Although I named the blog where I have stored my trip reports HiramRunHikeBike I rarely combine all three activities. But a late spring visit to Gregory Bald in the Smokies naturally combines them. By then the approach road through Cades Cove is closed to motor vehicles on Wednesday, providing a great opportunity to bike to the trailhead. The hike up is steep, but the descent is gentle and smooth enough for an easy run back down.
Mark
does this trip almost every year, but I had not visited Gregory Bald since 2009.
This year seemed like a great chance, we could go on a Wednesday, and would be
seeing the bald’s famed azalea display near its peak bloom.
Azalea at the top of Gregory Bald.
But
we were not the only ones bent on visiting Cades Cove. I left the house at 6AM,
and by Maryville I started to see cars loaded up with bikes. By the time I got
to the Cove at 7:15 the entry parking area was full, and cars were leaving the
picnic and campground lots indicating that those sites were also filled. I
pulled a quick U-turn, saw Mark in the line of cars, and headed back out to the
first pullout on the Laurel Creek Road where I got the last parking spot. Mark got
a spot in the next pullout, up by the road crossing of the Crib Gap Trail. The
crowds were amazing, even by the standards of the cove, but at least we’d
gotten parking spots and found each other in the crush.
With Mark looking down on Cades Cove.
At
the gate the NPS had set up an informal contact station. A high percentage of
the riders in the cove are on rental bikes and/or are infrequent riders. There
also seemed to be a lot of runners and hikers, and folks struggled to stay out
of each other’s way. Things opened up a bit around the John Oliver Cabin, where
we could finally ride unobstructed.
We
knew the forecast temperature was for mid 90s in Knoxville, and wanted to climb
to the Bald before the heat and humidity of the afternoon. I was riding my new
REI mountain bike while Mark was on his old Klein. We passed one bear jam
without stopping, and pedaled past some wild turkeys. By the back end of the
cove even the bike traffic had thinned, and we could finally enjoy the ride.
Forge Creek is a fun shaded gravel road, but we saw no other riders on it. A couple of the bridges near the end had new decks. There were two vehicles at the trailhead, we assumed they belonged to backpackers. There is an old manway that leads left out of the Gregory Ridge Trailhead to a boar trap where we chained our bikes to a nearby tree. I wasn’t taking chances with my new bike.
I
was warmed up from the bike ride and set a brisk pace, climbing at Barkley
intensity. The first two miles of the climb are gentle. There were two parties
at CS 12 when we passed. I felt better than I had in long while, and we motored
up the trail. We hiked the Gregory Bald section to Rich Gap in about 1:47, just
under 3 mph for a 3,000’ climb. From there it was just one steep more pitch to
the summit. 
Close up of Azalea.
We
could see the azaleas before we reached the bald. We were at the peak of the
bloom; all the buds were open, and none had begun to wilt or fall. The NPS had
a three man crew mowing the bald, to preserve the azaleas. One of the
volunteers told us they mowed three times per year, concentrating on cutting
back the woody vegetation. They had mowed the paths open, and were just starting
on the meadows. Mark and I wandered through the display, enjoying the views
down into Cades Cove and the cool mountain air. Most of the blooms we saw were
orange to an orangish red, there was not as much color variation as I
remembered from previous trips. We ate at the summit marker with great views of
Joyce Kilmer to the west and the Nantahalas to the south.
The
NPS crew was taking their lunch when we started down. They were curious how
we’d gotten up so fast on a vehicle free day, and we confirmed that we’d biked
to the trailhead.
My
goal was to run as much of the trail down as I could. The trail was rocky for a
foot only trail. There were some rough spots, particularly near the Gregory
Ridge Trail junction and just above the campsite. But my footwork was good, and
my quads held up, perhaps due to my Armes Gap repeats over the weekend. We
passed both groups from the campsite as well as another pair likely doing the
ride/hike combo. Some recent blowdowns had been cut, perhaps by the NPS crew. It
was cool on the upper mountain, with the humidity becoming more noticeable as
we reached the campsite. Still, I was not on a blazing pace. It took 55 minutes
to reach the campsite from Rich Gap, just over 3 mph, and another 35 minutes on
the less steep lower section. 
Mark at the trailhead by the hog trap.
Luckily
our bikes were undisturbed at the trailhead. We reorganized our food and gear,
then began the final human powered leg. Again, we had Forge Creek Road to
ourselves. As Mark had predicted there was less traffic on the loop road in the
afternoon. Most bikers were pushing up the short steep hills on the back side
of the loop. Mark didn’t seem to notice the hills, while I max downshifted and
tried to grunt my way up.
We
stopped for our only bear sighting, a faraway bear in a meadow of tall grass,
but skipped the old homesites. We saw a few more turkeys, with Mark also spying
a brood of chicks. Back at the start of the cove it was still busy, but without
the mayhem from the morning rush. As I packed up at the car I noticed it was
still only 85F. In the morning I’d seen just a lone car at the trailheads, now
Finley Cane and Schoolhouse Gap were busy. Nearly every spot was taken at the
Townsend “Y”, and the tubing shuttles were going full speed. By the time I
reached Townsend the car thermometer read 96F. Despite the long trip I was back
home by 3 PM. 
Screenshot of my trip map.
