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March 10, 2006
Action Alert: Great Smoky Mountain National Park Threatened
National Park Service extends comment period to April 7, 2006.
The National Park Service is currently accepting written comments postmarked through April 7, 2006 relating to the proposed North Shore Road in Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
There are five final study alternatives that are being considered. American Hiking Society along with many of our affiliate organizations supports the $52 Million cash settlement with Swain County, North Carolina. This option includes no new road construction in the park. Letters postmarked by April 7, 2006 can be sent to the National Park Service at the following address;
North Shore Road Project
Great Smoky Mountains National Park
P.O. Box 30185 Raleigh , NC 27622
E-mail Comments by April 7, 2006 to the National Park Service at:
North Shore Road Project
Here are some additional links for more information about this project:
American Hiking Society
Appalachian Trail Conservancy
Benton MacKaye Trail Association
Carolina Mountain Club (PDF)
National Park Service North Shore Road Website
Thank you for taking the time to protect your National Park.
Posted by Jeffrey Hunter at 06:12 PM
Lakeshore Trail - Day 3
Eagle Creek inside Great Smoky Mountains National Park
Day three on the trail was a cold one - at least in the morning! As I walked along the old woods roads inside the park, past the rusting hulks of old cars and chimneys from homes long abandoned, I got to thinking about the many reasons why a road along the north shore of Fontana Lake would be a disaster.
Let's look at some of the many problems facing Great Smoky Mountains National Park today. The park is home to non-native wild boar, which are wreaking havoc on the park's ecosystems. With their tusks, the boar tear up the soil in their search for roots. Since the hogs are omnivorous, they also eat snakes, salamanders, young birds, and basically, anything they can find. The park has an ongoing effort to trap the hogs to remove them from the ecosystem. In addition, the park's air quality is in dire shape. According to the National Parks Conservation Association, Great Smoky is one of the most endangered parks in America. According to the NPCA website, "Named in 2002 as the most polluted national park in the country, poor air quality in the Smokies often rivals urban areas. Park visitors seeking pristine mountain air find that their health may be jeopardized in summer months." Why in the world would we want to add more vehicles to this type of environment?
Additional threats include invasive species such as the Hemlock Woolly Adelgid, which is killing off the park's giant hemlock trees. The high elevation Balsam Fir trees have already been killed off by a similar pest - the Balsam Woolly Adelgid. The park's pine trees are also in bad shape from Pine Beetle damage. A road into the park will help facilitate the movement of additional non-native species into the park, AND add additional pollutants to an already stressed environment. That simply makes no sense.
There are two primary reasons why the road is being considered. The first is economic development. North Carolina would like to see a greater share of the tourism dollars from visitation. They don't have anything to rival Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg (thank goodness for that!) and would like a bigger piece of the economic pie. But does it make any sense to cook the goose that lays the golden eggs? The other reason is access to the cemeteries. When the land was taken in 1943 in preparation to dam the Little Tennessee River to create Fontana Lake, the government promised to build the road. Bear in mind that this was during WWII, and this was a national security issue at the time. 63 years later, the road has still not been built and the Commissioners from Swain County, North Carolina have voted to accept a $52 Million cash settlement from the US Government in order to let this issue die. That is the primary alternative to spending $590 Million to build the road.
Continuing to mosey along the trail, we came to the beautiful Eagle Creek (see photo above). What an incredible area! The creek was crossed on an old metal bridge, and wound through tunnels of Rhododendron. Wow!
Moving along, we finally left the Benton MacKaye Trail (BMT) as the Lakeshore Trail veered to head towards Fontana Dam, and the BMT continued along the Lost Cove Trail towards Shuckstack Mountain. Finally, we arrived at Fontana Dam and our 3-day, 36-mile hike was over. What an amazing trail!
Please take a moment to visit the final audio dispatch from the hike. I hope that you can make the time to visit this area to hike some or all of the Lakeshore Trail! Perhaps our paths will cross somewhere along the way. Until then.... Happy Trails!
Posted by Jeffrey Hunter at 11:39 AM
Lakeshore Trail - Day 2
Foreboding? We hope not!
Day two on the Lakeshore Trail started out slowly as we walked along an old woods road on the contour just above Fontana Lake. A few miles further up the trail we stumbled upon evidence of settlement from the early 1900s. A long unused woods road led uphill to a series of rock walls terraced on the hillside in a lovely cove. We dropped our packs and explored the area for perhaps 20 minutes. The area was riddled with signs of former inhabitation including old rusted buckets strewn about the landscape.
Onward we walked until we came upon a vernal pool alongside the trail. Vernal or temporary pools are vitally important for amphibian populations. Because they dry up in the summer, these areas hold no fish, and thus make ideal locations for frogs, toads, and salamanders to breed. I checked out some salamander larvae wriggling about in the ooze for a few minutes, and then continued onward.
A few miles down the trail we came upon an old woods road that had been freshly graded and had gravel recently laid down. One of the issues that is driving the possible road development in the park is access to cemeteries by the descendants of the settlers in the parks. Since 1976, the National Park Service has been taking visitors to each of the 22 cemeteries found in the park. Each cemetery is visited once a year. The families arrive by boat and visit the graves to re-mound them, place decorations, and honor their ancestors. Alongside the freshly graded road was an orange road construction sign that hopefully is NOT a portent of things to come.
The remainder of the day was a pleasant stroll with a tough climb over an unnamed ridge as we approached Hazel Creek. Once at campground 86 along Hazel Creek I strung my hammock between two trees, settled down for dinner, and then crashed for the night.
In the morning, I recorded an audio dispatch from Hazel Creek. Take a listen!
Posted by Jeffrey Hunter at 09:26 AM
March 09, 2006
Lakeshore Trail - Day 1 - The Road to Nowhere
Accompanied by a good friend and hiking companion Dave Womble, we arrived in Bryson City, NC early Thursday morning March 2. By 9:15 AM we were at the trailhead parking lot and our hike was underway. From the Bryson City end, the Lakeshore Trail enters a long unlit tunnel completed in 1969, and emerges out the other side. Within another quarter mile, the pavement ends and a narrow hiking trail begins.
For nearly 30 miles, the Lakeshore Trail is dual designated as the Benton MacKaye Trail. The walking was quite pleasant, and within a few minutes we flushed a pair of White Tailed Deer. Through the course of the day we wound through the hills, catching occasional glimpses of Fontana Lake, and flushing about a half dozen Ruffed Grouse.
We crossed a number of gorgeous creeks including Forney Creek and the North Fork of Chambers Creek. At the outlet of Forney Creek we caught sight of an adult Bald Eagle soaring high above Fontana Lake.
The thought that kept crossing my mind was how much blasting would be required in order to build a road into this area. In addition, how could a road be built through these drainages without causing permanent irreparable damage to the area, including the pristine streams that are home to native trout? The answer is pretty simple. It can't be done.
Finally, we arrived at our campsite after a 12-mile hike. I have prepared an audio dispatch from campsite 76 for you to listen to. So turn on your speakers, sit back, and take a listen.
Posted by Jeffrey Hunter at 03:48 PM