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Author:
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Backpacker Magazine
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Activity:
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Hiking
ActivitySearchHiking
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State:
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North Carolina (NC)
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Distance:
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13.1 mi
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Difficulty:
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7 / 10
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Rating:
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Unrated
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-Mapped by Tim Johnson
TO TRAILHEAD: From Asheville, take I-40 W to US 74 W to US 19/23 S through Maggie Valley. Exit onto Blue Ridge Parkway @ Soco Gap. Head N. At milepost 458.2, R onto Heintooga Rd. Park 6.1 mi. later @ Polls Gap trailhead.
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Datum: |
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HHB01
| Dist: 13.17 mi |
Points: 382 |
Calories: none |
| Time: none |
Speed: 0.0 mph |
Pace: 0:00 / mi |
Hemphill Bald Loop
HHB001
Location: 35.563309°, -83.161667°
Polls Gap trailhead: Take Hemphill Bald Trail down old, grassy, logging-railroad grade; views N to Caldwell Fork Valley
HHB002
Location: 35.552410°, -83.152710°
Follow 1930s-era CCC split-rail fence among dense yellow birches and mountain maples
HHB003
Location: 35.552502°, -83.126381°
Sheepback Knob helps define Cataloochee Divide, the southern border of once-thriving basin stretching 10 mi. N to Mt. Sterling (pop. 1,000 before the 1930s)
HHB004
Location: 35.564129°, -83.103661°
Hemphill Bald (5,540 ft.): S views into Maggie Valley. The angular peak of Cold Mtn. sits 17 mi. to the SE
HHB005
Location: 35.571980°, -83.100647°
L @ Y to descend into Caldwell Fork Valley. Among second growth, find umbrella-leaf plants with huge foliage, white blooms (early summer), and blue berries (late summer)
HHB006
Location: 35.585789°, -83.120361°
L @ T onto Caldwell Fork Trail. Flat, young forest hints at the valley's lived-in past; old homesites and graves are common in this area
HHB007
Location: 35.584278°, -83.122131°
Cross rushing Caldwell Fork over typical Smokies log bridge to campsite 41
HHB008
Location: 35.584499°, -83.126793°
Straight @ T. Head R @ Big Poplars sign for short side trip to three massive yellow poplars
HHB009
Location: 35.587719°, -83.142090°
L @ T onto Rough Fork Trail; ascend steeply through stands of Eastern hemlock, northern red oak, and red maple
HHB010
Location: 35.576527°, -83.161186°
Trail follows contour of Big Spruce Ridge; continue to finish loop @ Polls Gap
Hemphill Bald Views
Location: 35.563648°, -83.103630°
©Tim Johnson
Hemphill Bald Trail
Location: 35.562370°, -83.159187°
©Tim Johnson
TC Lily
Location: 35.572056°, -83.102989°
©Tim Johnson
CCC Fence
Location: 35.552227°, -83.152695°
©Tim Johnson
CCC Fence
Location: 35.550217°, -83.150230°
©Tim Johnson
Views from Hemphill Bald
Location: 35.564289°, -83.103172°
©Tim Johnson
