Mt. Sterling (via Mt. Sterling Gap)
| Trail Features: | Panoramic Views |  |
|||
| Trail Location: | Mt. Sterling Gap | ||||
| Roundtrip Length: | 5.6 Miles | ||||
| Total Elevation Gain: | 2000 Feet | ||||
| Avg. Elev Gain / Mile: | 714 Feet | ||||
| Highest Elevation: | 5842 Feet | ||||
| Trail Difficulty Rating: | 9.60 (moderate) | ||||
| Parking Lot Latitude | 35.70022 | ||||
| Parking Lot Longitude | -83.09746 | ||||
Directions to Trailhead:
From I-40, take the Waterville Road Exit (#451). Turn left after crossing the Pigeon River and proceed 2.3 miles to an intersection. Turn left onto the long gravel road that connects the Big Creek ranger station with the Cataloochee Campground. The trailhead for the Mount Sterling Trail is located at Mount Sterling Gap, roughly 6.7 miles from the intersection (at roughly the halfway point to the Cataloochee Campground).
Trail
Description:
There are several routes that will take
you to the summit of
Mt. Sterling. The shortest route to the fire tower is via the Mount
Sterling
Trail from Mount Sterling Gap.
The Mt. Sterling area is one of the more
historic places in
the Great Smoky Mountains. According to early residents of the area,
the
mountain was named after a 2-foot wide streak of lead was found in the
bed of
the Pigeon River, near the mountain's northern base. Those residents
mistakenly
thought they found silver.
One of the most famous stories associated
with the area
occurred during the Civil War. Towards the end of the war, Cataloochee
and the
remote valleys at the base of Mount Sterling became popular hideouts
for
deserters. Both Union and Confederate detachments consistently made
raids into
the area to find them.
One local legend relates an incident in
which Captain Albert
Teague of the Confederate Army captured three deserters: George Grooms,
his
brother Henry, and a simpleton named Mitchell Caldwell. The three were
forced
to march on foot from Big Creek to the Mount Sterling Gap area (the
actual
location varies from one account to the next). Henry Grooms, a talented
fiddle
player, was forced to carry his fiddle during the long march. Before
executing
him, his captors commanded him to play one last tune. Fittingly, Grooms
chose
the tune "Bonaparte's Retreat," a haunting melody that, to this day,
is still called "The Grooms Tune" in many parts of the region.
Upon completion of his performance Grooms asked his captors if he could pray for a moment before killing him. His brother, George, is said to have died cursing the scouts. Mitchell Caldwell, who was described as a slow-witted man, simply grinned at his captors, so unnerving them that they were forced to cover his face with a hat before they could bring themselves to execute him. Teague's unit left the three bodies along the side of the road. Eventually, Henry Grooms' wife, Eliza, and a Sutton boy, took the bodies back to Big Creek by ox-sled where they were buried in the Sutton Cemetery.
Back
to the Trail:
Climbing nearly 2000 feet in
less than three miles, the
ascent to the summit is a bit challenging, however, it's a steady climb
and the
trail is in fairly good shape. The only real break in the climbing is
just
prior to reaching the Long Bunk Trail junction, which forks off to the
left
less than one-half mile from the trailhead.
In early springtime, the appropriately
named spring beauty
carpets the ground along the trail. This route also passes through old
growth
forest, including some magnificent red spruce groves, some of which
have trunks
that are nearly three feet in diameter.
Once past the junction you'll resume your
ascent and will
climb through a series of long switchbacks with occasional views of
Little
Cataloochee and the surrounding area.
At roughly 2.3 miles you'll reach the
Mount Sterling Ridge
Trail junction. Turn right here and travel for another half-mile to
reach the
5842-foot summit.
On a clear day you’ll be able
to make out Balsam Mountain
and Luftee Knob towards the west, Mount Guyot to the northwest, Max
Patch to
the east, and the Cataloochee Valley to the south. If you have a very
good eye
you can even make out the Mount Cammerer fire tower, which lies towards
the
north.
It was here atop Mount Sterling, in 1963, that the Balsam woolly adelgid infestation was first noticed in the Smokies. This tiny insect is now responsible for killing most of the park's Fraser firs.
The 60 foot fire tower at the summit was
built by the
Civilian Conservation Corps in 1935. In the park's early days a lookout
spent
many hours in the tower, keeping a close eye on the forested terrain of
the
surrounding mountains. From February 15 to May 15, and then again from
October
15 to December 15, the tower was manned by watchers who lived on the
premises
on two-week tours. When he wasn't at his station, the watcher stayed in
a cabin
that once stood just north of the tower.
Today the Park Service uses the tower as a radio repeater. The trap door is still open and if you don't mind a shaky old structure, the views are breathtaking.
According to Peter Barr, author of "Hiking North Carolina's Lookout Towers," the Mt. Sterling lookout has the highest elevation of any true fire tower left in the eastern U.S. In addition to a wealth of historical background on fire towers, the book also serves as a hiking guide to many of the towers in the region.
