American Travel Journal: Bridge and Point Trails - Obed National Wild & Scenic River

Obed National Wild and Scenic River is most known for its white-water kayaking and rock climbing potential. However, the park also has some less adrenaline-pumping opportunities. Among those is hiking on the Cumberland Trail in the Nemo area and a couple of short hikes in the Lilly Bridge area. Lilly Bridge carries Ridge Road over Clear Creek near Lancing, Tennessee. We planned to hike the Point Trail from the Lilly Bluff parking area, but did not find any place to park. Instead, we drove back down to Lilly Bridge and parked there. We hiked the 0.3 mile Bridge Trail up to the Overlook Trail, turned left away from the bluff and walked less than 100 yards to the beginning of the 1.9 mile Point Trail.

The Bridge Trail climbs over 250 feet in its short distance to produce an incline of over 15%. However, most all of the steep portions have either stone or log steps. Along the way, a side trail descends to Melton Mill Falls. Ice at the bottom of the side trail kept us from viewing the falls from its base, but we had a pleasant rest stop along the climb.

The Point Trail is relatively flat and easy, except for three places. The first is descending to cross Melton Mill Branch well above the falls and then ascending the other side. The second is to follow the arrow painted on the rock bluff to the right to scramble up a small draw leading to the cliff top. As the trail approaches the confluence of Clear Creek and the Obed River, views of both watersheds can be found. In addition, there is a small rock arch to the right of the trail on the way out to the point. The final steeper section of the trail is the relatively gentle descent to the post marking the end of the trail. In winter, both waterways can be seen from near this location, although the confluence is not visible.

We hiked at the end of January 2016. Although the air temperature climbed into the low 60s, there was still ice on the shaded portions of Ridge Road in the park as well as on the Point Trail bridge over Melton Mill Branch. I was too concerned with my footing to take photographs of the ice.