3 day backpacking trip in North Carolina - Art Loeb Trail

Описание: In April, we had a chance to backpacking the Art Loeb Trail for the first time and it was a blast. Starting at the Camp Davidson side, we hiked 31 miles NoBo to Daniel Boone Campground which took 3 days and 2 nights in total.

Night 1, we camped a bit past the butter gap area as it was a bit too crowded for our liking, night 2 we camped on top of Black Balsam which turned out to be a chilly night! The temps on night 1 was absolutely perfect at around 39-41 degrees but night 2 it was a crispy, breezy 25-30 degrees and woke up to some ice buildup on the tents!

The incline was the steepest on day 2, which was mostly between butter gap and the Blue Ridge Parkway so prepare for a good trek if you are heading NoBo. After Butter Gap the water sources became extremely limited but after pilot mountain there was one last good source before heading home.

There are no reservations or permits needed for this trail but be sure to bring a bear sack/canister when hiking in the late spring/late summer portion of the year, also water purification tablets or a filter is highly recommended for this trail. On this Trip we decided to drive two cars and park one at our exit point, then drove together to the trailhead.

I will definitely hike this trail again in the fall as the foilage would make for some great scenery, if you decide to add this to your bucket list (which you absolutely should if you love backpacking trips) then you are in for a great time! The sunsets and sunrises from Black Balsam are some of my all time favorites in NC.

Gear Used:

Tent: REI Passage II
Backpack: Osprey Atmos 65L
Sleeping Pad: Thermarest Neoair Xlite
Water Storage: Hydrapak 4L + (2) 32oz yetis