Sunday, June 1, 2025

Hiwassee/Ocoee Scenic River State Park: Gee Creek Campground Loop (Blog Hike #1062)

Trail: Gee Creek Campground Loop
Hike Location: Hiwassee/Ocoee Scenic River State Park
Geographic Location: south of Etowah, TN (35.23775, -84.55063)
Length: 1.3 miles
Difficulty: 1/10 (Easy)
Date Hiked: March 2025
Overview: A lollipop loop around Gee Creek Campground and along the Hiwassee River.
Park Information: https://tnstateparks.com/parks/hiwassee-ocoee
Hike Route Map: https://www.mappedometer.com/?maproute=981312
Photo Highlight:
Hike Video: (coming May 26, 2026)

Directions to the trailhead: From Etowah, take US 411 south 6.4 miles to Spring Creek Road and turn left on Spring Creek Rd.  Drive Spring Creek Rd. east 0.8 miles to the park office on the right.  Park in the large blacktop parking lot beside the park office.

The hike: Early European explorers wrote of 2 major rivers that flowed west out of the mountains and into the great valley in present-day southeast Tennessee.  The first river was a quaint river that can be crossed almost anywhere almost anytime.  The second river was a raging beast of a river that can be crossed almost nowhere and almost none of the time.  Today we call the quaint river the Ocoee River, and we call the beastly river the Hiwassee River.
            A few miles up the Hiwassee River from the confluence of these 2 rivers lies a park named for both rivers: Hiwassee/Ocoee Scenic River State Park.  At present the park is located only on the Hiwassee River, but future plans call for adding acreage and splitting this park into 2 parks, one along each river.  The present site is surrounded on 3 sides by Cherokee National Forest, and it features only the Gee Creek Campground with 47 developed sites, Hiwassee River access, and the short hiking trail described here.  While definitely not the best trail in this area, the Gee Creek Campground Loop offers good Hiwassee River views, and it makes a nice add-on if you are camping here or hiking in nearby Cherokee National Forest.
Fort Marr blockhouse
    
        You can start the trail from either the campground or the park office.  I was not camping here, so I started at the park office.  Beside the park office stands an interesting historical landmark: the Fort Marr Blockhouse.  Fort Marr was built in 1814 to protect the area from the British during the War of 1812, but it soon became the center for military operations to remove Cherokee people from Tennessee to Oklahoma.  The fort was abandoned in 1838, and the blockhouse was moved twice to reach this location, which is about 15 miles from the original fort.  This blockhouse is this region's only remnant of any fort from that era.
Trailhead at park office
    
        After viewing the blockhouse, walk east across the parking lot to find where the single-track dirt trail enters the woods.  A small wooden sign that says "Loop Trail" marks this trailhead.  The trail heads east through young forest with a dense shrubby understory.  Plenty of sweet gum trees live in this forest, as do some old dying red cedars.  This land is persistently flat, and the total elevation gain on this hike is less than 100 feet.
Trail splits to form loop
    
        At only 0.1 miles, the trail forks to form its loop around Gee Creek Campground.  I angled left and used the trail going right as my return route, thus hiking the loop clockwise.  The trail continues its southeast course, and just past 0.2 miles it crosses the campground entrance road.  The section of the trail north of the campground passes through a wetland area with a ditch, and a few minor wet areas will need to be negotiated if it has rained recently.  I did some good bird viewing here that included some cardinals and a woodpecker.

Hiking north of the campground
    
        Just shy of 0.5 miles, the trail crosses the ditch on a footbridge and heads around the east end of the campground.  Although the campground is fairly close on the right, dense woods keeps the campground out of your field of vision most of the time.  Just past 0.6 miles, the Hiwassee River comes into view on the left for the first time.  The river was high and raging on my visit due to recent rains, but the water was still remarkably clear.

Hiwassee River
    
        
The riverside segment is the most scenic part of this hike.  At 0.9 miles, you cross over a riverside bluff and pass the park's boat ramp.  The southwest corner of the loop was somewhat overgrown on my visit, and I had to negotiate several blowdowns across the trail.  Look for the white plastic shield-like trail markers to make sure you are still on the trail.
Primitive campground
    
        Just past 1 mile, you come out at the park's primitive campground.  Angle right to walk along the gravel primitive campground road and then look to the left to find the continuation of the trail.  A few hundred feet later, you close the loop.  Angle left to return to the park office and complete the hike.


Wednesday, May 28, 2025

Buck's Pocket State Park: Point Rock Trail (Blog Hike #1061)

Trail: Point Rock Trail
Hike Location: Buck's Pocket State Park
Geographic Location: west of Rainsville, AL (34.47527, -86.05100)
Length: 2.3 miles
Difficulty: 8/10 (Difficult)
Date Hiked: March 2025
Overview: An out-and-back, partly along cascading Little Sauty Creek, to fantastic Point Rock Overlook.
Park Information: https://www.alapark.com/parks/bucks-pocket-state-park
Hike Route Map: https://www.mappedometer.com/?maproute=981260
Photo Highlight:
Hike Video: (coming May 29, 2026)

Directions to the trailhead: From Rainsville, take SR 75 south 9.3 miles to CR 400 and turn right on CR 400.  Drive CR 400 west 5.2 miles to CR 402 and turn right on CR 402.  Drive CR 402 north 0.8 miles.  Turn left and immediately turn right to continue north on CR 20.  Drive CR 20 north 1.8 miles to CR 557 and angle softly left on CR 557.  Drive CR 557 north 0.5 miles to CR 172 and turn left on CR 172.  Drive CR 172 west 0.7 miles to the park entrance on the right.  Turn right to enter the park, pay the day-use fee, and park in the perpendicular parking area on the left just after crossing Little Sauty Creek but just before reaching the campground entrance.

The hike: The large number of turns and county roads in the driving directions to reach Buck's Pocket State Park testifies to this park rural and rustic location.  Possibly the most remote state park in Alabama, Buck's Pocket State Park protects 2080 acres in and around a pocket canyon in the northeast part of the state.  The park consists of land purchased from a farmer combined with land donated by the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), and it opened in 1971.  Several theories and legends have been advanced to explain the pocket canyon's name, but none have been substantiated.
            True to its rustic nature, Buck's Pocket State Park offers limited amenities that include only a cozy 23-site developed campground, some picnic areas, and seven trails.  All of the park's hiking trails are short, and this park's signature hike is the Point Rock Trail described here.  This out-and-back connects the campground with the trail's namesake Point Rock while passing the fantastic scenery of this park's scenic but rugged pocket canyon.
Lower trailhead near campground
    
        From the parking lot outside the campground, walk back out the entrance road, cross Little Sauty Creek on the road's bridge, and then look to the left for the start of the Point Rock Trail.  Several small wooden signs mark this trailhead.  The Point Rock Trail begins as an old road with the creek on your left, and the trail surface alternates between smooth dirt and rough rocks, roots, and boulders.  The rough areas are quite primitive, and they make this hike harder than the distance and elevation gain would indicate.
Rough wooden steps
    
        At 0.3 miles, you cross a side stream at a point that forces you to scramble over some boulders.  Soon comes a steep section that climbs some rough wooden steps built into the ground.  Just past 0.5 miles, you cross Little Sauty Creek without the aid of a bridge.  All of these obstacles are manageable for most people, but they slow your progress and make you plan your steps.  Cascading Little Sauty Creek keeps you constant company through the challenges, and red aluminum discs nailed to trees mark the way.
Little Sauty Creek in Buck's Pocket
    
        0.7 miles into the hike, a spur trail exits right that leads to a small waterfall.  The harder and wetter the creek crossings and boulders have been so far, the better this waterfall will be.  Next the trail embarks on a short but steep and rocky final climb to the rim of the pocket canyon.  When you make the final switchback to reach the rim, the hardest part of the hike is over.
View west at Point Rock Overlook
View south at Point Rock Overlook
    
        The hike along the rim is an easy glide, and 1 mile into the hike you reach the Point Rock Overlook parking area.  Angle left through the parking area and walk down the gravel and boardwalk trail that accesses the overlook.  What a view!  The pocket canyon you climbed through sits to the left, while the larger South Sauty Creek canyon sits to the right and directly ahead.  Benches and rock slabs make great places to sit and rest.  There is only 1 trail to this overlook, so after enjoying the view retrace your steps back down to the campground to complete the hike.