|
|
|
|
Cumberland Trail North Chickamauga Segment You are REQUIRED to register to camp and/or park after sunset at the trailheads. Click for details Click for printable PDF Description of North Chickamauga Trail with Topo Map
Overview:
As of April 2011 there is 7.23 miles of North Chickamauga Trail segment open. Trail begins at North Chickamauga trailhead on Montlake Road in Soddy Daisy and ends near Barker Camp Road a short distance from Cain Creek. Once completed, the Cain Creek end of this trail will eventually connect with the Tennessee River Gorge segment on Signal Mountain and the trail along Montlake Road will join the Soddy Gorge segment. Much of the trail between Montlake Road trailhead and the cable crossing utilizes old coal mining roads. Trail between cable crossing and Stevenson Branch Campsite is rugged and not built to Cumberland Trail specifications. The 3.1 miles beyond Stevenson Branch Campsite was built by Cumberland Trail Conference in 2009, 2010, and 2011 and is an extremely nice stretch of high quality trail. A hike from trailhead kiosk around Hogskin Loop and back to kiosk is 1.4 miles. Road Approaches and Parking: Parking available at the North Chickamauga trailhead on Montlake Road in Soddy Daisy. Take Highway US-27 to Soddy-Daisy, exit at Thrasher Pike and turn west, go about one mile to Dayton Pike, turn right, and proceed a mile to Montlake Road. Turn left on Montlake Road and proceed 1.5 miles to the entrance on left. See map below.
Campsites:
There is only one designated and authorized campsite on this section of trail and that is Stevenson Branch Campsite located on North Chickamauga Creek between the confluence of Cooper Creek and the confluence of Stevenson Branch. Trail Features: (This list describes the hike from Montlake trailhead to Cain Creek therefore left and right turns only apply as you walk in that direction. Mileage rounded to nearest 10th) Mile 0.0 (7.2) Montlake Road Trailhead Kiosk Trail begins on old mining road Mile 0.1 (7.1) Hogskin Upper Loop Trail Hogskin Upper Loop Trail branches off to right and begins uphill climb (continue straight for Lower Hogskin Loop) Mile .4 (6.7) Intersection Hogskin Upper Loop Trail intersects 2nd old mining road. Turn left. Mile .6 (6.5) Intersection Hogskin Lower Loop Trail intersects old mining road. Turn left on Hogskin Lower Loop Trail to return to parking lot or remain on old mining road to continue into North Chickamauga Gorge. Mile 1.1 (6) Coal Tipple Concrete remnants of old coal tipple, a device use to dump coal from coal cars. Mile 1.2 (5.9) Mine Entrance Open coal mine. Mining road ends and footpath begins. Mile 2.0 (5.1) Wood Stairs and Overlook At top of wood stairs is Boston Branch Overlook. Footpath intersects 3rd old coal mining road just past overlook. Turn left and follow old coal mining road for next 1.1 miles. Mile 3.2 (4.0) Intersection and Cable Crossing Turn left off old coal mining road onto footpath and descend 280 feet to cable crossing, a creek crossing with a cable handrail. Approximately 100 feet past cable crossing is ladder # 2. Climb down ladder # 2 and proceed another 150 feet. You will be under a rock shelf. The trail is poorly marked and difficult to locate but drops off the hill side in front of the rock shelf. Mile 3.6 (3.6) Unauthorized campsite on North Chickamauga Creek Although this campsite appears to be frequently used, it is not authorized by park management. Trail continues from here upstream along North Chickamauga Creek through a laurel thicket. Mile 3.9 (3.3) Ladder # 3 Climb down ladder # 3 and continue upstream along North Chickamauga Creek on a rugged section of trail. Mile 4.1 (3.1) Stevenson Branch Campsite Stevenson Branch Campsite is the only authorized campsite in North Chickamauga Gorge. It is located on North Chickamauga Creek between the confluence of Cooper Creek and the confluence of Stevenson Branch. Cross Stevenson Branch as you enter the campsite and cross Cooper Creek as you leave the campsite. Mile 5.8 (1.4) Panther Branch Cross Panther Branch Mile 5.9 (1.3) Spur Trail to Overlook This overlook is presently unnamed. It overlooks North Chickamauga Creek and is adjacent to Panther Branch. Spur trail is 175 feet in length. Mile 7.2 (0) Temporary End of Trail Trail ends at an old jeep trail. Parking area is located 875 feet up the jeep trail. Access by road to the parking area is presently restricted. Contact rangers for updates on access. 
Map Contributed by Trail Volunteer Don Deakins HIKEABLE NORTH CHICKAMAUGA TRAIL  Topo Map Contributed by Trail Volunteer Don Deakins from National Geographic Maps HIKEABLE NORTH CHICKAMAUGA TRAIL
|
|
To register your group on-line, please complete the
ONLINE CAMPSITE REGISTRATION FORM.
You will automatically be emailed a copy of your submission for your records. A confirmation code will be supplied upon submission of the online form. Please be prepared to supply this confirmation code to the Park Ranger if asked.
|
