On May 1, I went on an amazing hiking trip in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. I’ve always loved hiking, especially when we visit a new location, but this was a destination with the purpose of hiking Mt. LeConte, outside of Gatlinburg, Tennessee.

I was excited about the prospect of a challenging trail, and along with the other women from church who signed up for the trip, we trained for about three months beforehand. I switched up my routine at the gym, worked on building strength in my legs, got new equipment, like a backpack with a water reservoir, and took a lot of local hikes wearing a loaded backpack to get ready for the almost eleven-mile hike we would be tackling.

And tackle we did!

We arrived in the parking lot at the base of the mountain at 7:15 in the morning. It was exciting to get started. I will admit that I was in the back of the pack because I couldn’t resist taking pictures. While the path was mostly flat and littered with rocks, adjacent to a rushing stream, the incline arrived much too soon, and we had to adjust to the change.

The terrain was much more rugged than I’m used to. There were large rocks we had to climb over, stairs built into the inclines to assist in climbing, and since the weather had been rainy prior to the day we hiked, the rocks we climbed over were slippery.

About midway, we came to a large, open cave that had been prospected many years ago. We sat for a while, got a bite to eat to increase our energy and sang How Great is Our God and Raise a Hallelujah for the ladies who were having a tough time reaching this spot. The acoustics were phenomenal, and the songs were beautiful.

Then came the second half of the hike, which was even more demanding than I’d ever imagined. The paths were narrower and there were spots where if you stepped off, you’d fall down the side of the mountain. But the views were absolutely breathtaking. And then, we came to areas where we were climbing over granite cut from the mountain. Large eye bolts were drilled into the rock with a metal cable threaded through so we could hold on while working our way up the incline. Believe me when I say I stopped plenty of times to lower my heart rate. It was tough, but looking back now, a challenge I was ready for.

As we got closer to the top, the temperature started to drop. Before long we’d added layers and raincoats because there was heavy humidity in the air. There was a thick cloud cover and once we finally reached the summit, we could not see a view at all. It was all white. The wind was wild, the air was wet, but we’d made it! And sang again, this time Because He Lives.

It took us about six hours to hike to the top. After a short rest, we had to make our way down. Unfortunately, I slipped and fell before we got very far. As we started the descent, my knee started hurting. Let’s just say that for the next four or five hours, I can’t tell you which, I was extremely focused on my footing while my knee hurt every time I took a step. If you’ve ever hiked, you know that you have to adjust your stride when going down. I actually think it took more of a toll on my legs than going up.

We arrived back at the car at 6:15 in the evening. In total, it took me eleven hours to complete the trip. For the group ahead who had no problems, it took them about ten hours. I had a fantastic group of women who stayed with me, encouraging me to keep going and I was able to hold on to one friend’s backpack with one hand while I used a walking stick in the other. As much as I was disappointed in getting hurt, I can say that I’m really proud that I did the hike.

My knees are better, and while the point of the trip was the hike, it was beautiful to hang out with friends when we did a smaller hike the day before Mt. Le Conte and to also spend time shopping in Gatlinburg.

The group is already talking about doing the same mountain next April. They want to do the hike in a shorter time. You may be wondering if I’ll be going. Right now, the answer is no. Or maybe…TBD. We’ll see.

Tara Randel is an award-winning, USA Today bestselling author. Family values, a bit of mystery and of course, love and romance, are her favorite themes, because she believes love is the greatest gift of all. Look for her Harlequin Heartwarming romance THE SURPRISE NEXT DOOR, available MAY 27, 2025. For more information about her books, visit Tara at www.tararandel.com. Like her on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/TaraRandelBooks.