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Story by John Farley
Photos by Luc Nugent

Great Smokey Mountain Venture '99
Canadians head to Tellico National Forest, North Carolina

By Monday we where ready for more trails. Unfortunately, the night before, I had twisted my ankle badly enough to send me into the Murphy Hospital. Nothing broken, except my ego, and I knew there was going to be a story about this one. The others headed off to do trails 4 and 8. A new trail boss this time, had stories of his own to tell. With his dog Zeek hanging on for dear life, they headed down trail 8 which loops around the mountain and gives you a scenic view and a look at trail 9 from the top and the bottom.

On Tuesday my ankle was getting better, or at least well enough to drive my truck. I wasn't going to miss trail 11 for anything. Trail 11 or known locally as Guardrail and Helicopter Pad were what people come here to try. On a good day, with perfect conditions and a dry surface, these two nasty trails are passable. With just a hint of moisture, you can almost forget it.

We had heard there where several roll-overs a few days before , and with the present foggy condition it was insane to try, at least for us. We would start up, then winch the rest of the way.

A winch is one thing that is mandatory in Tellico. Without it, you rely on others, and if theirs brakes, then you're in deep trouble. We had enough power to get our crown to the top of Guardrail, and onto Heli Pad. Standing at the bottom of Heli Pad was amazing. We couldn't believe that people drove up this, and we took our hats off to those who did, or even attempted it.

As we took the bypass we parked on top and had lunch, in hopes that another group may catch up. We figured someone would have to try it, but no luck. On the way back we stopped at the foot of 12. Known locally as School Bus and rated as most difficult, we decided to walk up and scope out the trail for next year. It is a very steep trail (hard enough to walk, let alone drive up) with many rock ledges, boulders, loose dirt, tight turns, and deep ruts. Add water and lookout!

There was a group almost to the top, so we watched on in awe as they picked their way to the top .

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