Eagle Creek trail is often the last hike remaining
for people striving to complete all of the hiking trails in the Smokies. Why? Maybe it is those 18 - 20 unbridged
stream crossings which can be up to waist-deep. Or maybe it is the last 1.5 miles of Eagle Creek trail with grades of
20-25% before reaching Spence Field hiking shelter. Join me & hiking buddy Janice for my 2nd and Jan's 1st hike
of this infamous route.
Pre-hike planning
Our preference is for a day hike of this 15.2 mile route and with the
entry/exit points being on opposite sides of the park, a two-car shuttle is needed unless you can persuade a good friend
to provide transportation to/from one end of the route. We choose to stage an end-of-hike car at the bottom of Lead
Cove trail--near Cades Cove. The 90 minute drive from Lead Cove trailhead to Fontana Marina takes us across the Foothills
Parkway and then along U.S. 129 via the infamous 318-curves-in-11-miles stretch of road known as "The Dragon" to
Deals Gap at the TN/NC state line followed by another 20 minutes of curving, lakeside driving past the old Twentymile
Ranger Station and Fontana Resort before parking beside the long descending boat ramp at Fontana Marina. Parking
here is a bit reminiscent of parking along the beach--you want to be sure to not get too close to the waterline in case the
level rises while you are away! Today we find the water levels for Fontana Lake to be about 60' lower than the normal
full-pool so we figure parking about 1/2 way down the ramp is safe enough for a two-day stay.
Boat shuttle
Fontana Village Marina has agreed to ferry us across the lake to the Lost Cove
Creek backcountry campground (#90) along Lakeshore trail. Because of low lake levels we must exit the boat about
0.3 mile below #90. The trip takes only about 20 minutes and costs $25 per person for the one-way shuttle. We
would normally have departed the marina at 8 am but scheduling today made 8:50 am the earliest departure time and we landed
at the drop-off point near #90 around 9:10 am.
Eagle Creek is for wading
Shortly after leaving Lakeshore trail on Eagle Creek trail you'll pass the first indication
that this hike will be different than most: The sawed-off remnant of an old footbridge juts-out over the edge
of the creek. 
Just beyond that relic you'll arrive at unbridged crossing #1 of what will be 18 - 20 unbridged crossings along
Eagle Creek for the next 6.2 miles. It is wise to hike this trail from bottom to top because the first 3 crossings are
notorious for being too deep and treacherous for safe fording by hikers; better to have the option to hike 6 miles back to
Fontana Dam via Lakeshore trail than to have to reverse course on Eagle Creek and hike nearly 14 miles back across the mountain. Today we find the drought-related low creek levels make for an easy knee-deep trip thru
the ice-cold waters for crossing #1. Check out our wading shoes in the linked photo gallery for this hike.
Hurry up! I'm freezing in here....
We're old hands at fording icy-cold creeks in the Smokies so it is usually the case
that after the initial shock of really cold water on the feet and legs, you soon think "this isn't so bad...".
Such was our experience after the first crossing of Eagle Creek on this hike. Crossing #2 was just up the trail and
it seemed to us to be much colder than the 1st. My feet were definitely telling me this was not something to do again
anytime soon. Unfortunately, "anytime soon" came just around the next turn when crossing #3 presented itself.
Now you should understand that Janice had been quite anxious about the Eagle Creek hike because of its notorious reputation
for difficult creek crossings. Accordingly, even though we were holding hands during each crossing, she was stepping
very carefully from spot-to-spot as we picked our paths thru the fast-moving creek. Well,
about 1/2-way across the 3rd crossing, I remember saying something to Janice like "Hurry up! I'm freezing in here."
Apparently so was she and afterwards we tended to move much more quickly thru each crossing. Those sequential crossings
that are just a few minutes apart definitely hasten your pace thru the ice cold waters!
Note: We've heard and read stories from friends and trail
guide writers who said they were able to rock-hop most crossings along Eagle Creek. Don't believe those for a moment.
Even at the lowest levels in more than 50 years, we find most crossings along the length of Eagle Creek trail are still no
rock-hop. You'll also find that many of the exposed rocks here are extremely slippery and are definitely
not safe landing spots for rock-hopping. For safe crossings we suggest you follow our method:
1) Bring your wading shoes; 2) use trekking poles for balance and bottom exploration; 3) hike with a buddy; and, 4)
hold hands while crossing. Otherwise, you might find yourself like the young man we passed with all of his backpacking
gear & clothing hanging out to dry after dropping it--and himself--into the creek while trying to throw his pack across
the creek so he could more easily rock-hop one of those riskier sections at crossing #16.
A bit of history
This area has a long history of usage dating back to when there was an old Indian warpath
up Ekaneetlee Creek followed by logging, moonshine whiskey distilling, copper mining and even a period of use along feeder
stream Pinnacle Creek as a training area for Army Corps of Engineers road builders. These days, traces of the former
uses seem about to fade into oblivion: Pinnacle Creek trail has long been closed; the old manway up Ekaneetlee
Creek has all but disappeared into the undergrowth; feeder creeks once reputed to be good for native trout fishing now
show little evidence of use by fishermen; and, there wasn't a drop of corn liquor to be found anywhere! The only trace
of copper I found was when I tasted the red stuff oozing out of my scalp after inadvertently head-butting a low-lying
tree that had fallen across the trail.
Mostly easy, except for the parts that are hard
The first 6.4 miles of Eagle Creek trail are mostly easy walking along a gentle grade
and wide path. The last 2.5 miles remind you that this trail gains over 3,800' of elevation before reaching Spence Field
hiking shelter along the AT.
One section, about 3/4 mile long, ascends at a grade of about 25%. That is seriously
steep and will have most hikers, us included, pausing every 50 feet or so to catch their breath.
Suffering the Bote Mtn trail
We still "Bote No" when it comes to rocky, overused Bote Mtn trail. Unfortunately,
we had to endure that knarly footpath for the 2.9 miles it required to walk from the AT down to Lead Cove trail.
Joys of hiking at dusk in the Smokies
Today we were treated to yet another series of beautiful views while hiking during
the period about 30 minutes before and 30 minutes after sunset in the Smokies. Fall colors were gorgeously brilliant
in the "long", fading light and by the time we arrived at our car we'd (almost) forgotten the pummeling our feet & knees
had taken from Bote Mtn trail's rocky and steep surfaces.
More driving
And what do you do on the
day after? Go back to Fontana Dam Marina to retrieve your car. Perhaps you can do like we did on this trip and
just do another of those two-car shuttle hikes that finish on the south side of the Smokies; after all, you've already got
one car staged at nearby Fontana. I suggest you look at Welch Ridge + Bear Creek, Forney Creek, Forney Ridge,
Noland Divide, Thomas Divide or Sunkota Ridge trails as good choices for hikes which could end in the Bryson City, NC
area of the Smokies. Enjoy!
Have you hiked Eagle Creek trail? Let us hear your story or
comments! Write to me.
More info
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
