The Foothills Trail Day 5

Chimney Top Campground to Table Rock State Park

When I was a teenager, my cousins ​​had a horse named Dusty. Dusty was a good, gentle horse. To my knowledge he never kicked, bit or hit a rider. But it had one particular peculiarity…

Walking away from the barn, Dusty was infuriatingly slow. He lowered his head and wandered, barely moving even when his heels were repeatedly kicked. But you had to stay alert and keep pushing him until the curve in the road. Because if Dusty had the chance, he would turn his head, spin on his hind legs like a barrel racer, and run full speed back to the barn. He would skid to a stop by the door to his cubicle, hoping you would slide in and take his chair away from him.

Anyway…on the last day of a hiking trip, I always feel a little like Dusty. Get out of my way, friends! I’ve got the drill bit between my teeth and I’m heading to town!

The climax

By staying at Chimney Top, we had made it past the first mile of the climb up Sassafras Mountain and therefore reached the summit sooner than we expected. Here we were rewarded with 360 degree views and crisp blue skies. The Smokies rose along the northwest horizon, and the foothills to the south giving way to the foothills made it clear that we were on the edge of the Appalachians. Sassafras Mountain is the highest point in South Carolina, but it is not entirely within the state’s borders. The peak is crossed by the state line with North Carolina.

We took our time with photographs, a sitting break and refreshments. Some curious tourists stopped and asked what we were doing. My husband explained to me about the Foothills Trail and that we only had 9 miles left. A kind old man, leaning on his cane, looked at our suitcases.

«What are you doing? Are you looking for food along the way?»

The absurdity of that idea amused us, but we managed to keep a straight face and explain to him about dehydrated foods and water filters.

Pinnacle Views

This last day of hiking was the best day to enjoy panoramic views of the mountains. The Appalachian Mountains make you earn your views. Being at Drawbar Cliffs reminded me why I like backpacking. I like to make the decision to suffer and force myself to do things I don’t have to do, for no better reason than to eat sandwiches in nice places. There’s nothing like living in the woods for a week to make you appreciate the nice soft bed and clean sheets waiting for you at home. I thought a lot about gratitude, as you may have already discerned, we walked this path Thanksgiving week. I tried to channel an attitude of gratitude as we began the final, incredibly steep descent from Pinnacle Mountain to the trailhead.

Fire damage and alternative routes

Table Rock State Park suffered a large fire earlier this year, affecting the main route down (or up, depending on direction) Pinnacle Mountain. Walking through burned areas was a new experience for us and seeing the devastation was sobering. This section of the trail was probably the most technical of the entire trail, mainly due to the obvious damage lining the steep descent.

I’ll start my next statements with this disclaimer: Please understand why the people of Table Rock State Park may want to disperse where hikers are parking. But it’s a shame we couldn’t finish the trail at the official start.

It could be user error on my part, but FarOut does not reflect the multiple access trails within Table Rock State Park that connect hikers to the Foothills Trail. You may not realize this unless you purchase the printed copy of the Foothills Trail Conservancy trail guide. We had been directed to park in an area of ​​Table Rock State Park called Pavilion, which was several miles down the road from the official trailhead. Fortunately, our shuttle driver had reviewed the best route back to our car, but we had no means of navigation beyond a blurry screenshot of the route.

At least we had cell signal again and I was able to open All Trails and find our route that way. We left the Foothills/Pinnacle Trail onto the Mountain Laurel Trail and then headed to a half-mile section of the Palmetto Trail. It was during this last kilometer that my headlight went out again!

Despite this latest setback, we arrived at the parking lot minutes after dark as a pack of coyotes cheered us on. We did it! Seventy-six miles is the longest distance we have walked and we finished a day earlier than expected. I’m proud of us for this little adventure.

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