All my posts about Hercules Glades Wilderness presented in chronological order. Click here to see the pictures of Hercules Glades Wilderness without all the text.
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Journal: Last Backpacking trip of the year, December 2020
The Pilots – Seen from the Coy Bald Trail, December 27, 2020. Lower Pilot to the left, Upper Pilot to the right. I started my day camped about three-quarters of a mile to the west (left) of the Lower Pilot. Copyright © 2020 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. I’m planning on staying out three nights, finding my way to Beaver Creek to the north of the bluffs, and hiking the only trail here that I haven’t hiked yet.
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Unexpected ice
Ice – there was a lot more ice on the trail than I expected. Hercules Glades – Day One. Copyright © 2020 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. 
Ice – there was a lot more ice on the trail than I expected. Hercules Glades – Day One. Copyright © 2020 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. -
Gurgling
Gurgling – it was interesting listening and watching the creek flowing under the ice. I stopped here to refill my water bottle. Hercules Glades – Day One. Copyright © 2020 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. It was interesting listening and watching the creek flowing under the ice. I stopped here to refill my water bottle, which I did a few yards further down the creek where it wasn’t frozen. I should add that this is my old favorite, ‘Twin Falls Creek.’
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A rather sluggish grasshopper.
A rather sluggish grasshopper. Hercules Glades – Day One. Copyright © 2020 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. Given the freezing temperatures we’ve been having recently, I guess it is no surprise that it was quite slow-moving and reluctant to flit off the branch and out of the sun.
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Ice falls
Ice falls. Hercules Glades – Day One. Copyright © 2020 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. At the beginning of my hike I’d added a waypoint on the trail where I thought I’d need to turn north to find the top of the hollow I wanted to try and hike down to Beaver creek. I was very surprised to find that the spot I’d picked was exactly where an old forest road turned north off the trail. Ginger was initially quite skeptical that I’d found an old road, as it wasn’t marked on the current map. I checked a 1930 map and sure enough there it was.
Current Map
1930 MapPretty soon I was bushwhacking west down into the hollow, which due to the 100ft high and very steep southern side, I’ve dubbed ‘Deep Hollow.’ The hollow’s upper stretches were dry until I came across a spring — you can see all the green grass growing where the spring emerges in the top left of the above picture. The creek seemed to drop in a series of 10-15ft falls covered in ice. With the very steep sides and the ice coating, I decided that I’d found water, even if it wasn’t Beaver Creek, and that was good enough for me. The slope to the north of the hollow was much easier, and I climbed up to the top of the ridge to make camp.
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Ice in ‘Deep Hollow’
Ice falls. Hercules Glades – Day One. Copyright © 2020 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. Okay, so I managed to let one of my hiking poles fall into the hollow while taking the previous picture. Which meant I had to climb down and retrieve it. While I was there, I took this picture.
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Camped by ‘Deep Hollow’
Camped by ‘Deep Hollow.’ Hercules Glades – Day One. Copyright © 2020 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. After years of camping down in hollows to be near water, I am now learning the advantages of going higher and putting up with a longer trek to fetch water. The main advantages are:
- It’s warmer,
- It gets dark later and light earlier,
- the ground’s flatter.
Sunset by ‘Deep Hollow’ Copyright © 2021 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. -
Good Morning. Hercules Glades – Day Two
Good Morning. Hercules Glades – Day Two. Copyright © 2020 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. -
Food for the Day
Food for the day. Hercules Glades – Day Two. Copyright © 2020 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. I get my day’s breakfast and trail food out first thing so I don’t forget to unpack it before I break camp and put everything in my backpack.
Today’s breakfast and trail food are:
- Breakfast. a cup of hot chocolate and a cup of tea; dehydrated biscuits and gravy. (Alternatives are dehydrated breakfast hash or Oats).
- Trail Snacks. Two handfuls of almond and raisins, two mini Snickers bars, and a couple of rashers of pre-cooked bacon.
- Lunch. A sachet of tuna, noodles, and a cup of tea.
The only items missing above are my evening hot drink and my evening meal, which I won’t get out until I’ve set up camp in the evening. My evening drink is usually hot chocolate (Cadbury’s of course), and my evening meal is whatever my current favorite dehydrated meal is. On my favorites list right now are:
- Chicken and dumplings,
- chili mac with beef,
- beef stroganoff,
- lasagna with meat sauce,
- spaghetti with meat sauce, and
- beef stew.
My total food for a day weighs in at around 1½-2lbs.
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About to break camp
About to break camp. Hercules Glades – Day Two. Copyright © 2020 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. There are three things to note in this picture.
- My camp chair has been blown over.
- The hunter orange tabard hanging on the tree is being blown out horizontally.
- And finally, note how the wind is pushing on the tarp.
A windy day had been forecast, I was expecting it, but I didn’t stop to think about the implications. My plan was to finish my day camped somewhere sheltered. My lack of comprehension of the possible implications was to cause me some problems and teach me a lesson later in the day.
