If ever there was a morning with a bluebird sky, today was it. The sky was as bright and cloudless as any I've seen on this hike.
This was markedly different weather than the last couple mornings.
Day 34, Shook Branch Road to Iron Mountain Shelter
Sunday, May 14, 2017
| Weather | Clear skies in the morning, becoming partly cloudy, with a high in the mid-70s |
| Trail Conditions | Flat and easy at first, then long continuous climb to Iron Mountain |
| Today's Miles | 16.0 miles |
| Trip Miles | 442.9 miles |
You never know what to expect when you're told your stay includes a "continental" breakfast. I was glad to discover at Boots Off Hostel it meant several breakfast cereals, donuts, fruit and coffee. Nothing fancy, but it did the job.
After breakfast I quickly finished packing my gear and walked back to the trail. To get there I had to walk along Shook Branch Road for a short distance to where the trail turned onto that road. From there it led to U.S. Highway 321 and Watauga Reservoir.
On the way to the lake I once again ran into Will and Pappy. As they were a couple days ago, they were slackpacking southbound, but this time Rusty had joined them.
I said hello to them, then crossed the highway and walked over to Shook Branch Beach. From here the trail would stay close to the shoreline for much of the next three miles.
A few hikers had stopped at the beach to spread out their gear and let it dry from the last couple days of damp weather. One of the hikers there was K-Bar, whom I had met a little over three weeks ago in the Smokies.
The water appeared to be a little higher than normal, but with the amount of rain that fell the day before yesterday, that shouldn't have been a surprise. If the level of this lake wasn't controlled by a dam, I'm sure the level would have been much higher.
As the trail left the beach area it crossed over one of the newest construction projects by the volunteers of the Tennessee Eastman Hiking and Canoeing Club. It was completed in early March.
After walking for nearly two miles I suddenly realized I was not wearing my knee brace. I had worn it every day since I bought it in Franklin, N.C., yet it wasn't until now that I realized I didn't have it.
If it wasn't on my knee, where was it? I stopped to look in my pack, but immediately realized it wouldn't be there. I must have left it back at the hostel.
The brand and style of brace was not cheap, so I didn't like the idea of buying another one. On the other hand, the thought of walking back to the hostel and losing a lot of time was not desirable, either.
After briefly contemplating my options I decided to walk on. I wasn't sure I needed the knee brace any longer, anyway.
A shelter was located nearby, but as I walked past it I saw several posters announcing that it was closed. This was not the first time the shelter has been closed, with a stated reason being problems with bears.
I suspect the problem is more human than ursine. Bears don't usually cause trouble around shelters unless they are used to finding food there. This particular shelter is so near a highway it was probably a popular weekend hangout for local people.
Even though the trail continued to stay near the shore, it wasn't always possible to see the lake. In a couple spots the trail passed through a narrow tunnel of trees and shrubs. The footpath was muddy here because there wasn't much sun reaching it to make it any drier.
At one time the town of Butler, Tennessee stood near here. That was until the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) constructed a dam that created this 6,430-acre lake.
Before the town was inundated by water, Butler had about 600 residents. As TVA prepared to stop the flow of the Watauga and Elk rivers, the citizens had to move their 125 homes and 50 businesses to higher ground.
TVA began constructing the dam in 1942, but delayed completion due to World War II. Work resumed in 1946 and the dam was completed in 1948.
When you look downstream from the dam, it doesn't appear as you would expect. There's almost no water to be seen.
A 3,700-foot intake tunnel sends water underground to reach the powerhouse, which is about a mile down from the dam.
The trail went directly over the dam. I stopped here to eat a snack, and talk to a small group of boy scouts and their leaders, who were out for a day hike.
Leaving the dam, the trail began a long, steady climb up a ridge that ran directly alongside the lake. In time, the trail would reach more than 1,500 feet higher than the dam.
Along the way there were a few breaks in the trees that opened small views of the lake.
Thanks to the recent warm up of the weather, leaves on the trees were now fully out, which limited these views to narrow gaps.
Watauga is more than 16 miles in length. As the trail traveled farther and higher, the lake seemed to stretch on forever.
I reached Vandeventer Shelter during the middle of the afternoon. I found here three hikers who were relaxing and enjoying the view from a large rock behind the shelter.
One of the hikers was Ancap. He told me his trail name is shortened for Anarcho-capitalist.
The other two hikers were Roy (pictured left) and Flatline. I was almost afraid to, but I asked Flatline if his name meant what I thought it meant.
Yes, it did. He told me a little about the horrific car accident that took his life, until it didn't.
Leaving the shelter I saw again Radio. He wasn't with Two Chairz today, however.
Radio said Two Chairz had been slowed down by a leg injury, so he was taking it easy.
The trail still had ups and downs, but was now a bit flatter than before. There was one place where it was obvious the trail had been rerouted in the not-too-distant past. It looked as though the change was made to remove a straight up-and-down that was causing an erosion problem.
I planned to stop for the night at Iron Mountain Shelter. Knowing that the water source for the shelter was about two tenths of a mile before the shelter, I made sure to stop first to collect a couple liters of water. That way I wouldn't have to double back after I reached the shelter.
When I arrived there I found Kickatree at the shelter and Miss Bobbie in a tent nearby. I had met Kickatree on my way to Fontana. I met Miss Bobbie at Peck's Corner Shelter.
It still felt weird to meet hikers who I first met before I took eight days off to go to Baltimore.
Ancap, Roy and Flatline showed up later. The weather was so nice they decided to cowboy camp, which means they slept under the stars.
Once I got my tent set up I made a surprising discovery. I hadn't lost my knee brace after all. I had left it hanging in the tent this morning when I packed up.
Near the end of the evening I noticed my phone's battery was down to about three percent of charge. I carry an Anker PowerCore+ 13400 external battery, but when I attempted to plug it in the phone would not take the charge. It seemed as though the trouble was in the cord that connects the two, but I couldn't be sure.
This was going to be a problem. In the next few days I will need to keep in touch with Kim so that she knows where to pick me up when she comes to visit next weekend. I also use my phone for navigation with the Guthook's app.
Kickatree loaned me his phone to call Kim and let her know I might have a problem. I then fiddled around with my phone to see if I could connect it to the battery.
It had been a good hiking day, but this was an unexpected problem with some serious ramifications, and the kind of worry I didn't need.
Of lesser concern as I attempted to fall asleep was a nearby owl, who decided to loudly hoot near my tent.
Now I look down on the water
That rose up on that day
By the banks of the old Watauga
Where I once used to play
Yes I look out on that water
Where they made their big mistake
And covered up our hometown 'neath the godforsaken lake
Singin' my home town Is a half mile down
It's a half mile of water
All around, all around
My home town Is a half mile down
It's a half mile of water
All around, all around
My home town is a half mile down
This trail report was published on