Buddha once said “It is better to travel well than to arrive.”Driving up route 52, Pilot Mountain appears abruptly towering over the horizon. If you are a fan of Mayberry, you may feel the need to call it Mount Pilot.
I took the Pinnacle exit and a few back roads (where I saw an old shaggy goat) to park at the trail head of the Mountain Trail and the Grassy Ridge Trail. I started out at 10:30AM and a temperature of 28 degrees F. I had dressed in plenty of layers. Deciding to take the hardest trail first, I started up the Mountain Trail. After 20 minutes I was sweating and shedding layers. The trail was solitary and peaceful. There were beautiful blue birds flying around and perched in the trees with pinnacle of Pilot Mountain in the background. It was fantastic hiking weather. The sun was shining, there was a small breeze blowing, and the birds were chirping. This is God’s creation and He walks with us on our adventures.
The trail goes up but also around the mountain. At one point I started to wonder if I had gone the right direction. This is the point where Buddha crossed my mind. I had been focusing on getting to the top. Then I remembered “It is better to travel well than to arrive.” What is an adventure if you are so focused on getting to the top of the mountain that you miss the forest? I stopped focusing on getting to the top and began to just enjoy the hike. The rocks were amazing; moss covered rocks, shimmering rocks, and colored rocks. I didn’t find one small enough to take as a souvenir. I get this from my mom who collects rocks from everywhere.
The Mountain Trail ends at the Ledge Spring Trail. At the intersection I passed a couple who was trying to figure out which way to go. I let them take a look at my map. We chatted and parted ways. I continued up the trail to find some spectacular icicles. This is where nature showed me who was boss. There was a huge icicle that was many feet long. It was spectacular! Deciding to be creative, I wanted to take a picture from behind it. As I stepped behind the icicle, I went down hard on a thick patch of ice. I quickly jumped up so I wouldn’t look stupid, as if there were tons of people around. There was no one in sight. My elbow was killing me. Instant nausea hit me. I snapped this cool picture through the ice and then proceed to roll on the ground and whine like a baby for 10 minutes. It is important to note how I just had to get that picture before I let my pain take hold. They say the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree…well I’m my father’s daughter. Get the picture at all cost! Looking back at today’s photos, I have this comical blurry picture that I must have snapped while crashing to the ground.
This is the painstaking picture.
It wasn’t clear where the trail was going but above was the fence surrounding the look out. I scampered up the side of the hill to get a breathe-taking view of the country side. Yes it was breathe-taking since there was not cover blocking the frosty wind. Adding layers back on, I chomped down on some PB&J. Why is it that PB&J tastes so good when you’re hiking?How many gargoyles do you see?
I headed down the Grindstone Trail where I passed a few more people including a guy with two dogs. At the end, I stopped by the ranger station to use the facilities. In the stall there was a sign that read “PLEASE FLUSH AFTER USE.” Now the flushable toilet was invented in the late 1700’s. We have all used toilets for quite a while. Why is it that people still don’t understand how to flush a toilet?
The last trail back to my car was the Grass Ridge Trail. The hike was almost finished. I could see the edge of the forest. Emerging from the wilderness, I discover that this was not where I parked. I looked up and down the road and could not see my car in sight. This was a false trial head (similar to a false summit I suppose). Such trickery! I trudged on further down the trail and finally arrived at my car tired and hungry. As I was taking of my off my boots, I see the guy with two dogs approaching. He wants to know the quickest way back to the ranger station. I send him in the right direction and wonder why no one looks at the map before they start hiking.
Five hours, 8 miles and 1000 foot ascent, I had some battle scars to remember the adventure by: my elbow is swollen and I have a huge bruise on my right rear quarter. Who new your@$$ could bruise?
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