Low Gap - Camel Gap - AT - Low Gap Loop

New Miles Completed: 6.6
Total Miles Hiked: 15.8
1 June 2017

I really love the Cosby area of the park. It feels to me much more like the GSMNP must have been in the early years, compared to the hustle, bustle and ultra-touristy feel of Gatlinburg... And on this day the Cosby entrance sign was framed by beautiful Rhododendrons in flower.

Cosby entrance to the GSMNP

The goal for this hike was to make a loop out of the Low Gap, Camel Gap, and Appalachian Trail. Starting at the Cosby hiker's parking lot, up and over Low Gap down to it's junction with Big Creek, hooking up there with Camel Gap and taking it up to the AT, then back down to Low Gap and Cosby Campground. I had previously done the north side of the Low Gap trail (what the Little Brown Book calls "Low Gap II"), but had never done the southern half ("Low Gap I").

Trailhead is at the Cosby hiker's parking area, which requires hikers to navigate the maze of trails surrounding Cosby campground in order to get to the real beginning of Low Gap trail.

Low Gap trailhead

Low Gap junction with Lower Mt. Cammerer trail

The hike up and out of Cosby to Low Gap is only 2.9 miles, but gains over 2000 feet in elevation over that distance. It's a butt-kicker way to start your day! While steep, it is also beautiful with wildflowers and follows Cosby creek for much of the lower section. It is also well-traveled though and can by very rocky and rooty.

Cosby Creek

Worn trail leaving behind a network of roots to trip over.

Galax

Mountain Laurel

Clinton's Lily or White Clintonia

At Low Gap you cross the Appalachian Trail which leads left (northwest) toward Mt. Cammerer or right (southeast) toward Cosby Knob shelter. The elevation at Low Gap is 4242 feet according to the USGS marker there.

USGS marker at Low Gap

Trail sign at Low Gap

From here I plunged down the southern side of Low Gap trail down toward Walnut Bottom and Big Creek. The trail going down from Low Gap is much the same as the trail going up on the other side. Along the way down I paused at a water crossing and looked closely at the source of the stream only to realize I was standing right beside a constructed spring house that someone had built around a lovely spring. There is evidence of the people who lived here all around us, although nature is slowly, but surely taking it back. There are lots of lovely little cascades along this section too.

Spring house

About 2.5 miles below Low Gap the trail runs into Big Creek and the Big Creek trail near backcountry campsite #37. 

Low Gap - Big Creek trail junction

I turned right along Big Creek toward Camel Gap trail and backcountry campsite #36 where I stopped for lunch. Campsite 36 was build to accommodate horses and so comes complete with a set of stalls in addition to the usual bear cables and fire pit. There was also some unidentified metal scrap. This trail is an old rail line right-of-way from the logging days before the park, so there are a lot of railroad artifacts along the way.

Horse stalls

Campsite sign and scrap metal

Fire ring

Big Creek which is right beside CS #36

This is a nice, big open campsite that is right along Big Creek. Because it's a horse trail and campsite it was really buggy, but otherwise a lovely site. I stopped here for lunch, and sat on a rock on the creek bank soaking in the sights and sounds. After finishing up lunch I headed further up Big Creek trail toward Camel Gap. Now here's an odd thing: most trails begin and end at significant spots like road crossings or junctions with other trails. Not so with Camel Gap trail... Apparently Big Creek trail ends and Camel Gap trail begins at some completely indistinguishable spot on the trail between CS #36 and the junction with Gunther Creek trail. There is a sign here that points out the change, but there's no rhyme or reason as to why it is at that particular spot.

End of Big Creek trail / beginning of Camel Gap trail.

Camel Gap - Gunther Fork trail junction

Camel Gap trail seems to me to be one of those trails that is simply not well-traveled, which makes sense. It's not an important connector between other well-traveled trails, nor are there big, exciting things to see like big waterfalls or amazing vistas. So the trail is kind of grown over (unfortunately for me in my shorts, it is grown up with a lot of stinging nettle). But it is really a wonderful trail that follows the beautiful Big Creek essentially to it's source. Along the way there are LOTS of great views of small waterfalls and cascades, and just gorgeous shots of the river itself. 

Camel Gap trail

Big Creek along the Camel Gap trail

Unkown (to me) chunk of metal along Camel Gap trail

This section of the trail is still on an old railway, so parts of it are held up by rock walls presumably originally built for the rail lines. The trail alternates between walking creekside and being on the floodplain just on the other side of a wall of Rhododendron from the creek. The valley you are climbing up is lush and green. The lower section of Camel Gap trail is reasonably flat - it does gain some elevation, but slowly so you don't really feel it. Then about half-way up the trail you start to climb away from Big Creek and up the ridge toward the crest of the mountain and the Appalachian Trail. Here the trail gets steeper, and the upper section of this trail is no joke. It climbs up and then along the ridge, and at least at one spot provides a wonderful view.

Old piece of railroad track slowly getting lost under the foliage

Blue-eyed Grass

Upper section of Camel Gap trail

View from Camel Gap trail

Ultimately the Camel Gap trail empties out at the Appalachian Trail about 2.4 miles southwest of Low Gap. I had naively assumed that the section of the AT from Camel Gap down to Low Gap would be mostly downhill. I was sorely disappointed... The AT from here climbs up and over Ross Knob before flattening out and following the ridge for a ways before ultimately descending into Low Gap. This was actually a really pleasant part of the day (despite the uphill) because I LOVE being at high elevation and there were lots of great wildflowers still going strong.

Camel Gap - AT junction 

White blaze of the Appalachian Trail

Canada Mayflower

Solomon's Plume / False Solomon's Seal

Bluebead Lily

Catawba Rhododendron

Waterleaf

Ganoderma

Finally I made my way back to Low Gap and then back down the Low Gap trail the way I had come up earlier that morning back to Cosby hiker's parking lot. Camel Gap trail was a pleasant surprise. Next time I go I will wear long pants (or go in the winter), but it's a neat trail and Big Creek is an absolutely gorgeous creek. 

The whole loop of nearly 16 miles took me about 7 hours to complete. The hike up Low Gap and then the upper section of Camel Gap were steep and tough. I was pretty worn out by the time I got back to the car. But it's always a great day when you're in the mountains, and this day was no exception.

Til next time, happy hiking!

Snake Den Ridge Trail

New Miles Completed: 5.3
Total Miles Hiked: 10.6
Elevation Gain: 3,400 feet!
14 April 2017

Ok - let's just get this out of the way upfront...  The Snake Den Ridge trail is steep...

Trail elevation profile from Hiking Trails of the Smokies

Snake Den Ridge trail starts in Cosby Campground, right near campsite B-51. So you have park in the hiker's parking area at the front of the campground and then walk through the campground to find the trailhead.

At the trailhead - 5.3 miles up to the Appalachian Trail

About the first 0.7 miles of the trail follows an old road. The trail is gravel and wide. Along the way you will pass the Williamson Cemetery on the right side of the trail (as you are ascending). It's a small cemetery of maybe 15 or so graves, mostly folks from the Williamson family. Cemeteries in the Smokies always seem to be carpeted in moss, giving them an odd yellowish green glow.

Williamson Cemetery

At the end of the gravel road section of the trail is a loop turnaround, and from here on out the trail assumes a more typical Smokies trail-like feel. From here to the top the trail is generally a single hiker wide, sometimes smooth, but often rocky and rooty. After leaving Cosby Campground the trail meanders over a couple of watersheds and has its only bridged crossing at Little Rock Creek.

Bridge over Little Rock Creek

From here the trail starts to ascend the flanks of Snake Den Mountain, and follows the crest of the ridge up, ultimately to meet the Maddron Bald trail and then the Appalachian Trail. Snake Den Ridge trail is open to both hikers and horses. In some of the steep and/or muddy areas the horses have a pretty serious impact on the trail.

Horse impacts on the trail

The lower parts of the trail were fairly barren wildflower wise. But through the middle section there were lots of Sweet White Trillium, Phlox, Chickweed, some nice patches of Squirrel Corn, Foam Flower and Bishop's Cap. As I neared the top of the trail, the sides became carpets of Carolina Spring Beauty, and I found some beautiful patches of Trout Lily.

Phlox

Trout Lily

Sweet White Trillium

A carpet of Carolina Spring Beauty along the upper sections of the trail

There are also some very nice views from rocky outcrops along the trail. As the trail ascends along Snake Den Mountain there are several spots where it rounds the edge of a ridge before ascending further. These edges provide views down into the valley below, especially this time of year when the leaves are still off of the trees.

View down into Cosby

As you near the top, the Snake Den Ridge trail meets up with the Maddron Bald trail. I did the Maddron Bald trail and Albright Grove Loop in December 2016 under very different conditions. December was cold and clear with lows on the trail around 15 degrees F. This day was warm and sunny (I was sweating on my way up!) and a very pleasant day to be out on the trail in shorts and a t-shirt.

Snake Den Ridge - Maddron Bald trail junction

Just 0.7 miles up from this trail junction is the Appalachian Trail and the terminus of the Snake Den Ridge trail. I stopped here and chatted with a few other day hikers who were making a loop out of Cosby up Low Gap - A.T. - Snake Den Ridge; they were also working on completing their maps of the park. Then I got to chat with a couple of section hikers who had started at the southern terminus of the A.T. at Springer Mountain, GA and who were headed up to Hot Springs, NC. It was nice to meet them and hear their stories of the trail.

Snake Den Ridge - Appalachian Trail junction

From here I turned back and headed down the Snake Den Ridge trail back to my waiting car at Cosby Campground. Needless to say going down was considerably easier than coming up. That said, while Snake Den Ridge trail WAS tough going up, it wasn't as difficult as I had feared. It's a bit of a slog in parts for sure, but never did I think I was about to die... The views, the wildflowers, and the sense of accomplishment were my reward.

I am closing in on being half-way done with my quest to hike all the trails in the Smokies.  Most of the Tennessee side of the park is complete, but the North Carolina side of my map looks woefully bare. Going to have to plan some longer excursions and some multi-day backpacking trips to knock out those trails.

Hope you all have had a chance to get out and enjoy the trails and the wildflowers this spring!  Til next time, happy hiking!

Long Bunk Trail

New Miles Completed: 3.6
Total Miles Hiked: 8.2
25 March 2017

This year our wedding anniversary get-away took us to a cabin in Cosby, TN. Since we don't often get over to this side of the park, we wanted to take the opportunity to do a new trail. I picked out the Long Bunk trail as a reasonable out-and-back hike.  It's a 1/2 mile up the Mt. Sterling trail from the road to the beginning of the Long Bunk trail, 3.6 miles down Long Bunk to its junction with Little Cattaloochee trail, and then we retraced our steps.

First things first - Old NC 284, aka Mount Sterling Road is a gravel, winding, narrow mountain road. While it's only about 9 miles from the Waterville exit on I-40, it took a LONG time to drive...

Second - the Mount Sterling trail is steep.  Even though you only have to go up a 1/2 mile, it's up, up, up.

Trail Head for Long Bunk trail at its junction with the Mount Sterling trail

Ok, the Long Bunk trail. This trail is near the eastern boundary of the park. It connects the Mount Sterling trail with the Little Cataloochee trail, and my guess is that most people who do this trail do it as a part of a bigger loop.  It is early spring now, so the trees are all still bare which makes for some cool hiking - you can see a long way through the trees and get a good feel for the lay of the land.

Bare trees = good views through the trees

From the trailhead the Long Bunk trail generally descends through open woods, around and over small ridges, crossing or following small creeks, along the eastern flanks of Long Bunk Ridge.  The trail is at times rough and rocky, but for the most part is reasonably wide and smooth. It's almost never steep, but does have occasional long descents/ascents (depending on which way you are traveling).

Mossy tree trunk along the trail leading down to a creek crossing

One of several very shallow creek crossings

There are several places where the trail crosses very shallow creeks, but these are all easily rock-hopped or just waded through.  Nothing challenging at all. There are some views off to the east to the range of ridges just outside the eastern boundary of the park.  Most of these will be gone when the leaves are back on the trees, but today we could see across the valley to the neighboring ridges.

Metal pieces from some long-forgotten contraption.

This valley was settled prior to the park, and you can see occasional evidence in the form of random pieces of metal, old cans, and rock mounds.  And while it is early spring, there were very few wildflowers out on this trail.  We saw Spring Beauty, Squaw Root, and a few Violets, but nothing else.  There are also a lot of grape vines on this trail, many of which are quite large.

Spring Beauty

Squaw Root

Grape vine climbing a tree

Near the bottom of the trail is one of the historical highlights - the Hannah Cemetery.  It's right on the trail, so you can't miss it.  Not a huge cemetery - maybe 20 or 30 graves, mostly folks from the Hannah family.  Some very old - folks born in the 1830s!  And some pretty recent too, with folks buried here who died in the 2000s.  As with most Smokies cemeteries there are several children, which is always sad to see.

Hannah Cemetery

And just a little further down the trail you reach the junction with the Little Cataloochee Trail and the end of the Long Bunk Trail.  As we were hiking down this section we could hear the bells of the Little Cataloochee Baptist Church which was just a mile or so away.  We stopped here for lunch and a rest.

Long Bunk trail - Little Cataloochee trail junction

Lunch-time selfie!

From here we turned around trudged back UP-hill... The way back up wasn't quite as much fun as the way down, but it was still a beautiful day with a beautiful person celebrating a beautiful marriage. So all is well.

Til next time, happy hiking!