Smoky Mountains Hiking Club Meetup

This Appalachian Trail work trip will involve mostly clearing vegetation and cleaning out water bars from Low Gap to the side trail to Mt. Cammerer. To help break up the workday, participants can join the leader for a visit to the fire tower at Mt. Cammerer. Participants will need to wear sturdy footwear and weather appropriate attire. Please also bring gloves, lunch, snacks, and plenty of water. Tools will be provided. If you have favorite tools you prefer to use, please bring those as well. The access trail to the AT (Low Gap, 3 miles) and eventually Mt. Cammerer (for those interested) are considered Difficult so please be aware ahead of time.
For more information and to register for this event, go to the Smoky Mountains Hiking Club website HERE.

We will be hiking only a portion of the Old Settlers Trail out of Greenbrier. As the name implies, this was a heavily settled area in the Smokies, and along the trail are solitary chimneys, rock walls, and other evidence of early mountain community life. Campsite 33 is about 6.5 miles from the start, and this will be our turnaround point. We will encounter a few water crossings (trickiness will depend on recent rains), and a couple of challenging climbs are involved.
Hike is 13 miles. Rated Difficult for distance and a few big climbs.
For more information and to register for this event, go to the Smoky Mountains Hiking Club website HERE.
Our Difficult hikes are: 10-14+ miles and/or elevation change of 1800-2500' or more, mostly on trail, some off-trail possible. Hikers should be regularly hiking 8+ miles with continuous elevation gains of 500+ feet per mile for a sustained 2 to 5 miles (or more), at a 2.0-3.0 mph pace.

This challenging loop hike in the Smokies will have us visiting beautiful Abrams Falls as the first part of our journey. We will go to the falls via the “back way” from the Abrams Creek Ranger Station (down the Cooper Road and Little Bottoms Trails, and ultimately to the falls). After a rest and snack/lunch, we will backtrack to where we must cross Abrams Creek to reach the Hannah Mountain Trail – this requires wading, which can be extremely hazardous in high water. We will soon reach the Rabbit Creek Trail, which rises slightly before descending to where we will ultimately cross Abrams Creek again before arriving back at the Ranger Station.
Hike is 12.2 miles. Rated difficult. Note that if the creek waters are too high to cross safely, we will find alternate routes.
For more information and to register for this event, go to the Smoky Mountains Hiking Club website HERE.
Our Difficult hikes are: 10-14+ miles and/or elevation change of 1800-2500' or more, mostly on trail, some off-trail possible. Hikers should be regularly hiking 8+ miles with continuous elevation gains of 500+ feet per mile for a sustained 2 to 5 miles (or more), at a 2.0-3.0 mph pace.

Hey Y'all--we're going to Lakeshore! We'll walk a paved trail with lots of shade, visit a fun children's playground and a muscle-building adult playground; climb an odd walking loop that looks like the last minutes of the Titanic; pass native plant meadows, a native plant wooded wetland, labeled trees, and a view of Le Conte. Some hills, early exit opportunities, and a bathroom half way around. Bring water and a snack. Expect a tree quiz!
Hike is about 3 miles, rated Easy.
For more information and to register for this event, go to the Smoky Mountains Hiking Club website HERE.
Our Easy hikes are: 5 miles or less and up to 1000' elevation change (on trail). Hikers should be comfortable hiking at a 1.5-2.0 mph pace with 300+ feet of continuous elevation gain over a mile.