Max Patch Summit

Max Patch Summit, North Carolina

Knowing that the Appalachian Trail runs through North Carolina, Mac and I envisioned hiking great spans of it and camping on the trail amongst thru-hikers. After a brief stop in Asheville (where I had the BESTtempeh reuben sandwich everrrrrrrr), we headed out of the city towards the small town of Marshall to stay a night in our Tiny House Air Bnb. Getting to the tiny house at night in the middle of a snow storm was a bit of an adventure in itself, but we made it safe and sound and were instantly enamored with our abode for the evening. The tiny house was tiny but it had more than enough space for our needs.

From the tiny house we drove towards Max Patch (as suggested by the bartender at the incredible sandwich restaurant) – a bald mountain and a major landmark along the Appalachian Trail. The snow from the previous night had crystallized on the tree tops which then fell on our car in a terrifying hail-like fashion! Combined with the never-ending winding roads it was definitely a remarkable start to our hike! We set out from the parking lot and took a small loop trail up to Max Patch summit. The snow covered trees and ground made for a very pretty setting.

Once we got to the top, the wind was relentless!!! It was difficult to even take a few steps without almost being blown over. Forgetting the wind, the scenery was amazing!!! We had 360 degree views of the mountain ranges surrounding Max Patch Summit (Bald Mountains, Unakas, Great Smokies, Great Balsams, and Black Mountains). While up on the top we met several AT though hikers. Their grit and determination inspired us to hike a bit more of the trail ourselves!!

Returning to the car, we gathered our gear for an overnight stay along the AT! Since we were only going for one night, we didn’t need to bring a lot & our packs were relatively light! We set out around 2pm for our “gruelling” hike along the AT.

The Appalachian Trail (North from Max Patch Summit)

Ha – just kidding. We only hiked 3 miles to the nearest shelter (aka less an 0.5% of the entire AT). Departing well into the afternoon didn’t leave us with heaps of time to tackle a larger section. Instead, we settled on heading north on the AT to Roaring Forks Shelter. We arrived a little over an hour later and spent the rest of the afternoon greeting and chatting with thru-hikers that had come to the shelter to spend the night. We met OnStep, KillJoy, Santa, JayHawk, TeaBag, and Bookie (oh, by the way, all thru-hikers get awarded some sort of trail name). It was fun and interesting to hear their stories and tails from the trail.

The next morning we awoke at 8am-ish to find that none of the hikers remained!! I’m totally impressed with their stamina to hike up to 15+ miles each day for months on end! (The AT is 2200 miles and traverses 14 states. It usually takes between 4-6 months to complete). Mac and I headed south back to our car and again encountered many more hikers heading north. The hike back to the car couldn’t have been more different than the previous day! The snow was totally gone and the trees were ice-free. The wind on Max Patch Summit was still fierce though!!!

We made it back just in time for a random lunch of sweet potatoes and mustard on the hood of the car. (Creativity/hunger knows no bounds when it comes to camping!) After a good stretch we were ready to head off towards our next destination, starting with a cruise along the Blue Ridge Parkway!

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