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Loop in Cataloochee by Joe Fleming 2-26-05

This loop hike is made up of 4 different trails; CALDWELL FORK, BOOGERMAN, ROUGH FORK, and  the BIG FORK RIDGE for a total of 17.6 miles. This was my first hike in the Cataloochee Valley area of the park.  It is located in the South-Eastern section.  The drive to the valley is not easy, but well worth the effort. In the pre-park days, it had a population of over 1200, making it the largest single community making up the park. The forecast for Saturday was sunny with highs around 50 degrees,  perfect weather for hiking.  Ronnie was still recovering from a bad cold, so I am on my own today.  I was on the road at 4:00 am after a breakfast at McD’s in Newport .  I was at the trailhead at 6:30 am, 116 miles from home.  At 7:00, a cool 27 degrees I am on the trail. The first section is Caldwell Fork Trail.  It begins with a 25 foot long –footlog crossing of Cataloochee Creek. At 0.8  miles I leave Caldwell Fork Trail taking Boogerman Trail.  This trail is a 3.9 mile side trip.  The Highlights of this section is a 255 acre Homestead owned by “Boogerman” Robert Palmer.  He never allowed the trees to be cut on his land.  This was a forest of Giant Hemlock, Pine and Poplars.  The trail joins Caldwell Fork Trail about 1.9  miles above my turn off.  After passing several old home sites, I came to a side trail leading 100 feet up the hill to a couple of graves marked by 2 small rocks.   The story goes:  Two men (brother-n-laws) were murdered during the Civil War by Union Soldiers.  They were buried in the same grave.  The person buried in the other grave is unknown. Moving on up Caldwell Fork Trail are the big Poplars.  They are located about 7 miles from the start and located about 100 yards off the trail.  There were 3 Giants, one was perfect and the other two were unhealthy.  Back on the trail, I have 1.4 miles to reach Rough Fork Trail.  From here it was 1.9 miles downhill to the Steve Woody Homestead.  The original log house was built in the 1880’s.  He later enlarged the house with sawn lumber.   About .9 miles the trail meets the end of the Cataloochee Road .  Here, I took the Big Fork Ridge Trail up and over the ridge 3.2 miles back to Caldwell Fork Trail. At the beginning I came to the large Elk enclosure.  This was a staging area for the Elk release in Cataloochee.  I reached Caldwell Fork Trail at 1:00 pm for the last 3.2 miles back to the trailhead.  There was 1.9 miles of this trail I had by-passed earlier on my Boogerman detour.  In this 1.9 mile section, plus the first .8 mile section there would be a 9 footlog bridge crossing.  These footlogs were from 14 paces to 26 paces in length. I was back at trailhead bridge at 1:55.  Before leaving Cataloochee Valley, I drove  past the Ranger Station.  I came upon the BIGGEST SURPRISE of the day!  The ELK were grazing in the mowed fields.   Leaving the valley I shot a few pictures of Mt. Sterling with the fire tower on top.

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