determined to overcome this obstacle.
So last year, I pushed myself to step out of my comfort zone and joined a hiking group. It was hard to do. But I'm so glad I did it. After a few hikes, these people weren't strangers to me any longer and I've enjoyed getting to know them. John and June Vice organize and lead the group and are the nicest folks you can imagine. We hike the first Saturday of each month and have been to some great places. This past Saturday was one of my favorite hikes so far. We drove up on the Blue Ridge Parkway to the trailhead on Forest Road 816. We then hiked a portion of the Ivestor Gap Trail ( at 5845 feet elevation) to Ivestor Gap. From the beginning of the hike, we had some beautiful views.
Because we were hiking the ridges of the mountains, rather than being in the woods, this was a different type of hike from others we had done. It was a beautiful day (the first one without rain in a while) and the temperatures were mild. Even though we were rarely in shade, we enjoyed gentle breezes on occasion, and, except for those two heart pumping, thigh screaming climbs, we were comfortable. Even those weren't so bad...
At Ivestor Gap, we stopped for a little breather and snack and to bask in the beauty.
Then we stepped onto the Art Loeb.
The Art Loeb is not an easy trail. John had rated this hike strenuous and when you look at the next few pictures you'll see why. The trail is closed in, rocky and often you're hiking in eroded ditches. Eyes on the ground is the rule for this terrain, because it's so easy to trip on roots or twist an ankle on the rocks. Though this makes for some challenging hiking, the reward at the end is worth it. I like the feeling of empowerment that comes from hiking a tough trail and then standing on the the top of a mountain to claim your reward.
From time to time as we climbed, the foliage would open up and we would have fantastic views.
Our summit experience on Tennet Mountain was at 6,040 feet. This is where we stopped to have lunch.
As I sat on the rock and ate, I enjoyed this view in front of me,
and when I turned around, this was at my back.
After lunch, we ascended to Black Balsam Knob at 6,230 feet, where we had a 360 degree view. This was our Julie Andrews moment, when you just want to break out into song, the hills are alive.... It was a little hazy and some clouds were beginning to roll in, but up to this point we had been able to see Cold Mountain, Mt. Pisgah, Shining Rock, Mt. Hardy, and Sam Knob, plus views into Graveyard Fields.
From the top of Black Balsam Knob, we ,continued to the intersection of the Art Loeb Spur Trail and descended to the parking lot where it all started. On the way down, this caught my eye and I had to stop and take a picture. It was a reminder that there are beautiful things all around us, from every vantage point. We just have to be on the look out. Pretty cool, huh?
After 5. 2 miles, we were all a little tired (ok, maybe more than a little) and glad to be back to the cars, but happy, very happy, to have had the experience. I'm so thankful to live in western NC and to be blessed with opportunities to be outdoors and soak up the beauty. I'm thankful for John Vice, with his maps and GPS, his enthusiasm and willingness to take us to beautiful places. He's taken all the worry out of hiking for me, so all I have to do is show up, lace up my boots and hike.
I've been reading the book, "Wonderstruck" by Margaret Feinberg, where she talks about opening our eyes to the wonders of God around us. Each day, I've been making a special effort to watch for the wonders. On Saturday as I hiked, I didn't have to look very hard.
Beautiful scenery and pictures!
ReplyDeleteMargaret Feinberg speaks at our church sometimes. Jessica got to hear her speak when she was here too. She is awesome!
ReplyDeleteGreat post, love the pictures.