William A. Hart - 3000 Miles in the Great Smokies

3000

M ILES IN THE
G REAT S MOKIES

W ILLIAM A. H ART J R .

Published by The History Press
Charleston, SC 29403
www.historypress.net

Copyright 2009 by William A. Hart Jr.
All rights reserved

All images courtesy of the author unless otherwise noted.

First published 2009
Second printing 2010
e-book edition 2011

ISBN 978.1.61423.177.6

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Hart, William A.
Three thousand miles in the Great Smokies / William A. Hart, Jr.
p. cm.
print edition ISBN 978-1-59629-751-7
1. Great Smoky Mountains National Park (N.C. and Tenn.)--Description and travel--Anecdotes. 2. Hart, William A.--Travel--Great Smoky Mountains National Park (N.C. and Tenn.)--Anecdotes. 3. Hiking--Great Smoky Mountains National Park (N.C. and Tenn.)--Anecdotes. 4. Natural history--Great Smoky Mountains National Park (N.C. and Tenn.)--Anecdotes. I. Title.
F443.G7H37 2009
976.889053092--dc22
[B]
2009021534

Notice: The information in this book is true and complete to the best of our knowledge. It is offered without guarantee on the part of the author or The History Press. The author and The History Press disclaim all liability in connection with the use of this book.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form whatsoever without prior written permission from the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

I owe special thanks to my father and mother for introducing my sister and me to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park on family camping trips. These outings provided an opportunity for my first walks in the Smokies and instilled in me an everlasting love for the park.

I am also particularly indebted to my wife, Alice, with whom I have shared some of my most memorable outings. Her understanding of my urge to go to the mountains and encouragement to create a permanent record of my trips has made both my outings and this book possible. She has been an invaluable resource in creating Three Thousand Miles in the Great Smokies. I owe everything to her.

Special thanks go to my daughter, Sara Hart Stewart, and son, Bill, for joining me on many trips from their earliest years to the present. My time with them is treasured. Many friends have contributed to my enjoyment of the Smokies. I have warm memories of all of them. Likewise, I have fond memories of my Boy Scouting days and the Scouts who journeyed to the Smokies with me. The names of both groups follow. I extend my apology to any persons whose names I have inadvertently omitted.

Bert Abrams

Darlene Abrams

Gene Baldwin

Don Barrow

Woody Brinegar

Anne Broome

Joan Cabe

Jim Campbell

Karen Campbell

Bud Cantrell

Geoff Cantrell

Mark Cantrell

Patricia Cabe Cantrell

Kim Carter

Larry Carter

Unal Cetindre

Al Coggins

Tom Downs

Bob Foxx

Chan Gordon

Miegan Gordon

Mike Harrington

Alice Hart

Lisa Hart

William (Bill) A. Hart III

William (Will) Houston Hart

Susie Heinmiller

Elizabeth Hill

Robert Hill

Ed Hina

Jay Hohmann

Alan Householder

Marv Hyatt

Claudia Konker

Rob Kranich

Keith Lasater

Lynne Lasater

Dan Lawson

Jerry Ledford

Tom Lucas

Mel Nerby

Carol Newsome

David Newsome

John Palmer

Jerome Parker

Johnny Phillips

Phil Pritchard

Tim Randall

Danny Ray

Jack Reynolds

Wayne Shepherd

Emily Spears

Jim Spears

Parker Spears

Sara Hart Stewart

Scott Stewart

Marilyn Sullivan

Ron Sullivan

Eric Tamler

Dot Titcomb

Al Watson

Evelyn Watson

Bob Weinkle

Ronald Welch

Jim Westall

Richard Wilson

Bruce Adams

Bruce Abbott

Mark Ashley

David Baldwin

Curt Brown

Randy Bumgarner

Russ Campbell

David Coggins

Paul Coggins

David Crawford

Al Dunn

Bryan Fuller

Patrick Hoover

Keith Lindberg

Alton Malbon

David Plott

Jonathan Plott

G. Pressley

Monty Reagan

David Reynolds

Joey Reynolds

Doug Sams

Jamie Westal

Bobby Weinkle

Andy Young

I want to express special thanks to the following: Robert Hill, the best camping companion one could ask for. I have walked more miles in the Smokies with Robert than with any other person and enjoyed every mile. I also want to thank Al Watson, who is always a willing and adventurous off-trail explorer and with whom I have taken many arduous and interesting trips; Ed Hina, for his off-trail prowess and for the wonderful outings we shared; Bob Foxx, for many pleasant fishing trips in the Smokies and for the many fun-filled evenings before a campfire; Ron and Marilyn Sullivan, for our time together exploring forgotten logging rail grades and for imparting their knowledge about the history and technical aspects of Smoky Mountain logging; writer Geoff Cantrell and his father, Bud Cantrell, a former Great Smoky Mountains National Park ranger, for communicating their special Smoky Mountains knowledge and experiences; and to Bob Weinkle, a delightful and trusted companion with whom I shared many memorable Boy Scout outings. Finally, I want to thank Chan and Miegan Gordon, special friends, who have encouraged my writing and who read poetry on a wonderful outing in the Smokies.

I also want to express appreciation to the following for helping make this book a reality. Unending gratitude goes to my wife, Alice, for her tireless efforts throughout the publication effort. And special thanks to daughter Sara, son-in-law Scott Stewart, son Bill and daughter-in-law Lisa for reading and commenting on the manuscript and providing technical assistance. Also, thanks go to Geoff Cantrell for reading and commenting on the book and to Kathy Noyes for technical assistance in a time of special need. And a special word of appreciation is due Laura All, Ryan Finn and their colleagues at The History Press for their guidance and support in the completion of Three Thousand Miles in the Great Smokies.

Through the years, I have met many dedicated employees of the National Park Service while in the Smokies. All have been friendly, courteous and helpful. My thanks go to all these persons, with a special acknowledgement to Tom Robbins and Pam Boaz, former employees, and to Kent Cave, supervisory park ranger, for their friendship and for generously sharing their knowledge of the Smokies. My pipe, Old Danger, crafted in 1968 from a rhododendron burl, traveled the length and breadth of the Smokies with me and provided much pleasure before I gave up pipe smoking a number of years ago. Old Danger figures into some of my accounts and thus deserves mention here.

Finally, I wish to express gratitude to those persons whose early efforts resulted in the establishment of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. My thanks and appreciation go to all those who continue the work of protecting, preserving, maintaining and sustaining the park in countless other ways. The unique attributes of this significant global resource would be lost forever without the continuing efforts of these dedicated men and women.