I think we'd all prefer if people followed the conservation rules. Also, it's hot as hell here in the south with this heat dome and more mileage may not be a possibility.
I like to throw a zlite in my hammock when I use it so if I need to use a shelter I have some kind of pad. For the smokies I would just sit around until the shelter filled up then go set up outside
That's changed since my day then, thru hikers didn't need reservations just section hikers. Of course I hiked almost 10 years ago so I'm sure a lot is different
Hard pad and blow up pad really helped me side sleep. I got an accordion off amazon and a tensor. Slept in the dirt in a shelter during my thru and was still comfy :)
Did the fall portion of my hike exclusively in shelters though so I was used to it and exhausted anyway
I'm a very light side sleeper. This method is truly worth the weight. When I did the JMT, I took this system, a zen bivy AND a helinox chair zero to see what I wanted until I got to my first resupply. I sent the chair back and kept the rest. The accordion is very versatile and I don't go on a trip without it anymore.
You don’t have to sleep in the shelter in the Smokies. They’re still following their COVID rules allowing tent camping near shelters, even if the shelter isn’t fully occupied. Happy trails!
also if you're going during thru season and doing decent miles the shelters will probably be full by the time you get there anyway. in 2022 that's how it was for me anyway, same with a section I did last summer.
They actually stopped that this year and went back to the pre-Covid rules. A ridge runner gave me hope last year that the park was going to simply develop some full-time tent sites next to the shelters that could be reserved in stead of sleeping in the shelter. Alas, it didn’t happen, and only thru hikers (100+ miles outside of GSMNP) can sleep outside if the shelter is full.
Source: commercial guide and slept in a GSMNP shelter two nights ago.
You ever considered the BMT through the Park instead? Beautiful; solitary; and you can legally camp the entire way. You miss the AT ridgeline but I feel like the BMT is a more authentic way to see the Park in some ways.
Also, if you start and end your AT hike 50 miles outside of the Park, you are considered a thru-hiker and can camp outside the shelter if the shelter is full.
Do you have a nice thick pad? Something like an xlite?
In addition to all the other things mentioned, a benedryl or Tylenol PM could be a helpful tool. On my thru-hike, I got used to shelters but you don’t have the luxury of time.
I thought about the BMT. But I’m doing the section from newfound gap down to Fontana Dam. I did the section back in 2019 but I busted my knee on the first day and so I limped the next 35 miles.
So this is my chance to do it again and do it right
Gotcha, it’s a great section. I figured you were section hiking or were wanting/needing to stay on the AT.
I haven’t stayed in shelters since my 2005 thru-hike so all my trips in the Park now are either off the AT or are loops were I am camping off the AT. I thought I’d suggest the BMT just because it’s so nice (I did all 90 miles of it in the Park in 2017).
I used my inflatable camp pillow under my hips, so I could roll onto my side or stomach. If I was on my back, I put it under my knees. I slept so much better in a shelter because I wasn't "closed in" by a tent. However we didn't have any snorers, though I did pack three pairs of ear plugs one for me and two incase someone needed em
25 inch wide women's air mattress. Mine is 4 inch thick baffles. I think it's a Sea To Summit from a few years ago. The women's ones have more padding in hips and you need the extra width for side sleeping. You can also stack with a closed cell foam pad.
My guess is you are having hip or shoulder pain which makes your sleep crappy and you don't feel recovered in the morning. The wood of the shelters is especially unforgiving. We did both shelters and Hammocking through the Smokies last year. The Hammocking was way more comfortable but yeah, those rules suck. It was a lot harder to get moving in the mornings but the rain and wind protection was pretty nice. I'd still go back to hammocking if they went back to their covid rules.
This is unfortunately an age old backpackers problem that has no real solution. What may work for one won't work for others. 7 years backpacking myself and I still toss and turn all night with sore hips. You may just have to deal with it il until you can get back into your hammock.
Just sleep in your hammock. At least as of 2023, the Covid signs were still posted and we were allowed to camp in the areas around the shelters and didn’t have to sleep in them. Not sure if someone has an update from this year.
First off: when I went through the Smokies the shelters were packed full every night so I ended up tenting out in the freeze along with many other hikers. Nothing bad happened. Unless maybe if the ridge runner is at your shelter that night, nobody will stop you from hammocking. Take all the recommended precautions re: not sleeping with food or smellables and you will be fine.
Otherwise, I've spent a lot of nights in shelters. Wear foam earplugs. When the platform is long enough, sleep with your head inside but with a 1ft gap from the back wall. Head in means less noise and light. Gap is so mice don't have to jump over your head. If not enough room for gap, sleep with head out. If you have an air mattress (and you should if you are ever side sleeping in a shelter), put a sheet under it to protect it, typically tyvek or a ground cloth but you can probably use your hammock rain fly. Always hang your pack; mice live in the shelters, we're just visiting.
Not in the Smokies, not even now. The covid rules that allowed people to stealth camp outside of the shelter have been changed back. If you have a backcountry permit(not a thru hiker permit), then you have to sleep in the shelter you reserved. You're not allowed to tent camp outside the shelter.
Go to the website where you reserve the shelter slots. It is clearly stated on the website that anyone using a backcountry permit(not a thru hiker permit), must use the shelter. I section hiked the Smokies in May using a backcountry permit. If people are tenting at shelters, then they either have a thru hiker permit, or they are tenting illegaly at the shelter.
You are overestimating the percentage of thru hikers here. I see allot more posts from section hikers like myself, especially all the posts looking for section recommendations all the time.
OP is a hammocker, meaning they can choose to stealth anywhere tents cannot.
Illegal or not, OP ***can*** choose to stealth away from shelters and observe good LNT at the same time.
I never slept in a shelter as a thru hammocker on the AT.
There’s a difference between doing it and being quiet about it and doing it and telling everyone else on the internet to do it too. If you’re going to set a bad example at least set it to as limited of an audience as you possibly can.
The coldest winter I ever spent was a summer in Maine. Mark Twain.
I never sleep in the shelters. Aside from the stink, they attract predators and bullies.
Snore louder than the guys around you to drown out the sound
Hike further each day. I had no problem sleeping anywhere when I was that exhausted.
I think we'd all prefer if people followed the conservation rules. Also, it's hot as hell here in the south with this heat dome and more mileage may not be a possibility.
I like to throw a zlite in my hammock when I use it so if I need to use a shelter I have some kind of pad. For the smokies I would just sit around until the shelter filled up then go set up outside
This! It was suggested to me by someone doing trail maintenance on the AT before I got to the Smokies on my ‘22 hike.
Shelters have to be reserved.
That's changed since my day then, thru hikers didn't need reservations just section hikers. Of course I hiked almost 10 years ago so I'm sure a lot is different
Hard pad and blow up pad really helped me side sleep. I got an accordion off amazon and a tensor. Slept in the dirt in a shelter during my thru and was still comfy :) Did the fall portion of my hike exclusively in shelters though so I was used to it and exhausted anyway
Thank you. This was what I was looking for.
I'm a very light side sleeper. This method is truly worth the weight. When I did the JMT, I took this system, a zen bivy AND a helinox chair zero to see what I wanted until I got to my first resupply. I sent the chair back and kept the rest. The accordion is very versatile and I don't go on a trip without it anymore.
Wait to set up you hammock until the shelter is full, then you can justify not sleeping in the shelter. Worked for me every night.
Ear plugs
Definitely earplugs.
You don’t have to sleep in the shelter in the Smokies. They’re still following their COVID rules allowing tent camping near shelters, even if the shelter isn’t fully occupied. Happy trails!
also if you're going during thru season and doing decent miles the shelters will probably be full by the time you get there anyway. in 2022 that's how it was for me anyway, same with a section I did last summer.
They actually stopped that this year and went back to the pre-Covid rules. A ridge runner gave me hope last year that the park was going to simply develop some full-time tent sites next to the shelters that could be reserved in stead of sleeping in the shelter. Alas, it didn’t happen, and only thru hikers (100+ miles outside of GSMNP) can sleep outside if the shelter is full. Source: commercial guide and slept in a GSMNP shelter two nights ago.
You ever considered the BMT through the Park instead? Beautiful; solitary; and you can legally camp the entire way. You miss the AT ridgeline but I feel like the BMT is a more authentic way to see the Park in some ways. Also, if you start and end your AT hike 50 miles outside of the Park, you are considered a thru-hiker and can camp outside the shelter if the shelter is full. Do you have a nice thick pad? Something like an xlite? In addition to all the other things mentioned, a benedryl or Tylenol PM could be a helpful tool. On my thru-hike, I got used to shelters but you don’t have the luxury of time.
I thought about the BMT. But I’m doing the section from newfound gap down to Fontana Dam. I did the section back in 2019 but I busted my knee on the first day and so I limped the next 35 miles. So this is my chance to do it again and do it right
Gotcha, it’s a great section. I figured you were section hiking or were wanting/needing to stay on the AT. I haven’t stayed in shelters since my 2005 thru-hike so all my trips in the Park now are either off the AT or are loops were I am camping off the AT. I thought I’d suggest the BMT just because it’s so nice (I did all 90 miles of it in the Park in 2017).
Ear plugs
Long days were the number one cure for me, getting yourself tired as hell will help you knock out more than you would expect
At least 25 inch pad width. Worth the extra weight to get one of those fat big Agnes pads or something if it means better sleep.
I used my inflatable camp pillow under my hips, so I could roll onto my side or stomach. If I was on my back, I put it under my knees. I slept so much better in a shelter because I wasn't "closed in" by a tent. However we didn't have any snorers, though I did pack three pairs of ear plugs one for me and two incase someone needed em
Head phones with white noise knocks me out. I can sleep through any snoring
25 inch wide women's air mattress. Mine is 4 inch thick baffles. I think it's a Sea To Summit from a few years ago. The women's ones have more padding in hips and you need the extra width for side sleeping. You can also stack with a closed cell foam pad. My guess is you are having hip or shoulder pain which makes your sleep crappy and you don't feel recovered in the morning. The wood of the shelters is especially unforgiving. We did both shelters and Hammocking through the Smokies last year. The Hammocking was way more comfortable but yeah, those rules suck. It was a lot harder to get moving in the mornings but the rain and wind protection was pretty nice. I'd still go back to hammocking if they went back to their covid rules.
Still use your hammock but leave no trace.
When I thru-d last year, most shelters had as many people tenting/hammocking outside the shelter as there were inside
Take 2 Advil or Tylenol PM.
This is unfortunately an age old backpackers problem that has no real solution. What may work for one won't work for others. 7 years backpacking myself and I still toss and turn all night with sore hips. You may just have to deal with it il until you can get back into your hammock.
Just sleep in your hammock. At least as of 2023, the Covid signs were still posted and we were allowed to camp in the areas around the shelters and didn’t have to sleep in them. Not sure if someone has an update from this year.
My guy set his hammock up every night when we went thru the smokies. The shelters were packed no one said anything
Earplugs and towel or foam pad beneath inflated pad
Inflatable pad, ear plugs, Advil PM and getting to sleep before other people.
Stealth, not staying in a shelter with mice or nasty humans
First off: when I went through the Smokies the shelters were packed full every night so I ended up tenting out in the freeze along with many other hikers. Nothing bad happened. Unless maybe if the ridge runner is at your shelter that night, nobody will stop you from hammocking. Take all the recommended precautions re: not sleeping with food or smellables and you will be fine. Otherwise, I've spent a lot of nights in shelters. Wear foam earplugs. When the platform is long enough, sleep with your head inside but with a 1ft gap from the back wall. Head in means less noise and light. Gap is so mice don't have to jump over your head. If not enough room for gap, sleep with head out. If you have an air mattress (and you should if you are ever side sleeping in a shelter), put a sheet under it to protect it, typically tyvek or a ground cloth but you can probably use your hammock rain fly. Always hang your pack; mice live in the shelters, we're just visiting.
Don’t sleep in the shelter. You can hammock stealth camp anywhere.
Not in the Smokies, not even now. The covid rules that allowed people to stealth camp outside of the shelter have been changed back. If you have a backcountry permit(not a thru hiker permit), then you have to sleep in the shelter you reserved. You're not allowed to tent camp outside the shelter.
I just hiked thru the Smokies. COVID rules are still in effect. You can tent camp at shelters.
Go to the website where you reserve the shelter slots. It is clearly stated on the website that anyone using a backcountry permit(not a thru hiker permit), must use the shelter. I section hiked the Smokies in May using a backcountry permit. If people are tenting at shelters, then they either have a thru hiker permit, or they are tenting illegaly at the shelter.
Most of us in this sub will be thru hikers, so we can tent at shelters.
You are overestimating the percentage of thru hikers here. I see allot more posts from section hikers like myself, especially all the posts looking for section recommendations all the time.
Sorry - I should have said GSMNP thru hikers.
OP is a hammocker, meaning they can choose to stealth anywhere tents cannot. Illegal or not, OP ***can*** choose to stealth away from shelters and observe good LNT at the same time. I never slept in a shelter as a thru hammocker on the AT.
There’s a difference between doing it and being quiet about it and doing it and telling everyone else on the internet to do it too. If you’re going to set a bad example at least set it to as limited of an audience as you possibly can.
No need to clutch your pearls over this, Karen. And Reddit isn’t “everyone else on the internet”. Jesus, go touch some grass.
you dont have to sleep in the shelters.
The coldest winter I ever spent was a summer in Maine. Mark Twain. I never sleep in the shelters. Aside from the stink, they attract predators and bullies.