Obed Wild and Scenic River: Cumberland Trail, Emory River Gorge Section (Blog Hike #665)

Trail: Cumberland Trail, Emory River Gorge Section

Hike Location: Obed Wild and Scenic River, Nemo Bridge Access

Geographic Location: southwest of Wartburg, TN (36.06856, -84.66113)

Length: 2 miles

Difficulty: 5/10 (Moderate)

Date Hiked: October 2017

Overview: An out-and-back to a nice Emory River Gorge overlook.

Area Information: https://www.nps.gov/obed/index.htm

Hike Route Map: https://www.mappedometer.com/?maproute=940794
Photo Highlight:

Directions to the trailhead: From downtown Wartburg, drive west on Main Street, which becomes Catoosa Road after it leaves town.  Drive a total of 5.8 miles to the signed Nemo Bridge Picnic Area on the right.  Turn right to enter the area, and park in the first parking lot on the right.

The hike: Draining most of Cumberland and Morgan Counties, Tennessee’s Obed River forms an east-west concave down arc from just south of Crossville to just north of Harriman.  (Aside: Google “concave down” if you are not a math geek and do not know what that phrase means.)  The Obed River ends at its confluence with the Emory River, and both watercourses are cliff-lined whitewater rivers for most of their distances.  Although the Obed carries more water than the Emory, the combined river takes the Emory name for the rest of its journey to the Clinch and ultimately Tennessee Rivers.

In 1976, 45 miles of the Obed River and its tributaries were designated a National Wild and Scenic River.  Administered by the National Park Service, the Obed Wild and Scenic River receives far less fanfare than eastern Tennessee’s more famous scenic rivers such as the Big South Fork or the Ocoee.  Less fanfare can have its advantages: there were only 2 other cars in the Nemo Bridge Picnic Area parking lot when I came here on a nice Sunday afternoon.

            Eventually the Cumberland Trail (CT) will pass through the river’s Nemo Access on its way from Cumberland Gap in the northeast to Chattanooga in the southeast.  Still under construction, at present the CT’s southbound Obed Wild and Scenic River Section leads 14.1 difficult miles along the Emory River’s west side to the Devil’s Breakfast Table Trailhead, while its northbound Emory River Gorge Section leads 1.3 miles along the Emory River’s east side to a dead end.  Because of the dead end, the Emory River Gorge Section sees little use, but hikers willing to venture that direction will find a nice Emory River overlook and a small waterfall before the trail deadends.  Such is the hike described here.

Old (and new) Nemo Bridge

            Either before or after your hike, you should take a few minutes and check out the old Nemo Bridge, which still stands at the south side of the Nemo Bridge Picnic Area.  Constructed in 1930 after a major flood destroyed a bridge built here in 1906, the 481 foot Camelback through truss bridge carried automobile traffic across the Emory River until the modern parallel span was built in 1999.  Today the old Nemo Bridge connects the Park Service’s campground and picnic area, and it serves as the CT’s route across the Emory River.

CT northbound trailhead

            The CT’s northbound route starts from the north side of the picnic area parking lot.  Only a brown wooden post bearing the universal hiker symbol and an arrow mark this trailhead, but the path is obvious and follows an old road.  After less than 0.1 miles, the CT turns right to begin climbing the hillside where an angler’s trail continues straight.  Another wooden post with another arrow marks this turn.

            The trail climbs the hillside via numerous excellent switchbacks as it gains about 200 feet of elevation.  When it comes to building switchbacks, the volunteers of the Cumberland Trail Conference are as good as the best and better than the rest.  At 0.25 miles, you cross a dirt road and continue climbing via a wooden staircase built in 2007 as an Eagle Scout project.

Hiking on an old road

            At the top of the steps, the trail curves left to begin following another old road on a fairly level grade.  0.7 miles into the hike, you pass below a large layered rock outcrop just before passing a nice stone bench.  Another pair of good switchbacks raises you to a ledge where tall people will have to duck to avoid an overhanging rock.

            You may hear an occasional train in the gorge below, and just shy of 1 mile you pass under a power line associated with that Norfolk Southern railroad track.  Only a couple hundred feet later, you reach the overlook that makes this hike worthwhile.  The overlook sits on a shelf created during construction of the Norfolk Southern railroad tunnel that passes through this mountain.  Located directly above a nice Emory River rapid, fantastic views can be had of the Emory and Obed Rivers’ confluence just upstream.  The cliff below you is vertical with no railings to prevent falls, so keep yourself, children, and animals well back from the edge.

Emory River overlook

Small waterfall at trail's end

            Many people turn around here, but continuing another 0.1 downhill miles on a lesser-used trail deposits you at the base of a small seasonal waterfall.  A sign here announces “End of Trail,” which is true until the CT is completed further north.  For now your only option is to turn around and retrace your steps 1 mile to the picnic area to complete the hike.  Take a few minutes to check out and read the interpretive signs on the old Nemo Bridge if you did not do so before.