Nantahala National Forest, Cliffside Lake Recreation Area: Clifftop Vista Trail (Blog Hike #663)

Trail: Clifftop Vista Trail

Hike Location: Nantahala National Forest, Cliffside Lake Recreation Area

Geographic Location: northwest of Highlands, NC (35.08054, -83.23669)

Length: 1.8 miles

Difficulty: 7/10 (Moderate/Difficult)

Date Hiked: October 2017

Overview: A short but steep loop to a vista high above Cliffside Lake.

Area Information: https://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/nfsnc/recarea/?recid=48650

Hike Route Map: https://www.mappedometer.com/?maproute=733771
Photo Highlight:

Directions to the trailhead: From Highlands, take US 64 west 4.6 miles to the signed entrance for the Cliffside Lake Recreation Area on the right.  Turn right and drive the narrow and winding but paved road 1 mile to the recreation area’s entrance.  Pay the entrance fee, then bear left at the next intersection to head for the picnic parking lot, which is reached after another 1000 feet of driving.  Park in the paved parking area loop on the left.  Restrooms with flush toilets and picnic shelters are available here.

The hike: Tucked in the Skitty Creek side ravine of the Cullasaja River Gorge, cozy Cliffside Lake Recreation Area is part of 531,270 acre Nantahala National Forest, North Carolina’s largest national forest.  Compared to Pisgah National Forest, its more famous neighbor to the east, Nantahala National Forest has fewer amenities and development, and it features rougher and wilder terrain.  Indeed, the word nantahala is the Cherokee word for “land of the noonday sun,” a name this land earns because some gorges are so steep and deep that sunlight only hits the bottom when the sun is directly overhead.  Having few amenities and development can have its advantages: mine was the only car in this parking area on a nice Thursday afternoon in mid-October.

            True to Nantahala National Forest’s character, day-use Cliffside Lake Recreation Area offers only its small namesake lake and two picnic shelters for amenities, though adjacent Vanhook Glade Campground offers 21 campsites.  Open only April through October, the Recreation Area is also the trailhead for six hiking trails, three of which form interesting dayhikes.  The Cliffside Loop Trail offers a short and nearly flat 0.8 mile loop around scenic Cliffside Lake, while the Ranger Falls Trail leads 1.2 miles to its namesake waterfall.  Ranger Falls is a nice cascading-type waterfall when it has enough water, which it often does not because it lies so high in the watershed.  The third option is the Cliffside Vista Trail featured here; it is a 1.8 mile loop that takes you to an overlook high above Cliffside Lake.

Clifftop Vista Trail trailhead

            Two trails start from the back of the parking area.  The signed Ranger Falls Trail starts on the right, so you want to take the Clifftop Vista Trail on the left, which is marked only with a brown carsonite post.  Officially labeled Trail 2A, the narrow trail heads just east of north as it passes through an area with dense rhododendron.  After topping a steep bluff, the trail traces around a tiny ravine as it descends and curves left to begin heading west.

Crossing Skitty Creek

            At 0.4 miles, you cross some wet areas via short wooden boardwalk before crossing Skitty Creek’s main channel on a wooden footbridge.  Ignore two faint trails that exit left; they both lead back to the entrance road and form easy loops of less than 1 mile.  A few blue plastic rectangles now start to mark the way.

            Next you begin a short but brutally steep climb straight up the gradient that gains 350 feet of elevation in only 0.2 miles.  Oaks are the most common trees in this forest, but no large trees grow here.  When I hiked this trail shortly after the remnants of two hurricanes blew through in quick succession, several recently downed trees lied over the path.  Overall, the trail maintenance is not bad considering how little traffic these trails receive.

Climbing the ridge

            Just shy of 0.7 miles, the trail reaches the ridge crest and curves left.  After entering a mountain laurel tunnel, a trio of switchbacks raises you to this hike’s highest elevation.  At 3910 feet, this ridge stands more than 500 feet higher than Cliffside Lake at its base, but the dense forest of young trees prevents any unobstructed views.

            The trail stays near the height-of-land on a southbound course.  After a slight descent, 1.1 miles into the hike you reach a Civilian Conservation Corps-built gazebo with a fantastic east-facing view.  While Cliffside Lake directly below you is concealed by trees, 4000+ foot Flat Mountain takes center stage in the middleground.  Some benches at the gazebo invite you to sit, have a trail snack, and enjoy the fruits of your climbing labor.

View from gazebo

            Two trails continue south from the gazebo.  The unmarked trail on the right descends the south side of the ridge via a single switchback, but choosing that option lengthens your road walk at the end.  Thus, I chose the left option, which continues to follow the blue plastic rectangles.

            Officially known at the Clifftop Nature Trail or Trail 2F, this route descends the east side of the ridge via several switchbacks.  Unlike the climb up, the descent is well-graded with decent to good switchbacks.  I heard several woodpeckers as I descended.  At 1.7 miles, the Clifftop Nature Trail ends where it intersects the entrance road at the road’s bridge over Skitty Creek.  Turn left and walk along the road the final 500 feet to the parking lot to complete the hike.

Pisgah National Forest: Pink Beds Loop Trail (Blog Hike #662)

Trail: Pink Beds Loop Trail

Hike Location: Pisgah National Forest, Pink Beds Picnic Area

Geographic Location: north of Brevard, NC (35.35342, -82.77872)

Length: 5.2 miles

Difficulty: 4/10 (Easy/Moderate)

Date Hiked: September 2017

Overview: A fairly flat lollipop loop, half along the South Fork of the Mills River and half through rolling foothills.

Area Information: https://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/nfsnc/recarea/?recid=48238

Hike Route Map: https://www.mappedometer.com/?maproute=733769
Photo Highlight:

Directions to the trailhead: From Brevard, take US 276 north 14.8 miles to the signed Pink Beds Picnic Area on the right.  Park in the large and only parking lot.

The hike: Located only 4 miles off of the Blue Ridge Parkway southwest of Asheville, the Cradle of Forestry in America celebrates the site of the first forestry school in the United States.  Originally part of the vast Biltmore Estate, the school operated from 1898 until 1909.  In 1916, Pisgah National Forest was established, and the school site and 87,000 acres of the Vanderbilt’s estate formed the nucleus of the new national forest.  The site was declared a heritage site by Congress in 1968, and today reconstructed buildings allow you to tour the school as it once was.

            While only a short system of paved trails runs through the heritage site, a more natural hiking experience can be had at the adjacent Pink Beds Picnic Area.  The origin of the pink beds’ name is not clear, but some people think it refers to the large amount of pink rhododendron that used to grow in this valley.  The 5 mile Pink Beds Loop Trail that starts at the picnic area is somewhat popular because it offers one of the area’s few fairly flat hikes of significant distance.  Nevertheless, do not be dissuaded if the picnic area parking lot is rather full as it was on my visit: most visitors never leave the picnic area, and I passed only a few other hikers on the trail.

Trailhead: Pink Beds Picnic Area

            Start at the northeast corner of the parking area where a gated two-track dirt road heads into the woods.  A wooden sign with a rough drawing of the trail’s route stands here.  After crossing a stream on a wooden footbridge, the trail splits to form its loop.  The two halves of the loop have very different flavors.  The east arm of the loop stays near the South Fork of the Mills River and has a riverside/wetland feel, while the west arm of the loop is more rolling with a foothills feel.  To get to the river more quickly, I chose to turn right and use the left trail as my return route, thus hiking the loop counterclockwise.

            The trail descends very gradually to reach the first of several boardwalks.  Built in 2013, these wide, expensive-looking boardwalks carry you over some wetlands along the river.  At some points the old boardwalk still sits beside the new, so you can clearly see the improvement.  Although a few wet areas still need to be negotiated, this part of the hike used to be much muddier and wetter than it is now.

New (left) and old (right) boardwalks

            The trail along the river alternates between sunny, grassy wetland and shady woodlands with a dense understory of rhododendron and ferns.  Orange rectangular paint blazes mark the way, but the path is wide and easy to follow for the most part.  The trail goes back and forth across the river, which at this elevation is more of a creek than a river.

Odd bridge across river

            Just past 1 mile, you cross the river on a very unusual bridge.  A huge log has fallen across the river here, and a man-made bridge carries you halfway across the river to the log, which in turn takes you the rest of the way.  I was a little concerned about footing on the log, but I had no problems crossing.  0.1 miles later, where the trail appears to dead-end at the river bank, you need to turn right and cross a narrow footbridge.  Watch for the orange blazes to stay on the trail.

Riverside hiking

            At 1.5 miles, the Pink Beds Loop Trail crosses and briefly joins the blue-blazed Barnett Branch Trail.  The Barnett Branch Trail cuts through the middle of our loop, so turning left and walking across the boardwalk would lead to the western half of our loop.  Such a route would provide a shorter loop of only 3.3 miles.  Heading east on the Barnett Branch Trail would climb 700 vertical feet to intersect the Black Mountain Trail.  Follow the orange blazes to remain on the Pink Beds Loop Trail.

            Next you climb gradually on a section of trail that was rerouted in the early 2010’s to avoid a riverside area flooded by beaver dams.  While no real overlooks are obtained, the trail gets just high enough that partially obstructed views of the Blue Ridge Parkway’s ridge crest to the west can be had through the trees.  Just past 2 miles, the trail drops steeply to return to the river and cross it for the final time.  A couple of established campsites are located in this area.

South Fork of the Mills River

            Near 2.5 miles, you reach a trail intersection.  A spur trail to a river gauging station and an alternate trailhead continues straight along the river, but our loop turns left to leave the riverside area for good.  Carsonite posts and orange blazes mark your options at this intersection.

            In another 0.4 miles, the trail curves sharply left at a turn marked by double orange blazes.  This point is where the hike changes character, as a gradual climb into the surrounding foothills now begins.  The difference between maximum and minimum elevations is only a little more than 100 feet, so the grade remains mostly gradual.  Lots of pine and oak trees live in this valley edge, and some short stretches on bare rock will need to be negotiated.

Hiking through rolling foothills

            After reaching the highest point on the hike, the trail drops to cross a pair of small streams.  The second of these stream crossings looks like a wet ford, but if you look to the right you will see a narrow but functional wooden footbridge.  At 3.6 miles, the Barnett Branch Trail crosses our trail.  Continue straight to remain on the Pink Beds Loop.

            More up and down takes you beside a sequence of wildlife openings, or meadow areas that are mowed occasionally to prevent the surrounding woodlands from encroaching.  While I saw no wildlife of note here on my mid-afternoon hike, these wildlife openings would be prime deer-viewing areas in the morning and evening.  An old Bureau of Roads marker also sits beside the trail here.

Wildlife opening

Immediately after passing the last wildlife opening, you close the loop.  Angle right to return to the picnic area parking lot and complete the hike.  Be sure to stop by the adjacent Cradle of Forestry in America to see the recreated forestry school before you conclude your visit to the Pink Beds.