by Danny Bernstein
One of the most cherished advantages of participating in Friends of the Smokies activities is meeting current and retired park employees. These Friends are a wealth of information which they are willing to share.
In this year’s Trails Forever Overnight in Bryson City, several National Park royals, as I call them, participated in the Friends of the Smokies hikes.
Lakeshore Loop
The Lakeshore loop is a standard in any Smokies hiking repertoire. The simple name, Lakeshore Loop, doesn’t do justice to the variety and complexity of the experience: creeks the size of rushing rivers, historical artifacts, cemeteries, and beautiful scenery. Someone new to Smokies Trails will ask an obvious question. What lake are we talking about? Fontana Lake, the only lake bordering the park.
The 8.1-mile hike starts at the tunnel, at the end of Lakeshore Road outside of Bryson City, NC. Linda Doucette, a retired Park ranger, led the group. Heath Soehn, a retired law enforcement ranger, was the sweep, the person at the end of the group; I always characterize the sweep as having the most difficult job on a hike. All together, we were thirteen hikers.
Linda explains the history of the area.
Should the park build a road through the most pristine land in the East, or should the Federal Government compensate Swain County for land needed for Fontana Lake during World War II?
For years, this was the most contentious issue in the park. There are hundreds of articles and opinions online, Google “North Shore Road” Smokies. I was in the thick of this issue, almost from the beginning until it was resolved in 2010. See this 2008 article from the Mountain Xpress for a recap.
This billboard just outside the park explains how some people still feel about the monetary settlement.
Overnight Stay in Bryson City
After the hike, a subset of hikers headed to a motel outside of Bryson City to eat, socialize and spend the night. Others joined us, ready for the next day’s hike. The highlight was the evening speaker, Steve Kemp, retired publisher at Smokies Life. Steve wrote “An Exaltation of Parks,” published by The University of Utah Press.
Long before Friends groups were created, public parks always needed private money. Steve talked about his new book which focuses on the philanthropists John D. Rockefeller Jr. and his generosity in funding large park projects. Steve even invited two hikers to play roles connected with his book.
Goldmine Circular
After a luxuriously late breakfast at the Inn, people went separate ways. Many headed right back to the tunnel to walk the Goldmine Circular, a four-mile hike. Kevin Fitzgerald, retired Deputy Park Superintendent, was the leader and I swept.
Kevin started his National Park Service career in the early 1980s, working in the Smokies. After a varied career at several national parks, he returned to the Smokies as Deputy Superintendent just as the North Shore Road issue was heating up.
The group went through the tunnel as we had done the day before but turned down onto a trail toward the lake. When we reached a campsite, we gathered to listen to Kevin talk about the North Shore Road issue with his own perspective.
And oh, yes, Goldmine Loop never had any real gold. As Kevin explains, it was more an aspirational name.
Next Trails Forever Hike
Steve Winchester will lead Twentymile Loop on Tuesday September 8. It’s not twenty miles, only 7.8 miles. Check out https://friendsofthesmokies.org/hike-with-trails-forever/ and join Friends for hiking and camaraderie.
Danny Bernstein is an avid hiker and outdoor author from Asheville who has written several hiking guides for the Carolinas and National Parks throughout the South. She is a longtime volunteer hike leader and blog contributor for Friends of the Smokies.