woodland wanderings: Imp Face

My original intent was to hike Imp Face (on my 52WAV list) and Middle Carter, but plans don’t always go as planned. I decided to drive up and sleep in my car near the trailhead but my husband insisted I find a hotel. I found one with a late check-in (11:00PM).

I got to the hotel just before 11:00. There was a large sign on the door that said CLOSED. What?!

I knock on the door, call the office several times, and ring the doorbell for a good 10 minutes. Nothing…. It was okay when it was my choice to sleep in the car, but when you pay for a room it’s a matter of principal that you get to sleep in a room! I look across the street and see another motel. I drive over and ring that bell. The owner comes out of her room, clearly woken from her sleep. I explain the situation and she tells me, “Oh yes, it happens all the time, she leaves at 9:30.” What?! It says right here check-in is until 11:00. “Yes, but she goes home anyway. People come over here to complain. One person from Germany walked with his luggage a mile from the bus stop to find out she was closed. It’s a small town so she assumes no one is coming.” Do you have a room available? "Yes".

It’s now midnight, I open my trunk and realize the overnight bag with my hiking clothes isn’t in the car…What?! OMG… I left them at home. Okay, I’ve got my backpack, food and water, but no clothes. The clothes I’m wearing are everything you don’t want to hike in. Cotton, non-stretch, legging jeans (the kind that no one my age has any business wearing), a heavy cotton t-shirt, sandals and NO socks. Okay, what do I have in my car that can make this work? I’ve got my tried and true old broken in Keen hiking shoes, a pair of Columbia mid-height hiking boots, a light jacket in the donation bag left in the car, but no socks.

Okay, Middle Carter is out, I can’t hike 10 miles in skinny jeans and no socks. But, I can manage 1/2 that mileage - Imp is on!

The room was a small, dark, wood-paneled box with one window, but the sheets were crisp and clean. When you just need a place to sleep; it’s a perfect place to spend the night.

I got up at 4:30, looked outside my only window to see fog so thick I couldn’t see my car in the lot. I knew the weather was uncertain, some reports indicated thunderstorms while others showed clear skies until late in the afternoon. Sigh. I went back to bed until 5:30. I looked out again. It was still foggy but I could see my car. I check the weather on my phone. The weather app says rain and thunder. I don’t like that forecast so I check the Mountain-Forecast. It says clear skies. I throw on my old keens, grab some coffee and look for the trailhead. Missed the parking pull-off a couple of times but soon the ERD and I were on the trail. Map, GPS, skinny jeans and coffee; I’m ready to go.

There was no pollen in the air so my lungs felt great and the only thing holding me back from hiking at a good clip was my skinny jeans. I pulled out my little hiking knife and sliced the knees of my pants. Ahh, freedom.

You always know you’re the first hiker on the trail when you find yourself breaking all of the spider webs with your face. When this happens, I know I’ll have the summit to myself.

It was a peaceful and beautiful hike. The Imp Brook follows alongside the trail for a while and you get a lovely view of its waterfall. There are a number of small water crossings. The crossing above the waterfall may be a problem after a heavy rain but today it was just a walkover.

It is an easy trail for the most part. Franklinsites rates this trail as Moderate Length, Difficult Steepness. However, compared to other hikes with this rating, I would rate it as Moderate/Moderate. Yes, it is steep in sections but it has nice flat areas in between the steep ones giving you a chance to catch your breath. The yellow blazes are faded in places but the trail is well traveled and easy to follow. It is slippery in sections where there is steep, smooth rockface and after a rain it could be a treacherous mix especially on the way down. There are a number of downed trees, two near the water crossings and three close to the summit. None will cause you too much trouble.

The temperature was cool, but the air was humid and I was drenched by the time I reached the summit. A quiet, early morning hike emerged onto ledges with a breathtaking view.

There is something so magical about hiking a mountain alone and standing on a summit by yourself. I remained on the summit for a long time. I thought about continuing to Middle Carter but knew that would be reckless and decided to leave it for another day. Before leaving I had fun taking selfies on the summit of what I now consider one of my favorite solo hikes.