets the day before their session heads into the field; the gathering at basecamp includes orientation, introductions, a safety talk, and a great dinner cooked by camp coordinator Chloe de Camara. She also prepares the crew’s camp food for the horse packers. The next morning the crew began their journey up Snake Den Ridge Trail from Cosby Campground.

 The crew carried all the gear they needed that hadn't been hauled earlier through the support of our horse partners. The volunteers the first week ranged widely in background and experience, coming together to create a well-rounded group for the crew. Jerry, a volunteer from Ohio, had spent years working in the state park system, including doing trail work. Sam, a volunteer from Virginia, had just finished a thru-hike of the trail and was ready to give back to the A.T. Having Sam's hiker appetite on crew meant there was never a scrap of food that wasn't fully enjoyed. 



The crew spent the next six days working near Inadu Knob doing major trail rehab. This included installing over twenty log and rock steps, a rock water bar, and removing a large portion of berm from the edge of the trail to allow water to shed downhill instead of being retained on the walking surface.





A particularly rooty part of the trail called for extensive log cribbing and log steps in order to control water erosion and to gain elevation over and protect larger roots. In another difficult section where bedrock created water-shedding issues, the crew constructed two tiers of rock cribbing and two rock steps in order to bring the trail over the exposed section of mountain. Throughout the duration of the week the crew of volunteers learned trail maintenance and rehab skills on-the-job and by the week’s end became very proficient trail rehabbers.

Thus Rocky Top week one ended with an impressive amount of trail work completed. However, the rest of the season in the Smokies this fall has only just begun!

To join a Rocky Top trail crew, visit appalachiantrail.org/crews

Session One Underway

Session One of Rocky Top Trail Crew kicked off on September 1. The crew met the evening before at base camp for orientation and dinner.

Before dawn, the crew's camp coordinator awoke to prep breakfast - a french toast-inspired dish and sausage meatballs. Well fed and fueled, the crew packed up their lunches, then loaded their packs in the van that took them to Cosby Campground. (Here is John's praise of his Rocky Top Crew base camp breakfast...)

At Cosby the crew met the teams of horse packers who volunteer with Rocky Top to take up essential supplies, like tents, an electric fence to keep bears away from the crew's mountain-top kitchen, food, tools, and a few comforts - like foldable camp chairs (the closest thing to car-camping our crew volunteers will experience during their week on crew. Otherwise, it's rugged.)

David & Noland Richards

Packin' Front and Center

The team of horse packers started up the Snake Den Ridge Trail at 10:00 a.m. The crew, laden with their backpacks and a few tools, followed behind. Snake Den Ridge Trail is a tough trail for our volunteers and the horses. Horsemen condition their horses for the ride. Volunteers also have to come ready for the challenge of climbing more than 3,400 feet in about 5.5 miles (although the distance from the parking lot makes the hike closer to 6 miles). The morning was muggy and the temperatures were warming.The crew got spread out over the first two miles but took the opportunity to regroup at the Inadu Creek crossing where everyone got the chance to dip fingers in the cold, refreshing water, and eat a snack.

At Inadu Creek

The crew continued on their climb. Steadily making progress. Putting one foot in front of the other. Simultaneously halting and persevering, they willed themselves up the mountain. Then, the thunderstorm arrived. With the rain came the wind. The torrent blew over in about a half hour, but left the crew soaked. Luckily their spirits hadn't been drenched.

Keith admiring the cribbing at Inadu Creek

Onward they climbed. They took a break at a wide switchback, designed by nature with large sitting rocks for resting. While there, a set of horse packers returned from unloading at the campsite. After they continued on, the crew gathered up and pressed on toward the A.T. The most difficult part of Rocky Top Crew can be just getting to the work site. It is not an easy climb. The crew soldiered on, eventually making it to camp just before night fall.

The real work would start the next day: rehabilitating the Appalachian Trail, one stone or rock step at a time.