Two hikers were stranded in the Grayson Highlands for two days, flagged a copter down and were rescued. High winds and heavy snow and cold temps caused them to be stranded. See link:
http://www.wdbj7.com/Global/story.asp?S=3021892&nav=RmOiX1CF
Also several weeks ago during the heavy snow and blizzard we had, a group of boy scouts had to be rescued from Mount Rodgers. Some of them had hypothermia.
So the southern AT can be at times brutal in winter.
See you out there.
Maintain
It definitely can be. But you also get to see this amazing scenery that not many people get to experience. Yesterday at Newfound Gap, simply stunning.
Apple Pie
and unnecessary expense are a bit too much for my taste in this story. The AT was mentioned again and again in the TV reports. There were no comments/instructions about how to avoid such stuff, just the hipe. The guys were a little narrow between the ears, me judges.
kinnickinic
Good article, if only to warn others about the dangers of weather…
My immediate questions are, 1) Were these two experienced hikers, or two guys thinking they knew how to be outdoors because they have done alot of car-camping??, 2) Were they prepared equipment-wise (objectively) and knowledge-wise (subjectively) for winter hiking??
Four of us leave tomorrow heading up to northern Michigan to go hiking, the snow and winds and temps have been less then hospitable of late up there. But, everyone is experienced, has the right equipment, and we have back-up/emergency plans as needed. That and ID tags to identify our bodies in the spring if something drastically goes wrong 
-xtn :boy
airferret
At least they had told friends where they were going, which is something I always do if I go hiking.
Also, the Highlands are known for their weather shifting, and with the forecast of snow and cold weather that they must have been getting down in that area, I certainly wouldn’t have gone out in it.
I would think that they were not experienced, at least not experienced in that part of VA. Other places they might have been ok, but weather in the Highlands is brutal.
One of my favorite places to hike, but I take that place very seriously!
Xena
My friend Criss and I were hiking the Iron Mountian/AT loop in 2001 the last weekend in March and got dumped on. There was well over twenty- five inches of snow in the higher elevations that fell overnight and there was sixteen inches at Massie Gap where our car was parked. When we made it back to the park ranger station we had to wait for the park employee’s to plow a clear road to get our car out. One f my fondest trips!
Yo-YO
These two yokels could have been 2005 Darwin Award candidates, but they messed that up as well as their backpacking plans. Some idiots can’t do anything right.
Percival
The Southern AT is quite often more colder than the Central AT in Northern Virginia/Maryland/Pennsylvania. During the summer months, the hottest place is in that region while the Smokies only average in the mid 70s for a high. A lot of people tend to forget that the AT in the South is quite often above 4,000 feet altitude while the AT in PA and MD doesn’t even approach 2,000 feet. Altitude even more than latitude has more of an effect on weather.
The best way to tell the forecast is to get it from Knoxville or Asheville, minus 20 degrees and double the wind. So if they are calling for 70 in Asheville, it will be 50 in the Smokies.
Friend
It doesn’t sound like they were totally unprepared - they were stranded for three days - apparently without ill effect. But obviously it had not occurred to them that the snow could be deep! Altitude, as Friend mentions, changes the equation. I experienced a howling snow storm on Mt Rogers on April 13th last year, stayed on Thomas Knob. Next day was gorgeous and there was no snow whatsoever at lower elevations!
N Harrier
This is why some people are trying to draft legislation to shut down the AT. We seriously need to work to prevent this from happening.
Woot
“some people are trying to draft legislation to shut down the AT”
And they are???
Are these folks in Congress or in nearby trailtowns?
Kineo Kid
You can’t stop them. You’re one of them Kineo. If you don’t win that Darwin Award first.
Percival
You know everyone’s comments re “why didn’t they…” etc were & are on target. It’s good to be reminded about the basics. AND I’d think that probably everyone of us has done at one time or the other something kind of well…stupid. like when I first moved to my town in grad school, & a guy I was in classes with walked me home; saying “it’s just fine to cut across the river” (it was January) Later on I found out that parts of that river never freeze. DUMB.
leah
Anybody ever hear how Mr Dinwiddie came out? Is he OK?
He was a lone hiker pulled out of the Smokies a month or two ago after a bad fall. Just wondering…
RockyTrail
Dimwitte is planning his next Darwin Award attempt. The “heroic” efforts of several intermeddlers cost him several fingers and half a foot. Too bad, he could be sucking a margarita or 90 proof Jack at that big hostel in the sky right now if they’d let him be.
Percival
I stayed with Northern Harrier in Thomas Knob Shelter on April 14th last year, and I was amazed at the brutal coldness of the Southern Appalachians, especially that late in the season. A search and rescue crew came up that night and pulled two hikers who had hypothermia out. My advice is to definitely be prepared for anything out there. I still had all my winter gear at the time, so I was able to survive. Ship your winter gear home once the leaves come out - theres a reason they aren’t there sooner.
Firstlight
The main reason for there rescue (my understanding was that they parked there car in Grayson Highlands State Park) If you dont return on the date you are suppose to they send out a rescue party to look for you. They also didnt write on there registration where they were going in the park area. What i have read about them they where not as knowledgeable hikers as you need to be for winter hiking. They also didnt pay attention to the weather forecast as one schould. The same thing the Scouts did when they were rescued. I camped up there the 2nd weekend in December and there was knee deep snow and on sunday morning i woke to blowing snow. Temps in the 20s with wind chills much lower. It was difficult walking out but I knew what i was getting into. I have been hiking with my brother in the winter for over 30 years and feel i am knowledgable enough to do this. If you cant look at a forecast pack the right stuff and be prepared for the worst then maybe (some people should just stay home) just my opinion. Winter hiking can be some of the greatest things you can do but it can also be the worst thing that you ever do .
Winter Hiker
It’s not always the “newbies” that get into problems in the Highlands. One of our fellow ‘01 thru hikers thought he was gonna’ die there when he passed through. He was flip-flopping and already had 1700 AT miles to his belt, but hit a wicked blowing snow/fog storm on his way to Wise shelter. His map blew out of his hands and he couldn’t find a blaze to tell him which of the many criss-crossing trails was hiking and/or horse/pony trails. He learned not to go into something like that alone, for sure!
Bramble 01
It could happen to anyone in an area that is a prone to bad the weahter conditions and open ness that rogers has. In winter you cant follow trails up there with out the markers and a lot of them or on the ground. My over confidence in winter at rogers could get me in trouble too. My over confidence comes probabaly because theres no trails up there that i havent hiked. But i also never go without at least one other person with me in winter. And i always watch and read weather conditions that are on the way before taking off for a weekend up there. If the weather says rain in the area i expect snow on rogers especially if the temps for marion or bristol say rain and 40 degrees. Truth is they probably didnt need to be rescued. The news said they still had enough food for that day and there health was still good. When the weather broke they probably could have hiked out.
Winter Hiker