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.
