by Julie Dodd
The May Classic Hike of the Smokies provided hikers with the opportunity to view elk, admire giant poplars, and learn the human history of the Caldwell Fork area.
The hike, on May 9, was led by Kevin FitzGerald, former Deputy Superintendent of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park who retired in 2013.
The group started the hike by observing ek in the Cataloochee Valley. FitzGerald discussed the elk reintroduction program, which began in 2001. Friends of the Smokies and other sponsors have been involved in the 16-year program, which has led to more than 100 elk in the herd. FitzGerald discussed the efforts to protect the elk and also increase tourist visitation to Cataloochee.
The hike included several reminders of the human part of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park’s history. FitzGerald led the hikers to the gravesite on the Caldwell Fork Trail of the three men killed by Kirk’s Raiders, a Union Army volunteer mounted infantry regiment, during the Civil War in 1964. The hikers also visited the Woody House, which was renovated from a cabin into its current status in the early 1900s.
FitzGerald talked about the food storage cables at campsite 41 and the efforts by the Friends of the Smokies in funding this and many other critical visitor and resource protection programs. While GSMNP Deputy Superintendent, FitzGerald was involved in managing and maintaining the park’s more than 200 partnerships with a wide variety of conservation, education and park support groups, including Friends of the Smokies.
Lunch was at the Big Poplar, giving hikers the view of the huge trees that escaped logging and natural events, like fires.
“I think some of the folks were genuinely surprised to see the number of standing dead hemlocks along with a number of large trees that had come down in a recent wind storm, with some across the trails,” FitzGerald said.
“I explained the issue regarding the challenges the park faces in replacing the foot logs across streams when they either rot or are struck by falling trees. Most were surprised that it is not quite as simple a task as some might think and for many reasons other than money.”
FitzGerald began his career with the National Park Service as a seasonal fee collector on the Blue Ridge Parkway. His first permanent job was as a park ranger in the Oconaluftee area of the Smokies near Cherokee, N.C. He and his wife, Cyn Slaughter, married in the Smokies at the Oconaluftee Baptist Church at Smokemont.
During his 34-year career with the National Park Service, he also worked at Everglades National Park, Chesapeake and Ohio Canal NHP in Maryland, Cape Cod National Seashore in Massachusetts, and the Intermountain Region in Denver, Colo.
The June Classic Hike of the Smokies will be on June 13 to Charlies Bunion. The 8-mile hike on the Appalachian Trail includes a 1,650-foot elevation gain.
You can register online for Classic Hikes or contact Marielle@FriendsOfTheSmokies.org
Each guided hike is $20 for FOTS members, with funds going to toward the Trails Forever program for major trail restoration projects. New or renewing annual members pay $35, which includes a one-year FOTS membership and the hike.
The Overnight Fontana Lake Experience is $350 for a single registration and $500 for the couple/partner discount. Registration at May 22 is non-refundable.
Thanks to Linda Spangler for her photos from the hike. More photos of the hike can be found on the Friends of the Smokies Facebook page.