We are tired tonight, but Anne is revived by the Olympic spectacle.  I enjoy only some of it.  So, I write while she watches a hunk paddle about the pummel horse.  We hiked today, walking from the Blue Ridge Parkway down and then up over the summits of Yellow Face Mountain (6,032) and Blackrock Mountain (5,810) before returning up the ridge of the Plott Balsam Range.  I had hopped we would finish off the walk with the sturdy climb to the top of Waterrock Knob (6,292), but Anne had had quite enough when we reached the car in the parking lot near the little visitor center at the turnout off the Parkway. 

We both found the walking difficult though the air was reasonably cool and comfortable at the high altitude.  It was, however, also thin.  I joked that we had forgotten our oxygen canisters.  Waterrock Knob is the 16th highest mountain in the Eastern United States.  The walk to its summit is rather short, certainly less than a mile, but it is steep and the trail is rough.  Many tourists attempt it and most turn around before long.  It is enjoyable to wander among them and share their wonder at the difficulty of this little climb.  Northeasterners are shocked to hear that it is four feet higher than Mt. Washington. 

We were a bit overwhelmed hiking the high range today, but we enjoyed the fragrance of the balsam, a few early berries, and fabulous vistas across the Great Smoky and Balsam Mountain ranges.  The temperatures were warm, in the 70s and low 80s, but the humidity was high.  We were adopted by a dumped dog as we crossed the parkway.    A black lab and pit bull cross, he followed us to Blackrock Mountain.  I gave him part of my sandwich, but we had no intention of taking him back.  We were happy when he followed a young man we met on the trail who walked down to his cabin below the ridge.  We saw only him and a young couple walking down the mountain to Sylva on the trail.  As crowded as the Parkway and the National Park are this weekend, we wanted a quiet walk and found it. 

The trail along the Plott Balsams does not show on the maps and the trail is unmarked.  One cannot see it from the Parkway.  You walk up the shoulder and there is a small opening in the shrubbery at the edge of a grove of spruce and fir trees.  Leaving the sunshine it is suddenly cool, and the narrow trail follows the crest of the ridge with all its ups and downs.  We had previously walked to Blackrock Mountain from the valley on the steep Pinnacle Trail.  Today we reached it from the top of the Plott Balsam range, giving a sense of completion. 

Blackrock Mountain is capped by a lump of schist, perhaps 15 meters long by 8 meters wide.  A scramble is necessary to summit, but it is not too tough.  The view is fantastic. 

The hike was unusual in that we hiked down the ridge but up and over two sharp summits.  The return was uphill, of course, but ended with a descent to the Parkway.  After that was a sharp walk up the paved road to the parking lot.  We scarcely noticed this descent when we started.  Coming back it winded us.

We enjoyed our retreat on the Parkway by auto to Balsam Gap and then down, down, down to the Tuckasegee Valley and our campground which is in a forest cove above that.  Anne enjoyed the sports and I studied Italian this afternoon. 

A good weekend day in Carolina.