Skip to main content

Mount LeConte - 6,593 Feet Up

Did you know in the Great Smoky Mountains there is a set of cabins that you can stay in that are only accessible by hiking, helicopter and llama trains? And that these accommodations are the highest inn providing lodging in the Eastern US? Well, if you did or didn't, Mt LeConte is a pretty special place that I wanted to make sure I visited before the big 3-0. Being a native East Tennessean, I have known about Mt LeConte and its unique lodging, LeConte Lodge, since childhood but had never took the trek until August.

From Chattanooga, you're looking at a 3 hour drive. The hubs and I broke it up with a weekend stay in Knoxville where my mom, sister and brother in law also joined us for the hike. I couldn't have asked for a better group to pass 100 miles and to summit LeConte with.

When deciding how to get to the top of Mt LeConte, you actually have five choices: Alum Cave, Boulevard Trail, Bullhead Trail, Rainbow Falls and Trillium Gap. Here's info on all five. My crew and I took the Alum Cave Trail because I wanted to see the Arch Rock, Alum Cave and Bluff. And it's the shortest, albeit steepest, ascent up to the top. You could also be like these two whipper snappers and hike all five routes continuously in 19 hours equaling 39 miles of hiking. They were doing it to raise awareness for human trafficking. Kudos to them! Alum Cave Trail is undergoing some needed trail maintenance and is only open Friday-Sunday at the moment.

Back to LeConte Lodge, it's a collection of small cabins with a central dining hall. The Lodge is open March through November. Reservations for the 2017 season will open October 1st. If you want to read how to enter the lottery, here you go. It's $145 per person a night to stay with dinner and breakfast included. We did not stay at the Lodge, but we did enjoy the rocking chairs with a view of the property and the water refill station they allow all hikers to use.

How did the hike go you ask? With an early start on the trail, we ascended in roughly four hours. The heat thankfully was not much of an issue that day due to the elevation and being mostly on shaded trails. This was the first hike I have ever used a hiking pole, and I'm glad I did. I would recommend using one or two depending on your preference. There are some cables along the trail in particularly steep and slippery places for your use as well. We did see a sign of a bear (i.e. scat) but no actual bear sightings.

Round trip, we did 12.7 miles. Once you reach LeConte Lodge, there are a few spur trails (High Top and Cliff Tops) you'll want to take after you've had a moment to rest up in one of the rocking chairs on the porch of the main cabin and eat a snack. The side trails provide some great views. There is also a cold water pump at the lodge that all hikers can use to refill on water that doesn't require filtering and something that resembles a restroom that I did not utilize.

It only took use about three hours to descend, and we ate a bunch of Mexican food and drank cold margaritas to celebrate when we returned to civilization.

Alum Cave Trail to Mt LeConte is rated as a strenuous hike. Unfortunately, not everyone gets that memo. I saw a lot of unprepared folks attempting the trail (wrong shoes, no water). It is also one of the most popular trails in the park. If you're looking for a peaceful hike where you don't see anyone all day, this isn't the trail for you.

Overall, it was a great hike with some of the people I love most on this planet. What more could I ask for?

The crew at Leconte Lodge!



The cabins at the Lodge. 


At one of the look offs on the top.

Loved these white stripped flowers. Snapped this right as a bee was enjoying the flower as well. 


Arch Rock

On our way up

Eating some jerky and enjoying the rest. 



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

And The Journey Begins

29.....it got here a lot quicker than I thought it would. Looking back over those 29 years (and yes I know that's not a lot comparatively and I hope to have many, many more years for adventures and experiences), there are many things I'm happy to reminisce about. A great childhood with loving parents, playing softball and experiencing life with my sister, attending the University of Tennessee, completing an undergraduate and master's degree by 24, making life-long friends, marrying my best friend Chance and finding ourselves currently living in, working for and loving the Best Town Ever .  There are also thoughts of missed opportunities, what if's and heartbreaks in those 29 years; the biggest of which is the loss of my father in 2007. But as I got closer to my 29th birthday, I realized that I wanted a challenge. And I of course could have picked a goal, a race, a task to strive for....but to all those that know me, I'm a bit of an over-achiever. So, I decided to ...
2 comments
Read more

Be Kind, Moving Assigned

When I started making my 30 Before 30 list, a random act of kindness was one of the first things I wrote down. Having experienced many times in the past that giving is truly more satisfying than receiving, I wanted to do something on a large scale for someone else. I like to think that I am kind in my day to day interactions and routinely try to do for others. But for the list, I was hoping and praying for an opportunity that was a little more meaningful that paying for everyone's coffee in line at Starbucks- so in came The MOMentum Network . The MOMentum Network is a newer, faith-based Chattanooga nonprofit that offers practical help to single mom families interested in building a better future through higher education. Being that I am a huge advocate for education, a former university adjunct instructor and firm believer that an education is the best form of self improvement from both a personal and economic standpoint, this was were I felt my act of kindness would be best spe...
Post a Comment
Read more

Oh Fudge.....Changing a Tire

Every time I think about changing a tire, I think about this classic movie moment.... A Christmas Story treat!  A pretty basic skill to know, changing a tire has never been something I've completed until now. While I've gathered the basic process from watching my husband do this countless times, the old "what if's" always came popping into my head. What if you're alone on a dark, scary road and you get a flat tire? Would you be able to change it? What if you came across a van full of children, puppies and the elderly with a flat? Could you help them? Yes - I know some of my "what if" scenarios are a little more plausible than others, but this is something I need to have confidence in doing so I don't send that car full of puppies, kiddos and old people down the road with a loose lug nut. So with the assistance of a few Youtube videos and some oversight but not direction from the hubs just to make sure I was doing things correctly, I star...
Post a Comment
Read more