5-8-26, Smokies Off-trail, Courthouse Rock and Quilliams Cave

The hike to Quilliams Cave and Courthouse Rock is one of the better-known off-trail hiking routes in the Smokies. There’s lots of info about it online, and the hike is relatively short and easy. But for some reason, Jean and I had never hiked it. I’d found a GPX track, plus several maps and descriptions online, but none of this info was as clear and useful as I was used to getting from my regular sources. Even though I wasn’t confident about the route, Jean and I decided to give it shot. Luckily for us Ed decided to come along.

Ed, of course, had done the hike, and, of course, led the hike for the SMHC, and, of course, had used the route to launch a more ambitious trip up and over Sugarland Mountain. But it had been several years since Ed’s trips, so there would be some adventure for all of us.

We met up to carpool at Sugarlands VC. We first drove up US 441 to a small pullout on the west where the road crosses Road Turn Branch. We were hoping to start on the grade of the long-abandoned pre-US 441 Road but did not see the grade here. So, we drove up to the second pullout on the right and tried again. This time we found old road just above the new one.

The wide, engineered grade of the pre-441 road was obvious, but overgrown to our left (and heading south). We followed a well-defined manway along the grade to our right (north). Almost immediately the manway forks. Another good manway splits left providing a short cut across Hickory King Branch back to the main manway along Road Turn Branch. We continued right on the manway and old road. The main manway is well used for its entire length, and it is no trouble to follow even in the midst of summer growth. However, there are numerous side paths that will distract hikers from the main route. I’ve heard various versions of whether or not this manway was once a park maintained trail. Ed thought it never had been an official trail, but one of the write-ups I found on the old “Go Smokies” website stated, “The 1945 park book called this the Rock House, but was never put in any newer books.” The manway does not appear on the 1931 map, but the 1949 park map shows the manway along Road Turn Branch.

It was too late for flowers after our early spring, but the spring green still dominated, and we saw foliage for many flowers including trilliums. The manway was clear through the explosion of spring growth, and there was even a little very old gravel in the tread. As the manway turns left into Road Turn Branch, it leaves the old road grade. The manway then follows the branch a short distance. Where the manway turns right and away from the branch, we could see a faint path crossing the creek. This path is likely the west end of the connector manway that we had seen near our parking pullout. Our intent was to take this connector on our return leg, but we all missed seeing this junction as we came back down.

The manway climbs the north side of Road Turn Branch using two switchbacks, the first is long and wide, and the second is short and sharp. A few old rock piles presumably mark old farm structures. Much of the manway is a rhodo or laurel tunnel, the opportunities for going cross country here looked limited. There are overlooks in the elbows of the switchbacks out toward Big Branch, Bullhead and Balsam Point on LeConte.

Ed looking at LeConte.

At about 2900’, a gravestone-sized rock marks the start of the ~0.1-mile side trip to Courthouse Rock. 

Marker for the turn to Courthouse Rock.

It is hard to judge the size of the rock amid summer’s growth, but it is likely 50 feet in, and the about same in height. There is one smaller rock above it (Judge Rock?) but otherwise Courthouse Rock sits alone on the hillside, like some lost visitor from the canyon country of the Big South Fork. The front side of the rock is clear of vegetation, but circling the rock requires some rhodo bashing on the back end. Both here and at Quilliams Cave we noticed more graffiti than usual for the Smokies. Are vandals more active in these unmapped, but internet available places, where the rangers are less likely to patrol?

Jean at Courthouse Rock.

We headed back to the main manway and resumed our climb. The manway is steep, and there are more blowdowns above Courthouse Rock, but this is easy hiking by off-trail standards. There is another crossing of Road Turn Branch, then manway becomes braided near the top. But the climb is worth it! The cave sits at the base of a ~100’ tall band of cliffs circling around the head of Road Turn Branch. The left side of the cliff is mostly breakdown, but there is a wide rock house-like cave occupying the right side, ideal for a lunch stop. The day had been bright and shiny, and the stark contrast between the bright sky and the shade of the dense forest made for difficult photography. Winter photos with even light and less foreground clutter would be better than what we could capture in the harsh sunlight. After exploring a “Hidden Passage”-like route through the back of the cave, we headed back down the manway. 

Jean and Ed in Quilliams Cave.

Just below Courthouse Rock, we heard the voices of another party but did not see them. We missed the end of the bypass trail at the crossing of Road Turn Branch. Probably this junction is much clearer in winter. But we did spot the short side trail to a viewpoint and small waterfall. Total distance for the hike was about 3.6 miles. 

Ed and I at small falls on Road Turn Branch.

Smokies Off-trail, Rhodo and Injun Creek Manways 4-20-26

Rhododendron Creek (aka The Waterfalls) and Injun Creek manways, Smokies OT

Though prompted by my 2026 trip, this report combines the notes from all of my trips along these two manways and in chronologic order.

10-23-04, Rhodo & Injun Creek Loop, w/GRSM BC Office Volunteers

At this time, I was volunteering at the NPS Backcountry Office answering questions for backpackers and helping to issue permits. I was a fill-in and had no regular schedule, but I had done enough work to be invited to an appreciation picnic that was held in Greenbrier. A hike would be paired with the picnic. After some discussion we decided to hike Rhododendron Creek-Grapeyard Ridge-Injun Creek as a clockwise ~6-mile loop that included a 0.8-mile shuttle or road walk on the Greenbrier Road. The hike was suggested by Alma Williamson (Volunteer) and George Minnigh who was the park’s backcountry ranger. This was my first time on either manway. I don’t have photos or a GPS track from this trip. The manways are old roads and both manways show on the 1931 and 1947 maps.

On Rhodo Creek in 2006.

Both Rhodo Creek and Injun Creek had well developed manways along their namesake creeks. Rhodo Creek starts at the first bridge beyond the Ranger Station on the right (west) side of the road. It is a nice ~1-mile manway with ~9 small waterfalls. We were told that there are great wildflowers in the spring. At one point, the trail split into high and low paths with differing views of the waterfalls.

Rhodo Creek joins the Grapeyard Ridge Trail where the trail crosses Rhodo Creek going north to south (assuming you are hiking west to east). From here it is about two miles to CS 32. We saw one party on the trail. The creek crossings must have been easy, because I didn’t mention them.

The Injun Creek Manway is a well-defined old road with lots of rock walls from settlement. About 2/3 of the way down at a rock wall is a sign for the McCarter Cemetery on a side trail leading west. The side trail goes ½ to a ¼ mile to the hilltop moss-covered cemetery. There are ~16 graves mostly from the 1920s, a few with readable stones. Some of the script is hardly readable as English. There is a foot log with a handrail on the cemetery side trail. There are ~6 foot logs on the lower Injun Creek Manway. The manway ends at the gate by the Ranger Station. This would make a great SMHC trip.

3-18-05, Rhodo and Injun Creek Loop with Jean

Jean and I had planned a backpack trip to Porters Creek, but we quickly realized that the distance (3.7 miles one way) would not be enough for us. I remembered the 6-mile Rhodo-Injun Creek “off trail” hike that I had done last spring with the Backcountry Office volunteers, and suspected that Jean would enjoy the loop.

Rhodo Creek in 2005

We parked at the Greenbrier Ranger Station and walked up the Greenbrier Road to do the loop in its usual clockwise direction. We saw all the waterfalls on Rhodo Creek, but there were fewer flowers than expected, and the route seemed heavily used for an unmaintained trail. On Grapeyard Ridge Trail we found several of the crossings to be tough because of high water. We stopped for lunch at CS 32 and found a smoldering campfire, which we put out. It was an easy hike back to the ranger station with foot logs and handrails on three of the crossings. We did not do the side trip to McCarter Cemetery. I did not GPS the route, but Jean took slides, some of which I later digitized.

We then headed up to Porters Creek Trailhead for our backpacking trip and found that the Backcountry Office Volunteers had just set two new fire rings at the campsite.

On Porters Creek in 2005.

12-3-06, Scouting and GPS Mapping with Jean and Claudia,

This 6.5-mile hike was a scouting trip for the 2007 Smoky Mountain Hiking Club trip that would be led by Jean and Claudia. The water was up, so there were lots of small waterfalls and cascades on Rhodo Creek. On Rhodo Creek the old manway was in great shape with a couple small rock hops. There is an old home site near the Grapeyard Ridge Trail junction.

We also took the side trip on another manway to the “Phone Line Chimney” on Blazed Pine Ridge, which had a metal phone line along it. Lunch was at Campsite 32.

The "Injun" in 2006.

We also took the side trip to McCarter Cemetery. We saw two people and one old homesite on the return leg.

My notes are brief for this trip, but I have a screen shot of original GPS plot.

McCarter Cemetery 2006.

3-24-07, SMHC Trip led by Jean

The 2007 Smoky Mountains Hiking Club Trip.

Claudia signed up to co-lead this 8-mile trip, but I ended up subbing for her. Our group of 14 did the loop clockwise from the Greenbrier Ranger Station. We took side trips to the McCarter, Rayfield, and “Child of John Owenby” cemeteries. Frank March joined us for the latter two. I have a few cemeteries marked on my Topo! Map but I am unsure of the locations of the two Frank showed us. I suspect the Owenby Child cemetery is the single grave site located just north of McCarter Cemetery on Injun Creek.

Lunch time at Janes Gap.

There was lots of water to highlight the Rhododendron Creek waterfalls. Lunch was at James Gap, then we walked down to the steam engine, which was the highlight of the trip for most of the group. There were a pair of backpackers staying at CS 32. The early spring flowers were out. We saw trailing arbutus, spring beauties, rue anemone, and white, yellow, and purple violets.

Wreck of the engine.

2-9-08, Mt Winnesoka Hike with SMHC & Jean

We used the Injun Creek manway as a return route for this long, hard off-trail hike. I didn’t make any new notes about the manway. (Link)

5-23-16, Little Rhodo Creek 6.7 miles with SMHC and Ed

Our exploration of the Rhodo Creek/Injun Creek area progressed typically for our Smokies Off-trail favorites. First, someone shows us the route. Then I take Jean out to try it. We then need to scout, and eventually lead, the route for the club. Next, we use the route to access another more exotic routes, and finally use it as a launch pad for more detailed exploration of the area. Ed’s 2016 SMHC route up Little Rhodo Creek and his 2018 SMHC trip up Rayfield Orchard represent the detailed phase of exploration in the area.

Ed and Pam had been exploring the area and had some new sites to show the club. We started up the Injun Creek Manway from the Greenbrier Ranger Station. I did not take pictures, but I have a GPS track. We took one detour to the left (east) to visit the site of an old school. Then, we climbed over a small ridge into Little Rhodo Creek. The lower part of the creek was moderately dense with rhodo. I used the GPS to mark home sites and a second school site. I took some notes on my field sheet from the 1931 Map, mostly as keys to my GPS waypoints. We eventually followed the upper part of Little Rhodo Creek to the Grapeyard Ridge Trail and finished the hike by a return on the entire length of the Injun Creek Manway.

Ed said that the name was originally “Indian” but was changed to minimize confusion with other Indian Creeks in the park. We got out late because of one slow hiker, but I thought this could be a good route for Jean and Claudia.

11-17-18, Rayfield Orchard with SMHC with Ed and Jean 

SMHC trip to Rayfield Orchard.

This 5.8-mile hike was another of Ed’s exploring hikes of the old home sites in the Greenbrier area of the Smokies. 

Ed peers through the rhodo.

It was cold, but the otherwise good weather attracted 10 hikers. We first headed up the Rhodo Creek Manway. Water was high so the waterfalls popped, but the creek crossings were tricky.

Inelegant stream crossing.

We also had tough creek crossings on the Grapeyard Ridge Trail. We left the GRT at a wide-open fork that led to a home site at the end of the former orchard. We had stopped earlier to look at an old school site. Then we visited a cemetery that we had seen earlier on the hike with Bob Lochbaum, and circled around a small knob to visit a weird “cairn” that was 8’ x 8’ x 8’ on the back side. Ed did not know why this cairn was so massive. We then kept on the south side of the creek (as we headed out to the east) and then crossed right where the GRT trail crosses Rhodo Creek. We saw one other party on Rhodo Creek. From my GPS track, it seems our route was essentially out and back to Rayfield Orchard on Rhodo Creek. 

The rock cube near Rayfield Orchard.

4-20-26, Rhododendron and Injun Creeks, Off Trail with David Smith and Nate

This 7.4-mile trip was David’s suggestion. He is revisiting some old off-trail hikes he has done and combining those with late season wildflower walks. This would be the first trip on this loop for either of us since Ed’s 2018 hike.

We met at the Greenbrier Ranger Station with several other vehicles already there. Our plan was to do the loop clockwise; Greenbrier Road, Rhodo Creek Manway, Grapeyard Ridge Trail, and back via the Injun Creek Manway. Temps were 48 to 68, but calm and sunny. I took GPS tracks with Garmin and Maprika. We all took pictures. 

David on Rhodo Creek.

Traffic up the road was steady but not bothersome. The mouth of the Rhodo Creek Manway with its pullout parking was obvious. But the start of the manway was confusing because there were several other social trails joining in while the manway was still on the left side of the creek. Once we crossed to the right side past the confluence with Little Rhodo Creek, the trails consolidated into a single path.  

Moe waterfalls on Rhodo Creek.

The waterfalls then started. There were 4-5 small waterfall/cascades on the left, each with a short spur leading to a good photo spot. The trees had just leafed out, but still displayed their lush spring greens, rather than the dark mature leaves of mid-summer. We moved slowly to watch the falls and the late spring wildflowers which included yellow trillium, wild geranium, phlox, dwarf iris, may apple, and little brown jugs. 

Rhodo Creek waterfall.

David identified Sweet Shrub. On Upper Rhodo Creek we saw two chimney rock piles, the first of which I marked by GPS. Then to the left of the trail, we saw one of the larger Pink Lady Slipper displays that I’ve seen. A few plants were on the shoulder of the trail, but most were down below the trail. Overall, my field map from 2018 was sketchy about what features went with various waypoints and red circles, and I didn’t feel it necessary to try and document everything we saw. This was a good plan as there would be a lot of stuff to see, and even more things I’m sure we missed. From the intersection with Grapeyard Ridge Trail along Rhodo Creek and back to Injun Creek this entire route is mapped as road on the 1931 map. The Brown Book indicates that the CCC rebuilt the trail in the 1930s.  By the time of the 1947 map, Injun and Rhododendron creeks are shown as manways, and none of the buildings or cemeteries are shown.

Pink Lady Slipper.

Hiking up Grapeyard Ridge Trail, we met the volunteer maintainer for CS 32, who told us about another Pink Lady Slipper site at the campsite. He was unaware of the one on Rhodo Creek. I did not see any path heading toward the “Phone Line Chimney”. I also did not see paths at either intersection of the trail and the paths that Ed had followed to Rayfield Orchard in 2018. At James Gap, we explored the ridge on both sides of the trail. There is one probable chimney rock pile about 30’ north of the trail, which David remembered, but I had not.

Just below the gap on the right is the wreck of the Engine, which became the “Injun” on Injun Creek. I think the boiler was used to power a steam powered portable sawmill that crashed trying to descend into upper Injun Creek (in the 1920s according to “Place Names of the Smokies”). We chose that spot for lunch. Most of what is left is the boiler and the wheels, the parts too heavy to remove by hand, so the wreckage is still in good condition. Campsite 32 was in great shape, thanks to our volunteer buddy. We saw lots of rock walls here, and also along Grapeyard Ridge Trail. 

The boiler in 2026.

My old field map showed the connection with the McCarter Cemetery too far south, and I wondered if that had been GPS marked or merely sketched in. There is a large wide area at the junction and a small sign. We walked up to the McCarter Cemetery which had a dozen or so graves, but only a couple with readable stones. 

McCarter Cemetery.

Just below the cemetery on the side trail was an NPS crew working on a foot log over a small stream. It was a little odd to see a work crew on a non-system trail.

Only a single grave in this cemetery.

Below this point the trail was getting crowded, I suppose the route to the engine is on AllTrails (it is), or something like that. We found a one grave cemetery on a faint path on our left. Our last stop was a new-to-me path on the right leading to a chassis(?) and another piece of either a very narrow old car or rail car. 

Is this a vehicle chassis? 

The parking area was still near full when we arrived back at the Greenbrier RS. 

Smokies, Lynn Camp Prong Railroad Grade, Off Trail, 4-6-26

This trip came together at the last minute. David contacted me the day before and asked about hiking to Campsite 28 and trying to follow the old railroad grade that extended east from the campsite along Lynn Camp Prong. I was unfamiliar with the area, and only remembered that it was part of a popular horse trail loop with the Miry Ridge and West Prong trails. But the image of an obvious railroad grade extending east across Buckeye Cove had been on David’s mind for a long time, and he wanted to see how far the grade went.

Neither the 1931 nor 1949 park maps showed the grade past Campsite 28. However, the 1994 edition of Whistle over the Mountain by Schmidt and Hooks (presumably based on firsthand examination) showed the railroad grade splitting near the campsite and mapped in stubs extended up the 3,531’ tributary to the north, and east up Lynn Camp Prong to 3600’. We felt the chances of finding the grade were good, and even if we didn’t the weather was forecast to be ideal for a walk up the Middle Prong from Tremont.

I met David and Nate at 8AM at Browns Creek, and David drove to the Upper Tremont Trailhead. I took GPS tracks and a few pics, while David took more pics and posted his to Facebook. I started with my fleece hoody, which I wore until lunch, and my fleece mitts, which I didn’t need. The start temperature was about 40F, but it warmed to T-shirt weather after lunch.

We kept a steady pace hiking up the Middle Prong Trail, stopping only to see the remains of the old, crushed Cadillac near the mouth of Woodchuck Branch at the east end of the Green Camp Gap Manway. Middle Prong is an obvious old railroad grade converted to road and is now a wide, gently graded but often rocky trail. We were too early for most flowers, but it very much felt like spring and some of the trees were beginning to bud out. Above the confluence with Lynn Camp Prong the trail switchbacks upward as the terrain gets steeper. We saw one other hiker returning down the Lynn Camp Prong Trail.

At Lynn Camp Prong Junction (David Smith)

On Lynn Camp Prong Trail the flowers improved, and we saw good displays of fringed phacelia. The campsite is 0.2 mile down the main grade from the Lynn Camp Prong Trail at the spot where the trail first leaves the main grade. With 5.5 miles already behind us, we stopped at the campsite for early lunch, unsure of how strenuous our pursuit of the end of the grade would be. 

Flowers along the railroad grade (Smith).

The campsite has four isolated tent spots, two on the main grade and two below. With a frisky stream passing through, each of the sites would be isolated from the others. 

Campsite 28.

After refueling, we set off across Buckeye Cove. The grade first went through one of the tent spots. Then we encountered a healthy field of dog hobble. I was afraid the fun would end there, but there was a rough path through the dog hobble, and we quickly punched through into open hardwoods. Beyond, we could see the grade clearly along with an intermittent path. We soon entered a cove filled with a carpet of phacelia, with lesser trout lily and sweet white trillium. The carpet was dense with flowers and undisturbed by wild hogs or other animals. The sun was bright and the tree canopy extensive, so our photos of the carpet don’t do it justice. Best to say that it rivals some of the best in the Smokies, such as those at Porters Creek or on Bent Arm. 

Following the grade (Smith).

We followed the grade, which was sometimes dug in, and other times built up, but was usually wide, straight, and clear. We found one old bucket, but no other artifacts. Finally, we came to the end of grade (at ~3600’) which is marked by a small berm across it, much like the bulldozer load-sized ends of various railroad grades I have seen in the Cumberlands.

The woods ahead remained open so we followed the right side of Lynn Camp Prong to about 3720’ where a lively side creek crossed. Up to this point we’d encountered scattered briers and blowdowns, but conditions had been great. But now it looked like the rhodo was waiting to welcome us. Our wide valley looked to extend to Miry Ridge, almost exactly where Bent Arm Ridge also joined from the opposite side. It was tempting to follow that route to its end, but we had not prepared for that long a journey, and we did not have the time to complete it even if the improbable happened and our route stayed clear.

On our return trip we stayed closer to Lynn Camp Prong and crossed it briefly with the thought of exploring up the 3531’ drainage to the north. But that terrain looked rougher so we headed back to the campsite to fuel up for the hike back without crossing the suspected route of the 3531’ grade. Our exploration covered about 1.1 new miles for me.

The return hike went well with David pushing the pace. We took the short side trip to Indian Flats Falls for more pictures. 

Indian Flats Falls.

We had seen only two parties on our hike in, but the lower part of the trail was busy with families hiking up to see the cascade and other features along the Middle Prong. We were back to the car by ~3:45 and I was home around 5:15.

Cascade on Middle Prong Trail.

3-9-26, Smokies, Parson Branch and Bunker Hill from US 129

This hike was a follow up to a trip by David and Mary Ann from February. They had the idea to walk the Parson Branch Road from US 129 to Sams Gap to enjoy Parson Branch while the road was still closed for the winter to vehicles. On the way back they detoured to explore part of the old road out to the former site of the Bunker Hill Fire Tower. Without a map, they weren’t sure how far it was to the tower site, and so they turned back after a half mile or so.

David asked me if I knew the distance to the tower, and if I’d done the hike before. Measuring off the map I showed the tower road as 2.3 miles long. David, Dan and I were interested in another attempt at going directly to tower site. I invited Ed, and then Claudia, Mary Ann, and Debra were recruited.

Our Bunker Hill Team.

I had been in the area several times, but not recently. In 1994 we biked from Cades Cove to the first part of the BH Tower Road, and finished the rest on foot (1994 Trip). In 2004 we biked from Cades Cove to US 129 and back (2004 Trip). In 2007 and 2011 (2007 and 2011) we’d bushwhacked Clyde routes from US 129 both up Tabcat Creek and around the Grassy Flats and Revenue Road loop. Claudia had been on both the off-trail hiking trips.

Though we all are SMHC members, this was not a SMHC club hike and the logistics got complicated. I met Dan and Claudia at their place at 7:50. We stopped to pick up Mary Ann at the UT Research Park on US 129. Then we met David and Debra at Browns Creek in Maryville. Ed met us at the crossing of the Foothills Parkway and US 321 to complete the group. We drove over the FHP to Chilhowee Lake and 8 miles along the Tail of the Dragon on US 129 to the gate at the lower end of Parson Branch Road. We parked at a pull off just beyond the gate. We were on the trail around 9:45.

David's image of a typical section of the Manway to Bunker Hill.

Parson Branch Road proved nice walking. The surface was smooth with few rocks, and it looked like the road would be drivable without 4WD. The wide road gave us good views of the nearby creek and the steep ridges it had cut through. Only the earliest flowers were starting to bud, but we did spot one red sessile trillium in full bloom.

Our only obstacles were the auto fords, David and Mary Ann had counted ~15 of them on their earlier trip. Where the creek crosses the road, it flows over concrete slabs to reduce erosion. The water was typically only an inch or two deep, no problem for a vehicle, but just deep enough to get a running shoe wet. We all tried various means of tiptoeing across the fords. I gave in to the inevitable and plowed across with wet feet. 

At the gate at the beginning of the Bunker Hill Tower Road.

Once the fords are behind you the trail steepens. I remembered this long pull from the 2004 mountain bike ride with Mark and Matt. With a US 129 start at least we had this climb early while we were still fresh. We took a long snack break at the junction with the Tower Road, which had a gate but no sign except for a #4 marker probably from an old interpretive guide. By then it was late enough for lunch, but the logical lunch spot would be the tower, and we were only two days into Daylight Savings Time.

David and Mary Ann had warned us that the start of the Tower Road was rough, and they were right. The initial pitch was steep, and we had to negotiate passage with the rhodo that fringed the creek. It was hard to believe I had once biked this section. But we were soon out in the open where only scattered fallen trunks and small young trees blocked the way. The road followed Bunker Hill Lead. When on the side of the lead, a bench cut was obvious and even on the very crest of the lead, the former roadbed remained apparent. The road was also liberally garnished with wide red flagging. Once through the initial salad we made decent time.

The Bunker Hill Tower site in 2026.

As we approached point 2617’, the flag color changed to faded orange, then the flags disappeared. At 2617’, the road turns sharp right to approach the tower site from the southeast. I lingered long enough to spot the old Revenue Road intersecting from the south. Revenue Road was also on the SE side of a smaller ridge and at least at this point also had a shallow bench cut. Assuming the road stays well enough defined, it is probably still possible to make a loop with the Parson Branch, BH Tower, and Revenue roads. 

The tower site in 2011.

Beyond 2617’ the road becomes more clogged with young growth, despite diligent branch breaking by our crew. It goes up and over one gratuitous false knob before reaching the tower site, which is marked by the concrete footers poured for the tower. The batteries I had seen on previous visits were gone, but there were parts of an old tripod. We also found a large stone blocking the entry to the old cistern and the levelled outline of the lookout’s cabin. The day was bright and sunny, so pictures were hard to take all day long. We took a long lunch break here, but I’d already broken into my lunch bag for half a sandwich.

The hike out to Parson Branch Road was uneventful, but I did get a chance to show Ed where the Revenue Road intersected. Back at Parson Branch Road we discussed some options. On the earlier trip, David and Mary Ann had visited the Burchfield Cemetery just 0.1 mile up the road and 0.1 mi. off on a steep spur trail. Most of us wanted to visit the cemetery while some others wanted to hike the 1.3 miles to Sams Gap, including the drop to Panther Branch. We were already looking at getting to the cars around 5PM, so we skipped Sams Gap, but opted for the cemetery trip. 

Burchfield Cemetery.

After our steep little climb, Burchfield Cemetery was tidy, and the headstones there looked like they had all been replaced in similar style. We made better time on our downhill leg, but still didn’t reach the cars until around 5PM. We did not see anyone else all day, though I learned that Randy Mitchell had been riding his bike on the Cdes Cove side of the PB road that day. Parson Branch and Bunker Hill would make a great “intro to off trail” hike for the SMHC either as an out and back hike, or as a shorter, but harder loop with Revenue Road. While the navigation is straightforward, there is enough weaving through the new growth on the former roadbed to give new off trailers a good sense of what it is like roaming through the woods without a trail.

We saw a couple of motorcycles on the drive back, but not the summer weekend death worshippers. Mary Ann rode with us on the way back, so we stuck to US 129 on the drive, and were luckily too late for commuting traffic. I got home around 6:45.

In 2026 Parson Branch Road will be open from May 1 to November 9.

Smokies Off-trail, Kear Branch via Dudley Creek, 1-7-26

Kear Branch and the Dudley Creek Connector Trail got on our radar after Ed led a pair of hikes utilizing the now abandoned horse concession trails accessed by the Dudley Creek Stables. Ed’s first trip took the SMHC up Mt. Winnesoka via the Big and Little Dudley Creek trails on 3-30-24. Then with Jean and Claudia we explored the rest of the network including the Bell Branch and Duds Branch trails on 10-8-24 (Dudley Cr). These horse trails were closed by the Covid pandemic, and were not reopened when the pandemic restrictions were lifted.

After our October visit, one unhiked trail remained in the system. I don’t know if the old horse trail between Dudley and Roaring Fork had an official name, but I am calling it the Dudley Creek Connector Trail in this report. The Dudley Connector Trail crosses over the divide between Little Dudley Creek and Indian Camp Branch near its junction with Roaring Fork. Like the other Dudley Creek horse trails, this one was built in the 1960s for use by the riding concession, but it was abandoned much earlier. Ed remembers that the Connector Trail was closed when horse traffic was restricted from using the LeConte trails. This is likely the period around 1986 when the packtrains that supply LeConte Lodge replaced their horses with llamas. While horses are still allowed to climb LeConte via the Trillium Gap and Brushy Mountain trails, there is very little horse traffic on LeConte now.

I was interested in hiking the connector and Ed suggested we could make an easy car shuttle by substituting an old manway on Kear Branch for the west side of the Dudley Creek Connector, and by leaving cars at the Gatlinburg Park and Ride and at the Rec Center. Though spelled with a “K,” Kear is pronounced like “Carr”.

Jean and I got an early start on the drive from Knoxville leaving us time to visit the small bison herd pastured on TN 454 just north of Ogle Road. We met Ed at the Park and Ride, then carpooled to the Rec Center to start the hike. We crossed US 321 opposite the Rec Center and walked through the maze of still well signed, but now closed, horse trails. As we headed south on the obstacle free Little Dudley Creek Trail, the underbrush around us was ominously thick with rhodo and dog hobble. We scared up a small flock of turkeys.

The understory looked a little clearer when we reached the junction with the Connector Trail. The start was not clear, but Ed soon found the well dug in trail bed. We climbed through a tunnel of rhodo that was working hard to close itself off to hikers. Soon we reached a spot where the trail should have turned northwest, to make an upside down “U” on the map. We lost the trail here and blundered our way west to try to intercept it on the dividing ridge between Little Dudley and Kear Branch. This was frustrating work, our GPS devices showed us crossing the trail twice with no evidence of a trail to be seen. The rhodo was thicker than on the trail, but still in the merely frustrating range.

Eventually Jean spotted the trail and its deep cut above us. We were nearly in the saddle of the divide and rewarded ourselves with our lunch stop.

Before the trip I had found a map I’d most likely copied from a post in the old “Go Smokies” message board about a 2014 trip on the connector and down Kear Branch. The Go Smokies Poster, who called this the “Herb Clabo Trail,” had lost the trail in the same place we had. But they had ended up going further north and west before rejoining the trail at the same place we did. I wonder if the trail had been relocated onto the Go Smokies route before it was closed, or if both parties had coincidentally lost and found the trail in the same spots.

In upper Kear Branch.

After lunch it was a nice walk down to the homesite in the upper end of Kear Branch. There was a rock pile from a chimney and a few artifacts. Below the homesite the trail moved to the left (west side of the draw) and climbed well above the creek level before reaching a split between the Dudley Connector and the informal settlers trail down Kear Branch with both trail beds very apparent at the junction. We’d seen some signs of rooting and soon encountered a sounder of wild hogs on the opposite slope.

Rock piles near the Marion Kear homesite.

Much of Kear Branch was open forest and we could follow the remains of the old settlement road. The Dudley Creek Connector Trail and the rest of the horse concession trails were built in the 1960s and are not shown on the 1931 or 1947 park maps. But the road up Kear Hollow, and its homesites, shows up on the 1931 map. There were many rock piles left over from field clearing and eventually a rock wall appeared along the side of the roadway. The next homesite was larger and both Ed and the Go Smokies Poster show Marion Kear as owner. 

Walnut tree near the homesite.

I assumed that the rest of the walk would be easy, but the lower part of Kear Branch proved choked with rhodo and had numerous messy creek crossings. Ed clipped while Jean and I snapped branches. Eventually we came out to more open ground at the mouth of the branch finding first an old-style hog trap, and then later a more modern baited trap.

Ed near old style hog trap.

The traps were in sight of a paved, one-way, town road that led us to Twin Creeks RV Park, then to the sidewalk along US 321, and quickly to our shuttled car at the Park and Ride for the drive home.

A newer, active trap.

It may have been the bright sunshine all day long, or the warm temperatures that approached 70F, but this hike was a hit with Jean. There are two stretches of modest rhodo bashing, one with a possibility of bypassing with better navigation, but the other is unavoidable. With such an easy shuttle between the spacious parking areas, this is a great option for a short, impactful hike. The total distance was 4.5 miles including short road walks on each end. 

Bison alongside TN 454.