Little River - Rough Creek

Date: 2/22/14
Distance: 15 mi

Today was a spectacular spring day.  It made it all the better that it happened in February.  Today's goal was to hike the Rough Creek Trail in the Elkmont area of the park.  To access the trail, you have to hike 4.6 miles up the Little River Trail.   I've hiked the Little River trail several times.  It is a very wide gently sloping trail which hugs the bank of the Little River.

About 4.4 miles into the hike there are a couple of challenging stream crossings.   They can be rock hopped, but not with out some effort and a twinge of fear.

4.6 miles into the hike, the Rough Creek Trail turns to the left and you start some serious climbing.  This trail also hugs a creek.  It has 3 challenging crossings.  I didn't have to put on my water shoes, but I burned up several minutes finding a good place to cross and got a good dose of adrenaline during the crossings.  At one of them, I walked the log in the picture below.  You may notice that the far right side doesn't touch the ground, so the closer I got to this side the more it bounced to add to the excitement.  Wasn't too bad on the way up, but on the way home when the bouncing started early in the trip and you were 4 ft above the water, it was exciting.

 There were also 2 or 3 smaller crossings that were not a problem.  This nice cascade fed water into rough creek.

The creek gradually got smaller as you headed up the trail.  It was a nice companion as I made my way up the mountain.

The climb just gets steeper and steeper as you head up the mountain to meet the Old Sugarland trail.  The total climb was 1500' for the 2.8 mile trail.  The last 1/2 mile was brutal as it had the steepest slope and hugged the side of a mountain.  The trail wasn't great in this area as it had eroded in a few places so that the slope of the trail tries to send you down the side.  Arriving at the top was a relief and the view was great.

 I believe it looks out towards the Chimney tops.

Start Time: 9:00
Rough Creek Trailhead: 10:30
End of Rough Creek:  11:45
Lunch:  11:45-12:00
Back at Little River: 1:00
Back at Car:  2:10

Abrams Falls - Hatcher Mtn - Rabbit Creek Loop

Date:  2/20/14
Distance:  11.2

After 2 weeks in the middle east, I was ready for a hike.  I headed for Cades Cove to hike the Abrams Falls, Hatcher Mountain, Rabbit Creek Loop.

It was uncommonly warm for February, so I was hiking in shorts.  I had hiked to Abrams Falls many times in the past, but this was the 1st time I've hiked past the falls.

The hike to the falls passed quickly with a few nice views along the way.

I have never been at Abrams Falls alone.  The solitude was nice.

After lunch at the falls, I continued on Abrams Falls trail for a total of 4.2 miles.  At that point you must cross the creek.  I had no idea what to expect, but had brought my Chacos for the crossing.  It was much wider and deeper than I expected.  It wasn't quite waist deep, the water was swift and very cold.  To make it more challenging, the rocks on the creek bed were very slippery.   At one point, I considered turning back, but in the process of turning, it felt more dangerous than just toughing in out.  After reaching the far side, I noticed that I was hyped up on a big adrenaline rush.

After the crossing, you stay on Hatcher Mountain for 1.9 miles.  At that point, I turned left on Rabbit Creek. Trail.

After a mile or so on Rabbit Creek, there was another stream crossing.  It was not nearly as deep and dangerous, but it did require that I put the Chacos back on.

From this point, the trail headed up hill for several tiring miles.  The climb was less than 1000 ft, but I was out of shape from all of the traveling, so it felt worse.  Just before reaching the car there was one final stream crossing.  This one wasn't much deeper than knee deep.

Cooper Road (Cades Cove to Cane Creek)

Date:  2/1/14
Distance: 14.8 mi

I had previously hiked the portion of Cooper Road from Abrams Creek to Cane Creek. For this hike, I started on the Cades Cove Loop Road and hiked to Cane Creek to complete the Cooper Road Trail.  It was a cool clear day and Cades Cove was very scenic.

There was a deer between the trail and the road as I started.

The trail is wide and was in good shape.  There was a bit of snow on the ground in places.

There are several spots where there were nice views on the trail.

One of the small creeks was completely frozen over.

There were many signs of tornado damage from a few years ago.

 It was a very clear and beautiful day.

Cades Cove was also nice in the afternoon.