October 31, 2023
Mooney Gap to Big Laurel Falls Trailhead
west of Otto, NC
It was a foggy and cool, but comfortable day for a hike. Too bad about the fog since we were hoping it would clear enough for some views of the surrounding terrain. We did however see beautiful colorful foliage on our drive up Ball Creek Rd. Once at altitude, most of the leaves were blown off the trees along our trail. Some care in footing was required because of the heavy leaf cover. Overall this was an easy to moderate difficult hike with a gentle climb on the AT, but steeper descent on the Timber Ridge Trail.
Today's Hikers: Jack Treadman, Don Pratt, Mike Bell, Pam Hembree, Renée Corbett, Jenny Bell, Heather Wall, Matt Henderson & Terre Pratt.
The route
7.7 mi · 1,017 ft climbing · 4h 11m out, 3h 41m walking · 2.1 mph moving
Elevation
Hover over the profile to see the elevation and steepness. Your position will be shown on the map.
- Steepness
- Gentle under 5%
- Moderate 5–10%
- Steep 10–15%
- Very steep over 15%
25 photos are shown on the map where they were taken — click one to see it full size.
Photos (26)
The beautiful, . . . well, only type of view today. This one looking southeast along the AT. Did we make a wrong turn ??? In their Halloween Hiker costumes (L-R): Jack, Don, Mike, Pam, Renee, Jenny, Heather, Matt & Terre. Getting ready at the trailhead. Off we go on the AT with very good trail conditions, although with a heavy litter of wet leaves throughout. Yep. Good signs and blazing. While not on the trees, these leaves at ground level caught our eye. This Carolina Siverbell Tree ??? was showing off its fall color amongst the brown leaf ground cover. We saw a couple of instances of bear scat in the middle of the trail. That will get your attention! We had to look hard for these wildflower remnants. Gotta love these trees with character! So we got to the location which promised the best view. Looking . . . . looking! We then proceeded on to the Carter Gap Shelter for lunch where we met a couple from Jacksonville, FL. They were heading north to Katahdin at 4-6 miles per day, still having breakfast at 12:15 PM and not worried about any cold weather or snow . . . "We'll just hunker down" they said. . . really???... Lunch at the Carter Gap Shelter. So it's on to the Timber Ridge Trail. Well blazed, but not as well maintained as the AT. Fungus along the way. Headed into a grove of American Beech trees. We saw numerous examples of Ground Pine (Lycopodium clavatum) determined to keep its foliage above the leaf litter. . . pretty contrasting colors. This Sourwood tree was standing out above us. A tease of sunlight as we neared our finish. Anyone home? The bright blue color of these few berries of Blue Cohosh??? was quite attractive. Seriously . . . the only, but challenging deadfall along the final section of the Timber Ridge Trail. A quick crossing of Hemp Patch Branch to finish the hike. Good job everyone! Back to the trailhead.