Some months ago I was so bold as to go solo backpacking overnight in the Nantahala National Forest.   Yes—solo—meaning yep, all by myself.  Let me say up front here that this is something you do with a good bit of research before you go!!!  I read other blogs, other hikers’ accounts of where to start, how to get a shuttle to the trailhead, where shelters were and what to expect along the way.  I did not just grab my pack and hit the road to the trail!

I picked my days for the trip based on my days off, picked my trail, arranged to meet a shuttle driver (a complete stranger) to take me from where I would end my hike at the Nantahala Outdoor Center to Winding Stair Gap trailhead.  My driver was very friendly and drove me exactly where I wanted to be, chatting with me about my route and plans.  She parked her car at the trailhead and let me grab my pack and hiking poles and then drove away while I crossed the street to get to the white blazed trail that is the Appalachian Trail.

Now you know you are “all in” when all you have is your two feet, a backpack full of what you feel you will need and you have two days to get from where you are now to your destination, and it is 28-30 miles away.  Can I remind you here that I’ve never done this kind of thing before so far from home?  My previous solo overnight backpacking trips had been practically in my backyard; in a park I am very familiar with.  But this was different—on steroids!

I knew where I wanted to end up for the night, exactly the shelter for a perfect halfway point.  BUT, I didn’t get to the trailhead as early as I had planned, and the ascent and elevation that first day were something, to say the least. In the first 3-4 hours, I only saw one other person.  She was a female southbound through hiker on the AT, and she didn’t want to take much time to chat.  I’m so impressed by those souls who can and do make that hike.  But yes, she was it!  Those of you who know much about the AT and the mountains it traverses realize it is a vast trail, over 2000 miles but the majority of it is in woods, deep in mountain wilderness and so isolating at times that it alone is intimidating.

I made it to a high point of this section, to my checkpoint, Wayah Fire Tower.  It is an impressive stone structure standing on a ridge overlooking beautiful mountains!  It had been damaged by wildfires the year before. The wooden roof or shelter that had been atop the stone walls was gone.  Still, there were incredible views of this area of the Appalachians, very rural, very isolated.  The fire tower is accessible by road, and so here I saw humans again, all there to enjoy the views and take pictures.  I stopped here, chatted with some of the people and rested a few minutes with my pack off. Taking the pack off after 12 miles or more is a weird sensation because for your first few steps your legs feel so light and rubbery.  I climbed the fire tower and took my own pictures.  Then when it came time to pick the pack back up and throw it over my shoulders, it reminded me what had made my legs feel strange.

I left the fire tower realizing that it was beginning to get late in the day and I knew I still had about 5 miles to go before I got to the shelter for my halfway point.  As I walked and thought about daylight left, setting up camp and how tired my legs were, I realized that I probably wasn’t going to make my goal.  But I did make it to the Wayah shelter and was really surprised to see other people there.  After 6 hours on the trail seeing practically no one,  I was surprised to see four people there getting their gear and food ready for dinner.

I introduced myself and chatted with them about where they were from and how long they had been on the trail. Shelters along the AT are great places to get out of the weather, and they are located near a source of water, a spring or some other source well marked for you to find.  Everyone carries some sort of water filtration system to ensure safe water for drinking and cooking.  Just another thing you learn in studying for this kind of adventure.

And so in the shelter area, you immediately find yourself sharing details about who you are and where you are from with complete strangers.  You are miles from nowhere in a clearing with a small wooden lean-to shelter, but you immediately feel you have more in common with these strangers than you may have with some of your neighbors in your hometown.  You know without a doubt that they all traveled the same trail you did, climbed the same mountains, and they all are here to get their own purpose out of their journey. Three men from Alabama were “shelter hopping.”  Their goal each day was to get from one shelter to the next and to take their time enjoying the walk.  There was another solo backpacker from Tennessee who was doing 10 miles a day for ten days—100 miles total.  She had left her four children home with her husband to come out and make her journey on her own.  Then later came two younger women from Virginia who were hiking together.

I set my tent up and got water from the nearby spring and got ready to relax and eat my dinner of oodles of noodles.  Yes, you can laugh here—but warm comfort food (that weighs nothing) makes a really nice end to your day.  The others were staying inside the shelter, and they fixed their food.  We talked about where we were from, where we were headed, our time frame, and of course our thoughts on the trail, the scenery, and tips on distance, and the next shelters.

After I ate, I cleaned up and hung my bear bag (yes bear bag) over a tree across the trail from where my tent was set up.  You will be amazed at the things you have to learn about to do this kind of thing!  All food, toothpaste, drinks, and trash must be put into a sealed bag and hung across a limb of a tree away from where you sleep and away from the trail.  There are guidelines and recommendations for just how high to hang it, how far from the trunk of the tree, how to tie it.  I turned on my solar power lights and then charged my cell phone.  I crawled into my tent, got in my sleeping quilt and fell quickly asleep.

I was up early before sunrise the next morning, walked across the trail to get my bear bag down and fixed my breakfast and coffee.  That morning light was gorgeous coming through the leaves of the trees.  My fellow shelter site people were beginning to wake as well.  My now much longer hike than I had planned on lay ahead of me.  At least 16 miles to go still and I was determined to get it done in one day.  I had another day off still and had considered doing this stretch in 3 days as some had recommended but in the end, I decided to push through.  My pace was a little over 2 miles an hour so I knew I could finish with plenty of daylight if I got on the trail early.

One thing I have found on the trail is that the mileage listed on websites and signs on the AT telling you how far it is to the next shelter or water source are not always the most accurate.  I’ve learned to allow for a little discrepancy of up to 1-2 miles, so I also allow extra time.

The second day you don’t have as much food, and your body has figured out what you are trying to do so my legs and pace were much better that morning.  I was making almost 3 miles an hour in the early morning.  I knew where water was to be found at the shelters I would pass along the way, so I carried a little less and filled up when I came to a water source.

Again though, once I said goodbye to my shelter friends I was completely alone on the trail.  The trail most often is narrow and full of roots and rocks, so you keep your feet on the trail a large part of the time.  There are ankle biters and of course the ever-present sport of rock surfing that really reminds you to keep your focus on where you are stepping.  But every once in a while you just have to look up and enjoy where you are!

Yes, the ever-present stumbling and surfing on slick surfaces remind you as well that you are very far from help if you need it.  I stumbled and lost balance twice on this trip.  Once the weight of that backpack gets its own momentum, you are going down despite trekking poles.  This trip I realized that I would need to invest in something much more reliable than a cell phone for communication in emergencies.

I found myself almost wishing I had made this trip in early spring or late fall.  The trees were full of gorgeous shade creating greenery, but as I walked, I would catch glimpses of views and scenery that I could never really appreciate until those magical moments when the trail surfaced on the ridgelines.  I would find my breath catching, and my heart would skip a beat just seeing mountains and hills as far as my eye could see.

I do admit that I had some fear and apprehension on the trail.  Bears are an ever-present concern in your mind, and so I found myself talking to myself–sometimes singing out loud on the trail in my own probably foolish attempt to let the bears know I was coming.  They don’t want to meet humans, and the biggest fear is that you will suddenly turn a corner in the tail and meet one face to face.  So you try and let them know you’re there ahead of that encounter.  I’ve seen through hikers carrying bells, putting bells on their dogs’ collars, and one young man I saw was actually carrying a ukulele across his chest to strum from time to time.

The last four miles of this journey was basically all downhill!  One switchback after another and more root and rock surfing.  I had been on the trail for about 7 hours now, and I was getting tired.  But I knew there was a great hiking destination at the end of this trail—yet I admit that I was beginning to wonder if I was ever going to get there!  You know that little minute or two of panic about whether you’re on the right trail, whether you’ve gotten lost somehow?  But I kept putting one foot in front of the other and following that white blaze!

The Nantahala Outdoor Center was my destination.  There are two restaurants serving barbeque and beer, and the gorgeous Nantahala River flows right between them.  There are cabins, white water rafting trips, and a general store.  Most importantly for me was the fact that there would be beer and wings to reward me for my efforts. I found myself chanting “beer and wings” as I kept coming down the trail.

I finally began to hear traffic sounds—which seemed very odd and out of place after two full days of silence.  Yet it made me realize I was getting closer.  Another mile or so and I could finally see the outdoor center and came to more signs of being at the end.

I walked into the outdoor center area and found my car.  There are showers available there as well.  25 cents for 2 minutes of hot water in a very rustic wooden bath house—but it was a little bit of heaven after my journey.  I had brought fresh clothes, and toiletries (but no hair dryer) and so emerged clean, tousle-headed and absolutely a beer-thirsty woman.

That food and beer tasted fantastic!  After that incredible hike and epic journey by myself—nothing ever tasted better!  If you ever get a chance to go to the NOC, have the Dirty Blonde beer and the Carolina barbeque sauce!

I will tell you all that this trip took me to some incredible mountains and trails with sights I will never forget!  It also took some faith and trust in myself that I could actually do this and do it on my own.  I don’t say that to brag or to say that I am unique in some way.  But I do think that women who take on this kind of adventure—they don’t do it lightly or without a little hesitation.  I know that I do it because I truly love these Appalachian Mountains and seeing them in this way is the best thing I’ve ever done.

Now that winter is on its way out, and spring is going to be coming in—I cannot wait for the next time!