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The Ascent of Mt. Le Conte and Peregrine Peak
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| Mt. Le Conte |
- Mt. Le Conte - 6,593 feet; Peregrine Peak - 5,375 feet
- November 16, 2005
- 2,700 feet elevation gain, 8.5 vertical miles, 9 hours
- 38-45 deg Farenheit, overcast, some mist and light rain
- 2 climbers: Stephen (dad), Stephen Dale (son)
There were several exposed places along the
ridge where
a misstep would cause a serious and possibly fatal fall.
At nearly 6,600 feet, Mt. Le Conte is the third largest peak in the Smokies and the sixth largest in the entire
Appalachian range. It is the majestic mountain that tourists see when they visit Gatlinburg, as it overlooks the city
from the south. And since it has one of the best scenic views in the southeast Stephen Dale and I chose it as our next climb.
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| Stephen Dale treads one of the exposed ledges along Annakeesta Ridge |
We began our climb in the early morning mist, following a rushing river for almost a mile before beginning the ascent.
This happens to be one of the most popular trails in the park and as a result the park service has installed stairsteps
in a few places... for better or worse. After walking a mile or so deep into the forest and ascending past the 4500 foot mark
we reached Annakeesta Ridge, which climbs the lesser Peregrine Peak before moving on toward Le Conte.
Most of the trail is moderate but there were several exposed places along the ridge where a misstep would cause a serious
and possibly fatal fall. The park service has anchored a cable into the rock along the ledge so that climbers may hold to
it while crossing the exposed areas... again, I suppose that's both a blessing and a curse. It permits casual hikers to go
to places that were once reserved for the more adventurous and daring climbers, but such is the price of progress... and since
I've not yet summited Everest I have little room to talk. The clouds were thick and we occasionally ran into some light rain
or mist which occasioned the donning of our ponchos, but the climb was incredibly scenic from the very first step. We took
an extended snack break under the shelter of Alum Cave Bluffs, a steep ledge carved out of the mountainside by wind and water.
We passed Peregrine Peak just yards from the summit and pushed our way past the 6,000 foot mark before we got too hungry to
continue.
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| Stephen Dale gets ready for a late lunch overlooking the southern half of the Smoky Mountain range |
Around 2 pm we began snooping around for a place to have lunch and we soon found a bare rock ledge on the mountain's
south face which looked inviting. We spread our ponchos out on the ground, sat down and lit our portable stove to begin
preparing a freeze-dried lunch of sweet and sour chicken with rice. We were a thousand feet above the clouds and could just
see the tops of the mountains poking up through the mist like islands in a sea of white cotton. The clouds were being whipped
by an east wind through a mountain pass off to our left, and we could sit and watch them move past us as we ate. The scenery
was spectacular beyond description and lunch was a treat in every imaginable way. We topped off our sweet and sour chicken
with candy bars for dessert, packed up our gear and set off for the mountain top.
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| At the summit of Mt. Le Conte |
It was after three o'clock before we finally reached the summit of Mt. Le Conte which was clearly marked by a large rock
cairn. We posed for summit photos but had little time to tarry as the sun would be setting within two hours. From the summit
we took the trail to a nearby overlook known as Cliff Top. The sun was setting in the west, but the detour was well worth
while. The views from Cliff Top were stunning - even better than any of the other great scenics that we passed on the ascent.
But again we were pushed for time and had to begin making our way down.
Darkness fell before we could make our way down Annakeesta Ridge and we had to use our headlamps. As the rain and mist
began to pour down on us again, we finally manged to make our way back to the trailhead after a nine-hour climb that easily
ranks as one of the most scenic mountains in the eastern United States.
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| Stephen enjoys the view atop Annakeesta Ridge |
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