Trek Dirty to Me: 40 days until I voluntarily move to bear country, and let's dive into Tennessee for a minute!
Welcome to Tennessee! The third of 14 states that I will be hiking on my way to the end of the Appalachian Trail atop Mt. Katahdin in Maine. You can check out state #1, Georgia, by clicking here! And state #2, North Carolina, by clicking here!
I cannot tell you a single thing that I have done in Tennessee other than pass through it on the way to states that lay farther south, but I feel connected. It’s really not that far from Indiana. My friends do weekend trips there quite regularly. And Indianapolis Colts legend Peyton Manning played his university ball there. So I’m looking forward to some time amongst the UT Volunteers.
I will be in Tennessee from about Day 33 to Day 42 (or the first week and a half of May), with a short stopover in Gatlinburg, Tennessee around Day 21 and Day 22. So that gives me about 10ish days to play (and hike) in the Volunteer state. Is it called the “Volunteer State?” I know that Peyton Manning went to the University of Tennessee and that is all that I need to know about why East Tennessee is amazing. You can check out the always evolving schedule right here for specific dates, locations and whatnot.
I could use help with a few things:
What should I do in Gatlinburg when I’m in town for the two days in April? Where should I eat? Drink? I have collected quite a few suggestions from my previous post on the town, but I am always open for more.
Anybody interested in hiking this second part with me? It’s currently wide open!
Let me know what you think of the tentative Tennessee route for the week and a half that I will be there in April and May.
And the current route which includes about 120 miles of the trail in Tennessee including the Great Smoky Mountains:
Note: You can always check out the most updated working draft of the route by clicking here!
April 20 - From NC, hike to Newfound Gap and hitch a ride into Gatlinburg, Tennessee. (12 miles)
April 21 - One full day in Gatlinburg, Tennessee which will certainly get its own final preview in the future. Or maybe I will just dive right in and get lost in Dollywood. (0 miles)
April 22 - Hitch back to Newfound Gap and hike to Tricorner Knob Shelter and camp (NC). (15 miles)
Messing around in North Carolina between April 22-May2
May 2 - Hike out of North Carolina and to Erwin, Tennessee and stay at Uncle Johnny’s Nolichucky Hostel & Outfitters for a couple of nights. Hopefully I will make it to town in time to catch part of the 5th Annual Erwin Great Outdoors Festival which is supposed to be during this time. I want to get some pie and southern cooking at the Little Creek Cafe, grab some unicorn poop ice cream at What’s the Scoop Ice Cream and Board Game Cafe, and a coney dog, BBQ and soda fountain fare at the Hawg N Dawg. (17 miles)
May 3 - Erwin and surrounding areas. (0 miles)
May 4 - Hike to Cherry Gap and camp. (18 miles)
May 5 - Hike to Roan High Knob and camp. (17 miles)
May 6 - Hike to Roan Mountain and stay at Mountain Harbour B&B. I will be hitching a ride and returning here a couple of days later for Hikerpalooza 2020. There will be plenty to eat over my two visits here. The burgers from the Mountain Harbour Food Truck are rumored to be the best on the AT. Last year’s ‘best food on the AT’ was awarded to Bob’s Dairyland, and I will do my part to try it. I will try to meet up with the family behind Smoky Mountain Bakers and drop into Highlander BBQ if there is time. (16 miles)
May 7 - Hike to Mountaineer Shelter and camp. (9 miles)
May 8 - Hike and then hitch to Hampton and stay at Boots Off Hostel & Campground. Grab a bite at Laurel Fork Restaurant and Shirley’s Home Cooking. (25 miles)
May 9 - Hike to Vandeventer Shelter and camp. (9 miles)
May 10 - Hike and then hitch to Shady Valley and stay at The Rabbit Hole. Get some food at the Raceway Restaurant and The Shady Valley Country Store. (11 miles)
May 11 - Hike to Abingdon Gap and camp. (12 miles)
May 12 - Hike to Saunders Shelter, Virginia and camp. (19 miles)
Peyton went here.
My first Father’s Day.