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Climbing the Appalachians
I can read books and daydream
about higher mountains
or I can climb the ones right
in front of me.
| Stephen’s Mountain Ascents | | Peak | Range | Date | Route | Elevation | Gain | Summit | | Mt. Le Conte | Appalachian
| 6/30-7/1/08 |
Alum Cave | 6,593 | 2,700 | Yes | | Mt. Princeton | Rockies
| 10/7/07 |
East Ridge | 14,197 | 2,300 | No | | Tigger Peak | Rockies
| 10/7/07 |
East Face | 13,300 | 1,400 | Yes | | Grassy Ridge Bald | Roan
Mtns | 1/19/07
| AT | 6,189 | 577 | Yes | | Jane Bald | Roan
Mtns | 1/19/07
| AT | 5,807 | 577 | Yes | | Round Bald | Roan
Mtns | 1/19/07
| AT | 5,512 | 577 | Yes | | Chimney Tops | Appalachian
| 11/18/06 |
Road Prong | 4,700 | 1,700 | Yes | | Winter Star | Black
Mtns | 10/30/06
| Colbert Ridge
| 6,203 | 3,463 | Yes | | Blood Mountain | Blue
Ridge | 4/9/06
| AT | 4,458 | 1,400 | Yes | | Turkey Stamp | Blue
Ridge | 4/9/06
| North Face |
3,749 | 1,400 | Yes | | Mt. Sterling | Appalachian
| 1/31/05 |
Mt. Sterling | 5,842 | 2,250 | Yes | | Nettle Creek Bald | Appalachian
| 1/17/06 |
North Face | 5,140 | 2,800 | Yes | | Newton Bald | Appalachian
| 1/17/06 |
Newton Bald | 5,180 | 2,700 | Yes | | Mt. Le Conte | Appalachian
| 11/16/05 |
Alum Cave | 6,593 | 2,700 | Yes | | Peregrine Pk | Appalachian
| 11/16/05 |
Alum Cave | 5,375 | 1,500 | No – off trail | | Mt. Kephart | Appalachian
| 11/3/05 |
AT | 6,217 | 1,800 | Yes | | Mt. Ambler | Appalachian
| 11/3/05 |
AT | 6,120 | 1,700 | Yes | | Mt. Democrat | Rockies
| 10/4/05 |
East Face | 14,152 | 3,000 | No – weather |
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Its hard to be satisfied with a climb when some do-gooder has built marked trails to the tops of all the big mountains. Appalachian
climbers sympathize with Sir Edmund Hillary when he commented on the first-ever helicopter landing on the top of Mount Everest
by saying "why don't they just install an elevator to the top?" In the mother of all blasphemies, a road has
been built to the top of 6,643 foot Clingman's Dome, meaning that those who actually climb to the summit on their own two
feet are likely to be greeted by a swarm of kindergarteners spilling out of their soccer mom's mini-van. Hence, due to the
Evil Forces Of Civilization, finding respectable climbs in the eastern United States is not an easy task.
However, a few pristine corners of the Appalachian chain are still beyond the reach of the casual tourist. Today,
the Smokies are covered with a thick blanket of trees that make the range look more like smooth, rolling terrain than rugged
mountains. But underneath those trees lie coarse, broken ridges and peaks that were far more evident before the establishment
of a national park whose agenda has been to artifically prevent natural deforestation from disease, age and fires.
The black and white photo shown here, taken by a zealous hiking club member named Dutch Roth around 1930, shows
what Charles Bunion (5,565') and Sawteeth peaks looked like before being taken from their private owners for the creation
of the Great Smoky Mountain National Park in 1934. The peaks are rocky and rugged, though from a distance they no longer appear
that way after seventy years of managed forestation. A climber was forced to... well... climb to the summit, frequently
getting his clothes dirty in the process. The quick-witted among us will notice a distressing shortage of mini-vans at the
top.
To be sure, the Appalachians pale in comparison to the challenge of climbing in any honest-to-goodness alpine environment,
but a few carefully selected areas still offer enough resistance to make you cold, mad and miserable, just like a real
mountain climber. Winter climbs bring sub-freezing temperatures, snow and ice. Survival skills are sharpened (believe
it or not, yes, people have died in these mountains), legs become stronger and experience is gained with every step. And I
still have occasional opportunities to travel to the western states for summit attempts on 13,000 to 17,000 foot mountains
where alpine-style ascents begin and vanloads of schoolchildren are nowhere to be found.
Although Everest and K2 won't be found on my ascent list any time soon, I've resolved to utilize the
limited natural resources at my disposal to the greatest extent possible and enjoy the experience. There are armchair
mountaineers who watch it on tv, and there are mountaineers who shoulder their packs and start walking... I'd rather
be at the bottom of the second list than the top of the first.
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| Univ. of TN Libraries, used by permission |
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| Charles Bunion and Sawteeth from below, circa 1930 |
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| The same peaks, taken from a distance in 2005 |
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Security is an illusion. Life is either a
daring adventure or it is nothing at all.
- Helen Keller
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