Sugarland Mountain Trail

There are trails of all lengths and descriptions in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.  Each has its own characteristics depending on elevation, water features, and the area of the park it is located.  For me, there is something special about hiking the longer trails in the park from end-to-end.  Such was the case with Monday's hike, the Sugarland Mountain Trail.  One end of the trail branches off the Appalachian Trail near Mt. Collins, accessed from the Clingmans Dome Road. The other end of the trail is on Little River Road a few miles west of the Sugarlands Visitor Center near Gatlanburg.

As the signs at each end of the trail show, there is not complete agreement on the length of the trail.

Sugarland Mountain Trail sign at the top where it joins the AT. Note the distance to Fighting Creek Gap on Little River Road is 12.1 miles.

Sugarland Mountain Trail sign at the bottom on Little River Road.  It shows 12.0 miles to the AT.

So, I don't know where the extra 0.1 of a mile is. Either way you hike it, you get from Little River Road to the AT!

Like many of the longer trails in the park, the Sugarland Mountian Trail has several distinct characteristics due to the elevation change.  Where the trail begins at the AT, the elevation is 5,900 feet; on Little River Road, the elevation is 2,300 feet.  The trail passes from a spruce-fir forest, then rhododendron and mountain laurel, deciduous hardwoods of poplar, maple and oak, and a mixed forest of pine and hardwoods.  The other great feature of this trail is for several miles it follows a fairly narrow ridge that affords great views of the surrounding mountains.

The heavy snow that fell over a week ago on the high mountains in the Smokies was still evident when we began hiking on the AT and upper Sugarlands.  It was not too slick, and we were able to get decent footing on the trail.

The Appalachian Trail near Mt. Collins.

Sugarland Mountain Trail near the AT.

Sunshine and snow.

Not far down the trail we were able to see the observation tower with its spiral ramp on 6,643 foot Clingmans Dome, the highest peak in the Smokies.  It looked small due to the distance away.  Other views included Mt. LeConte and the long spine of mountains that forms the NC/TN border and carries the Appalachian Trail.

Mt. LeConte from Sugarlands Mountain Trail

At lower elevations we entered an oak-poplar-maple forest.  This Fall has seen a heavy mast crop, and there were lots of acorns on the trail.  At our lunch spot we noticed a cache of acorns in a niche of a tree.  Not sure if a squirrel collected them, or a clever hiker who wanted to provide a conversation starter for passers-by.

A squirrel's cache for winter?

There were several large boulder fields and rocks along the trail.  Plants in the Smokies are able to root in the most unlikely places.  A rhododendron grabbed a tenuous foothold in a rock crevice.

Will it bloom next summer?

As we reached lower elevations the last of this season's color was evident.  Some maples still show yellow and reds, but the oaks seemed to be predominant with their muted red, yellow and brown leaves hanging on.

At the end of some hikes you are more than ready to reach your car.  Today, however, the hike ended before I was ready.  It was such a beautiful day, and the trail had everything that makes for a great hike in the Smokies, that an additional mile or two would have been welcome.  Not to worry though, there are several trails in this area, so I will be visiting this part of the park again, and several miles of the Sugarland Mountain Trail will be hiked.  Many thanks to the Margaret Stevenson Hikers who coordinated this hike and for arranging the key swap to avoid having to shuttle cars.