July 1, 2023
I really enjoy my job, especially some of the benefits geared towards employee well-being. Every seven years we are afforded a months long paid sabbatical. My first attempt at taking this break was in April 2020, which turned out not to be a great time to travel. Fast forward to 2023, I took off the entire month. Half this was spent with my daughter on some incredibly fun adventures and the other was spent finishing all the Smoky trails in Tennessee.
On July 1, I started with an easy-going trail outside Elkmont campground. Shaped almost like a bell curve from either direction, the trail is only 2.4 miles long with a minimum of 450′ of gain. The foliage was amazing. There are some great ferns dotting the landscape all along the trail. Two things that were tough about this month of hiking 1) the humidity was the worse I have ever experienced in the mountains. I know it has been excruciatingly hot everywhere, but the humidity in the mountains is normally non-existent. Bugs were a big problem. After this hike I brought my headnet and bug spray. 2) The Canadian wildfire smoke was really bad throughout the month. It ebbed, but for the most part, views were not present all month.
Total mileage is 8.2 miles.
