Overview
Starting Point: Fork Ridge trailhead (pull off/AT access along Clingmans Dome Road)
Ending Point: Laurel Falls parking lot
Trail(s): AT southbound, Sugarland Mountain Trail
Trail Type: Point to point
Total Miles: 12 according to CalTopo
Elevation Gain: 959’
Elevation Loss: 4551’
As our guiding season is slowly drawing to a close, Cade and I have made a point to start hiking for fun again. I’ve discussed this in previous posts, but because of the fact that we hike for a living, it isn’t often that we hit the trails of our own volition. We have begun making a conscious effort to venture onto new trails in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. While we may hike 30+ miles a week for work, we are almost always traversing the same trails or the same route trip after trip.
The Smokies boast nearly 850 miles of trail. Access to several different trails requires a journey along other trails to reach the starting point. For this reason, Smokies enthusiasts refer to the GSMNP as having 900 miles of trails. The allure of joining the 900 milers club has kept dedicated hikers coming back to the Smokies for years. It is a little-known club that only the elite belong to, and Cade and I both hope to one day be among them.
Cade grew up hiking in the Smokies, but I didn’t get into backpacking until college. For this reason, Cade has completed many more miles in the Park than I have. Even though I grew up in Western North Carolina, I did not frequent the GSMNP until I moved to East Tennessee for work. We, like many other aspiring 900 milers, have our own $1 Park maps that we love to highlight as we complete trails. Each time we finish a new route for work or venture on a new trail in our free time, I look forward to returning home and breaking out my blue Sharpie to mark off another trail.
Method to the Madness
On Friday, October 14, 2022, we had the day off and decided to take advantage of the beautiful weather to check off another trail and enjoy the fall colors. We referenced our Hiking Trails of the Smokies book to pick a longer trail that was on the Tennessee side of the park since it’s closer to our home in Gatlinburg. We settled on the Sugarland Mountain trail because its trailhead is off Clingmans Dome Road, a road that we know will close during the winter.
We decided to take both our cars and set a shuttle for ourselves; we left my car at our ending point (Laurel Falls parking lot) and drove Cade’s truck to our starting point (Fork Ridge trailhead). This way we could hike from car to car and end the day by retrieving the car left at Fork Ridge trailhead and then drive the short distance to Clingmans Dome to watch the sunset.
Trail Synopsis
From the Fork Ridge trailhead where we left Cade’s truck, we were almost immediately on the Appalachian Trail at 11am. We took a left, meaning that we were heading south on the AT (sobo). In less than 0.2 miles, we were at our first junction and left the AT to begin the long descent on the Sugarland Mountain Trail.
Once on the Sugarland Mountain Trail, our first highlight was passing the Mt. Collins shelter. This is one of several shelters in the Park and is usually occupied by backpackers. Cade spent the night at this shelter during his 2021 thru hike of the AT, and for that reason, we decided to take a trip down memory lane and flip through the shelter log book. We admired some shelter graffiti, our favorite “artwork” being the giant banana split. We didn’t see any wary hikers coming to rest their bones for the evening, so we continued hiking the short distance to the spring where we filled up our water using our Katadyn BeFree water filter.
Cameled up and with 2 liters of water each, we began our hike in earnest. The trail passed through fir and spruce forests typical of higher elevations. This type of terrain reminds me of landscapes you may see further north in Maine or even into Canada. The sweet-smelling Fraser firs didn’t last long as we quickly began descending into hardwood forests with lots of birch trees and witch hobble. We bustled over fallen leaves that crunched beneath our Altras as we made our way down the trail.
Passing through many rhododendron tunnels, we got glimpses of far off peaks like the Chimney Tops and Mt. LeConte. We could tell that we were losing elevation and guessed that the trail would pass right along the ridge above the Chimneys. Cade was hopeful that the trail would crest the ridge and run along the spine of the mountain, and he certainly got his wish!
Knife's Edge of the Smokies
Eventually, the thick shrubbery thinned and the trees obscuring our view fell away. I imagine that this trail dealt hikers incredible views prior to the 2016 fires that burned through thousands of acres in the Park and around Gatlinburg, but with many of the trees being burned away, we were left with phenomenal views. I would argue that these were some of the best views in the park, and the fact that we were able to have the picturesque site to ourselves made it all the better. Other iconic views in the Smokies like Charlies Bunion are often crowded, but we were alone and able to take in the scenery uninterrupted on a bluebird day (which is unheard of during peak leaf season!)
The trail was narrow and obviously went through an area that was severely burned in during the 2016 fires. The infamous fire started at the Chimney Tops, so it is no wonder the Sugarland Mountain Trail was highly affected. Cade was able to find where the trail had likely been rerouted due to the blaze. We soaked up all the scenery that we could before pressing on to indulge in more dramatic vistas and fall colors. As we made our way across the ridge we even got to see 2 peregrine falcons flying overhead. It is not uncommon for these birds to roost at the nearby Alum Cave Bluff, but seeing them is always a treat.
We hiked on to another fantastic viewpoint where we paused for a photo opp. It is hard to pinpoint exactly when peak leaf season will take place, but here at high elevations, it was obvious we were experiencing prime leaf looking. There were vibrant pops of reds, oranges, and yellows everywhere we turned, and the chain of color extended all the way down into the valley below. The fall showcase was only complimented by the crisp temperatures and clear blue skies overhead.
Cade and I tried to take in as much of the scenery as we could while still hiking at a decent pace. We reached the Rough Creek Trail junction around 2pm where we stopped for snacks and water before pressing on. The viewpoints were once again hidden by leaves as we descended further into the valley.
The trail was mostly downhill the entire day, but the few uphill jaunts made us both thankful to be hiking with trekking poles. Traveling with a daypack instead of a 30+ pound backpack feels freeing, and Cade and I were able to fly down the trail with little resistance. We have hiked close to 2,000 miles together at this point, and we still always manage to have fun exploring the outdoors and enjoying each other’s company. Cade is a much faster hiker than I am, so I hike in front of him to set our pace and ensure that he doesn’t “accidentally” run off and leave me. We have gotten comfortable enough to where hiking in silence is just as easy as keeping up the conversation, and days like this make me grateful to have a partner who enjoys the same pastimes as I do. Not many people would enjoy a 12 mile day hike!
We passed through more hardwood forests and tried to take in as much of the changing colors as possible. The greens of the mountain laurel and rhododendron only made the yellows and reds pop more against the contrast. I truly believe taking a hike and immersing yourself in nature is the best way to enjoy the change of the seasons.
At the trail junction with Huskey Gap Trail we took another break to eat some snacks and sip water. Our go to trail snacks are usually whatever we can find in our kitchen cupboard, and today we feasted on trail mix, dried mango, and granola bars. We saw a lone hiker finishing lunch at this junction, but other than that we saw no other hikers. Cade relaxed enough to have to fight off the urge to nap before we got moving again to finish the last leg of the hike.
The only major climb of the day came after our break at Huskey Gap, but it lasted less than half a mile and wasn’t steep enough to require breaks. The last bit of the day consisted of leisurely hiking as we began our final descent to the trailhead at Laurel Falls. When we parked our car this morning the parking lot was so crowded we ended up having to park nearly a mile away. It blew my mind to arrive in a parking lot overrun with people, especially considering that we only encountered one other hiker all day. We finished the hike at 5pm and felt accomplished by having covered 12 miles in 6 hours, meaning our pace was roughly 2 mph. This also includes breaks, so we were probably moving between 2-3 mph, another plus to hiking without a full pack and without clients.
After finishing our hike, Cade and I walked along the road to reach my car parked nearly a mile from the trailhead. We had the unfortunate luck to get stuck in traffic for 45 minutes before we could even reach the Sugarlands Visitor Center, meaning it took 45 minutes for us to drive just over 5 miles. I feel like that is the perfect summarization for leaf season in Gatlinburg. From there we drove back to Cade’s truck at the Fork Ridge trailhead before driving a couple of miles to the Clingmans Dome parking lot. We arrived just in time to stand with throngs of people freezing our tails off to watch the sunset. What a perfect end to an unforgettable day!
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