This trip had been in the planning stages for a little over a year and the time was drawing near for us (me, my wife's uncle, wife's relative's husband, and his friend) to go. With less than 2 weeks to go, what do I do?
I'm goin' to Disney World!
We got in the family cruiser and motored south for a little while. It was a wonderful trip with the wife and kids but that's not what this report is about.
After returning from Disney, it was time to start packing, and finish making some of the gear I would need on the trip. At 3:30am on Friday morning I was finally done and not a moment too soon. Now all that was left to do was make it through another day at work and then we would be on our way.
The trip started off very smoothly. We loaded all the gear into Ronnie's truck and started the 3 hour tour. It really was like a tour. Uncle Ronnie pointed out facts about the different places of interest on our way to and along the Blue Ridge Parkway. Travelling along the parkway was like stepping back in time by two months. With the elevation change the temperature dropped a total of 30 degrees. The trees had yet to put on their foliage and the dogwood trees were in full bloom - beautiful. The 23 miles from I-26 and the Blue Ridge Parkway to the camping sites took just over one hour.
When we finally made it to the camping sites the outside temperature was 41 degrees Fahrenheit with winds topping out at 45 mph. Needless to say this made putting up the tarp a little tricky but luckily there was still some daylight left. Dinner that night was "Low Country Frogmore Beaufort Boil Stew". Yum, Yum! At 2:30am the wind was still roaring but the inside of the hammock was toasty warm. A brief trip out of the comfort of the hammock showed stars that were so thick it looked as though they were overlapping.
The wind continued until 3:00am Saturday morning but I never new it. Saturday was wonderful. The temperature topped out at 67 degrees and there wasn't a cloud in the sky. Better yet, the wind didn't start back up until well after sunset. The activities for the day consisted of; breakfast, hike to the top of the mountain (from the parking area of course), nap, lunch, hang out around the campfire, dinner (cube steak and sweet potatoes cooked in cream of chicken in the dutch oven) and then blissful sleep.
...and finally, the video
Here is a list of the hammock gear used for the trip:
- Kelty Noah's Tarp 12x12
- DIY 1.1 oz Double Layer Hammock w/ adjustable ridgeline
- Whoopie Slings
- Tree huggers
- Dutch Clips
- "The Toaster" underquilt
- modified mummy bag/top quilt
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