Rich Mountain Loop Trail - Rich Mountain Loop in Smoky Mountains

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Rich Mountain Loop
Trail Features:		Views / Wildflowers / History
Trail Location:		Cades Cove
Roundtrip Miles:		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, go west on Laurel Creek Road towards

Cades Cove. To reach the Rich Mountain Loop trailhead, drive 7.7 miles to the parking lot located right before the one-way Cades Cove Loop begins. 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:

On the first leg of this hike you'll pass by one of the meadows Cades Cove is famous for. At the time we hiked this trail, this meadow was covered in purple phacelia as well as several other wildflowers.

At roughly a half-mile, you'll enter the loop portion of the Rich Mountain Loop Trail. For the purposes of this trail description, we hiked the loop in a clockwise direction, so we will turn left here.

Early on this section of the Rich Mountain Loop Trail we noticed mountain laurel sprinkled throughout the woods and just beginning to bloom. The din of cicadas could be heard as the first of the 17-year brood was just beginning to emerge from the ground as adults in 2008. We were also greeted by a turkey as it crossed over the path just 30 feet in front of us.

At just under 1.4 miles we reached the John Oliver cabin. John Oliver was a veteran of the War of 1812. He, 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 Park.

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. This trail had 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 several others we couldn't identify.

After passing the Oliver Cabin, the trail begins a long steady climb towards the junction with Indian Graves Gap Trail, roughly 2 miles away. Right before you get to this trail 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.

As mentioned, the junction with Indian Graves Gap Trail arrives at 3.4 miles into the hike. Go right here to continue the loop hike. You'll continue to climb on this new trail, but the terrain won't be as steep as the previous section of trail.

At 4.2 miles, the Rich Mountain Trail forks in from the left. Turn right to continue on the loop trail.

At roughly 4.6 miles you'll begin to have some decent views of Townsend and Tuckaleechee Cove on your left. You'll also notice that the trail begins to flatten out here before heading downhill in just another half-mile. From time to time you'll sneak a few glimpses of Cades Cove on your right. As you might expect, the views of the Cove will be 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. The Scott Mountain Trail branches off to the left. The Crooked Arm Ridge Trail turns to the right. You'll need to turn right onto the Crooked Arm Ridge Trail 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, a small waterfall will be on your left, 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.