Rich Mountain Loop
| Trail Features: | Views, Wildflowers, History |  |
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| Trail Location: | Cades Cove | ||||
| Roundtrip Length: | 8.5 Miles | ||||
| Total Elevation Gain: | 1736 Feet | ||||
| Avg. Elev Gain / Mile: | 408 Feet | ||||
| Highest Elevation: | 3691 Feet | ||||
| Trail Difficulty Rating: | 11.97 (strenuous) | ||||
| Parking Lot Latitude | 35.60664 | ||||
| Parking Lot Longitude | -83.77821 | ||||
Directions to Trailhead:
From the Townsend "Y" intersection, drive west on
Laurel Creek Road towards Cades Cove. To
reach the Rich Mountain Loop trailhead, you'll drive 7.7 miles to the parking lot
located on the left just before reaching the one-way Cades Cove Loop Road. The
trailhead for the Rich Mountain Loop is no more than 25 feet beyond the gate on
the right side of the road.
Trail Description:
Hate sitting in Cades Cove Loop Road traffic? If so, the Rich Mountain Loop might be the perfect hike for enjoying the beauty of Cades Cove, without having to waste time sitting in gridlock. The Rich Mountain Loop is also easily accessible on Wednesday and Saturday mornings in the summer when the park closes the loop road for bicycles.
During the first leg of the hike you'll pass by one of the
meadows that makes Cades Cove one of the most famous destinations in the
National Park System. During late spring the meadow is covered in purple
phacelia and many other wildflowers.
At roughly one half-mile you'll enter the loop portion of this hike. For purposes of this description, we hiked the loop in a clockwise direction, so we will turn left at this junction.
On the early portions of the hike we noticed
mountain laurel sprinkled throughout the woods as they were just beginning to
bloom. The din of cicadas could also be heard as the first of the 17-year brood was beginning
to emerge from the ground as adults (in 2008). We were also greeted by a turkey
as it crossed over the path roughly 30 feet in front of us.
At just under 1.4 miles we reached the John Oliver cabin. A
veteran of the War of 1812, John Oliver, his wife, and young child arrived in Cades
Cove in 1818, and were among the first white settlers to settle in the area.
The cabin dates from the 1820s and is one of the oldest structures in the Great Smoky Mountains.
If you're looking for an easy hike in the Cades Cove area, this would be a good place to turn around. However, if you're looking for the wildflowers this trail is famous for, you'll need to continue on the loop. In fact, the Rich Mountain Loop might have the most diverse amount of wildflowers we've seen in the Smokies. We saw mountain laurel, flame azalea, purple phacelia, rattlesnake hawkweed, yellow ragwort, violets, butterfly weed and many other wildflowers we couldn't identify.
After passing the Oliver Cabin the trail begins a long
steady climb towards the junction with Indian Grave Gap Trail, roughly 2 miles
away. Right before reaching this junction you'll pass a small dirt clearing
that looks like an old camp site. This spot will provide you with one of the
best views of Cades Cove along the trail when there are leaves on the trees.
The Indian Grave Gap Trail junction arrives roughly 3.4
miles into your hike. To continue the loop hike, turn right here. Although you'll
continue to climb on this new trail, the terrain won't be as steep as the
previous section.
At 4.2 miles you'll reach the Rich Mountain Trail junction,
which forks in from the left. Stay to the right and continue on the Indian Grave
Gap Trail.
Roughly one-third of a mile from the junction, begin to look for a faint, unmarked trail that splits off towards the left. This short, but steep path will take you to Cerulean Knob, the highest point on Rich Mountain. You won't have much of a view here, but you can check out the concrete remains of the old Rich Mountain Fire Tower.
Back on the main trail, as proceed beyond this point, you'll
begin to have some decent views of Townsend and Tuckaleechee Cove on your left
(looking towards the north). You'll also
notice that the trail has flattened out for a stretch, before it begins heading
downhill in just another half-mile. From time to time you'll sneak a few
glimpses of Cades Cove on your right as well. As you might expect, the views of
the Cove are much better in the winter when there aren't any leaves on the
trees.
Roughly 5.9 miles from the trailhead you'll reach another
trail junction where the Scott Mountain Trail branches off to the left, and the
Crooked Arm Ridge Trail turns to the right. You'll want to turn right onto the
Crooked Arm Ridge Trail at this junction to complete the loop.
Less than a half-mile from the Crooked Arm Ridge Trail
junction will be your last decent view into Cades Cove.
At just under 8 miles will be Crooked Arm Falls on your left.
The small 25-foot falls is roughly 50 feet off the trail.
A short distance from the waterfall you'll return back to the Rich Mountain Loop Trail. Turn left here to return back to the parking lot.
