Those Nearly Impossible Interior Trail Dayhikes....
Gunter Fork
trail is one of those Smokies trails that gets very little use because of its nearly inaccessible
location for dayhikers. This lovely trail would probably rank in the bottom 5 for trails hiked in the Smokies this year
and that is too bad considering how much the trail has to offer.
I'd not hiked this trail since the summer of 1993 when I included it as part of
a 4 day adventure in the Balsam's of the Smokies. Saturday, 11/10/07, I decided to put together a long loop hike that would allow me to hike Gunter Fork trail as part
of a dayhike. My hiking trip was to have been "only" 19 miles until I realized I was going to have to walk along
the gravel road between trailheads in hope of hitching a ride while getting to the trailhead; I soon discovered there
isn't much traffic on the Smokies backroads at 8:30 am on a crisp autumn Saturday and I ended up walking about 3.5 miles of
the 7.4 mile long road. I was lucky I didn't have to walk the entire distance. A big THANKS! to the West Knoxville
hiker/biker who gave me a lift to the trailhead. And yes, I know a two car shuttle would have been nice but not many
of my hiking friends share my madness for doing these long trails which are on the opposite side of the Smokies from where
we live.
My chosen route of 19 miles was the shortest route possible to dayhike
this 4.1 mile trail without an overnight stay in the backcountry. I'd staged my car at the Big Creek hiker parking
area with plans to start hiking the Mt. Sterling trail at Mt. Sterling Gap--some 2,140' higher than the Big Creek hiker parking
area. After a less-than-ideal start that required me to walk nearly 4 miles along the road to Mt. Sterling Gap, I then
continued onward along Mt. Sterling - Mt. Sterling Ridge - Balsam Mtn - Gunter Fork - Camel Gap and Big Creek trails.
Most impressive were the grand views--especially those I saw while hiking down the steeply sloped (17% grade) Gunter
Fork trail.
Once I'd started walking down Gunter Fork trail, starting at its
junction with Balsam Mtn trail, I'd noticed almost immediately that the trail character changed from that of a dry ridgeline
trail to one of a moist, shady northern slope. The trail was bordered on both sides by long stretches of dark green
sphagnum moss and in one place, where a seep crossed the trail, there was a sheet of ice with the water running beneath.
Huge red spruce trees surrounded me while descending from the upper elevations (6,000' down to 5,000') of the Balsam
Mtn and Gunter Fork trails. A few giant (4' diameter!) Eastern Hemlocks were still alive at the mid-level zone of Gunter
Fork trail (most of the larger hemlocks in the Smokies have succumbed to the hemlock woolly adelgid attacks). Views of extensive laurel slicks on adjacent ridges made me wish I could have seen those in early
summer when they'd have been in bloom.
The footing along the upper sections of Gunter Fork trail was a bit
more treacherous than I would have liked--especially with the trail surfaces being covered by all of the leaves. I did
the anxious hiker two-step a few times after stepping on leaf-covered non-existent trail sections. By the time
I'd walked about 1/2 way down Gunter Fork trail I was at the 4,000' level where I found lovely Gunter Fork and the first waterfall. This waterfall is said to have a total drop of about 150' and I could tell that in time of normal water flow it would
have been spectacular. Today it was only a trickle (see the photos). There were several more crossings of Gunter
Fork but because of low water levels they were all easily rock-hopped. I could see where high water flows might have
made these crossings very treacherous. Soon the old C.C.C. constructed trail became less steep as it transitioned onto
what was once a railroad bed built by the Crestmont Lumber Company. I'd begun to anticipate the most challenging stream
crossing of the hike: Big Creek. I shouldn't have worried--Big Creek was also flowing at a small fraction
of its normal volume and I was able to rock-hop across it without difficulty.
The hike was uneventful from there onward as I trekked down the familiar
territory of Camel Gap and Big Creek trails. Horses had caused significant surface damage to both of these trails since I was last there in the spring of this year (2007).
It was so rocky that my overall hiking speed dropped from 3 mph to only 2 mph over the last 5.8 miles. I continue to
believe that horses on our hiking trails are the chief cause of irreparable damage to the trail system in the Smokies.
Horses should be banned from the park pending an unbiased assessment of which trails can support the 1,500 lb loads they bring
to bear on our fragile trails.
I'll be going back to hike Gunter Fork in the spring season when I
hope to find lots of wildflowers. Its placement as a northern face trail suggests to me that it is prime habitat for
many wildflower species--especially trilliums.
Hike statistics: 22.5 miles walked at an average speed of 2.4 mph. There was
5,905' of elevation gain (and descent) and 26 minutes of breaks while chatting with other hikers and eating lunch.
I started hiking at 8:50 am and finished at 6:39 pm. The starting temperature was about 45 F but that soon dropped to
about 40 F along the ridges. It was about 45 F at the end of my hike and probably didn't get much above that for the
entire hike.
